Most of us know there is a payoff to looking good, and in the quest for beauty we spend countless hours and billions of dollars on personal grooming, cosmetics, and plastic surgery. But how much better off are the better looking? Based on the evidence, quite a lot. The first book to seriously measure the advantages of beauty, "Beauty Pays" demonstrates how society favors the beautiful and how better-looking people experience startling but undeniable benefits in all aspects of life. Noted economist Daniel Hamermesh shows that the attractive are more likely to be employed, work more productively and profitably, receive more substantial pay, obtain loan approvals, negotiate loans with better terms, and have more handsome and highly educated spouses. Hamermesh explains why this happens and what it means for the beautiful--and the not-so-beautiful--among us.

Exploring whether a universal standard of beauty exists, Hamermesh illustrates how attractive workers make more money, how these amounts differ by gender, and how looks are valued differently based on profession. He considers whether extra pay for good-looking people represents discrimination, and, if so, who is discriminating. Hamermesh investigates the commodification of beauty in dating and how this influences the search for intelligent or high-earning mates, and even examines whether government programs should aid the ugly. He also discusses whether the economic benefits of beauty will persist into the foreseeable future and what the "looks-challenged" can do to overcome their disadvantage.

Reflecting on a sensitive issue that touches everyone, "Beauty Pays" proves that beauty's rewards are anything but superficial.

This indispensable Handbook examines both economic and legal aspects of competition policy and industrial organization. It provides a scholarly review of the state of the art regarding economic theory, empirical evidence and standards of legal evaluation. The book aims primarily at furthering our understanding of the interplay between economic reasoning and legal expertise by concentrating on the fundamental issues and principles underlying competition policy. Following a comprehensive introduction, the authors investigate a number of important themes including: * the natural limits of competition * efficiency versus market power * small firms, innovation and competition * trade policy and competition policy * financial services * the political economy of antitrust * dominance and monopolization * identifying anti-trust markets * competition policy versus regulation * competition policy in a globalized economy. Each of the specially commissioned chapters, written by leading authorities in the field, provides a stimulating exploration of the intricacies of competition policy. The book will be accessible to a wide audience including students of economics and law, public administrators, lawyers, consultants and business managers. It will also be of particular interest to policymakers in EU accession countries who are required to introduce an appropriate legal framework to implement EU competition policy.

Globalisation has had a major impact on manufacturing competitiveness and industrial development in transitional and developing economies. This up-to-date book critically examines the experience of a wide range of countries, focusing on the policy challenges they face in the new global economy. The rising demand for manufactured goods is causing increased pressure on developing and transitional countries to introduce policies aimed at enhancing productivity, mobilising resources, building capabilities and changing internal structures. Yet policymakers face difficult trade-offs between allocative efficiency and sustainable development. This book begins by looking at key policy issues in manufacturing including international best practices, policy convergence and policy benchmarking. The discussion then moves on to discuss the measurement of manufacturing competitiveness and the policies necessary for companies to compete successfully in the new global economy. The policy recommendations are underpinned through a wide range of case studies from different regions and countries. The book offers policymakers, scholars and researchers a unique perspective, and serves as a comprehensive guide for formulating policies vital for national industrial development and integration into the world economy. It will help those concerned with policy formulation in developing and transitional countries take informed decisions and better cope with the challenges and opportunities of the global economy.

This monograph addresses two problems surrounding the interpretation and application of Article 81 of the EC Treaty - what is competition and how does Article 81 ensure that competition is protected. After over 40 years of application and a period of modernisation, decentralisation, and reflection, it is possible to understand Article 81 and what it seeks to achieve. The monograph's aim is to reveal the intellectual order and rational structure underlying the law so as to enable the reader to understand Article 81 in a clear and rigorous manner. This is done by breaking Article 81 down into its constituent elements and examining the function that each element serves. Arguing that jurisdiction rests on a public/private distinction, both the substantive and the justificatory rules are cast to generate obligations appropriate for private actors to perform. Actors and activities falling within the scope of Article 81 are subject to the substantive element prohibiting contrived reductions in output. Since output reduction can co-exist with cost reduction/innovation, and that these latter features are desirable, cost reduction and innovation operate to justify infringement of the substantive obligation. Thus this monograph argues that output, cost and innovation are the only legitimate issues in an Article 81 analysis. It is in this sense that the monograph is concerned with the boundaries of Article 81 EC.

