This book is among the first to systematically analyze and discuss the Chinese government's"One Belt, One Road" initiative to promote infrastructure investment and economic development, bringing together a diverse range of scholars from China, Russia, and Eastern Europe. The book assembles a package of next generation ideas for the patterns of regional trade, investment, infrastructure development, or next steps for the promotion of enhanced policy coordination across the Eurasian continent and strategic implications for EU, Russia and other major powers, introducing innovative ideas about what these countries across belt and road can do together in the eyes of the young generation. This book will be of interest to scholars, economists, and interested observers of the international impact of Chinese development.

First published in 1891, this seminal work examines the primary causes of poverty during the industrial age. Through considering how poverty is measured, the growth of urbanisation and the supply of low-skilled labour in the workforce, Hobson arrives at possible solutions to the problem of poverty and explores the ethical issues surrounding it.

The need to examine and challenge a host of critical, taken-for-granted assumptions is one of the most important tasks facing managers and leaders daily. Beyond recognizing the need to examine and challenge key assumptions, managers and leaders must develop a systematic way of surfacing and critiquing important assumptions, let alone keeping track of them over time so that key business strategies can change as important underlying assumptions change. Using current business examples and academic research, Tools for Systematic Problem-Solving educates managers and executives on how to systematically examine key assumptions to ensure survival and success for their organizations.

The broad spectrum of topics surrounding what is termed the 'knowledge economy' has attracted increasing attention from the scientific community in recent years. The nature of knowledge-intensive industries, the spatiality of knowledge, the role of proximity and distance in generating functional knowledge, the transfer of knowledge via networks, and the complex interplay between knowledge, location and economic development are all live academic issues. This book, the fifth volume in Springer's Knowledge and Space series, focuses on the last of these: the multiple relationships between knowledge, the economy, and space. It reflects the conceptual and methodological multidisciplinarity emerging from this scholarship, yet where there has up to now been a notable lack of communication between some of the contributing disciplines, resulting in lexical and other confusions, this volume brings concord and to foster interdisciplinarity. These complications have been especially evident in our understanding of the spatiality of knowledge, the part that spatial contexts play in knowledge creation and diffusion, and the relevance of face-to-face contacts, all of which are addressed in these pages.

The material here is grouped into four sections-knowledge creation and economy, knowledge and economic development, knowledge and networks, and knowledge and clusters. It assembles new concepts and original empirical research from geography, economics, sociology, international business relations, and management. The book addresses a varied audience interested in the historical and spatial foundations of the knowledge economy and is intended to bridge some of the gaps between the differing approaches to research on knowledge, the economy, and space."

China's long-term economic success is driven by new firms, new sectors and new business practices. This book explores the establishment of new private firms and listed companies, the development of knowledge industries, in particular the IT and banking sectors and the co-evolution of public governance and business institutions. The contributors discuss the role of local institutions in coordinating business activities and unleashing entrepreneurship, arguing that the sudden growth of new firms and industries is facilitated by changes in business behaviour and institutions. Initial private exchange and investment in an environment of ill-functioning markets are shown to depend on local networks and local business culture which, in turn, rely on local tax regimes setting incentives for inherited bureaucracies to engage in economic transformation. Finally, the book establishes local institutions and local governance as crucial dimensions of China's emerging business system. Contributing to the theory of endogenous institutional change, The Chinese Economy in the 21st Century will be of great appeal to academics and students interested in management, comparative business systems, transition economics, evolutionary economics, Chinese studies and Asian studies.

In this book, Radlo increases understanding of offshoring, outsourcing and international production fragmentation, and explains the impact of this phenomenon on the economies and enterprises. Key features include a comprehensive theoretical explanation of offshoring and outsourcing at both macroeconomic and microeconomic level, as well as an explanation of practical consequences of the mentioned phenomenon for the development of the global economy, national economies, concrete industries and enterprises. Unlike other publications, which are often characterized by narrow management or a macroeconomic approach to the analysis of offshoring and outsourcing, Radlo's text offers real insight into the global impact of production fragmentation.

Hong Kong's laissez-faire tradition has crippled attempts to transform it into a more knowledge-intensive economy and this is a lesson with wide applicability. Many emerging economies face innovation bottlenecks, but even some more advanced economies face similar constraints and may benefit from the lessons of its negative example.

