International Conference on Business History(Formerly Fuji Conference∗)

Innovation and Globalization ∗January 9-10, 2010
Tokyo, Japan

Hitotsubashi University / Waseda University /Business History Society of JapanORGANIZERS:
The Conference is jointly organized and supported by Business History Society ofJapan, Hitotsubashi University Global COE Program, Hitotsubashi University
Center for Japanese Business Studies, Waseda University Global Program, Waseda
Institute for Corporation Law and Society.
Organizing Committee Chairman
Hideaki Miyajima, Graduate School of Commerce, Waseda University, RIETI.
Conference Organizers
Minoru Shimamoto, Graduate School of Commerce and Management,
Hitotsubashi University
Takashi Shimizu, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo.
FOCUS:For the business firm, the 20th Century can be viewed as one of innovation andglobalization. On the one hand, a firm operating in the age of industrialization∗ Business History Society of Japan has organized international conferences on businesshistory since 1970. Since the venue of the first conferences was located at the foot ofMount Fuji, the Society decided on the name, Fuji Conference. The International
Conference on Business History, as it is now known, is the 30th in the series and will beheld this time in Tokyo. For further information concerning previous conferences, see
http://bhs-japan.org/bhsj/Doc/FujiCon/041225_Fujicon.html

could not be successful without innovation. Here, innovation not only means
technological innovation, but also institutional innovation. On the other hand, theincrease of international interdependence has brought many opportunities to thefirm as well as threats. A firm can survive and prosper only by adapting and taking
advantage of the waves of globalization.
Recent changes in global economy such as the dramatic growth of Chinese
economy and the Financial Crisis in 2008 clearly show us that innovation andglobalization are still the business firm’s most important challenges. The purposeof this conference is to investigate the various aspects of these challenges and firms’
behaviors in response, including innovations to cope with globalization.
In order to achieve this goal, we have proposed the following four sessions(the titles are tentative).
The first session, “Transition to the Market Economy and Institutional
Innovations,” will examine the experiences of firms that made the transition to themarket economy, particularly the institutional innovations they introduced to dealwith it. We will focus both on the process by which the market economy emerged
and the institutional changes which took place when an economy faced external
shocks such as the Great Depression.
The second session will address “Innovation of Business Systems in Emerging
Overseas Markets.” In this session, we will examine the strategies of multinationals
to penetrate emerging markets and the various difficulties they faced when they
entered those markets.
The third session, “Role of Executives and Institutions toward Innovation,” will
focus on the decisions of executives and the institutional environment resulting
from capital markets or governmental assistance, which enhanced their ability toinnovate.
Finally, the fourth session will address “Governance for Globalization andInnovation.” In this session, we will explore legal, ethical, and managerial
problems of governance in the broad sense, which stem from globalization andinnovation.
INVITED SPEAKERS:

Steven CASPER (Keck Graduate Institute)Laszlo CZABAN (University of Manchester)Simon DIEKIN (Cambridge University)
Howard GOSPEL (Oxford University)
Motoi IHARA (Saitama University)
Tatsuhiko INOUE (Waseda University)
Geoffrey JONES (Harvard University)
Yongwook JUN (Chung-ang University) with Zukweon KIM (Konkuk University )Youngwon PARK (Waseda University/ University of Tokyo)
Minoru SHIMAMOTO (Hitotsubashi University)
Hiroshi SHIMIZU (Hitotsubashi University)
Kazuhiro TANAKA (Hitotsubashi University)
Miaojie YU (Beijing University)
VENUE :
Conference Room, 7th Floor, Mercury Tower, Hitotsubashi University (Kunitachi EastCampus)
Building No.33 (See campus map below)
http://www.hit-u.ac.jp/eng/about/direction/guide/campus/e-campus/index.html
Access to the Kunitachi Campus,
http://www.hit-u.ac.jp/eng/about/direction/kunitachi.html(2-1, Naka, Kunitachi-shi, Tokyo Japan)
RECEPTION:
The Reception will be held on the evening of Saturday, January 9th in Mercury Hall,Mercury Tower, 7th Floor, Hitotubashi University (located on the same floor as theconference venue).
REGISTRATION:
To be posted on the website of the Business History Society of Japan.
(http://www.bhs-japan.org/bhsj/sub08.html ).