Global Taiwan examines the impact of globalization on the industry and economy of Taiwan since the spectacular growth of the 1990s. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with firms in Taiwan, China, the United States, Japan, Europe, and other areas, the book analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Taiwanese firms at a time when they face new competition from powerful global leaders and new producers in China. The contributors cover topics of enormous importance for Taiwan as well as the rest of the world, including transformations in the international economy, technological advances that enabled modularization and fragmentation of the production system, contract manufacturers, regionalization, and links with Chinese industry. The book addresses such questions as: Can Taiwanese companies be maintained and expanded with the same corporate strategies and public policies as in the past? Can these strategies still work for other countries? If changes are required, what resources can be mobilized in the public and private sectors? As massive relocation of manufacturing and services moves plants and jobs to low-wage countries like China and India, what will remain at home in societies like Taiwan?

Global Taiwan examines the impact of globalization on the industry and economy of Taiwan since the spectacular growth of the 1990s. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with firms in Taiwan, China, the United States, Japan, Europe, and other areas, the book analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Taiwanese firms at a time when they face new competition from powerful global leaders and new producers in China. The contributors cover topics of enormous importance for Taiwan as well as the rest of the world, including transformations in the international economy, technological advances that enabled modularization and fragmentation of the production system, contract manufacturers, regionalization, and links with Chinese industry. The book addresses such questions as: Can Taiwanese companies be maintained and expanded with the same corporate strategies and public policies as in the past? Can these strategies still work for other countries? If changes are required, what resources can be mobilized in the public and private sectors? As massive relocation of manufacturing and services moves plants and jobs to low-wage countries like China and India, what will remain at home in societies like Taiwan?

The seminal work of Michael Porter in the 1980s provided a conceptual basis to competitor analysis which has stood the test of time. The emphasis of his work, and of many books by other authors which followed it, has been on the why and what of competitor analysis. David Hussey and Per Jenster's book moves beyond this to the problems faced by organizations in applying the concepts at a practical level. It shows how real companies can use competitor intelligence and analysis in real situations.
Three major strands are drawn out by this book, which shows how to:

• obtain competitor information in a legitimate way
• analyse information so that competitors can be better understood, and strategic options explored
• develop ways of achieving competitive advantage which may move the organization ahead of others in the industry

Contents:
1. Introduction: Knowledge, networks, and space
2. Provoking academic inquiry
3. Knowledge, learning, and innovation
4. Learning, networks, and space
5. Framework for analysis
6. Analysis of the KIC project
7. Conclusion and reflection

This unique volume sets forth a managerial paradigm for helping companies to compete and prosper in a global market that is increasingly dominated by Japan, Germany and the emerging EEC. While emphasis on short-term profitability has been widely recognized as a serious handicap for companies that compete internationally, editors Stahl and Bounds reveal the full scope of the competitiveness problem. Traditional business theory, practice, and culture are deeply rooted in short-term, non-customer-oriented indicators such as stock price, volume of shipments, and quarterly earnings. These indicators, however, are no longer effective. According to Stahl and Bounds, companies need to structure themselves around net customer value--what the customer receives minus what the customer sacrifices. The book shows how organizations that focus on net customer value will ultimately enjoy more profits, market share, and customer loyalty than those based on short-term financial results. The contributors propose, as an alternative management model, a detailed, analytic paradigm that provides specific ways to identify, measure, monitor, produce, and improve customer value. Most importantly, they demonstrate why U.S. companies that want to survive and prosper in a competitive global economy will benefit from this management model.

Delivering customer value involves all areas of business management. This book provides a significant methodological breakthrough by proposing new models for costing, product development, production and inventory control, process control, logistics management, marketing, finance, and human resources. With contributions by 42 authors from academia and business, this volume delineates structural systems and practical programs for obtaining better business results through improved quality and customer satisfaction. Many of the top Fortune 500 corporations are now training their managers in the customer value paradigm. Managers in competitive markets who do not fully understand the tenets, implications, and techniques of the customer value model set forth in this book face a serious barrier to business success.

There are competing theories to explain the reasons behind the international competitiveness of manufacturing in Asia. Analysing these different theories will bring important lessons, not just for Asia, but for developing economies the world over.
This lucid book studies industries and firms in East Asia and examines the major determinants of their economic performance. With contributions from such leading thinkers as Ha-Joon Chang and Rajah Rasiah, the book covers such themes as:
*industrial policy and East Asia
*Taiwan's information technology industry
*The role of the government in technological capability building
Manufacturing Competitiveness in Asia touches on many important themes and issues and as such will be of great interest to students, academics and policy-makers involved in industrial economics, international trade and Asian studies.

