Angela Penrose
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- November 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198753940
- eISBN:
- 9780191815720
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198753940.003.0015
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Business History, Strategy
After her husband’s death in 1984 and retirement from INSEAD Edith enjoyed the resurgence of interest in her work and its increasing influence on aspects of economic, business, and management theory ...
More
After her husband’s death in 1984 and retirement from INSEAD Edith enjoyed the resurgence of interest in her work and its increasing influence on aspects of economic, business, and management theory and on a younger generation of economists, many of whom visited her at her home near Cambridge. The chapter examines the influence of her seminal ideas on some key protagonists of the ‘resource-based view of the firm’, e.g. David Teece, Birger Wernerfelt, J. C. Spender, and Jay Barney. Due to her understanding of the international firm, in particular the oil industry, she undertook consultancies pertaining to arbitration between oil companies and national governments.Less
After her husband’s death in 1984 and retirement from INSEAD Edith enjoyed the resurgence of interest in her work and its increasing influence on aspects of economic, business, and management theory and on a younger generation of economists, many of whom visited her at her home near Cambridge. The chapter examines the influence of her seminal ideas on some key protagonists of the ‘resource-based view of the firm’, e.g. David Teece, Birger Wernerfelt, J. C. Spender, and Jay Barney. Due to her understanding of the international firm, in particular the oil industry, she undertook consultancies pertaining to arbitration between oil companies and national governments.
Jago Penrose
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- November 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198753940
- eISBN:
- 9780191815720
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198753940.003.0011
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Business History, Strategy
This chapter comprises a description of Edith’s influential book, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm, how it came to be written, and its main arguments. It is often called revolutionary. She showed ...
More
This chapter comprises a description of Edith’s influential book, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm, how it came to be written, and its main arguments. It is often called revolutionary. She showed that the human resources required for the management of change are tied to the individual firm and so are internally scarce. As management tries to make the best use of the resources available, a ‘dynamic’ interacting process occurs which encourages growth but limits the rate of growth. The book was an important step towards modern, liberally minded management concepts, developing the resource-based and knowledge-based perspective, and ultimately including the theory of stakeholding, in which the interests of employees, customers, and the community count alongside those of shareholder owners.Less
This chapter comprises a description of Edith’s influential book, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm, how it came to be written, and its main arguments. It is often called revolutionary. She showed that the human resources required for the management of change are tied to the individual firm and so are internally scarce. As management tries to make the best use of the resources available, a ‘dynamic’ interacting process occurs which encourages growth but limits the rate of growth. The book was an important step towards modern, liberally minded management concepts, developing the resource-based and knowledge-based perspective, and ultimately including the theory of stakeholding, in which the interests of employees, customers, and the community count alongside those of shareholder owners.
Angela Penrose
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- November 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198753940
- eISBN:
- 9780191815720
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198753940.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Business History, Strategy
Edith Penrose was a creative thinker, a distinguished economist, and an inspirational teacher who profoundly challenged the prevailing orthodoxy in several fields, including micro-economics, business ...
