Gary Herrigel
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199557738
- eISBN:
- 9780191720871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199557738.003.0099
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy
Chapter introduces the main themes of the second part of the book. Above all, the global trend toward vertical disintegration in complex manufacturing in advanced countries is the focus of analysis. ...
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Chapter introduces the main themes of the second part of the book. Above all, the global trend toward vertical disintegration in complex manufacturing in advanced countries is the focus of analysis. The book shifts its attention from long historical evolution in one industry in three countries to an analysis of supply chains in two very broad complex manufacturing sectors: Automobiles and Machinery. The country focus shifts as well, with broadly comparative initial chapters giving way to a focus on processes of recomposition in Germany and the United States The theoretical focus remains constant however: recomposition of the arrangements governing these industrial sectors are driven by creative action. The introduction also outlines the sources of data used in the analysis, above all interview based data collected by two research consortia: The Advanced Manufacturing Project and the Global Components ProjectLess
Chapter introduces the main themes of the second part of the book. Above all, the global trend toward vertical disintegration in complex manufacturing in advanced countries is the focus of analysis. The book shifts its attention from long historical evolution in one industry in three countries to an analysis of supply chains in two very broad complex manufacturing sectors: Automobiles and Machinery. The country focus shifts as well, with broadly comparative initial chapters giving way to a focus on processes of recomposition in Germany and the United States The theoretical focus remains constant however: recomposition of the arrangements governing these industrial sectors are driven by creative action. The introduction also outlines the sources of data used in the analysis, above all interview based data collected by two research consortia: The Advanced Manufacturing Project and the Global Components Project
Vaclav Smil
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195168754
- eISBN:
- 9780199783601
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195168755.003.0005
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History
Private transportation was transformed by mass ownership of automobiles while long-distance public transport benefited from new high-speed trains and from affordable flying. Freight transportation ...
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Private transportation was transformed by mass ownership of automobiles while long-distance public transport benefited from new high-speed trains and from affordable flying. Freight transportation was transformed by containers moved by ships, trains, and trucks. Communication and the processing and dissemination of information were revolutionized first by transistors, then by integrated circuits and microprocessors, the key components of mainframe and personal computers, televisions, and a multitude of electronic devices, many of them now taking advantage of the Internet.Less
Private transportation was transformed by mass ownership of automobiles while long-distance public transport benefited from new high-speed trains and from affordable flying. Freight transportation was transformed by containers moved by ships, trains, and trucks. Communication and the processing and dissemination of information were revolutionized first by transistors, then by integrated circuits and microprocessors, the key components of mainframe and personal computers, televisions, and a multitude of electronic devices, many of them now taking advantage of the Internet.
Gary Herrigel
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199557738
- eISBN:
- 9780191720871
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199557738.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy
Manufacturing Possibilities examines adjustment dynamics in the steel, automobile and machinery industries in Germany, the U.S., and Japan since World War II. Using detailed historical ...
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Manufacturing Possibilities examines adjustment dynamics in the steel, automobile and machinery industries in Germany, the U.S., and Japan since World War II. Using detailed historical and interview based contemporary analysis, the book shows that as national industrial actors in each sector try to compete in global markets, they recompose firm and industry boundaries, producer strategies, stakeholder interests and governance mechanisms at all levels of their political economies. Theoretically, the book marks a departure from both neoliberal economic and historical institutionalist perspectives on change in advanced political economies. It characterizes industrial change as a creative, bottom up, process driven by reflective social actors. The alternative view consists of two distinctive claims. The first is that action is social, reflective and ultimately creative. When their interactive habits are disrupted, industrial actors seek to repair their relations by reconceiving them. Such imaginative interaction redefines interest and causes unforeseen possibilities for action to emerge, enabling actors to trump existing rules and constraints. Second, industrial change driven by creative action is recompositional. In the social process of reflection, actors rearrange, modify, reconceive and reposition inherited organizational forms and governance mechanisms as they experiment with solutions to the challenges that they face. Continuity in relations is interwoven with continuous reform and change. Most remarkably, creativity in the recomposition process makes the introduction of entirely new practices and relations possible. Ultimately, the message of Manufacturing Possibilities is that social study of change in advanced political economies should devote itself to the discovery of possibility. Preoccupation with constraint and failure to appreciate the capaciousness of reflective social action has led much of contemporary debate to misrecognize the dynamics of change. As a result, discussion of the range of adjustment possibilities has been unnecessarily limited.Less