This book examines education about standardization in the context of sustainable management. It shows the role of standardization education in the global economy, and in markets, industries and businesses. The book presents knowledge on standardization for sustainable management, describes measures that can be taken to stimulate it, and highlights strategies for teaching and disseminating the concept. Subsequently presenting a number of best practices and case studies, the book seeks to align theory and practice. For researchers, this is the first academic publication that interconnects the concepts of sustainability, standardization and education. For professionals in the area of sustainability it shows that standardization is an essential instrument for enhancing sustainability for which proper education is needed. For standardization professionals the book reveals the links to sustainability and it shows not only the importance of education about standardization but also how this can be organized, and finally, for universities, the book shows that standardization deserves to be included in the curriculum, and it provides guidance and best practice examples about how this can be done.

Viewed through a politico-economic lens, Nordic countries share what is often referred to as the 'Nordic model', characterised by a comprehensive welfare state; higher spending on childcare; more equitable income distribution; and lifelong-learning policies. This edited collection considers these contexts to explore the complex nature of tourism employment, thereby providing insights into the dynamic nature, characteristics, and meaning of work in tourism. Contributors combine explorations of the impact of policy on tourism employment with a more traditional human resources management approach focusing on employment issues from an organizational perspective, such as job satisfaction, training, and retention. The text points to opportunities as well as challenges relating to issues such as the notion of 'decent work', the role and contribution of migrant workers, and more broadly, the varying policy objectives embedded within the Nordic welfare model. Offering a detailed, multi-faceted analysis of tourism employment, this book is a valuable resource for students, researchers and practitioners interested in tourism employment in the region.

What role do transitional justice processes play in determining the gender outcomes of transitions from conflict and authoritarianism? What is the impact of transitional justice processes on the human rights of women in states emerging from political violence? Gender Politics in Transitional Justice argues that human rights outcomes for women are determined in the space between international law and local gender politics. The book draws on feminist political science to reveal the key gender dynamics that shape the strategies of local women's movements in their engagement with transitional justice, and the ultimate success of those strategies, termed 'the local fit'. Also drawing on feminist doctrinal scholarship in international law, 'the international frame' examines the role of international law in defining harms against women in transitional justice and in determining the 'from' and 'to' of transitions from conflict and authoritarianism. This book locates evolving state practice in gender and transitional justice over the past two decades within the context of the enhanced protection of women's human rights under international law. Relying on original empirical and legal research in Chile, Northern Ireland and Colombia, the book speaks more broadly to the study of gender politics and international law in transitional justice.

This original new book offers a comprehensive and engaging perspective on the theory of vertical differentiation. It enables the reader to grasp the key concepts and effects that product quality has both on firms' behaviour and market structure, and the ways in which this relationship has evolved. With contributions from prominent figures in the field, the book investigates a number of important topics, such as the choice of the optimal product range, profit sharing, the existence of equilibrium in duopoly games, positional effects attached to status goods, international trade, collusion, advertising and the dynamics of capital accumulation for quality improvement and product innovation. Using both static and dynamic approaches, these aspects are assessed in relation to the manifold issues of regulation, competition policy and trade policy. Product differentiation and its influence on consumer behaviour and the performance of firms is a core topic in the existing literature in the fields of industrial organization, international trade and economic growth. This book will be an essential read for researchers, students and professional scholars working in these areas, especially those with an interest in antitrust regulation.

This book clarifies the mechanisms of economic globalization in changing industries' locations and shows how industries' locations have changed through those mechanisms. First, the book deals with the retailing industry. Introducing the concept of a contact price into the market area analysis, it is shown in Part I that retailers' market areas and prices are changed in different ways by a reduction of transportation costs. The mechanism of these changes is explained by checking the contact prices at apexes of the retailers' market areas. Then the book moves to the manufacturing industry and deals with a firm's production process. Part II of the book shows the manner in which the production volume of factories within an agglomeration is decreased as the number of factories within the agglomeration increases. Subsequently, considering the fact that many production factories depart from agglomerations to other sites to reduce production costs, a method of searching for a factory's new site is proposed in which a firm can seek out an optimal location of a factory in a short period of time. By referring to a chaotic phenomenon, a firm sets a location prospective area in a large geographical area and selects an optimal location within that area. In the third part of the book the city system is the focus. Part III elucidates the theoretical formation of a city system and analyzes structural changes of a city system due to a reduction of transportation costs. The mechanism of the change is explained by a flexible market area theory which studies a city system by using the market areas established in the free-entry equilibrium. Then, the economic relationships between the cities within a city system are examined from the point of view of the land rent in the cities' areas. This analysis shows the influences of a change in the largest city on other cities. Finally, the relationships between a city system and regional performance are examined using real data. The examination shows that the city system reveals the regional performance.

