High-technology firms and service companies have a choice: either compete with Microsoft or partner with it. In this text, readers will see how to increase and leverage their firm's connections to Microsoft to expand their shared interests and increase profitability. Drawing on years of experience, the authors help readers succeed in partnering by understanding Microsoft culture and becoming attuned to the firm's strategies.

This volume explores Malaysian business in the era that began with the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1999. The contributions, by a broad range of international experts, are informed by a wish to identify what Malaysia needs to do to sustain economic growth, remain internationally competitive and further social stability in the post-crisis period. Malaysia's unconventional response to the crisis suggests that its business community has developed a new level of confidence in its ability to adopt and sustain innovative policies even when these strategies challenge the international financial community. This response is perceived as evidence that Malaysian business has indeed entered a new era characterised by a high level of confidence in the nation's capacity to weather the external periodic shocks that are a feature of the current wave of globalisation. The book argues that there are grounds for optimism in this regard while recognising that the true test will occur when Malaysia is compelled to confront a major decline in its international export markets brought on by a truly major crisis such as an OECD-wide recession. Business scholars and professionals as well as readers interested in Asian business and economics will find this volume informative.

The book provides a comprehensive application of narrative theory to video games, and presents the player-response paradigm of game criticism. Video Game Narrative and Criticism explains the nature of gameplay - a psychological experience and a meaning-making process in the fictional world of video games.

Clemens Schutte analyses the emergence of corporate control structures in the Czech privatization process. The book depicts the basic features of the Czech system of corporate control and the direction of its transformation. This is an extremely relevant subject since the Czech privatization process is a model case in several respects: it is institutionally open and hence allows for spontaneous development; and privatization has been carried out comprehensively and rapidly. Based upon a theoretical analysis of the institutional cornerstones of corporate control, the book develops clear recommendations which are subsequently used as a benchmark to assess the performance of the evolving Czech system of corporate control.The book discusses the role of the most important players in corporate control including the big bank-centred financial groups, capital markets, the board model of Czech corporations and the institutional base of debt control and minority shareholder protection. It also reveals the conflict of political intentions and real-time developments. As an important and timely contribution, this book will be invaluable reading for all those involved, or interested, in the privatization and corporate control of other Central and Eastern European countries. Those working in financial and political institutions will also find this book valuable.

A comparison of British and German industries' reaction to the opportunities and threats offered by the Single European Market (SEM) is presented here. The book outlines the effect that the SEM was expected to have on the two countries and contrasts this with actual progress, based on published data and a detailed study of four industries: retailing, pharmaceuticals, insurance and machine tools. It shows that while indeed the single European market has had an impact, many measures have had a far weaker effect than expected. The existence of other barriers not tackled by the SEM programme - weakened measures, poor implementation, global business trends and the recent recession - helped to reduce the impact of the SEM. Nevertheless it stands out as one of the most striking influences on British and German industries for many years. Germany, with its geographical advantage, longer-term approach and stronger manufacturing, seems the better placed to benefit overall. But the less regulated and, in some respects, more flexible UK economy may have competitive advantages as the pressures increase. It is no accident that it has been chosen so frequently as the best site within the EC for investment by firms from non-EC countries.

Based on the 2005 publication The Financial Appraisal Profile Model , this book discusses how the FAP model can present an integrated process for the appraisal of financial and strategic benefits and the assessment of risk in ICT (Information Communication Technology) project proposals.

This volume discusses the latest techniques and their economic applications for modern industries like computer, pharmaceutical, banking and other manaufacturing. These industries are most important for a growing economy. Both econometric and mathematical programming techniques are analyzed so as to develop a synthetic approach. The industrial applications not only emphasize the various aspects of R&D spending, advertisement expenditure and imperfect market structures, but also assess the economic benefits of measuring some specific performance paremers in the light of policy reforms adopted in a growing economy.