More
Edith Penrose was a creative thinker, a distinguished economist, and an inspirational teacher who profoundly challenged the prevailing orthodoxy in several fields, including micro-economics, business studies, and development economics. Her major contribution to the field of economics was The Theory of the Growth of the Firm (1959), now regarded as a classic that has ‘inspired thinking in strategy, entrepreneurship, knowledge creation, and innovation’. Edith Penrose’s approach to explaining the nature of the firm, her fundamental insights, and the concepts she developed are still being applied and extended to new fields of enquiry. She has had a major influence on the study of the business enterprise and, some argue, the economy itself. She had a distinguished academic and public service career and wrote over 100 books and articles, many of which are devoted to the understanding of the interface between the strategies and activities of multinational enterprises, including the oil industry, and the nation states—particularly the developing countries—in which they operated. This is the first biography of Edith Penrose drawing on unpublished diaries and letters, the personal memories of her family, friends, and colleagues, and describes her eventful life, her extensive output, and influence. The book tells her personal and professional story, weaving through the extraordinary upheavals of the twentieth century in which she played a part. The book builds a picture of a vital, energetic woman who lived life to the full, defied convention, made an impression on all who met her, and left a significant intellectual legacy.Less
Edith Penrose was a creative thinker, a distinguished economist, and an inspirational teacher who profoundly challenged the prevailing orthodoxy in several fields, including micro-economics, business studies, and development economics. Her major contribution to the field of economics was The Theory of the Growth of the Firm (1959), now regarded as a classic that has ‘inspired thinking in strategy, entrepreneurship, knowledge creation, and innovation’. Edith Penrose’s approach to explaining the nature of the firm, her fundamental insights, and the concepts she developed are still being applied and extended to new fields of enquiry. She has had a major influence on the study of the business enterprise and, some argue, the economy itself. She had a distinguished academic and public service career and wrote over 100 books and articles, many of which are devoted to the understanding of the interface between the strategies and activities of multinational enterprises, including the oil industry, and the nation states—particularly the developing countries—in which they operated. This is the first biography of Edith Penrose drawing on unpublished diaries and letters, the personal memories of her family, friends, and colleagues, and describes her eventful life, her extensive output, and influence. The book tells her personal and professional story, weaving through the extraordinary upheavals of the twentieth century in which she played a part. The book builds a picture of a vital, energetic woman who lived life to the full, defied convention, made an impression on all who met her, and left a significant intellectual legacy.
David Musson
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- January 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780198870715
- eISBN:
- 9780191913341
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198870715.003.0015
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies
Edith Penrose (1914–96) was a pioneering and original scholar whose best-known work, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm written over sixty years ago, has had enduring influence and is now regarded ...
More
Edith Penrose (1914–96) was a pioneering and original scholar whose best-known work, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm written over sixty years ago, has had enduring influence and is now regarded as a “classic” in strategy, management, and organization studies. With the benefit of extensive secondary literature and a recent biography this chapter explores the relationship between her life and work, the people and events that shaped her work, and the importance of history, time, and process in her thinking. The chapter also considers how studying the classics can inform our understanding of the history and evolution of organization studies.Less
Edith Penrose (1914–96) was a pioneering and original scholar whose best-known work, The Theory of the Growth of the Firm written over sixty years ago, has had enduring influence and is now regarded as a “classic” in strategy, management, and organization studies. With the benefit of extensive secondary literature and a recent biography this chapter explores the relationship between her life and work, the people and events that shaped her work, and the importance of history, time, and process in her thinking. The chapter also considers how studying the classics can inform our understanding of the history and evolution of organization studies.
Angela Penrose
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- November 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198753940
- eISBN:
- 9780191815720
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198753940.003.0002
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Business History, Strategy
This chapter discusses Edith Penrose’s childhood and family background in California and early life in road camps on Highway One along the Pacific coast with her family, including two younger ...
More
This chapter discusses Edith Penrose’s childhood and family background in California and early life in road camps on Highway One along the Pacific coast with her family, including two younger brothers. Her father George Tilton was the surveyor of the road. Edith was a student activist at the University of California, Berkeley, where she was the forensics commissioner, excelled at debating, and spoke at a peace rally. She married at the age of 19 to her first husband David Denhardt, a lawyer, who, after graduating, practised law in Colusa in the Sacramento Valley. She studied under Ernest Francis Penrose, an English economics professor, and became his assistant. She graduated in 1936 but spent a further semester as Penrose’s research assistant before joining her husband. The chapter is set against the Great Depression and the rise of fascism in Europe.Less
This chapter discusses Edith Penrose’s childhood and family background in California and early life in road camps on Highway One along the Pacific coast with her family, including two younger brothers. Her father George Tilton was the surveyor of the road. Edith was a student activist at the University of California, Berkeley, where she was the forensics commissioner, excelled at debating, and spoke at a peace rally. She married at the age of 19 to her first husband David Denhardt, a lawyer, who, after graduating, practised law in Colusa in the Sacramento Valley. She studied under Ernest Francis Penrose, an English economics professor, and became his assistant. She graduated in 1936 but spent a further semester as Penrose’s research assistant before joining her husband. The chapter is set against the Great Depression and the rise of fascism in Europe.