Manufacturing Possibilities examines adjustment dynamics in the steel, automobile and machinery industries in Germany, the U.S., and Japan since World War II. Using detailed historical and interview based contemporary analysis, the book shows that as national industrial actors in each sector try to compete in global markets, they recompose firm and industry boundaries, producer strategies, stakeholder interests and governance mechanisms at all levels of their political economies. Theoretically, the book marks a departure from both neoliberal economic and historical institutionalist perspectives on change in advanced political economies. It characterizes industrial change as a creative, bottom up, process driven by reflective social actors. The alternative view consists of two distinctive claims. The first is that action is social, reflective and ultimately creative. When their interactive habits are disrupted, industrial actors seek to repair their relations by reconceiving them. Such imaginative interaction redefines interest and causes unforeseen possibilities for action to emerge, enabling actors to trump existing rules and constraints. Second, industrial change driven by creative action is recompositional. In the social process of reflection, actors rearrange, modify, reconceive and reposition inherited organizational forms and governance mechanisms as they experiment with solutions to the challenges that they face. Continuity in relations is interwoven with continuous reform and change. Most remarkably, creativity in the recomposition process makes the introduction of entirely new practices and relations possible. Ultimately, the message of Manufacturing Possibilities is that social study of change in advanced political economies should devote itself to the discovery of possibility. Preoccupation with constraint and failure to appreciate the capaciousness of reflective social action has led much of contemporary debate to misrecognize the dynamics of change. As a result, discussion of the range of adjustment possibilities has been unnecessarily limited.
Mari Sako
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199268160
- eISBN:
- 9780191708534
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199268160.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
All firms wrestle with restructuring that involves consolidation through mergers and acquisitions on the one hand, and fragmentation through outsourcing and spin-offs on the other. Corporate ...
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All firms wrestle with restructuring that involves consolidation through mergers and acquisitions on the one hand, and fragmentation through outsourcing and spin-offs on the other. Corporate restructuring is a major driver in transforming labour markets, engendering concerns about employment security. The framework introduced in this book analyses shifting organizational boundaries, i.e., structural changes within corporations resulting from a series of strategic interplays between management and labour unions. This framework is used to investigate the symbiotic adjustments in firm and union boundaries in the automobile and electronics industries in Japan. The book draws upon interview and survey evidence to show how the strategic interplay between labour and management led to incremental changes in Japan's national institutions, including lifetime employment, coordinated wage bargaining, and enterprise union networks. The gradual introduction of diversity and flexibility in markets is thus linked directly to the role management and labour played in bringing about institutional change. The book also demonstrates that adding labour to the Chandlerian analysis of corporate strategy and structure leads us to a view that boundary decisions are often contested.Less
All firms wrestle with restructuring that involves consolidation through mergers and acquisitions on the one hand, and fragmentation through outsourcing and spin-offs on the other. Corporate restructuring is a major driver in transforming labour markets, engendering concerns about employment security. The framework introduced in this book analyses shifting organizational boundaries, i.e., structural changes within corporations resulting from a series of strategic interplays between management and labour unions. This framework is used to investigate the symbiotic adjustments in firm and union boundaries in the automobile and electronics industries in Japan. The book draws upon interview and survey evidence to show how the strategic interplay between labour and management led to incremental changes in Japan's national institutions, including lifetime employment, coordinated wage bargaining, and enterprise union networks. The gradual introduction of diversity and flexibility in markets is thus linked directly to the role management and labour played in bringing about institutional change. The book also demonstrates that adding labour to the Chandlerian analysis of corporate strategy and structure leads us to a view that boundary decisions are often contested.
Gary Herrigel
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199557738
- eISBN:
- 9780191720871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199557738.003.0007
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy
This chapter examines the way that German and US manufacturers are implementing the modal form of vertical disintegration: Sustained, Contingent Collaboration. In contrast to the expectations of the ...