The subject of Intangibles and knowledge management is becoming increasingly significant, particularly in the realms of finance, marketing and strategy. Intangibles are the nebulous but vital aspects of companies, for example, R&D, knowledge creation, corporate identity and marketing and advertising expenditures, which are now unanimously considered to be the most important factors in the strategic positioning of organisations today. This comprehensive volume provides an integrated and original approach to intangible resource management and an evaluation of their contribution to the establishment of competitive advantage in the market place.

Related link: International association for Management of technology webpage
eBook available with sample pages: 0203465032

Design is an important factor in business success. This book, first published in 1989, analyses what the role of design is in business success; just what design is; and how both design and its management might be improved. It draws on extensive original research by the authors in eighty-seven companies regarded as leaders in the field of export and technological achievement and it reports on the experiences of these companies. Among the book's many important conclusions and recommendations for improved practice are: that design, rather than price, is the key factor in determining customer/user satisfaction; and that success with design is the leading characteristic of firms that compete successfully in international markets.

This book, first published in 1974, presents the findings of a research project and considers their implications for public policy. The project was designed to find out what effect the 1956 Restrictive Trade Practices Act (and the subsequent legislation of 1968) had on British industry. The Act was a decision in favour of competition against a background of well-entrenched and widespread restrictive agreements, and this book examines in depth its impact in eighteen selected industries.

This book, first published in 1983, is primarily concerned with the economic policies of the European Economic Community and the European Coal and Steel Community. It explains in detail how the common market was established and how it was maintained. Free competition cannot be created merely by removing customs duties and quotas: it is also necessary to attack the many non-tariff barriers which would otherwise impede free movement. Moreover, the Community sought to develop an industrial policy, notably in relation to the ECSC, to provide a stance towards declining industries suffering from Developing World competition.

Relationship Marketing: Creating Stakeholder Value extends the analysis of the change in the marketing rationale from a crude concern for increased market share to a strategy aimed at creating long-term profitable relationships with targeted customers.Offering a cutting edge vision of relationship marketing, Relationship Marketing: Creating Stakeholder Value is a seminal text for all students and managers in the field. With new up-to-date case materials and examples of best practice, the book covers all the stakeholder markets - employees, suppliers, influencers, customers and consumers - for which the relationship approach is critical. It also provides crucial advice on how to develop, integrate and implement the various strands of a successful relationship strategy.

This volume considers how media firms, as well as entire industries, exist and persist over time despite what often seems to be intense competition for such resources as audiences and advertisers. Addressing competition within and among media organizations and industries, including broadcasting, cable, and the Internet, author John W. Dimmick studies the media industries through the niche theory lens, developed by bioecologists to explain competition and coexistence. He examines the targets of the different media--audience, advertisers, money--and how they compete, using examples from a variety of studies.
Each chapter incorporates relevant economic constructs into the analytic framework. This approach includes the use of economics of scale to explain selection and firm mortality in newspapers and movie theaters; the application of the transaction costs concept to explicate the rise of advertising agencies; the employment of the strategic group concept in analyzing the niche breadth strategy; and the measurement of gratifications-utilities.
A comprehensive overview of the determinants of media competition and coexistence, "Media Competition and Coexistence: The Theory of the Niche" offers unique insights for scholars, students, researchers, and practitioners in media economics, management, and business.

This book examines the relationship between competitive strategies and the use of temporary employees. An organization's choice of strategy is predicted to impact its decision to use temporary workers. The study shows that firms differ in their competitive strategies and their respective use of temporary employment, which in turn impacts organizational performance. The way in which temporary employment use and firm strategy interact to affect organizational performance depends on the manner in which performance is measured.

This path-breaking book examines the effects of multinationals on the competitiveness of industry in the UK. The in-depth investigation analyses how these firms gain access to technology and questions whether or not multinationals, in their support of local technologies, improve the potential and competitiveness of local industry. The book discusses the evolution of multinationals in the late twentieth century, the role of the UK in this evolution and the theories of multinationals. It examines what these theories imply for efficiency and welfare, and the policies which affect multinational enterprises (MNEs). The authors consider the strategic positioning of subsidiaries in the UK in relation to the firm's overall global investment strategy. Using detailed empirical surveys, they also look at the role of technology in multinationals and how these firms' strategies are developing in regard to this. The authors examine whether MNEs UK operations are dependent on existing technology or whether they play a more positive role in its local creation and use. Finally the role of decentralized R&D in multinationals, and the status of this in the UK, is considered. Multinationals, Technology and National Competitiveness will be welcomed by those interested in international investment, business strategy, technology and innovation and public policy.