This book breaks new ground by focusing on the great Florentine "super-companies" of the early fourteenth century in their own right. The author closely examines the Peruzzi Company in particular, describing its ownership, family connections, scope of business, organization structure, accounting systems, and its history from 1300 to its dissolution in bankruptcy court in 1347. From this analysis, the author offers a radical reassessment of the nature and role of these extraordinary organizations. He establishes that although they engaged in all forms of commerce in substantial volume, what made them exceptional was commodity trading, especially in grain, which they conducted on a heroic scale. It was this activity that required heavy capital, sophisticated organization, and an international network. But the author also exposes the limitations of their financial power and explodes the myth that their downfall was caused mainly by bad loans to Edward III to finance his invasions of France. This book is much more than a business history. It presents the operations of these companies in the context of the swiftly moving political, military, and economic developments in Florence, the Mediterranean, and western Europe during a tumultuous period.

Provides first time integrated approach to R and D-project, -pipeline and -department management from a micro-, meso- and macroscopic view.

Derives 21 easy and ready to apply rules for a better design and a superior control of R and D without losinf sight of high scientific standards.

The world's leading experts contribute to our understanding of regional innovation, cluster formation and the factors that influence regional productivity and innovative performance. The text improves our understanding of the reasons why, how and where innovation clusters emerge, as well as the factors that determine their respective success or failure. In doing so, it provides a timely and comprehensive picture on innovation, location, networks and clusters as important means in an environment of intensifying interregional competition. The book is written for professional researchers as well as for students and practitioners in politics, business and consultancy.

In the last few years, most parts of the world have morphed into an electronically interdependent economic unit where a disruption in one marketplace affects the others. New technologies have emerged, transforming the ways we do business and, consequently, redesigning the world. Innovation in disruptive technologies pushes new and more agile firms to set new benchmarks and forces established companies to revisit existing models or re-invent themselves to stay competitive. Disruptive Technologies, Innovation and Global Redesign: Emerging Implications provides case studies as well as practical and theoretical papers on the issues surrounding disruptive technologies, innovation, global redesign. This book will be a useful reference for academics, students, policymakers and professionals in the fields of emerging and disruptive technologies, innovation, economic planning, technology and society, technology transfer, and general technology management.

A host of internationally recognized experts have been brought together to examine one of the most important sectors in today's world economy, the information sector. The study utilizes the most recent quantitative and econometric research on the media and information sectors and their markets. Most of the work presented is from two international conferences and other invited conferences.

With China's eminent entry into the World Trade Organization, past speculations of China becoming a world economic power in the 21st century is a reality with which few would disagree. We are witnessing the awakening of many sleepy giants, such as the successful reformed state-owned as well as township and village enterprises. We are also witnessing the birth and growth of a significant private sector, along with ever-increasing foreign investments. In this development process, there is a critical need to document and theorize about the management process by firms in this changing and dynamic context.
The Management of Enterprises in the People's Republic of China aims to contribute to the knowledge base of management within the Chinese context. The book begins with a mapping of research on management in PRC, and offers theoretical insights for cross-context, institutional, and behavioral studies. It then reports the results of fourteen empirical studies of management issues in the PRC firms. The issues studied include SOE transformation, globalization, governance, employment relationships, managerial networks, corporate culture and leadership. Also included are studies on the knowledge management process and management team characteristics of high technology firms. The methods of study include large-scale surveys, case studies, and interviews. The contributors are international experts in Chinese management research. Finally, we offer executive perspectives on several successful firms operating in China through interviews with their CEOs.

The mining industry traditionally has not incorporated behavioral science concepts in its organizational philosophy. Using it as a case study, "Organization and Development in the Mining Industry" describes organization development in action, reviews principles and lessons from short -- and long-term programs of intervention, and presents case studies which illustrate the process of organizational change.

