Search results for ""edward elgar publishing ltd""

Self-Management and Leadership Development offers a unique perspective on how leaders and aspiring leaders can and should take personal responsibility for their own development.This distinguished book is differentiated from other books on this topic with its view on the instrumental role played by individuals in managing their own development, rather than depending on others, such as their organization, to guide them. Expert scholars in the area of leadership emphasize the importance of self-awareness as the critical starting point in the process. Explicit recommendations are provided on how individuals can manage their own self-assessment as a starting point to their development. The contributors present insights and practical recommendations on how individuals can actively self-manage through a number of typical leadership challenges.Business school faculty teaching electives in leadership, and managers who engage in leadership development for themselves or others, should not be without this important resource. Consulting firms and training institutions offering leadership development programs and participants in MBA and executive development programs will also find it invaluable.

Read more less

This innovative book presents a transatlantic comparison of governance and Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) policy, performance and management. By examining both analytical and empirical differences and similarities between the European Union and the United States, this comprehensive book provides a better understanding of (inter) governmental systems, settings and actors operating in the post New Public Management Era. The expert contributors consider processes of policy formulation and implementation from an intergovernmental point of view, examine issues of performance and accountability that rise in IGR settings and zoom in on the importance and implications of IGR for welfare. Taken together, these insights provide an important next step into the world of transatlantic research and comparison. This timely book will appeal to academics and researchers involved in IGR and Multi-Level Governance from the US and Europe as well as post-graduate students in public administration and public policy.

Read more less

This book represents a major attempt to draw together two fundamental streams of research: intergovernmental relations and multi-level governance (MLG). Combining US and European schools of thought, this timely volume outlines key areas of convergence and divergence.IGR concerns interactions within the public sector and is traditionally favored in America, whereas MLG is more pertinent to the crossroads of the vertical (intergovernmental) and horizontal (state-society) dimensions and is considered foremost a European approach. The principal objective of this book is to bridge the gap between academic communities on either side of the Atlantic. Prominent scholars have gathered together for this volume and their various contributions, both individually and as a whole, provide a fresh and novel perspective on IGR and MLG and their interconnections.This innovative book will be of particular appeal to scholars and students of political science in America, Europe and beyond as well as practitioners in US and EU governments. The companion volume Policy, Performance and Management in Governance and Intergovernmental Relations is also available from Edward Elgar Publishing.

Read more less

This timely book sets social entrepreneurship in a historical context, from its philanthropic beginnings in the Victorian era to the present day, against the backdrop of contemporary global capitalism.Starting with contributions from social entrepreneurs and innovators, this anthology describes the workings of social entrepreneurship and explores its import as a gauge of contemporary social, environmental and economic conditions. Drawing on perspectives from cultural theory, history and sociology, the authors investigate the theory of entrepreneurship, the culture of management and the forgotten antecedents of social entrepreneurship.The volume then puts social entrepreneurship in the context of the goals and struggles for sustainable development and the modernisation of the welfare state in the global North and South. Its cultural approach will make this book an introduction for students in the liberal arts; its disciplinary perspectives will make it a useful tool for academics and students in the fields of cultural theory, sociology and entrepreneurship as well as development studies.

Read more less

Following World War II, Nordic countries were commonly regarded as successful and stable economies. This perception was, however, shattered in the early 1990s when Finland and Sweden encountered severe financial crises. Here, the authors explore the symptoms of financial crisis - decreasing real income, soaring unemployment and exploding public deficits - and their devastating effects. The book compares and contrasts the experiences of Finland and Sweden, then adopts an international perspective, encompassing the experiences of Asia, Latin America, Denmark and Norway. Lessons from the 1990s crisis are drawn, and possible solutions prescribed. The conclusion is that long-term effects of financial crises - financial liberalization and integration - are not as dramatic as the short-term effects, but may prove to be of greater importance over time. Only the future will show whether these long-term benefits will balance or even outweigh the enormous short-term costs of the crises.Highly relevant to the current international financial crisis currently afflicting the world economy, this timely book will prove invaluable to economists and other social scientists with a general interest in financial crises, and to those with a more specific interest in the evolution and models of Scandinavian economies.

