This study explores sustainable management principles by analyzing the management philosophy and practices of Korean mid-sized and small enterprise CEOs from the perspective of emotional science. As the founder who has managed Auvil Co., Ltd. for 13 y...
This study explores sustainable management principles by analyzing the management philosophy and practices of Korean mid-sized and small enterprise CEOs from the perspective of emotional science. As the founder who has managed Auvil Co., Ltd. for 13 years, I conducted in-depth interviews with 10 CEOs and employed an autoethnographic approach to identify emotion as the fundamental driving force of management activities. The theoretical foundation combines the concept of gungri-dokhaeng (窮理篤行, investigating principles and practicing earnestly) presented in Toegye's Seonghak Sipdo (聖學十圖, Ten Diagrams on Sage Learning) with Spinoza's theory of causa sui (self-cause). In particular, by applying the concepts of 'body-becoming' and 'body-play' from emotional science developed by Kookmin University's Department of Cultural Intersection Studies to management practices, this research reinterprets emotion not as an object to be managed but as the essence of management itself.
The findings reveal that successful CEOs utilize emotions as strategic resources rather than suppressing them. Working 363 days out of 365 with passion, the courage to start selling fish cakes while setting aside pride, and the determination to build trust while accepting a 300 million won loss—all represent management choices driven by emotion. Entrepreneurs create something from nothing through passion, succession entrepreneurs pursue balance between tradition and innovation, and professional managers utilize emotion in management through systematic approaches. Additionally, the study discovered characteristics of a Korean management model including the consistency of gyeong (敬, reverence), the field-centeredness of gyeokmuljiji (格物致知, investigating things and extending knowledge), and the flexibility of sijung (時中, timeliness). Family-oriented organizational culture, long-term trust relationships, and field-centeredness emerged as strengths of Korean companies that differentiate them from Western management models.
This research holds significance in establishing the theoretical foundation for emotional science management theory, presenting a Korean management model that integrates Eastern and Western philosophy, and providing actionable methodologies for CEOs. Another important contribution is the re-examination of the management value of uniquely human emotional capabilities in the AI era.