Title: Big business : the European experience in the twentieth century /
Authors: Cassis, Youssef
Publisher: Oxford University Press,
Year: 1997
Subjects: Big business Great Britain Cross-cultural studies.; Big business France Cross-cultural studies.; Big business Germany Cross-cultural studies.; Corporate culture Great Britain Cross-cultural studies.; Corporate culture France Cross-cultural studies.; Corporate culture Germany Cross-cultural studies.
Abstract: Youssef Cassis presents a major comparative study of big business in the three leading European nations over the course of the 20th century. Drawing on a carefully constructed sample of leading companies from the UK, France, and Germany, the author analyzes the relationship between corporate and national economic performance, the impact of national difference on business performance and practice, and the composition and influence of the business elites in each country. Big business is essential reading for anyone interested in the development of European business and the links between business practice and its wider social and political environment.
Contents: Part I: Big business -- 1. The world of big business before 1914 -- 2. From the 1920s to the 1950s -- 3. Recent developments -- Part II: Performances -- 4. Profits and profitability -- 5. Survival -- Part III: Business leadership -- 6. Competence -- 7. Decision-making -- Part IV: Business, society, and politics -- 8. Wealth, status, and power before 1914 -- 9. Business elites in contemporary Europe -- Conclusion -- Appendix: List of companies Included in the samples: 1907, 1929, and 1953 -- Index.