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This chapter examines the way that German and US manufacturers are implementing the modal form of vertical disintegration: Sustained, Contingent Collaboration. In contrast to the expectations of the Varieties of Capitalism perspective, both German and American manufacturers appear to be successfully embracing SCC. More troubling for institutionalism, the character of experimentation in both places appears not to be significantly constrained by the existing institutional system of rules and constraint. Actors are creatively circumventing rules and ignoring constraints to construct SCC. In the process, they are also recasting old and creating new differences between the two countries.Less
This chapter examines the way that German and US manufacturers are implementing the modal form of vertical disintegration: Sustained, Contingent Collaboration. In contrast to the expectations of the Varieties of Capitalism perspective, both German and American manufacturers appear to be successfully embracing SCC. More troubling for institutionalism, the character of experimentation in both places appears not to be significantly constrained by the existing institutional system of rules and constraint. Actors are creatively circumventing rules and ignoring constraints to construct SCC. In the process, they are also recasting old and creating new differences between the two countries.
Gary Herrigel
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199557738
- eISBN:
- 9780191720871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199557738.003.0008
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy
This chapter uses a case study of reform efforts in the German industrial relations system to consider the ways in which the dynamics of vertical disintegration are impacting processes of change at ...
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This chapter uses a case study of reform efforts in the German industrial relations system to consider the ways in which the dynamics of vertical disintegration are impacting processes of change at regional and national levels of governance. Despite apparent stalemate at the national level, rich and creative processes of experimentation are occurring in German firms and regions regarding the governance of the workplace. Crucially, in many cases, the diffusion of sustained contingent collaboration appears to be giving rise to the redefinition of who stakeholders in production are and how they should interact with one another in governance processes. This has created a disconnect with the older institutional system of industrial relations and creates a variety of possible options for works council and union action.Less
This chapter uses a case study of reform efforts in the German industrial relations system to consider the ways in which the dynamics of vertical disintegration are impacting processes of change at regional and national levels of governance. Despite apparent stalemate at the national level, rich and creative processes of experimentation are occurring in German firms and regions regarding the governance of the workplace. Crucially, in many cases, the diffusion of sustained contingent collaboration appears to be giving rise to the redefinition of who stakeholders in production are and how they should interact with one another in governance processes. This has created a disconnect with the older institutional system of industrial relations and creates a variety of possible options for works council and union action.
Mari Sako
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199268160
- eISBN:
- 9780191708534
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199268160.003.0006
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter presents the results of a survey of enterprise unions affiliated to roren union federations. It identifies the key structural and functional differences between two sectors: automobiles ...
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This chapter presents the results of a survey of enterprise unions affiliated to roren union federations. It identifies the key structural and functional differences between two sectors: automobiles and electrical machinery. It classifies roren into those based primarily on capital affiliation and those based on trading links. Capital affiliation is more important in drawing the boundary of electrical machinery roren, while trading links with parts suppliers are generally more important for roren in the automobile industry. The reasons for this contrast are provided, including consequences of these structural differences for the role of the roren in pay bargaining, employment adjustment, and worker participation.Less
This chapter presents the results of a survey of enterprise unions affiliated to roren union federations. It identifies the key structural and functional differences between two sectors: automobiles and electrical machinery. It classifies roren into those based primarily on capital affiliation and those based on trading links. Capital affiliation is more important in drawing the boundary of electrical machinery roren, while trading links with parts suppliers are generally more important for roren in the automobile industry. The reasons for this contrast are provided, including consequences of these structural differences for the role of the roren in pay bargaining, employment adjustment, and worker participation.
Gerardo Patriotta
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199275243
- eISBN:
- 9780191719684
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199275243.003.0004
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Strategy
This chapter provides a brief outline of the Fiat Group's origins, business activities, and organizational model. Section 4.2 outlines a profile of the company by describing its main business ...
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This chapter provides a brief outline of the Fiat Group's origins, business activities, and organizational model. Section 4.2 outlines a profile of the company by describing its main business operations as well as by providing a series of significant performance indicators. Sections 4.3-4.5 analyse the distinctive chronological phases characterizing the development of the company. Finally, Section 4.6 presents the main structural principles underlying the organizational model currently adopted by Fiat at the plant level, and hence in the plants considered in this study.Less
This chapter provides a brief outline of the Fiat Group's origins, business activities, and organizational model. Section 4.2 outlines a profile of the company by describing its main business operations as well as by providing a series of significant performance indicators. Sections 4.3-4.5 analyse the distinctive chronological phases characterizing the development of the company. Finally, Section 4.6 presents the main structural principles underlying the organizational model currently adopted by Fiat at the plant level, and hence in the plants considered in this study.