This book presents an historical analysis of the global paper industry evolution from a comparative perspective. At the centre are 16 producing countries (Finland, Sweden, Norway, the USA, Germany, Canada, Japan, the UK, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Chile, Brazil, Uruguay and Russia). A comparative study of the paper industry evolution can achieve the following important research objectives. First, we can identify the country specific historical features of paper industry evolution and compare them to the general business trends explicable by existing theoretical knowledge. Second, we can identify and isolate the factors causing both the rise and fall of industrial populations. Third, a shared research agenda can produce an intensive analysis of global industry dynamics. Finally, an extended research period of 250 years can identify what is truly unique in the paper industry evolution and the extent to which it took the same path as other important manufacturing industries.

Presenting a thorough, comprehensive theory of spiritual capital based on solid academic research, 'Spiritual Capital' serves to reinforce and amplify the notion of a moral economic core that is beginning to feature in contemporary economic arguments. In this rare major work wholly dedicated to the subject of spiritual capital, Sam Rima explains the desperate need for revolutionary and transformational thinking in the area of economic policy and practice and makes the case for a new moral foundation to business and economics that directly addresses today's financial and business crisis. Writing in an accessible style, and drawing on examples from several continents, Rima explains spiritual capital theory in terms of the resources needed for its creation, how it is formed, how it can be invested and what the return on investment can be. The book provides practical tools for measuring a personal or organizational store of spiritual capital, along with clear guidelines on how to engage in spiritual capital formation. These will benefit business leaders interested in developing viable and sustainable enterprises capable of avoiding the disconnection between economic policy and social reality. There are also recommendations here for policy makers regarding the macro application of spiritual capital theory. This important contribution to Gower's Transformation and Innovation Series will appeal to business leaders and policy makers, academicians and students in the fields of sociology, theology, and economics, and anyone interested in social and economic justice issues, social innovation, and corporate social responsibility.

First published in 1891, this seminal work examines the primary causes of poverty during the industrial age. Through considering how poverty is measured, the growth of urbanisation and the supply of low-skilled labour in the workforce, Hobson arrives at possible solutions to the problem of poverty and explores the ethical issues surrounding it.

In this new edition, stemming from the work of the International Bar Association Committee on Business Organizations, leading international practitioners address the increasingly complex issues surrounding due diligence, disclosures and protection of the buyer and seller in corporate acquisitions practice. The book also addresses the structure of acquisition agreements, including warranties and the effect of different controlling laws. Environmental due diligence is also included in considering current international commercial practice. Based on a major IBA conference held in June 1991, the work (in this updated and revised form) covers the USA, Canada, Germany, England and Wales, the Netherlands, Italy, France, and Japan. As in the previous edition, the material is presented systematically for ease of reference and comparison. The book aims to serve as a valuable handbook for practitioners.

This book discusses the increased scope, complexity and globalization of markets, the changes in technology behind this, and the need for policy and program adjustments. Also discusses the development of supply chains both domestically and globally.

Imperfections and Behavior in Economic Organizations analyzes the organization of economic decision making in a contemporary setting. The contributors focus on two important aspects of this analysis. First, they address the issue of imperfect or incomplete information and communication in economic organizations and consider imperfections arising from the interaction of the market organization with its environment. Second, the issue of cooperation in a competitive environment is thoroughly analyzed and alternative social trade organizations are designed to dissipate the allocation problems that arise in these situations.

Based on extensive archival research, Beyond Market and Hierarchy reconstructs how Fan waged modern China's war of salts. Led by his Jiuda Salt Industries, the nascent refined salt industry battled revenue farmers who, as a group, monopolized the production and distribution of evaporated salt.