In the new world of work, agility is a business imperative. Agile HR is a practical guide written specifically for people professionals on how the HR function can develop agile processes and practices that save time, boost performance and support overall business goals. From small tech start-ups or large traditional companies, organizations need to be fast, flexible and digitally empowered to succeed. However, too many companies are stuck with siloed, compliance-driven HR processes that work in opposition to the business rather than supporting it. This results in the view that HR is slow and out of touch. However, Agile HR shows that this doesn't need to be the case. Covering every aspect of the HR function from people processes, ways of working and HR services to organization design, operating models and HR teams, Agile HR is an essential guide for all HR practitioners wanting to make their HR practices agile and drive business performance but don't know where to start. As well as guidance on how to deal with resistance, manage a backlog and deal with constraints, there is also invaluable guidance on how HR can prioritize effectively and assess which activities to pursue, which to develop, which to rework and which to abandon in order to achieve continuous business improvement. Supported by case studies from organizations who have seen the benefits of an agile approach to HR including Sky Betting & Gaming and MUJI, this is critical reading for all HR professionals in organizations of any size needing to adopt fast, flexible and evolving agile approaches to effectively compete in the new world of work.

In the current turbulent business environment, there is a premium on trust. It has become a much desired resource in business organizations, but at the same time it has remained a very elusive idea. How to build and preserve trust, how to cope with opportunism and distrust, and how they affect organizational performance are crucial problems. This original book is the first to offer a wide-ranging study of trust within and between organizations from the perspective of several social and management sciences. The specially commissioned contributionsmany from well-known expertscombine theoretical analysis of problems around trust with empirical study in a range of different organizations in contexts such as China, Japan, India, the US, as well as several European countries. The many issues covered by the book include the relationship between trust and power, trust and law, how to build trust where there was previously none, the impact of trust on performance, and the fragility of trust in different societal contexts. The wide theoretical scope, together with the range of organizational settings and the rich empirical detail of behaviour around trust and opportunism, make this an important and instructive volume.

Strong forces of change are reshaping the management landscape. TodayAEs business environment is fraught with uncertainty, diverse global players, rapid technological change, widespread price wars, and seemingly endless reorganization. The editors and contributors of Managing in Times of Disorder demonstrate that a far-reaching shift has occurred in the venture of competition that has resulted in a new organizational paradigmuhypercompetition. The innovative chapters in this groundbreaking volume form a complex fabric of new theoretical frameworks, models, strategies, organizational forms, and interdisciplinary methods that address hypercompetitive environments in a radically new way. The authorsAE findings reveal new patterns of language, metaphor, structure, and strategy that are necessary for business survival in chaotic times. Managing in Times of Disorder will be of interest to students and professionals in organization studies and management.

In today's volatile business environment the last remaining source of truly sustainable competitive advantage lies in `organizational capabilities': the unique ways each organization structures its work and motivates its people to achieve clearly articulated strategic objectives.

This landmark volume helps managers to understand the concepts and learn the skills involved in designing their organization to exploit their inherent strengths. Tushman and Nadler present a design process, explore key decisions managers face, and list the guiding principles for incorporating the design function as a continuing and integral process in organizations that are looking to the future.

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.

Global Strategy: Competing in the Connected Economy details how firms enter, compete and grow in foreign markets. Jain moves away from the traditional focus on developed countries and their multinational enterprises, instead focusing on both developed and emerging economies, as well as their interaction in an increasingly connected world. As the current global business environment is increasingly shaped-and connected-by faster technological developments, geopolitical forces, emerging economies, and new multinationals from those economies, this highly charged dynamic provides rich opportunity to revisit mainstream paradigms in globalization, innovation, and global strategy. The book rises to the challenge, exploring new competitive phenomena, new business models, and new strategies. Rich illustrations, real-world examples, and case data, provide students and executives with the insights necessary to connect, compete, and grow in a globalized business environment. This bold book succinctly covers strategy models and implementation for a range of global players, providing students of strategy and international business with a rich understanding of the contemporary business environment. For access to additional materials, including Powerpoint slides, a list of suggested cases, and sample syllabus, please contact Vinod Jain ([email protected]).