Read more less

Microsoft on Trial analyses the antitrust cases that have involved Microsoft on both sides of the Atlantic and offers a thorough and timely discussion on the regulation of unilateral behaviour in a topical sector.This fascinating and highly relevant book facilitates discussion on the difficult technical, legal and economic issues with respect to innovation, competition and welfare raised, through the span of more than a decade, by the US and EC Microsoft antitrust cases. It assesses their impact on the evolution of European and US laws on competition and intellectual property in the IT sector and beyond. The book, which adopts a multidisciplinary approach (IT, law, economics), benefits from the valuable insights of 20 contributors including those that were directly involved in the EC case. Practitioners, advanced postgraduates and academics will find this unique book an essential resource.

Read more less

Which strategy making approach works best in a crisis? In current literature, the recommendations oscillate between prediction, control, and practice, but this unique book focuses specifically on strategy making in a crisis. In a crisis, the business landscape is neither stable nor predictable, resources are scarce rather than abundant, customers disappear and shareholders revolt, all of which can make prediction and control very difficult. Drawing on evidence from philosophy, and on a multi-year case study of a major multinational, Michael Gibbert points to three different kinds of imaginations and proposes a three-step model for imaginative strategy making. Introducing new topics on this subject, Strategy Making in a Crisis will strongly appeal to top-level managers, including corporate development departments, and business-unit level strategy. Postgraduate students will also receive ideas for their own theses, not only from the content, but also from the approach - which is deductive and integrates management theories using social science literature - and methodology.

Read more less

This comprehensive two-volume collection of leading articles in trademark and unfair competition law spans almost a century and three continents, bringing together the most influential and significant scholarly work in this exciting field. These essential volumes, with a new and original introduction by two leading contemporary writers, are organised in a way that highlights essential concepts and will be invaluable both for those taking their first steps in the area and for those seeking to re-acquaint themselves with the classics.

Read more less

This research review is an essential guide to the most important research in the area of competitive strategy. This research review contains articles that contribute to the understanding of competitive effects at industry, firm, group and dyad levels and also focuses more deeply on the competitive capabilities of individual firms, including those required to succeed in dynamic competitive environments.

Read more less

This timely new collection presents the most significant English language contributions to the literature on Islamic accounting. Including more than thirty articles by some of the most important authors in the area, the book covers six major themes: the conceptual framework, accounting ethics and social responsibility, corporate reporting, accounting practice and zakat, auditing and the Islamic history of accounting.Following the rapid growth of the Islamic financial system this book will be recommended reading for academics, students, researchers and practitioners interested in developing their understanding of this increasingly important area, and an essential purchase for libraries.

Read more less

This fascinating study evaluates whether the recent focus on human rights, citizenship and values makes a difference to service delivery on the ground. In doing so, it bridges the social policy and human rights literature. The book adopts a comparative approach with eight case-studies examining the factors that drive policy making in a range of policy sectors in both EU and non-EU countries. The contributing authors explore the ways in which legally enforceable rights and wider rights discourse influence the services that are provided across a range of policy sectors and welfare regimes. Further issues, such as how patterns of service provision can affect how people view and experience citizenship, are also discussed.Human Rights and Social Policy will strongly appeal to academics and students interested in work and family policies, labour market activation policies, welfare reform, gender, children?s policy and housing policy.

Read more less

This timely Handbook offers a unique opportunity to consider the performance and national context of microcredit initiatives within the European Union.Drawing together authors from a multi-disciplinary background and including complementary perspectives and interpretative analysis, this original Handbook examines which strategies and policies may affect how a particular country initiative fights against social and financial exclusion or fosters entrepreneurial behaviour with the use of microcredit. It explores the development of an Eastern/Western Europe practical divide in institutional practices and business models, whilst analysing the state of European microcredit and how the continent is adopting and adapting this developing world model for economic development.This book will be an influential tool helping government and policymakers to target a new set of microcredit initiatives and programmes. It will also be an invaluable read for students and academics in economics, business, development issues and political science.

