Social Innovation and Business in Taiwan

Social Innovation and Business in Taiwan

Social Innovation and Business in Taiwan I Han and Sheng-Tsung Hou

SOCIAL INNOVATION AND BUSINESS IN TAIWAN Copyright I Han and Sheng-Tsung Hou 2016 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2016 978-1-137-40561-6 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission. In accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. First published 2016 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of Nature America, Inc., One New York Plaza, Suite 4500, New York, NY 10004-1562. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. ISBN: 978 1 349 57266 3 E-PDF ISBN: 978 1 137 40381 0 DOI: 10.1057/9781137403810 Distribution in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available from the Library of Congress. A catalogue record for the book is available from the British Library.

To the taxi drivers and farmers in Taiwan

Contents List of Figures List of Tables Foreword Dr. Cheng-Shu Kao Preface ix xi xiii xv Introduction 1 1 Why Social Enterprise Matters 5 2 Theoretical Foundations 17 3 Methodology: Participatory Action Research via Industry Academia Collaboration 29 4 Taiwan Taxi Company 37 5 East-Taiwan Private Trip 57 6 Happy Yilan, Creative Countryside 69 7 The Post-WTO Rice Industry in a Local Development: The Initiatives of Chih Shang Rice Company 85 8 The Rural Community of Regeneration: Yong-An Community at Luyeh Taitung 111 9 Theoretical Implications 137 10 Practical Implications 149 11 Toward the Practice of Social Innovation for the Common Good: An Integration of Teaching Research Service 161 Notes 189 References 193 Index 211

List of Figures 1.1 Wealth Distribution by Income in the United States in the Twentieth Century 7 1.2 The Common Social Problems of the World 8 1.3 Civil Engagement and Initiatives of Social Enterprises 13 1.4 The Spectrum of Social Enterprises 15 3.1 Dimensions for Typologies of Engaged Scholarship 33 4.1 Satellite Dispatching vs. General Taxi 52 4.2 Taiwan Taxi Service Innovation System 54 A5.1 Guide Map for East-Taiwan (Hualien & Taitung Area) 66 A5.2 Concept of East-Taiwan Private Trip 67 A5.3 Business Card from Taxi Drivers (Museum Related) 67 A5.4 East-Taiwan Private Trip App (https://play.google.com/ store/apps/details?id=grasea.cloudtaxi.tourplanner) 67 A5.5 A Press Conference of the Alliance Cultural Foundation (with Chairman Stanley Yen, Wife of Taitung Magistrate Chen Ling-Yan, and Research Team from Professor Hou) 68 6.1 Yilan Introduction 70 6.2 Yilan as a Museum 70 6.3 The NPO: TAIWAN Taxi Academy Association 76 7.1 Geographic Distribution of Rice Farming 86 7.2 Traditional Model: Vertical Trade 92 7.3 The CEO/Owner of CSRC, Mr. Cheng-hsien Liang 94 7.4 Contracting Model: Collaborative Alliance 97

x LIST OF FIGURES 7.5 The Trend of Annual First-Harvest Buying Price: The Effect Chi-shang Rice USD per 100 kg (Dry, Unpolished Rice) 102 7.6 Retail Prices of Rice Brands of CSRC 102 7.7 Tourists and Participants of Something for Each Season in Chishang Event in front of Local Famous Da-Po Pond: 2012 Spring Picnicking Festival Poetry 107 8.1 Annual Growth of Rural Community Associations with Rural Regeneration Granted Projects (Year 2011 2014) 115 8.2 Mr. Chung-Hsun Liao (Right) and Mrs. Liao as the Leadership at Yong-An Community 119 8.3 Community Café and Regular Sales Display for 2626 Farmers Market 131 8.4 Monthly Official Visitors in 2009 136 9.1 Sources of Social Innovation 141 9.2 Mechanism and Process of PPP Toward Social Innovation 143 9.3 Four Stages of Social Innovations 145 9.4 Common Good System 146 10.1 Concept for Practical Implications of Social Innovation via Social Enterprise 153 10.2 Common Good Innovation System 155 10.3 Social Issues at Rural Communities 157 10.4 Relations: Region Industry Firm 159 11.1 The Five Major Elements of Strategy: Diamond Model 163 11.2 Industry University on Taxi: Strategic Analysis via Diamond Model 168 11.3 Value-Integration Model of Human Centered Teaching Research Service 182