Contents:
1. Interest Rates and Budget Deficits: A study of the advanced economies Kanhaya L Gupta and Bakhtiar Moazzami 2. World Trade after the Uruguay Round: Prospects and policy options for the twenty-first century Edited by Harald Sander and Andras Inotai 3. The Flow Analysis of Labour Markets Edited by Ronald Schettkat 4. Inflation and Unemployment: Contributions to a new macroeconomic approach Edited by Alvaro Cencini and Mauro Baranzini 5. Macroeconomic Dimensions of Public Finance: Essays in honour of Vito Tanzi Edited by Mario I Blejer and Teresa M Ter-Minassian 6. Fiscal Policy and Economic Reforms: Essays in honour of Vito Tanzi Edited by Mario I Blejer and Teresa M Ter-Minassian 7. Competition Policy in the Global Economy: Modalities for co-operation Edited by Leonard Waverman, William S. Comanor and Akira Goto 8. Working in the Macro Economy: A study of the US labour market Martin F.J. Prachowny 9. How Does Privatization Work? Edited by Anthony Bennett 10. The Economics and Politics of International Trade: Freedom and Trade: Volume II Edited by Gary Cook 11. The Legal and Moral Aspects of International Trade: Freedom and Trade: Volume III Edited by Asif Qureshi, Hillel Steiner and Geraint Parry 12. Capital Markets and Corporate Governance in Japan, Germany and the United States: Organizational response to market inefficiencies Helmut M. Dietl 13. Competition and Trade Policies: Coherence or Conflict Edited by Einar Hope 14. Rice: The primary commodity A.J.H. Latham 15. Trade, Theory and Econometrics: Essays in honour of John S. Chipman Edited by James C. Moore, Raymond Riezman, and James R. Melvin 16. Who Benefits from Privitisation? Edited by Moazzem Hossain and Justin Malbon 17. Towards a Fair Global Labour Market: Avoiding the New Slave Trade Ozay Mehmet, Errol Mendes and Robert Sinding 18. Models of Futures Markets Edited by Barry Goss 19. Venture Capital Investment: An agency analysis of UK practice Gavin C. Reid 20. Macroeconomic Forecasting: A sociological approach Robert Evans 21. Multimedia and Regional Economic Restructuring Edited by Hans-Joachim Braczyk, Gerhard Fuchs and Hans-Georg Wolf 22. The New Industrial Geography: Regions, regulation and institutions Edited by Trevor J. Barnes and Meric S. Gertler 23. The Employment Impact of Innovation: Evidence and Policy Edited by Marco Vivarelli and Mario Pianta 24. International Health Care Reform: A legal, economic and political analysis Colleen Flood 25. Competition Policy Analysis Edited by Einar Hope

The Political Economy of Competitiveness offers an original perspective on the relationship between economic theory and policy. It places the issues within an accessible political economy perspective.
Rejecting the narrowness of mainstream economics the authors deploy an interdisciplinary approach to the problem of economic growth, placing it in its historical and political context. Issues covered include:
* trade theory and policy
* industrial decline and policy
* markets, competition and innovation
* globalisation, unemployment and government policy.
The book provides a valuable guide to the major economic policy issues for both economists and business students.

A complete guide for turning a relocation plan into a reality
The Office Relocation Sourcebook provides relocation teams, at firms of all sizes, with the background information and practical guidance they need to pull off a relocation project cost-effectively and with a minimum of disruption to the employees being moved. Written by the head of the Human Factors Group at Exxon Biomedical Sciences, Inc., this valuable resource:
* Arms you with all the forms, checklists, surveys, and summaries guaranteed to make any office relocation project as painless and cost-efficient as possible
* Guides you step by step through the entire relocation process, from the initial planning stages to post-project evaluation
* Covers both the nuts-and-bolts issues and crucial human factors side of the relocation equation
* Features a computer disk packed with valuable relocation tools, including a comprehensive relocation template