Read more less

Tourism economics is a rapidly expanding field of research and interest in the subject has been growing steadily over the past decade. As a field of study it is one of the small band of areas, such as energy and transport economics, that draws on, and applies, developments in general economics.This highly accessible and comprehensive Handbook presents a cutting edge discussion of the state of tourism economics and its likely directions in future research. Leading researchers in the field explore a wide range of topics including: demand and forecasting, supply, transport, taxation and infrastructure, evaluation and application for policy-making. Each chapter includes a discussion of its relevance and importance to the tourism economics literature, an overview of its main contributions and themes, a critical evaluation of existing literature and an outline of issues for further conceptual and applied research.Larry Dwyer and Peter Forsyth have assembled a fascinating Handbook that will be an invaluable and much welcomed reference book for tourism economics scholars and researchers at all levels of academe. General economics scholars will also find much to engage them within the book.

Read more less

This timely and much-needed Handbook reconsiders an old topic from a fresh perspective, raising a number of new, interesting and worthwhile issues in the wake of ten years of globalization. This comprehensive analysis illustrates that old-style industrial policies whereby the government directly intervened in markets, and was often the producer itself, are no longer relevant. Structural changes occurring in economies - summarized in the term 'globalization' - are triggering the definition and implementation of new industrial policies. The contributors, leading experts in their field, unite to evaluate this shift of over a decade ago. Employing various empirical and methodological approaches with a strong theoretical underpinning, this world-wide study of the state-of-the-art of industrial policy issues is an invaluable reference tool. It has been enthusiastically received by a wide-ranging audience including scholars, researchers and policy makers with an interest in industrial economics and policy, business studies and policies for growth, competitiveness and development.

Read more less

This book provides a comprehensive account of the role of the advisory, legislative and implementation committees involved in the policy-making process of the European Union. This is an aspect of EU politics that is often overlooked and remains under-researched, even though such committees can have wide-ranging influence in the policy-process. The group of international scholars contributing to this volume are all experts in their field, coming from different disciplinary backgrounds including political science, law and public administration. The volume combines contributions to a discussion of the normative issues arising from the nature of 'committee governance' in the EU with more empirical contributions on the role of committees in each of the stages of the EU policy-process: policy-preparation, legislative decision-making, policy-implementation and adjudication. The result is a text that provides not only a thorough overview of the role of committees in the EU today but also contributes to a deeper understanding of the nature of European governance.The Role of Committees in the Policy-Process of the European Union will find its audience in final year undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers of European studies and politics. Practitioners, NGOs and lobbyists involved in the work of the EU will all find this a uniquely useful book.

Read more less

In this ground-breaking book, Guy Standing offers a new perspective on work and citizenship, rejecting the labourist orientation of the 20th century. Karl Polanyi's The Great Transformation marked the rise of industrial citizenship, which hinged on fictitious labour decommodification. Since the 1970s, this has collapsed and a Global Transformation is under way, in which inequalities and insecurities are becoming unsustainable. Guy Standing explains that while a struggle against paternalism is essential, the desirable egalitarian response to the problems caused by globalization is a strategy to build occupational citizenship. This is based on a right to universal economic security and institutions to enable everybody to develop their capabilities and work whilst respecting the ecological imperatives of the 21st century. The book also explores a phasing out of labour law and a re-orientation of collective bargaining towards collaborative bargaining, highlighting the increased importance of the relationship between groups of workers and citizens as well as between workers and capital.Work after Globalization offers a new perspective on work, rejecting the labourist orientation of the 20th century. Social scientists interested in globalization and labour market issues will warmly welcome this book. It will also strongly appeal to students, researchers, policy-makers, social activists and those connected with the international regulation of occupations.

Read more less

This book analyses and draws policy implications from infrastructure's central role in lowering Asia's trade costs. Infrastructure is shown to be a cost-effective means of lowering trade costs and thereby promoting regional growth and integration. This book combines thematic and country studies, while breaking new ground in quantifying infrastructure's impact on Asia's trade costs. The contributors examine empirical estimates of Asia's trade costs and infrastructure's influence on those costs while also contributing to a better understanding of the region's logistics challenges. The book includes interesting case studies of rapid growth and congestion (in PRC), inland transportation challenges (India), port competition in an archipelago (Indonesia) and transportation modal switching as value-added rises (Malaysia) that are policy- and project-relevant in their own right. The analysis and policy implications in this book will be of interest to trade and infrastructure policy-makers and academics at graduate and higher levels involved in economic development or Asian studies, as well as the broader development community.