List of Tables 2.1 Noncorporation Alternatives of Organization 20 4.1 Daily Average Passengers in Taipei Metropolitan 39 4.2 Stages of Value Created and Connotation Exchanged by Taiwan Taxi 50 4.3 Taxi Driver s Income: Comparing Satellite Dispatching vs. General Taxi 51 7.1 Major Food Policies, Post-WWII to WTO 88 7.2 Collaborative Rice Farmers and Farming Area with CSRC (per Harvest) 97 7.3 Annual First-Harvest Buying Price USD per 100 kg (Dry, Unpolished Rice) 100 7.4 Something for Each Season in Chishang Event and Number of Participants 104 8.1 Rural Community Associations with Rural Regeneration Projects: Geographic Distributions (Accumulated Numbers during Year 2011 2014) 115 8.2 A Brief Overview of Yong-An 120 8.3 Rural Regeneration Projects and Funds Granted 121 8.4 Projects and Funds Granted by Others at the Public Sector 123 8.5 Activities and Participating Number of Residents in 2009 125 8.6 Agriculture Periods for Different Products in Luyeh 129 8.7 Awards Won by Yong-An Community (Development Association) 133 11.1 Diamond Model Strategic Analysis of an Academic Career (Early Stage vs. Later Stage) 169

xii LIST OF TABLES 11.2 Diamond Model Strategic Analysis of an Industry University Collaboration (Horizontal Level of Comparisons) 171 11.3 Diamond Model Strategic Analysis of a University and a Professor (Vertical Levels of Comparisons) 174 11.4 The Outputs Based on Teaching Research Service Model on Value Exchange of Taxi Industry Collaborative Research 176 11.5 Stages on Value Creation and Value Exchange of Taxi Industry Collaborative Research 179

Foreword Among a large number of management books, this one cannot be overappreciated. Besides, both authors are not only extraordinary scholars in the field of management but also respectful humanitarians. Researchers in academia used to contrast business benefits with public welfare in a dichotomous fashion and stick to one goal. However, the authors of this book do not succumb to the simplified logic of marketing, nor do they praise public welfare naively. Via long-term field research coupled with plenty of visits to towns and villages in Taiwan, they have tried to find a brand new path of development, after gaining real-life experiences. Their foremost goal is to let people in lower socioeconomic groups, for example, taxi drivers and farmers, work and live with dignity and hope. It can be seen, from this book, that the goal is being realized through collaboration among universities, the government and industries; it is far from a cliché. In fact, in Yilan and Taitung, counties located in eastern Taiwan, this type of collaboration has been practiced, leading to the realization of public welfare. It is extremely inspiring to see such an achievement in Taiwan and the authors of this book are indeed the best witnesses and interpreters. It is my great honor to write the foreword for this special book. I have known the two authors for years; they are excellent teachers and researchers at Feng Chia University. Their endless passion for working and persistence in finding truth is highly admirable. With the book publication, a milestone has been set for us to face upcoming challenges in the future. What excites me much more is that the book will be published in Englishspeaking countries and thus unveil Taiwanese past experiences and future prospects for Western readers. I sincerely hope that this book can arouse an echo in the public as it will be truly beneficial to human society. Dr. Cheng-Shu Kao Executive Vice-Chairman & EMBA Chair Professor, Feng Chia University, Taiwan

Preface Innovation is the major source of social movement. Since the Industrial Revolution, innovation in technology has always been a major leader in modern civilization. However, innovation does not lie entirely in new technology, but also how we use it, and even how we adapt it into a new social form of organization in order to prepare for the new stage of human societies. Social innovation is how we, as a human society, innovate a new form of implementing brilliant ideas, regardless of whether new technology is adopted or not. The central focus is on the problem of human-centered innovation in order to achieve an advanced living standard, in terms of business opportunity and humane values. The world is uneven, not just in natural resources, but also in its economic systems. The Western concept of modern capitalism has made great strides in wealth creation, but, unfortunately, it has also made the world more uneven. As university professors, we live relatively well, in terms of social status as well as in our living standards. But, Why are many young students unsatisfied with the jobs they can get (or why is it that they can hardly get one)? Because they see no hope of having enough income to pay for high rents and daily expenses, not to mention the cost of buying a house/apartment in their lifetime. Why are so many people of middle-age obsolete on the job market and have no choice but to become taxi drivers and work 18 hours a day for a paycheck-to-paycheck life? Because they find no opportunity to get a job requiring skilled labor in the fast-moving technology era of human societies. Why are so many farmers telling their sons not to stay at home as farmers but find a career in a far-from-home city and to never come back? Because although agricultural production supplies daily food, one never has a chance to earn an income that is better than working in a corporation in the cities.

xvi PREFACE With a good income, we seem to live good lives. But, do we? How many of us live a good life without worrying about losing out in the competition? When we hear more and more people around us telling us more bad stories than good, what is wrong? How can we solve the problem? Winners say to losers that you should not blame the system, because you play with it. If we cannot change the uneven results of modern capitalism, how can we find a way to become another form of a non-loser? Innovation! Unfortunately, most of us neither have the talent nor the technologytraining to make progress in technology innovation. God give each one of us a brain! Innovation does not always have to be in technology form. We can use our brain to find a good way of living because we are all human beings. We know what is a good life, so we should find a way to innovate, not just for ourselves, but for our community. Yes, start from your own dreams, which each one of us has had since childhood. If you do not want to live a miserable paycheck-to-paycheck life, organize a new one. Our primary objective is to provide hope to anyone who is worried about losing his or her grounds for a good life in the current society. We demonstrate how social innovation can start from your personal dream to carry through a new form of organizing opportunities. There is always the possibility of letting our dreams come true through the years. Taxi drivers, farmers, and even university researchers, show the way, not just for themselves, but for the communities they belong to. By telling our stories, consolidated over nearly a decade of academic research, in a social practice based in Taiwan, this book shows that it is possible for one good dream to create common good for others by using social innovation. It is not only us, anyone can learn something from this book on how social innovation can be initiated, organized (across sectors), implemented, duplicated, extended, and eventually diffused into more and more people around one.