Maarten Keune, Geny Piotti, András Tóth, and Colin Crouch
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199551170
- eISBN:
- 9780191720802
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199551170.003.0005
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy, Innovation
This chapter considers the development of two car-manufacturing plants, both of the VW-Audi group, in two areas that had been parts of the former Soviet bloc: Zwickau and Győr. There appears to be a ...
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This chapter considers the development of two car-manufacturing plants, both of the VW-Audi group, in two areas that had been parts of the former Soviet bloc: Zwickau and Győr. There appears to be a major difference between the two, in that Zwickau is in the former German Democratic Republic and therefore in that part of the former Soviet territories that rapidly after 1989 became part of the Federal Republic of Germany, while Győr is in Hungary. The comparison allows the consideration of not only which former West German institutions VW-Audi takes with it when it establishes plants in areas which might be considered to have weak institutional legacies of their own, but also how this differed depending on whether these and other West German institutions were also being transferred by other means.Less
This chapter considers the development of two car-manufacturing plants, both of the VW-Audi group, in two areas that had been parts of the former Soviet bloc: Zwickau and Győr. There appears to be a major difference between the two, in that Zwickau is in the former German Democratic Republic and therefore in that part of the former Soviet territories that rapidly after 1989 became part of the Federal Republic of Germany, while Győr is in Hungary. The comparison allows the consideration of not only which former West German institutions VW-Audi takes with it when it establishes plants in areas which might be considered to have weak institutional legacies of their own, but also how this differed depending on whether these and other West German institutions were also being transferred by other means.
Stephen D. Cohen
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195179354
- eISBN:
- 9780199783779
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195179354.003.0007
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, International
The seemingly simple explanation of why a company invests overseas — to seek greater profits — is inadequate to provide satisfactory insight into the multiple rationales for establishing foreign ...
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The seemingly simple explanation of why a company invests overseas — to seek greater profits — is inadequate to provide satisfactory insight into the multiple rationales for establishing foreign subsidiaries. The omnipresence of heterogeneity and complexity as well as the need for disaggregation reappear as underlying themes as this chapter outlines the major academic models and theories as to why companies would accept the costs and risks of seeking to operate in foreign markets with alien cultures, often in direct competition with established local competitors. The bulk of the chapter is devoted to an extensive and unique list of “real-world” business and economic reasons that have caused FDI to be attractive to a growing number of companies in a growing number of countries. The concluding section is a case study of the automobile industry, a sector that can be used to illustrate a large number of the reasons for doing business on a multinational basis as previously discussed.Less
The seemingly simple explanation of why a company invests overseas — to seek greater profits — is inadequate to provide satisfactory insight into the multiple rationales for establishing foreign subsidiaries. The omnipresence of heterogeneity and complexity as well as the need for disaggregation reappear as underlying themes as this chapter outlines the major academic models and theories as to why companies would accept the costs and risks of seeking to operate in foreign markets with alien cultures, often in direct competition with established local competitors. The bulk of the chapter is devoted to an extensive and unique list of “real-world” business and economic reasons that have caused FDI to be attractive to a growing number of companies in a growing number of countries. The concluding section is a case study of the automobile industry, a sector that can be used to illustrate a large number of the reasons for doing business on a multinational basis as previously discussed.
David B. Audretsch
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195183504
- eISBN:
- 9780199783885
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195183504.003.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This chapter provides an introduction and overview. This book aims to make it clear that along with the shift from the managed economy to the entrepreneurial society, must come a reassessment of ...
