This book examines the management of technical change in manufacturing and services through an explicit political-economic framework. It examines the management of automation in Britain and America since 1950, and it applies the same useful framework to explore the impact of Japanization on both Britain and the US in the 1980s and 1990s.

This book examines how the internationalization of corporate activities has affected the commercial policy preferences of Japanese corporations. Using case studies of three industrial sectors and of Keidanren (Japan's most influential business federation), the author argues that growth of international operations is one of the major reasons why internationally oriented firms and their main business federation have committed themselves to promoting the opening of keiretsu groups, and to promoting market access for foreign firms and products. The book includes much new and valuable information about business-government relations, political conflict and policy making and implementation processes in Japan.

In the course of the tremendous political and economic upheaval starting in 1989/1990 many industrial cities and regions in Central and Eastern Europe have been confronted with profound problems. This book presents eleven detailed national reports which describe the situation in such cities and regions as well as the strategies which have been employed to cope with structural change. The country reports are complemented by short case studies of selected cities and regions. An introduction gives background to such topics as structural change and the ramifications of EU enlargement. Finally some conclusions are drawn and recommendations offered for future policy.

This book represents a continuation of an uninterrupted record of international research pertaining to high technology small firms (HTSFs) over a period that has witnessed a rebirth of interest in the growth problems of the small firm, and is a further addition to a portfolio of specialist work by academics and practitioners on the issues facing new technology-based firms (NTBFs).
The book begins with a conceptual overview on the broad theme of innovation in NTBFs, providing a theoretical perspective on the problems of innovation at the end of the twentieth century and setting in context the more specific contributions to follow. A continuing theme of HTSF research is innovation management, and seven chapters are included under this heading focusing on topics such as university spin-out companies and the role of non-executive directors. The successful management of innovation in NTBFs is clearly critical to their survival and growth. Another key and recurrent area of interest to researchers concerned with the problems of NTBFs is finance, with three chapters here addressing the funding problems faced by NTBFs during often lengthy periods of product development. The book concludes with a set of contributions which deal with the increasingly important issues of clustering and location as they affect NTBFs.
The chapters included in this book represent a strong set of themes indicative of what key workers in the area of NTBF development are thinking at the turn of the millennium. These issues of effective management, funding and networking are key themes that will continue in the new millennium.

This timely volume offers a comprehensive assessment of the dynamics of firms' behaviour and organization, providing an essential outline of the ways in which our understanding of firms and markets is evolving. Key topics, such as the interplay between labour and capital, the choice of the optimal product range and the dynamics of capital accumulation and innovation are investigated. All of these aspects of the evolution of a market are evaluated in connection with the manifold issue of information, be that related to demand uncertainty, accountancy data, the diffusion of technological knowledge, or the nature of strategic interaction among firms in market games. Technology, Information and Market Dynamics is an extensive and detailed book, offering useful indicators for both theoretical and applied research. It will appeal to economists and researchers of industrial organization and innovation.

International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration is a hands-on guide providing a critical evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages at every step in the arbitral process including practical facts, figures, pragmatic suggestions and warnings. The book is essential to anyone who is involved in ICC arbitration, or who may have to consider the use of an ICC arbitration clause. Published in cooperation with the International Chamber of Commerce, this text covers every aspect of ICC arbitration. The authors, seasoned experts, provide a detailed description of the arbitral process from the formation of the agreement to arbitrate to the appeal of the enforcement, covering in detail the important rulings of the ICC and their potential impact on future awards. Appendices include a table of cases, table of arbitral awards, table of authorities, table of articles on the 1998 ICC Arbitration Rules, and a comprehensive index.

Michman and Mazze present five key variables that retailing executives in nine specialty businesses must understand and work with, to gain and sustain competitive advantage in their competitive environments. Innovation, target market segmentation, image development, physical store decor, and human resource managementf are identified and examined. Authors argue convincingly from research and practical experience that these fundamental considerations are crucial to achieving competitive dominance. With up-to-date analyses and extensive coverage of e-commerce and internet retailing as well, their book is essential for retailing executives.

Michman and Mazze find that successful specialty retailers are not all things to all customers, and do not try to be. They are, however, the first to apply new technologies. Authors analyze the development of specialty stores in the U.S. and tie their variables together in an epilogue. Along the way they make clear that by focusing on their five critical variables, we can understand how marketing successes come about and what causes blunders in the nine highly important store categories under their examination here. They point out that not all of their variables need be used concurrently. Some may be more critical than others, and this depends on environmental and competitive conditions. Backing it all up is meticulously developed evidence from their research and personal experience -- all of it presented readably and in a way that practitioners can understand and immediately apply.