PREFACE xvii The dream of a common good is still achievable in modern societies. Do not blame capitalism for creating uneven wealth, but resolve the problem by using social innovations. There are many people who inspired us. First of all, we want to give credit to the taxi drivers and farmers in Taiwan, who have been the communities in our academic research fields over the past decade. We have learned a lot from their street wisdom. Given that most of them live and work in difficult conditions, they remain well and continue to fight for their lives. When the morning sunrise gives hope, the storm destroys everything, but let it be. They deserve a better life and a better living, and social innovations can make it happen. We are honored by the foreword from Dr. Cheng-Shu Kao, executive vicechairman and EMBA Chair Professor, Feng Chia University, and endorsements from Stan Shih, founder, Acer Group, Dr. Jing-Jyi Wu, Endowed Chair in Creativity, National Chengchi University Center for Creativity and Innovation Studies, and Dr. Dung-Sheng Chen, National Taiwan University. They are among the most influential scholars and industry leaders in Taiwan, with a humane interest in businesses, education, and societies in Taiwan as well as in the overseas Chinese world. We thank them for their precious time spent in reading our book and providing appreciation. We thank the years of funding for our field research, including research projects granted by the Ministry of Science Technology in Taiwan (MOST103-2410-H-035-044; MOST103-2410-H-035-034-SSS), National Science Council in Taiwan (NSC 101-2410-H-035-044; NSC 100-2410- H-035-046; NSC 99-2627-E-002-004; NSC 101-2410-H-035-042-MY3; NSC 99-2410-H-035-010-MY2), Council of Agriculture (050101Q104), and Ministry of Education (National Chengchi University Top University Project). In addition, Feng Chia University, Center for Creativity and Innovation Studies of National Chengchi University, Sayling Wen Cultural & Educational Foundation, and The Keep Walking Fund provided funds to support our dreams in academia- industry collaborative research. We thank Feng Chia University. Both of us work in this great university, supportive of our dreams, at SIMD (Center for Service Innovation and Mobility Design). Since the launch of SIMD, we ve been devoted to finding ways we can achieve something by doing good rather than something to gain credit (e.g., SSCI publications, research project grants,...). The board and some senior colleagues, including Cheng-Shu Kao, Pao-Long Chang, Bing-Jean Lee, Ming-Hsien Yang, Chyi-Ren Dow, Wei Wang, Benray Jai, Wen-Shang Lai, and many others provided physical and intangible resources and support for our center in the past three years. Centered at SIMD, we also now organize a loosely structured peer, called Cheers.

xviii PREFACE Cheers invites junior scholars to discuss ideas, not just in research, but on how to make a social impact beyond the SSCI impact factor. Members include Jennifer Chen (Nanwha University), Jimmy Lo (National Chinan University), CF Lee (Shih Chien University), Shiu-Ying Huang (Feng Chia University), and Jui-Ling Hsu (Feng Chia University). Thanks to Cheers members for regularly engaging in research, teaching, and service dialogues at SIMD. More importantly, we always have a good lunch or dinner after the meeting in order to get inspired by food as well as friendship! We also thank our research assistants. First, we thank Jason Yang, who is a very smart and responsive college student at Feng Chia University. Without him, this book would not be delivered on schedule. Second, we thank Wan-Chien Lien, who is a doctoral student at National Chengchi University. She has always been helpful whenever we need instant assistance. Third, we thank Casey David Sams, who is an American studying in the IMBA program at Feng Chia University. He offered help on editing the book and also provided comments to make the chapters more interesting. Most importantly, we thank all of our mentors and collaborative research participants. This includes Dr. Se-Hwa Wu at the Ministry of Education, Dr. Dung-Sheng Chen and Dr. Jason Chang at the National Taiwan University, Dr. Ming-Jer Chen at the Darden School, University of Virginia, Dr. Reuy-Lin Hsiao at National Chengchi University, Chang-Shou Yen at Alliance Cultural Foundation, Cheng-hsien Liang at Chih Shang Rice Company, Chung-Hsun Liao and his wife Yu-Ping Wu at Yong-An Community, the many taxi drivers at TAIWAN Taxi Academy Association, and the many rice farmers and residences at Chi-shang Township. I Han and Sheng-Tsung Hou February, 2015