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This chapter provides an introduction and overview. This book aims to make it clear that along with the shift from the managed economy to the entrepreneurial society, must come a reassessment of institutions and government policies, and the paths that individuals take to attain a viable and successful life. During the post-war era of the managed economy, the direction, energy, and pulse of society remained fixed on the large corporation. Individuals, particularly young people, viewed large corporations as the source of jobs and opportunities. Globalization destroyed the managed economy. What generated unprecedented wealth and job creation for Americans were new industries, such as computers, software, information technology, biotechnology, financial, health, and educational services. Many of these new industries were created by new firms started by entrepreneurs. This book provides a framework for understanding how and why the driving force underlying the economy has fundamentally changed. Such a framework is useful for understanding why such problems have become exacerbated and for creating new approaches and solutions.Less
This chapter provides an introduction and overview. This book aims to make it clear that along with the shift from the managed economy to the entrepreneurial society, must come a reassessment of institutions and government policies, and the paths that individuals take to attain a viable and successful life. During the post-war era of the managed economy, the direction, energy, and pulse of society remained fixed on the large corporation. Individuals, particularly young people, viewed large corporations as the source of jobs and opportunities. Globalization destroyed the managed economy. What generated unprecedented wealth and job creation for Americans were new industries, such as computers, software, information technology, biotechnology, financial, health, and educational services. Many of these new industries were created by new firms started by entrepreneurs. This book provides a framework for understanding how and why the driving force underlying the economy has fundamentally changed. Such a framework is useful for understanding why such problems have become exacerbated and for creating new approaches and solutions.
David B. Audretsch
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195183504
- eISBN:
- 9780199783885
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195183504.003.0003
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This chapter explains the era and institutions of the managed economy. Emerging from the Second World War, the United States found itself almost alone with a relative abundance of the factor that ...
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This chapter explains the era and institutions of the managed economy. Emerging from the Second World War, the United States found itself almost alone with a relative abundance of the factor that mattered the most for growth, jobs, and prosperity — capital. During the era of the managed economy, it was first and foremost capital that mattered, and everything that helped it — machines, factories, and labour which would work it and organize it. With the dazzling unprecedented post-war prosperity pouring out of US factories and plants, transforming first a country overcome by economic depression following a country at war, there seemed to be plenty enough for every American to go around.Less
This chapter explains the era and institutions of the managed economy. Emerging from the Second World War, the United States found itself almost alone with a relative abundance of the factor that mattered the most for growth, jobs, and prosperity — capital. During the era of the managed economy, it was first and foremost capital that mattered, and everything that helped it — machines, factories, and labour which would work it and organize it. With the dazzling unprecedented post-war prosperity pouring out of US factories and plants, transforming first a country overcome by economic depression following a country at war, there seemed to be plenty enough for every American to go around.
Ron Rodman
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195340242
- eISBN:
- 9780199863778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195340242.003.0008
- Subject:
- Music, Popular, History, American
This chapter traces the development of the television commercial from its hard sell early years to the soft sell paradigm that predominated since the 1980s. Winfried Nöth (1992) has called this trend ...
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This chapter traces the development of the television commercial from its hard sell early years to the soft sell paradigm that predominated since the 1980s. Winfried Nöth (1992) has called this trend a “strategy of occultation” wherein advertisement's primary function of commodity exchange gives way to semiotic spaces that frequently hide the motivation of a commercial by the artistic artifice of the text itself. In TV commercials from this era, however, the use of various musical styles to render an impression of a product may be better termed a “strategy of imbuement” wherein the music conveys traits about a product. Two examples are cited to reinforce this concept: an ad for Chevrolet trucks and an ad for Infiniti luxury cars.Less
This chapter traces the development of the television commercial from its hard sell early years to the soft sell paradigm that predominated since the 1980s. Winfried Nöth (1992) has called this trend a “strategy of occultation” wherein advertisement's primary function of commodity exchange gives way to semiotic spaces that frequently hide the motivation of a commercial by the artistic artifice of the text itself. In TV commercials from this era, however, the use of various musical styles to render an impression of a product may be better termed a “strategy of imbuement” wherein the music conveys traits about a product. Two examples are cited to reinforce this concept: an ad for Chevrolet trucks and an ad for Infiniti luxury cars.
Hiroyuki Odagiri and Akira Goto
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198288022
- eISBN:
- 9780191684555
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198288022.003.0009
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, South and East Asia
The automobile industry is a very important industry in Japan. In the past, the industry was dominated by European and American automobile manufacturers. However, Japan was able to keep up with the ...
