Directors are key decision-makers in any organisation, whether it is in the public sector, a family business or a transnational company. The UK Companies Act 2006 codified directors' duties for the first time and describes the director as the 'most likely to promote the success of the company for the benefit of its members as a whole'. This book addresses key tensions and problems involved in the duties and responsibilities of the director in promoting success, including corporate culture and credibility, trust, risk and uncertainty, collective responsibility, and the degree of control. The book considers directors' decision-making in both private and public sector organisations and explicitly examines aspects of decision-making during periods of financial distress. The book compares the legal contexts of director's decisions in the UK to those of the USA, Germany and Australia, and takes an interdisciplinary approach in its combination of management theory, economic theory and behavioural studies. In doing so the book addresses issues key to the understanding of corporate governance in light of recent financial crises.

R&D Decisions, Strategy, Policy and Innovations explores how research and development decisions affect all of us. They are linked inextricably to the performance of firms and of economics as a whole. Their importance means that they are of concern to a large number of practitioners, policy-makers and researchers. This book demonstrates the range of issues and perspectives which R&D can encompass and at the same time brings out the elements which unite them. The papers in this book are organized into three main sections: * Strategy and Organization explores the importance of R&D and of the structures and strategies of individual organizations. The emerging 'core competence paradigm' is especially noted. * Policy and Performance looks at what new thinking on R&D more generally implies for government policy and the performance of industries, regions and economies. * Disclosure and the Market examines issues raised by changing regulations on the disclosure of R&D expenditure.

Directors are key decision-makers in any organisation, whether it is in the public sector, a family business or a transnational company. The UK Companies Act 2006 codified directors duties for the first time and describes the director as the most likely to promote the success of the company for the benefit of its members as a whole .

This book addresses key tensions and problems involved in the duties and responsibilities of the director in promoting success, including corporate culture and credibility, trust, risk and uncertainty, collective responsibility, and the degree of control. The book considers directors decision-making in both private and public sector organisations and explicitly examines aspects of decision-making during periods of financial distress. The book compares the legal contexts of director s decisions in the UK to those of the USA, Germany and Australia, and takes an interdisciplinary approach in its combination of management theory, economic theory and behavioural studies. In doing so the book addresses issues key to the understanding of corporate governance in light of recent financial crises."

This volume explores how research and development decisions affect all of us. They are linked inextricably to the performance of firms and of economics as a whole. Their importance means that they are of concern to a large number of practitioners, policy-makers and researchers. This book demonstrates the range of issues and perspectives which R&D can encompass and at the same time brings out the elements which unite them. The papers in this book are organized into three main sections: strategy and organization explores the importance of R&D of the structures and strategies of individual organizations. The emerging "core competence paradigm" is especially noted. "Policy and Performance" looks at what thinking on R&D more generally implies for government policy and the performance of industries, regions and economies. "Disclosure and the Market" examines issues raised by changing regulations on the disclosure of R&D expenditure.