Take the sting out of your next relocation project with The Office Relocation Sourcebook.
Office relocation is one of the most challenging aspects of a facility professional's job. This challenge and the thrill of meeting it are even greater for members of the relocation team who have had little or no prior relocation experience. To begin with, there are the thousand and one logistical details that go into the designing, planning, and implementation of a relocation project. Then, there is the seemingly impossible task of keeping affected employees happy and supplied with everything they need to perform their jobs--without running into massive cost overruns.
The Office Relocation Sourcebook takes the sting out of relocation. Written by an author with twenty-five years' experience in facility management and human factors design, this valuable resource provides all the background information and practical guidance needed to pull off a cost-effective relocation project with a minimum of disruption. These methods and techniques are appropriate for firms of any size, regardless of the number of employees being relocated.
Writing in a warm, conversational style, peppered with handy checklists, summaries, and survey tools, Dennis Attwood guides you step by step through the entire relocation process, from the initial planning stages to post-project evaluation. He provides coverage of nuts-and-bolts issues through the human factors side of the relocation equation. For instance, Attwood explores workers' reasons for resisting relocation and describes innovative communication techniques that can substantially reduce employee resistance and the common adverse side effects of disrupting the workplace. In his discussion of work system planning, he compares traditional design arrangements, such as the neighborhood and team concepts, with alternative workplace strategies, including reuse of existing office space, and the office outside of the company.
The enclosed disk supplies a variety of useful tools and, in addition to the forms and checklists found in the book, arms you with a valuable relocation template.
Make your next office relocation project a success with The Office Relocation Sourcebook.

Drawing on the theoretical resources of institutional economics, The New Industrial Geography opens new perspectives in economic geography. In its focus on historical and geographical context, institutional embeddedness, and tacit rules and formal regulations, institutional economics is shown to be the perfect basis for understanding the profound economic and geographical changes of the last two decades, and on which also to build a new kind of industrial geography. Issues covered include: the retheorization of the geography of industrial districts; the analysis of institutional 'thickness', and the economic-geographical effects of institutional rigidity and sclerosis; the economic-geographical consequences of new regulatory bodies and policies; and the geographically situated character of institutions and regulatory frameworks, and the effects of separating them from their originating context; the development of new strategies for achieving more equitable forms of regional development.


eBook available with sample pages: 020302186X

This book is the outgrowth of shared interests between the editors and the contributing authors to provide a multidisciplinary perspective in evaluating universal service policy and recommending policy changes to accommodate a more competitive telecommunications environment. The book is interdisciplinary in nature to reflect the extremely complex context in which universal service policy is formed. The chapter authors represent a broad cross-section of disciplinary training, professional positions, and relationships in the telecommunications industry. Academic disciplines represented include law, economics, anthropology, communication, and business.
This book's purpose is to significantly enhance the development of effective telecommunications universal service policy among policymakers, industry members, and stakeholders in the United States. Universal service policy has been, and will continue to be, both enabled and constrained by the simultaneous interaction of social, political, technological, and economic forces in the environment in which it is formed. A more effective process for policy design is to seek agreement on how entitlements embedded in universal service policy should be modified as circumstances invariably change over time. Therefore, the volume reflects recent significant developments in U.S. universal service policy--the implementation of which continues to unfold.

This book is the outgrowth of shared interests between the editors and the contributing authors to provide a multidisciplinary perspective in evaluating universal service policy and recommending policy changes to accommodate a more competitive telecommunications environment. The book is interdisciplinary in nature to reflect the extremely complex context in which universal service policy is formed. The chapter authors represent a broad cross-section of disciplinary training, professional positions, and relationships in the telecommunications industry. Academic disciplines represented include law, economics, anthropology, communication, and business.
This book's purpose is to significantly enhance the development of effective telecommunications universal service policy among policymakers, industry members, and stakeholders in the United States. Universal service policy has been, and will continue to be, both enabled and constrained by the simultaneous interaction of social, political, technological, and economic forces in the environment in which it is formed. A more effective process for policy design is to seek agreement on how entitlements embedded in universal service policy should be modified as circumstances invariably change over time. Therefore, the volume reflects recent significant developments in U.S. universal service policy--the implementation of which continues to unfold.

This volume examines the nature of interfirm networks and their role in promoting industrial competitiveness. Where previous work in this area has tended to be descriptive, the distinguished contributors to this volume present a balanced theoretical and empirical approach to interfirm networking drawing on a variety of international case studies. Issues covered include:
* The role of networks in regulating conflict and producing co-operation
* The role of networks in developing knowledge and competences
* Network governance and conflict intensive networks

Exploring the thorny issues of industrial organisation, competition policy and liberalization in the Asia-Pacific region, this book examines the ways in which governments regulate business. Using case studies from China, the USA, New Zealand, Thailand, Malaysia and Japan, the authors take a comparative look at the evolution of policies and their implementation on the ground.
With a specific focus on the energy, transport and telecommuncations sectors, this book represents the most up-to-date analysis of the ways in which governments in the Asia-Pacific are coping with rapid industrial and economic change.