This study examines the development of capitalism in Israel. Taking a different view from the traditional modernization perspective, Ben-Porat argues that since 1948--when Israel became a state--the process of forming a capitalist society has underlain all other major processes. To explain capitalism in Israel, a perspective is needed that treats the problems of implanting capitalism in post-colonial states. Problems include the undeveloped class structure; the inability of the bourgeoisie to fulfill its capitalist role; the continuing post-colonial dependency on state support; and, most importantly, the central role of the state in enhancing, but also regulating, capitalism.

The editors have assembled an international team of expert scholars together to describe and analyze the role of organized business in creating, and responding to, the regionalization and internationalization of markets and politics. Chapters focus on theoretical issues, discrete regions drawn from the major trading regimes around the globe, and sectors, and together address a number of important issues: First, to what extent does organised business push the deepening and widening of regional and global trading regimes? Second, does the development of these multi-level governance regimes in turn pull organised business into more comprehensive levels of organisation and public policy coordination? The collection concludes that globalization and the 'new regionalism' cannot be understood without recognising the key role of business organizations. This book is unique because no other volume details the critical relationship between organized business and globalization/new regionalism.

Technology, Innovation and Industrial Economics: Institutional Perspectives, inspired by the work of William E. Cole, Professor Emeritus at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, extends his work with essays on technology, innovation and industrial economics from an Institutionalist perspective. The managerial style, innovational practices and industrial setting of the continuous improvement firm are central to several chapters. This volume also features innovation and technology in Latin America, Adam Smith's writing on entrepreneurship and a comparison of American and European Institutionalism. The topics of technology, innovation, industrial organization and industrial policy are being widely discussed and debated in today's literature, but seldom from an Institutionalist perspective. The purpose of this book is to reduce substantially this missing dimension in the ongoing debates on these important issues.

"There is no doubt in my mind that this is the best book on the Japanese school, and especially on the underlying concepts. As such it is one of the most important books on Japanese society." Peter Drucker "Benjamin Duke knows both American and Japanese education intimately. His analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each is compelling. Everyone interested in Japan's economic performance over the past generation--and the next--needs to examine The Japanese School." Mike Mansfield U.S. Ambassador to Japan

Business growth depends on the ability to innovate. Knowledge management concepts, business process reengineering, human centered assets and information and communication technologies are the foundation for innovation though virtual reality makes innovation a reality. Virtual Technologies for Business and Industrial Applications: Innovative and Synergistic Approaches provides insight into uncovering the security risks of dynamically created content, and how proper content management can greatly improve overall security. This book also researches the security lifecycle, protocols and applications of the Internet, and the contemporary solutions to these problems.

There are many complicated theories and ideas about the structure and style of organisations. Human Resource Management and Development looks at how they apply in practice and what they mean for the people who work with them. Divided into four sections and amply illustrated with case studies, topics such as Organisation Theory, Recruitment and Selection, Leadership and Counselling are explained, concluding with chapters on 'Organisation Change' and 'Empowerment'. Written in an accessible and lively manner, this book will be of interest to both students and professionals involved in Human Resource Management.

This volume of the Academy of International Business series looks at International Business in the context of a rapidly changing Europe. Leading contributors have come together to present the latest research, attempting to answer a number of important questions: * is the vision of a Single European market realistic? * what are the barriers to its achievement? * what are the prospects for Eastern Europe? * how should firms enter East European markets? * what does the process of transition imply for corporate policy?

This collection provides exceptional descriptive and analytical insights into changes in corporate governance settings in ten Eastern and Western European countries. It demonstrates that there exist different varieties of capitalism and paths to transformation of economic institutions. In addition, it offers detailed discussions about national cases as well as the overall European Union effects. This book should be of great interest to scholars and students of comparative national systems, corporate governance and European studies.

Public Technology Procurement and Innovation studies public technology procurement as an instrument of innovation policy. In the past few years, public technology procurement has been a relatively neglected topic in the theoretical and research literature on the economics of innovation. Similarly, preoccupation with supply-side' measures has led policy-makers to avoid making very extensive use of this important demand-side' instrument. These trends have been especially pronounced in the European Union. There, as this book will argue, existing legislation governing public procurement presents obstacles to the use of public technology procurement as a means of stimulating and supporting technological innovation. Recently, however, there has been a gradual re-awakening of practical interest in such measures among policy-makers in the EU and elsewhere. For these and other related measures, this volume aims to contribute to a serious reconsideration of public technology procurement from the complementary standpoints of innovation theory and innovation policy.