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The automobile industry is a very important industry in Japan. In the past, the industry was dominated by European and American automobile manufacturers. However, Japan was able to keep up with the technology of foreign firms because of several reasons. First is reverse-engineering and research and development. Another reason for the industries' success is the government's role. The government gave the automobile industry several benefits such as financial incentives, standard setting, procurement by the military and the transportation authority, and protection from foreign industry. Today Japan is the dominant player in the world's automobile industry. This chapter discusses the history of its failure and success.Less
The automobile industry is a very important industry in Japan. In the past, the industry was dominated by European and American automobile manufacturers. However, Japan was able to keep up with the technology of foreign firms because of several reasons. First is reverse-engineering and research and development. Another reason for the industries' success is the government's role. The government gave the automobile industry several benefits such as financial incentives, standard setting, procurement by the military and the transportation authority, and protection from foreign industry. Today Japan is the dominant player in the world's automobile industry. This chapter discusses the history of its failure and success.
Geoffrey Jones
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- April 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199272099
- eISBN:
- 9780191602184
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272093.003.0004
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History
Multinational strategies have played key roles in nearly all of the world’s dynamic manufacturing industries since the late 19th century. The firms that pioneered the capital-intensive technologies ...
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Multinational strategies have played key roles in nearly all of the world’s dynamic manufacturing industries since the late 19th century. The firms that pioneered the capital-intensive technologies of the Second Industrial Revolution in the late 19th century — chemicals, electronics, and machinery — rapidly expanded into international markets. Automobile manufacturers followed in their path, as did their post-World War II successors in computers, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications.Less
Multinational strategies have played key roles in nearly all of the world’s dynamic manufacturing industries since the late 19th century. The firms that pioneered the capital-intensive technologies of the Second Industrial Revolution in the late 19th century — chemicals, electronics, and machinery — rapidly expanded into international markets. Automobile manufacturers followed in their path, as did their post-World War II successors in computers, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications.
Martin Fransman
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198289357
- eISBN:
- 9780191596261
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198289359.003.0003
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Microeconomics
A conceptualization (theory) of the firm is developed in order to analyse the evolution of the major Japanese computer and communications companies: Fujitsu, NEC, Hitachi, Toshiba, Mitsubishi ...
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A conceptualization (theory) of the firm is developed in order to analyse the evolution of the major Japanese computer and communications companies: Fujitsu, NEC, Hitachi, Toshiba, Mitsubishi Electric, and Oki. Particular attention is paid to the paradox presented by these companies, which feature strongly in the world's top ten in terms of total sales but which, unlike Japanese consumer electronics and automobile companies, are dominant in very few markets outside Japan. According to this conceptualization, a firm may be analysed in terms of four closely related dimensions: competences––the firm's activities and knowledge––define what that firm knows and can do; organization determines how the firm's competences are coordinated and controlled in order to produce a competitive output; vision refers to the set of beliefs that guide the firm's leaders in deciding what the firm should be doing and where it should be going; and selection environment is the sum total of factors external to the firm (and to the population of firms) that determine whether the firm will prosper or not.Less
A conceptualization (theory) of the firm is developed in order to analyse the evolution of the major Japanese computer and communications companies: Fujitsu, NEC, Hitachi, Toshiba, Mitsubishi Electric, and Oki. Particular attention is paid to the paradox presented by these companies, which feature strongly in the world's top ten in terms of total sales but which, unlike Japanese consumer electronics and automobile companies, are dominant in very few markets outside Japan. According to this conceptualization, a firm may be analysed in terms of four closely related dimensions: competences––the firm's activities and knowledge––define what that firm knows and can do; organization determines how the firm's competences are coordinated and controlled in order to produce a competitive output; vision refers to the set of beliefs that guide the firm's leaders in deciding what the firm should be doing and where it should be going; and selection environment is the sum total of factors external to the firm (and to the population of firms) that determine whether the firm will prosper or not.
Richard L. Abel
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199760374
- eISBN:
- 9780199827077
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199760374.003.0002
- Subject:
- Law, Legal Profession and Ethics
This chapter begins by presenting cases showing that solicitation is widespread and open. Lawyers learn it from mentors and peers, as well as the cappers themselves (who often use ethnic identity to ...