Johnston and Edwards propose that high technology will be at the heart of the United States economy as it enters the 21st century. They also state that small business will be the key to the expansion of the United States economy in the year 2000. In this volume, the authors analyze some significant trends that tend to support their proposals. Drawing upon case studies from the bio-technology and microelectronics industries, they discuss how changing the relationship between industry, universities, and the government is encouraging an entrepreneurial way of thinking. "Business Library Newsletter"

Management strategy now is the management of continuous change, and this timely book provides an in depth view of the remarkable opportunities that will be present for those who understand its message.

"D. Bruce Merrifield, Assistant Secretary for Productivity, Technology, and Innovation, U.S. Department of Commerce"

"Entrepreneuial Science" is a provocative analysis of some of the most significant new trends in the high technology-based economy. Authors Johnston and Edwards use case studies from the biotechnology and microelectronics indstries to illustrate how the traditional relationships between industry, universities, and the government are shifting towards new entrepreneurial relationships that will have significant and lasting effects on the U.S. economy. Demonstrating that the entrepreneurial firm is better equipped to develop the early stages of technology than the large company, they contend that both individuals and corporations must adapt to an entrepreneurial way of thinking if they are to compete successfully in the marketplace over the next decade.

Drawing heavily upon their own considerable experience in the biotechnology industry, Johnston and Edwards fully discuss such emerging trends as the commercialization of the university, innovative regional technology development programs, the links between small entrepreneurial firms and university laboratories, and the collaboration between large research-based corporations and startup companies. As they clearly illustrate, each of these trends is related and all will work together to radically alter the traditional path by which a product gets from the laboratory bench to the marketplace. Corporate managers, entrepreneurs, public policy experts, and university administrators will find this book an indispensable aid as they plan for the future in their own institutions.

In the first decade of the 21st century, five rising powers (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) formed an exclusive and informal international club, the BRICS. Although neither revolutionaries nor extreme revisionists, the BRICS perceive an ongoing global power shift and contest the West's pretensions to permanent stewardship of the existing economic order. Together they have exercised collective financial statecraft, employing their expanding financial and monetary capabilities for the purpose of achieving larger foreign policy goals. This volume examines the forms and strategies of such collective financial statecraft, and the motivations of each individual government for collaborating through the BRICS club. Their cooperative financial statecraft takes various forms, ranging from pressure for "inside reforms" of either multilateral institutions or global markets, to "outside options" exercised through creating new multilateral institutions or jointly pushing for new realities in international financial markets. To the surprise of many observers, the joint actions of the BRICS are largely successful. Although each member has its unique rationale for collaboration, the largest member, China, controls resources that permit it the greatest influence in intra-club decision-making. The BRICS cooperate due to both common aversions (for example, resentment over being perennial junior partners in global economic and financial governance and resistance to infringements on their autonomy due to U.S. dollar dominance and financial power) and common interests (such as obtaining greater voice in international institutions, as the IMF). The group seeks reforms, influence, and enhanced leadership roles within the liberal capitalist global system. Where blocked, they experiment with parallel multilateral institutions in which they are the dominant rule-makers. The future of the BRICS depends not only on their bargaining power and adjustment to market players, but also on their ability to overcome domestic impediments to sustainable economic growth, the basis for their international influence.

One of the most striking paradoxes of our time has been the growing importance of regions in the face of a globalizing economy. This insightful book explains the dynamics of regions in a global economy and sheds light on the role of knowledge in driving regional growth. The author examines the way in which regions grow by receiving knowledge from surrounding regions. Using evolutionary theory, she advances the argument that knowledge spillovers operate locally. Computer-simulations analyse the impact of knowledge spillovers on economic growth across European regions. Finally, the author uses new original data on, among others, patents and research and development to demonstrate differences in economic and innovative activity across regions.

The central topics here are: institutional reforms to regulate markets; innovations in the system of national accounts and cartelization of markets; the use of the internet for public choice and administrative accountability; and an innovative voucher scheme for social policy.

"Aloys Prinz" is professor of economics at the University of Mnster (Germany). "Albert E. Steenge" is professor at the School of Business, Public Administration and Technology at the University of Twente (the Netherlands). "Jrg Schmidt" is researcher at the University of Mnster.