Innovation in East Asia is the first book to show how 'latecomer' firms from Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore have caught up technologically with Japan and learned to innovate. Mike Hobday examines the technology acquisition strategies of these firms, their strengths and weaknesses, and the origin and extent of latecomer innovation in the region.A series of detailed case studies is used to show how individual companies developed and how large groups of firms formed industrial clusters from behind the technology frontier. Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore have emerged as dynamic and distinct forces for growth and innovation. Increasingly the competitive challenge to Japan comes from these countries rather than from Europe and America. The book extends conventional innovation theory to develop an analytical framework for understanding the strengths, weaknesses and future prospects of latecomer firms. The book will be welcomed by academics, policymakers, students, government bodies and companies concerned with the rise of East Asia. It will be of particular interest to countries facing the competitive challenge of East Asia (the US and Europe) as well as Japan and the individual countries of the Asian region.

Praise for Wide Angle Vision "In this book, Wayne Burkan shows us that the vantage points from which we view and act can earn us critical advantages if we are willing to stretch our thoughts and practices beyond the edge of conventional thinking." - Robert W. Galvin Chairman of the Executive Committee and former CEO of Motorola "Wayne Burkan's Wide-Angle Vision is a very pragmatic and useful guide to dealing with and implementing change. His concept of 'edge' as it relates to customers, employees, and competitors should help many organizations struggling with the rapidly changing marketplace and the endless panaceas being promoted." - David R. Stamper Vice President and General Manager, Hitachi Data Systems, Latin American Division "At Southwest Airlines, we redefined air transportation by utilizing 'edge thinking.' Wayne Burkan is offering a 'flight plan' that if studied, understood, and followed, will improve your bottom line for the long term. If you really want to be on the 'leading edge' for your product or service, this is the place to begin." - Howard Putnam Speaker, author, and former CEO of Southwest Airlines "Wayne Burkan has brought our attention to a great source of potential opportunities for profitable growth if we take his advice and really listen to those challenging customers, potential customers, small competitors, and unhappy employees whom we often want to dismiss as difficult." - D. H. Davis President and Chief Operating Officer, Rockwell International Corporation "Strategically thought-provoking! It's just what busy leaders need to ensure they are focused on gaining a competitive edge. An easy-to-read wake up call for organizations and managers. Wayne Burkan challenges us to confront the perils of tunnel vision and the promise of a wider perspective. So simple, so clear, so right!" - Donald Himelfarb President, Thrifty Rent-A-Car System, Inc. Conventional business wisdom says to get close to your best customers, watch your biggest competitors, and reward your model employees. This controversial book offers a contrarian viewpoint and introduces a dynamic new way to compete-by broadening your focus beyond mainstream thinking to spot the critical opportunities at the edge of your core business. Wide-Angle Vision opens your eyes to the "edge," from "little guy" competitors preparing to take over the market to disgruntled customers and maverick employees whose complaints can lead to great ideas for change. Listening to complaining employees pays off. That's where the idea for Java(r) , Sun Microsystems' successful Internet programming system, came from. With Wide-Angle Vision, now you can learn how to use "edge" groups to sharpen your competitiveness by reducing surprise, increasing innovation, and satisfying customers. Filled with compelling examples from a range of industries and drawing on Wayne Burkan's extensive consulting experience with IBM, Ford, and others, Wide-Angle Vision equips you with specific action techniques that can enable you to: Anticipate crises before they occur by using "splatter vision," scenarios, and benchmarking Find breakthrough solutions to difficult problems by looking outside your field Create powerful, flexible teams that work-from "edge" teams to ideal teams Reduce resistance to organizational change through skillful timing, finding perfect change agents, and more Reengineer with lower risk and greater efficiency, using an effective seven-step plan for change Avoid tunnel vision by broadening your perspective-to the edges of what's happening in the mainstream In today's rapidly changing marketplace, opportunities are all around you. Wide-Angle Vision gives you the power to look them in the eye and develop the daring skills you need to be a leading-and lasting-"edge" competitor.

It is widely recognized that the performance and development of firms are heavily influenced by their environment and that the conditions that prevail in the local or regional milieu seem to be particularly important. Furthermore, the fact that economic, entrepreneurial and innovative activities tend to agglomerate at certain places, leading to patterns of national and regional specialization, is increasingly seen to give important insights into the very process of firm competitiveness and industrial transformation. Drawing on other literature and case study material from selected industries, and elaborating on key concepts such as firms and competencies, industries and industrial systems, and competitiveness and prosperity, the authors set out to answer some broad research questions such as what is competition about in today's economy, and how is the performance of firms and industries related to space and place?; why do geographical areas (local milieus, cities, regions, countries) specialize in particular types of economic activity?; and why do patterns of specialization, once in place, tend to be so tremendously durable?