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This chapter begins by presenting cases showing that solicitation is widespread and open. Lawyers learn it from mentors and peers, as well as the cappers themselves (who often use ethnic identity to attract minority clients). Many cappers initiate and dominate the scheme, doing everything except litigate. Lawyers seek to disguise cappers as independent contractors and “investigators”, in order to preserve deniability. The arrangement is highly profitable to both sides. The chapter presents an unusually inventive method for connecting automobile injury victims with lawyers and doctors.Less
This chapter begins by presenting cases showing that solicitation is widespread and open. Lawyers learn it from mentors and peers, as well as the cappers themselves (who often use ethnic identity to attract minority clients). Many cappers initiate and dominate the scheme, doing everything except litigate. Lawyers seek to disguise cappers as independent contractors and “investigators”, in order to preserve deniability. The arrangement is highly profitable to both sides. The chapter presents an unusually inventive method for connecting automobile injury victims with lawyers and doctors.
Rebecca Cawood McIntyre
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813036953
- eISBN:
- 9780813038667
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813036953.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century
By the end of the 1920s tourism in the South had became a mass phenomenon. Even though the southern imagery was set in the public conscious by the end of First World War, the number of tourists ...
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By the end of the 1920s tourism in the South had became a mass phenomenon. Even though the southern imagery was set in the public conscious by the end of First World War, the number of tourists streaming southward was limited in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries because of the cost and the limitations of transportation. The rise to mass tourism happened because of the mass ownership of automobiles. Automobile ownership and the concurrent proliferation of roads and roadside services not only increased the numbers of tourists to the South and the rest of the United States but gave these travelers a new flexibility in where they would spend their vacations and their money. Even during the Great Depression, many visitors came southward, and after the Second World War the numbers increased dramatically as many Americans had more discretionary income to spend on leisure and more national highways to make the drives faster and easier.Less
By the end of the 1920s tourism in the South had became a mass phenomenon. Even though the southern imagery was set in the public conscious by the end of First World War, the number of tourists streaming southward was limited in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries because of the cost and the limitations of transportation. The rise to mass tourism happened because of the mass ownership of automobiles. Automobile ownership and the concurrent proliferation of roads and roadside services not only increased the numbers of tourists to the South and the rest of the United States but gave these travelers a new flexibility in where they would spend their vacations and their money. Even during the Great Depression, many visitors came southward, and after the Second World War the numbers increased dramatically as many Americans had more discretionary income to spend on leisure and more national highways to make the drives faster and easier.
P. A. Geroski
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199248896
- eISBN:
- 9780191596308
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199248893.003.0003
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Microeconomics
Describes and analyses the evolution of the structure of new markets. It evaluates a few case studies (particularly that of automobiles) highlighting the dynamics of market entry and exit. After ...
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Describes and analyses the evolution of the structure of new markets. It evaluates a few case studies (particularly that of automobiles) highlighting the dynamics of market entry and exit. After noting the typical early proliferation of firms and products in a new market, it devotes the rest of the chapter to explain the nature of this proliferation and of its speed of entry. Special attention is given to the role of entry barriers, product characteristics, and sources of the entrants.Less
Describes and analyses the evolution of the structure of new markets. It evaluates a few case studies (particularly that of automobiles) highlighting the dynamics of market entry and exit. After noting the typical early proliferation of firms and products in a new market, it devotes the rest of the chapter to explain the nature of this proliferation and of its speed of entry. Special attention is given to the role of entry barriers, product characteristics, and sources of the entrants.
P. A. Geroski
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199248896
- eISBN:
- 9780191596308
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199248893.003.0004
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Microeconomics
Explains how from a muddle of product proliferation, emerges a dominant design. It begins by noting the interest that both consumers and producers have to standardize products. Then identifies the ...
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Explains how from a muddle of product proliferation, emerges a dominant design. It begins by noting the interest that both consumers and producers have to standardize products. Then identifies the idea of a dominant design with that of a ‘consensus good’ and describes how this ‘consensus’ is reached in the market. Illustrations are drawn from several product‐case studies such as typewriters, computer operating systems, video cassette recorders, automobiles, and quadraphonic sound.Less
Explains how from a muddle of product proliferation, emerges a dominant design. It begins by noting the interest that both consumers and producers have to standardize products. Then identifies the idea of a dominant design with that of a ‘consensus good’ and describes how this ‘consensus’ is reached in the market. Illustrations are drawn from several product‐case studies such as typewriters, computer operating systems, video cassette recorders, automobiles, and quadraphonic sound.