Life After Privatization offers a refreshing and original theoretical conceptualization of what happened to stateowned enterprises after they were privatized from the late 1970s onwards. Some privatized firms have become todays European and global giants, Alphas, merging with or acquiring other firms, whereas other firms, Betas, have been taken over by Alphas or other sectoral leaders. The book raises questions such as which privatized firms in the airline, automobile, and the electricity sectors in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain are Alphas and Betas today? And why? Building on a variety of themes from both Political Science and Business Studies, it considers a comprehensive set of explanations both internal and external to the firm, to analyse why a firm may become an Alpha or a Beta. The evidence shows that while internal factors are important, the more external, political, factors are necessary and sufficient to explain why a firm becomes an Alpha or a Beta. This includes the impact of liberalization, the roles of states, and the actions of regulators that are lobbied by firms. Based on exhaustive evidence, Life After Privatization concludes with a novel inductive theory, which offers a significant step forward for social science scholars and practitioners understanding of the politics businesses face in global markets.

The Pacific Alliance treaty has created one of the most competitive and fastest growing economies in the world. In this multi-disciplinary study, authors Monica Blanco-Jimenez and Jesus Cruz Alvarez investigate top industries and the cultural, political and entrepreneurship practices that impact the economic and competitive development of its members. Divided into six parts, the contributors to this volume show the global strategies and synergies that are part of one of the world's most competitive trade zones. Part I explores how this regional integration was build, while Part II presents comparative studies about competitiveness in the automotive industry and Part III offers two studies on Mexico's exports. Part IV, V and VI focus on Peru, Colombia and Chile respectively, looking across social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility and social development. Containing the most recent research in international business and relations, this book will help researchers, students and entrepreneurs get to the roots of competitiveness and sustainable growth.

Stressing verbal logic rather than mathematics, Israel M. Kirzner provides at once a thorough critique of contemporary price theory, an essay on the theory of entrepreneurship, and an essay on the theory of competition. Competition and Entrepreneurship offers a new appraisal of quality competition, of selling effort, and of the fundamental weaknesses of contemporary welfare economics.
Kirzner's book establishes a theory of the market and the price system which differs from orthodox price theory. He sees orthodox price theory as explaining the configuration of prices and quantities that satisfied the conditions for equilibrium. Mr. Kirzner argues that it is more useful to look to price theory to help understand how the decisions of individual participants in the market interact to generate the market forces which compel changes in prices, outputs, and methods of production and in the allocation of resources.
Although Competition and Entrepreneurship is primarily concerned with the operation of the market economy, Kirzner's insights can be applied to crucial aspects of centrally planned economic systems as well. In the analysis of these processes, Kirzner clearly shows that the rediscovery of the entrepreneur must emerge as a step of major importance.

One of the most vexing problems for governments is building controversial facilities that serve the needs of all citizens but have adverse consequences for host communities. Policymakers must decide not only where to locate often unwanted projects but also what methods to use when interacting with opposition groups. In Site Fights, Daniel P. Aldrich gathers quantitative evidence from close to five hundred municipalities across Japan to show that planners deliberately seek out acquiescent and unorganized communities for such facilities in order to minimize conflict.

When protests arise over nuclear power plants, dams, and airports, agencies regularly rely on the coercive powers of the modern state, such as land expropriation and police repression. Only under pressure from civil society do policymakers move toward financial incentives and public relations campaigns. Through fieldwork and interviews with bureaucrats and activists, Aldrich illustrates these dynamics with case studies from Japan, France, and the United States. The incidents highlighted in Site Fights stress the importance of developing engaged civil society even in the absence of crisis, thereby making communities both less attractive to planners of controversial projects and more effective at resisting future threats.

This is the first book to describe the history of the innovation of the bank card, from development to commercialisation. It describes the strategies employed by innovators in order to achieve competitive advantage, and the use of technology to manage implementation. Interviews and questionnaire surveys are conducted with all the major player in the bank card industry -- Barclays, Citibank, American Express, Diners Club, Visa International, Mondex International and Europay. The result is a clear and penetrating insight into all aspects of the bank card market.