Issues relating to the size of firms in manufacturing are central to the discussion of development strategies. This book offers an interpretation of growth trajectories in selected Asian economies in terms of the size-structure of enterprises in the manufacturing sector of these economies. The book presents a comparative survey of distribution of enterprises by size across Asia, including India, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand, Bangladesh and Vietnam. A broad survey of official data on the size structure of manufacturing helps to identify three distinct patterns of manufacturing sector development and makes the connection between enterprise development and the overall impact on the economy. The book goes on to investigate the problem of the peculiar dual size structure of manufacturing in India, with its two modes at the low and high end of the size distribution and conspicuous 'missing middle', and the effect that this has on the economy. This pattern is contrasted with the 'East Asian, model with a more even size distribution, and the more recent experience of the newly developing countries of Asia with size distribution skewed to the right. It is an important contribution to studies on Asian Economics and Manufacturing Industries.

Shipping and port systems are vital to societies and lifestyles around the world. In the late twentieth century, however, assumptions concerning the robustness of these systems were severely shaken by economic shocks triggered by oil crises. This volume explores how many of the consequent uncertainties have been resolved, and how adapted systems have been shaped to meet the challenges of the new millennium. To explore these issues, contributors focus on issues such as: * economic integration of emerging economies - in particular China * sectors as diverse as the high-speed ferry and offshore oil industries * pollution problems generated by shipping Contributors' investigations, such as those into the homogenisation of the container industry and the port cluster concept and 'model' vessels for the offshore oil industry, make for a rewarding book that will be of interest to academics working in many fields including transport studies, marine and coastal studies and economic geography. Professional organizations and policy-makers will also appreciate the book.

Russia offers a fascinating example of the contrast between the attractions of a vast hydrocarbon resource base to major oil and gas companies and the problems that can be encountered in trying to invest in it. International Partnership in Russia provides a unique insight into the joint ventures which have been formed between domestic and international partners in Russia during the post-Soviet era. It outlines the highs and lows in their fortunes and analyses the reasons for their successes and failures, developing an original theory on the bargaining relationship between foreign and domestic partners in a weak institutional environment such as Russia. It provides a new strategy for partner engagement based on theoretical analysis, interviews with key players and the experiences of one of the authors at Russia's largest international partnership to date, TNK-BP. This book will be indispensable reading for energy economists, senior executives at oil and gas companies with exposure to Russia and other countries where local knowledge is vital for success, as well as for finance practitioners working in energy markets.

First published in 1927, Hobson's treatise on industrial conflict analyses the nature and causes of industrial disputes with the aim of finding an equitable means of settling them. Assessing the notion of a fair wage within the context of the pool of wealth, Hobson sets about creating a peace policy for industry. Set against the backdrop of economic downturn and struggle in the interwar years, in the years preceding the great depression, this is work of social, historical and economic interest.

This book is a collection of teaching cases on two Chinese companies, UFIDA and Founder. The cases describe the management practices of typical Chinese companies. UFIDA is a well-known company providing management software while Founder is a long-established high-tech company.

The book aims at providing readers with original, first-hand materials, based on a theoretical framework, and broadening readers? vision regarding China's business niche in terms of culture, strategy, corporate governance, business environment, organizational dynamics, marketing, human resource, finance and the potential business partnerships with Chinese enterprises and the Chinese people. The cases are comprehensive and descriptive.

This book appeals to top executives and leaders of multinational companies with ambitions to expand or already vested business interest in China. It is also of valuable use to companies specializing in international trade. The book helps shed insight into the great business opportunities in the development of China.

This book is about how Chinese entrepreneurs deal with China's most important institution--the government in their struggle to survive and even prosper in China's transitional economy. It takes an "inside look" at several private firms in China and provides a firsthand account, as well as the underlying rationale and decision considerations, of their corporate political strategy. The book is based firmly on solid academic research but actually written with both practitioners and scholars in mind. It offers candid and insightful quotes and observations from the owners and executives of China's private firms with regards to their dealing with the government.

This book advances a typology of corporate political strategies based on the respective motivations of the business (the entrepreneurs and their firms) and the government (the government institutions and individual officials) as well as the modes of their interactions. Eight different types of political strategies by China's private firms are identified and illustrated with real-life examples, ranging from one-night-stand, situational shopper, good-ole-friend, patronage seeker, model volunteer, institutional improviser, direct participator, to red hat insider. The book also dissects a living case and traces the development of one particular private firm, from its humble start-up to present day glory, which fittingly illustrates the evolution and dynamics of the various types of political strategies the firm employed at different stages of its growth.

For anyone who wants to understand China's private firms and the Chinese government, thus be able to deal with them more effectively, this book is a must-read.