This important book addresses the prospects for reconciling economic competitiveness with sustainable development. It shows that we cannot simply assume that changes in public attitudes, business policies and government regulation will guarantee the conditions for long-term ecological, social and economic sustainability. On the basis of new original case studies, the authors consider corporate environmental strategies, technological change and sustainable development as a social partnership between firms, citizens and government. They suggest that competitiveness must be considered as a dynamic process requiring proactive and reactive adjustments by business and government institutions all working towards sustainability. Sustainbility and Firms combines intellectual rigour with accessibility to communicate fundamental ideas to help policy decision-makers, enterprise managers, environmental scientists and economists grapple effectively with the problems of competitiveness, technological change, strategies of firms, governance and sustainable development.

The Engineering Ethics in Southern African textbook has been written specifically for engineers in this geographical region. Not only does it provide an overview of moral philosophy and the various ethical approaches that can be applied in the engineering field, but it shares what it means to be a professional engineer in Southern Africa and provides insight into both professional and community expectations.

Local engineering case studies have been chosen to highlight ethical dilemmas and conflicts that can arise, and various ethical approaches have been applied to them to explain their cause and consequence(s).

Readers will find that this textbook not only provides them with invaluable knowledge for their careers as professional engineers, but that it will continue to encourage them to think ethically in their lives as professional engineers engaged in engineering projects and engineering activities.

Technological Change in the Modern Economy presents an authoritative overview of the economics of technological change. Using an empirical foundation, it examines the economic causes and effects of technological innovation. It also analyzes the process of innovation itself.The author first provides an introduction to innovation and technical change. He expands this to include issues such as innovation and economic growth, the organization of innovation, innovation and competition and the role of government. He also discusses new topics such as technological cooperation, the spillover effects of research, the firm as a learning organization and national systems of innovation. These issues are analysed empirically, employing theoretical explanations to support case studies on Europe, The United States and Japan. The book uses an institutional economics approach, discussing the role of various actors, such as individual inventors, research departments of private firms and public research institutes. The book will provide an introduction to the economics of innovation for advanced undergraduates and for managers and public administrators involved in innovation. It will also be of interest to those studying industrial organization and institutional economics, and will be accessible to those from business administration and management science.

This book, first published in 1970, analyses the factors affecting the export performance of selected firms from particular UK industries in the period 1958-66. The study was designed to test at the level of the firm and industry the hypothesis that, in the short run, variations in exports are a function of the pressure of domestic demand. It also obtained valuable information on the factors affecting the export performance and behaviour of firms.

Modelling European Mergers presents a comprehensive and fresh perspective on the economic analysis of mergers by leading academics and competition policymakers from Europe and the US. The book frankly discusses the pros and cons of using applied game theory models in merger control from historical and theoretical perspectives. Seven case studies on the actual use of advanced techniques and models in legal procedures provide a perspective from the national competition authorities in Belgium, Denmark, Italy, The Netherlands and Sweden on markets that range from basic goods such as bread and aperitifs to complex products such as electricity, literature and software. The case studies provide many insights into practical issues such as data collection, procedures and errors of predication, as well as in the relative merits of different econometric approaches. A recurring theme of the book is how economic insights can be translated into convincing legal decisions. The contributions cover a broad spectrum of markets, methods and countries and the contributors offer incisive reflection on the increasing use of economics in competition policy. This unique book is a thorough transatlantic discussion of academic and policy insights combined with applications based on actual decisions. It will appeal to legal and economic professionals who deal with and advise on mergers and acquisitions whether they be in a ministry, central bank or competition authority setting. Scholars and students interested in analysing markets, law and economics, industrial organization and applied econometrics will also find much to interest them in this work.

From Industrial Districts to Local Development introduces a set of papers representing the main contribution of the 'Florence school' to the recent literature on industrial districts. The authors illustrate that the revitalisation of the concept of industrial districts, returning to Alfred Marshall's nineteenth-century writings, is rooted in an unconventional interpretation of the economic development of Tuscany after the Second World War.Models of industrial organisation and empirical investigation of industrial tendencies are featured, and Alfred Marshall's concepts of the advantages of the geographical agglomeration of specialised small firms in industrial districts are reintroduced. The authors extend the analysis of purely economic effects of agglomeration, including social, cultural and institutional foundations of local development, and current case studies are presented. This book will appeal to scholars, lecturers and researchers focusing on industrial economics, development economics and economic geography. Its references to Italian political experiences will also be of interest to policymakers in both developed and developing countries.

This book provides an account of work in the Schumpeterian and evolutionary tradition of industrial dynamics and the evolution of industries. It is shown that over time industries evolve and change their structure. In this dynamic process, change is affected and sometimes constraint by many factors, including knowledge and technologies, the capabilities and incentives of actors, new products and processes, and institutions.