Strategy and structure
Subtitle: chapters in the history of the industrial enterprise
By: Alfred D. Chandler, Jr.
Publisher: M.I.T. Press
Published: 1990
Place of publication: Cambridge, Mass
Language: eng
Number of pages: 463
Subjects: Industrial management -- United States -- History; Industrial organization -- United States -- History; Corporations -- United States -- Case studies
First sentence: This investigation into the changing strategy and structure of the large industrial enterprise in the United States began as an experiment in the writing of comparative business history.
Description: This book shows how large American corporations dealt with effectively administering an expanding business.  The author summarizes the history of the expansion of the nation's largest industries during the past hundred years and then examines in depth the modern decentralized corporate structure as it was developed independently by four companies - du Pont, General Motors, Standard Oil (New Jersey), and Sears, Roebuck. (back cover copy)
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 399-453) and index.
Table of contents: title: . Introduction - Strategy and Structure, 1; title: Motives and Methods, 1; title: Some General Propositions, 7; title: . 1 Historical Setting, 19; title: The Beginnings of Business Administration in the United States, 20; title: The Coming of the Integrated, Multidepartmental Enterprise, 24; title: Integration via Combination and Consolidation, 29; title: Organization Building, 36; title: Further Growth - The Coming of the Multidivisional Enterprise, 42; title: . 2 Du Pont - Creating the Autonomous Divisions, 52; title: The Centralized Structure, 52; title: The Strategy of Consolidation, 53; title: Creating the Multidepartmental Structure, 57; title: Structural Modifications - 1903-1919, 62; title: Further Centralization - 1919, 67; title: The Strategy of Diversification, 78; title: Initial Steps Toward Diversification, 79; title: Intensified Pressures for Diversification, 83; title: The Final Definition of the Strategy of Diversification, 88; title: The Structure for the New Strategy, 91; title: New Problems Created by New Strategy, 92; title: The Problems Analyzed, 94; title: A New Structure Proposed and Rejected, 96; title: A Compromise Structure Adopted, 100; title: Crisis and the Acceptance of the Multidivisional Structure, 104; title: . 3 General Motors - Creating the General Office, 114; title: The Durant Strategy, 114; title: The Sources of Durant's Strategy, 115; title: The Creation of General Motors, 118; title: The Storrow Regime, 120; title: Durant's Return and Renewed Expansion and Integration, 122; title: Du Pont Contributions to Durant's Organization, 125; title: The Crisis of 1920, 128; title: The Sloan Structure, 130; title: The Sources of Sloan's Structure, 130; title: The "Organizational Study", 133; title: Minor Modifications, 140; title: Putting the New Structure Into Operation, 142; title: Defining Divisional Boundaries, 142; title: The Development of Statistical and Financial Controls, 145; title: Defining the Role of the Advisor Staff, 153; title: The Role of the Executive Committee, 157; title: The Finished Structure, 158; title: A Comparison of Organization uilding at General Motors and du Pont, 161; title: . 4 Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) - <i>Ad Hoc</i> Reorganization, 163; title: Structure and Strategy Before 1925, 164; title: The Strategy of Vertical Integration and Continued Expansion, 170; title: Vertical Integration and the Creation of new Functional Departments, 172; title: Expansion and the Older Departments, 175; title: The Growth of Staff Departments, 177; title: The Board, 181; title: Initial Awareness of Structural Weaknesses, 182; title: The Initial Reorganization - 1925-1926, 185; title: Teagle's Troubles, 186; title: The 1925 "Program", 188; title: The Coordination Department and Committee, 189; title: The Budget Department and Committee, 193; title: Reorganizing the Marketing Department, 196; title: Reorganizing the Manufacturing Department, 199; title: The Creation of the Multidivisional, "Decentralized" Structure, 205; title: Continuing Diffficulties, 205; title: The 1927 Changes, 208; title: Working Out the New Structure, 216; title: Some Final Considerations, 221; title: . 5 Sears, Roebuck and Company - Decentralization, Planned and Unplanned, 225; title: Changing Strategy and Structure, 225; title: Initial Strategy and Structure, 226; title: The New Strategy, 233; title: Structural Strains Created by the New Strategy, 237; title: Abortive Decentralization, 241; title: The Frazer Committee, 242; title: The Committee's Proposals, 243; title: Carrying Out the Committee's Proposals, 249; title: Frazer Reviews the new Structure, 252; title: Continuing Conflict and Resulting Proposals, 253; title: The Territorial Organization Scrapped, 260; title: Evolutionary Decentralization, 261; title: The Centralized Retail organization, 261; title: Decentralization of the Retail Organization, 265; title: The Growth of Local Regional Administrative Units, 267; title: The Return of the Territorial Organization, 268; title: The Final Structure, 276; title: . 6 Organizational Innovation - A Comparative Analysis, 283; title: The Adaptive Response, 284; title: Building the Functional Departments, 285; title: Building the Central Office, 290; title: The Creative Innovation, 299; title: The Conditions for Innovation, 299; title: The Process of Innovation, 303; title: The Significance of the Innovation, 309; title: Organizational Innovators, 314; title: An Organization Builder's Personality and Training, 315; title: Sources of Information, 320; title: . 7 The Spread of The Multidivisional Structure, 324; title: Industries Not Accepting the New Structure, 326; title: Copper and Nickel, 327; title: Steel, 331; title: Aluminum, 337; title: Materials, 340; title: Industries Partially Accepting the New Structure, 342; title: Processors of Agricultural Products, 344; title: Rubber, 350; title: Petroleum, 352; title: Industries Widely Accepting the new Structure, 362; title: Electrical and Electronics, 363; title: Power Machiner and Automobiles, 370; title: Chemicals, 374; title: Variations on Structural Change, 378; title: The Merchandising Enterprises, 378; title: Summary of the Process of Structural Change within the Enterprise, 380; title: . Conclusion - Chapters in the History of the Great Industrial Enterprise, 380; title: The First Chapter - Accumulating Resources, 386; title: The Second Chapter - Rationalizing the Use of Resources, 387; title: The Third Chapter - Continued Growth, 390; title: The Fourth Chapter - Rationalizing the Use of Expanding Resources, 393; title: . References, 397; title: . Notes, 399; title: . Index, 455