SHORTLISTED: CMI Management Book of the Year 2017 - Management Futures Category Understand how to drive business performance with your organizational data and analytics in the second edition of Data-Driven Organization Design. Using data and analytics is a key opportunity for businesses to transform performance and achieve success. With a data-driven approach, all the elements of the organizational system can be connected to design an environment in which people can excel and attain competitive advantage. Data-Driven Organization Design provides a practical framework for HR and organization design practitioners to build a baseline of data, set objectives, carry out fixed and dynamic process design, map competencies, and right-size the organization. It shows how to collect the right data, present it meaningfully and ask the most relevant questions of it to help complex, fluid organizations constantly evolve and meet moving objectives. This updated second edition contains new material on organizational planning and analysis, role design and job architecture, position management lifecycle and delta reporting. Alongside this, new case studies and examples will show how these approaches have been applied in practice. Whether planning a long-term transformation, a large redesign or an individual small project, Data-Driven Organization Design will demonstrate how to make the most of your organizational data and analytics to drive business performance.

Much strategic guidance that is currently available on product and service development is still focused in the relatively short term. Companies must plan and be flexible if they are to survive and flourish in the future, but too many surrender to the necessity for a short-term healthy bottom-line in order to satisfy their shareholders. In order to satisfy and retain customer-base, organizations should not only ensure that their products and services available now are the best around, but that they will also be the best in the future. This is particularly important as product life cycles contract and organisations need to introduce replacement products and services at a faster and faster rate. The globalizing economy and advances in modern technology are also important factors. This book points that way to becoming more competitive and remaining competitive, ensuring a healthy and secure future. It will also help companies identify product and service failures, and eliminate them from the company's horizons.
Written in an engaging and thought-provoking way, this book seizes on a rapidly growing area of interest for practitioners and students alike. Although companies are being advised to look to, and plan for the long term, there is nothing currently available which provides real advice on what should be done now. The book takes a thoroughly practical approach by establishing a realistic set of guidelines to enable organizations to start to move and continue to move in the right direction. This is supported by a wealth of tools and techniques on how to implement what has been proposed.

Strategic Alliances for SME Development is a volume in the book series Research in Strategic Alliances that focuses on providing a robust and comprehensive forum for new scholarship in the field of strategic alliances. In particular, the books in the series cover new views of interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks and models, significant practical problems of alliance organization and management, and emerging areas of inquiry. The series also includes comprehensive empirical studies of selected segments of business, economic, industrial, government, and non-profit activities with wide prevalence of strategic alliances. Through the ongoing release of focused topical titles, this book series seeks to disseminate theoretical insights and practical management information that should enable interested professionals to gain a rigorous and comprehensive understanding of the field of strategic alliances. Strategic Alliances for SME Development contains contributions by leading scholars in the field of strategic alliance research. The 12 chapters in this volume deal with the increasingly significant role of strategic alliances in the development of SMEs, covering such diverse topics as management capability and internationalization of alliance portfolios, building alliances, development drivers, founder ties, competitive edge, strategic alignment, technology and innovative firms, and temporary project alliances. The chapters contain empirical as well as conceptual treatments of the selected topics, and collectively present a wide-ranging review of the noteworthy research perspectives on the role of strategic alliances for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Discover the secrets of some of the world’s biggest and leading shops and online retailers and get a competitive edge. Covering everything from creating the ultimate retail experience to understanding the customer and the importance of motivated shop floor workers, this is the book that will guide you, your managers, team-workers, and anybody working in or learning about retail to success and profits.

•Fully updated to reflect the fast-moving and ever-changing world of retail
•Includes five essential new chapters featuring the very latest thinking, new case studies and the most cutting edge tactical thinking and strategic planning.
•Examines and coaches on traditional retail models alongside the rise in multi-channel, multiplatform retail and the exponential rise in the use of technology.
•Practical, inspiring, comprehensive and authoritative, it’s easy to follow and quick to put into practice
•Delivers outcomes that retailers want: how to grow their sales, boost their profits, develop loyalty and deliver an exceptional, memorable and envied customer experience.
•A wide appeal including retail entrepreneurs, existing managers of all levels, shop-floor staff and anybody interested in what retail is, how it works and what it means in the 21st Century.

THE CLASSIC, HIGHLY REGARDED AND DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO RETAIL SUCCESS.

This selection of papers from "Long Range Planning - The International Journal of Strategic Management" examines the evolution of competitive advantage over the past decade, setting out areas of major change and areas which have been less subject to change. It begins by examining how strategic management has been influenced by the transformation of industries and the changes in the rules for success, and the dramatic rise in the strategic importance of information technology. In many industries, the established rules of the game no longer apply, and their continued use will most likely lead to failure, even for firms which appear to have unassailable positions of strength. It is not that strategic planning has failed, but rather that in a previous era of greater certainty and clearer boundaries, the unquestioning application of established strategic rules often worked. In the new era of competitive uncertainty and uncertain boundaries, many of the rules of strategy still apply, but they can only have utility when applied in an appropriate context. The book concludes that when clarity exists about business definition, industry definition and competitor definition and how strategic techniques or measures should be applied, then the strategic fundamentals which have obtained for many years are likely to continue to do so.

What role should governments play in supporting business and economic growth? In Policies for Competitiveness, an international team of leading contributors address this question, focusing on the so-called `Golden Age of Capitalism' the 1950s and 1960s. Countries studied include prime-mover countries (the US and the UK), followers (Germany, France, and Italy), and latecomers (Japan and Korea).

How can business leaders and organization development professionals enable their companies to succeed in a digital age? Use the second edition of Agile Transformation to improve business performance. Packed full of practical advice, this new edition features updates on data-driven decision-making and the importance of putting it at the centre of mindset change and transformation to empower teams to make decisions. As well as updates to case studies, there is extended material on agile structures, including team alignment, developing agile culture and leadership. Agile Transformation covers all aspects of business transformation needing to be considered: why new operating models are needed, how to apply agile principles at scale, leveraging digital-native processes and why change managers need to think big but start small. It also looks at how to build and engage high-performing teams for change, how to tackle employee mindsets that can hinder agile adoption and why developing an agile business is not a reason to fail to plan. Featuring case studies from organizations including Amazon, Netflix and Vodafone, this is crucial reading for businesses wanting to effectively compete in the new world of work.

This text traces developments in location theory, the economics of space and value and spatial microeconomics from its early beginnings in the work of von Thuenen to the most recent applications in modern industrial organization and international trade. The articles cover 1924 to 1992.

Now in its second edition, and in collaboration with their contributing authors, world renowned academics Peter J. Buckley FBA OBE, Peter Enderwick, and Hinrich Voss draw on their wealth of experience and expertise to present a truly global text on international business. The Global Factory framework, developed by Peter J. Buckley, forms an overarching, coherent and accessible model for understanding how businesses operate globally. Synthesising perspectives from economics, social anthropology, political economy, and management, International Business also provides a multitude of examples, case studies and insights from across the globe that link theory to management practices - all to equip you for the challenges faced in the business world today. Engaging examples include internationally-recognised companies such as Nike, Ben & Jerry's, TikTok and Maersk, as well as organizations from emerging markets such as Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Turkey. Opening cases discuss real challenges faced by international businesses, inviting you to discuss and devise your own solutions, while closing cases and 'IB Insights' offer opportunities to further reflect on international business practices at real, global companies. Stretch your critical thinking skills by engaging with the 'Topics for Debate', and build strong academic understanding by looking at the 'Research Insights', which introduce key scholarship and provide commentary on seminal international business research. This fully revised and more concise edition is your ideal guide to international business. An exciting development for this new edition, the enhanced e-book offers an even more flexible and seamless way to learn: www.oxfordtextbooks.co.uk/ebooks This book is accompanied by the following online resources: For students: Links to seminal articles as highlighted in the Research Insights feature Online activities to develop skills in research, data collection, and analysis Web links to sources of data, each accompanied by critical commentary Multiple-choice questions with instant feedback IB decision-aids to explore real, decision-making tools used by managers For lecturers: A case study bank Additional shorter and longer case studies with exemplar answers Links to video clips, accompanied by short paragraphs of critical commentary Comprehensive, customisable PowerPoint slides Test bank Tutorial activities Suggested assignment questions Instructor's manual including a guide to teaching the Global Factory framework, and guidance from the authors on the case study questions, IB challenges, and Topics for Debate features