Read more less

This major Handbook consists of 29 contributions that explore the full range of exciting and interesting work on money and finance currently taking place within heterodox economics.There are many themes and facets of alternative monetary and financial economics but two major ones can be identified. The first concerns the nature of money: money is credit created through the financial system in the process of loan creation. The second theme is that money is endogenous and not exogenous. Contributions to the Handbook cover the origins and nature of money, detailed analyses of endogenous money, surveys of empirical work on endogenous money and the nature of monetary policy when money is endogenous. The second theme focuses on the financial system, and the perception that it is generally subject to volatility, instability and crisis. This Handbook will undoubtedly serve as the ultimate guide to the full spectrum of alternative monetary economics.Philip Arestis and Malcolm Sawyer have performed an invaluable task in compiling a comprehensive Handbook, written by leading specialists, that will be required reading by upper level undergraduate and postgraduate students studying money, finance and macroeconomics as well as heterodox and monetary economists more generally.

Read more less

Human trafficking is widely considered to be the fastest growing branch of trafficking. As this important book reveals, it has moved rapidly up the agenda of states and international organisations since the early-1990s, not only because of this growth, but also as its implications for security and human rights have become clearer. This fascinating study by international experts provides original research findings on human trafficking, with particular reference to Europe, South-East Asia and Australia. A major focus is on why and how many states and organisations act in ways that undermine trafficked victims' rights, as part of 'quadruple victimisation'. It compares and contrasts policies and suggests which seem to work best and why. The contributors also advocate radical new approaches that most states and other formal organisations appear loath to introduce, for reasons that are explored in this unique book. This must-read book will appeal to policymakers as well as advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students in the fields of criminology, human rights law, gender studies, political science and international studies.Contributors: J. Debeljak, L. Holmes, S. Kneebone, Z. Lasocik, K. Leong, S. Milivojevic, S. Schwandner-Sievers, M. Segrave, O. Simic, S. Yea

Read more less

Peter Curwen and Jason Whalley review the strategic operations of, and technological options available to, the 30 most prominent international mobile operators. This review is initially based upon the Asia-Pacific, African, European, Latin American and North American regions before moving on to take a worldwide perspective. The authors place these mobile operators within a wider business context via a broad ten-year appraisal of the companies involved in the entire telecommunications, media and technology (TMT) sector. The issue as to whether there truly is such a thing as a global mobile operator is addressed; the answer, in practice, is negative. Based upon the very latest data available, the underlying premise of the book is that mobile telecommunications is such a fast-moving sector that operators are obliged to alter their international strategies as circumstances unravel without necessarily having a long-term master plan, and hence that opportunism is a hallmark of operators' international strategies. This state-of-the-art overview of the internationalisation of mobile telecommunications will prove essential reading for academics and practitioners with a vested interest in technology, telecommunications and strategic management.

Read more less

This exciting Handbook provides an authoritative and comprehensive overview of managerial behavior and occupational health. Containing both theoretical and empirical contributions written by eminent academics, the Handbook covers a range of factors that influence behavior including migration and health, job insecurity, the impact of age diversity, work stress and health in the context of social inequality as well as occupational health from a psychological perspective. It is an essential reference tool to further research on psychology, stress and understanding the behaviors of health within working environments. The book will be invaluable to academics and students in the fields of occupational health.

Read more less

Around half the world's population live in countries where the fertility rate is far below the replacement rate and where life expectancy is increasing dramatically. Using Singapore as a case study, Social Policy in an Ageing Society explores what might happen in a dynamic and prosperous society when falling births, longer life expectancy and rising expectations put disproportionate pressure on scarce resources that have alternative uses.David Reisman investigates the challenges facing Singapore, where a rapidly rising median age and the growing pressure of the elderly upon medical attention are threatening to disrupt the economic and even the political status quo. The dependency of the old upon the young is becoming a financial and an emotional burden. Health care is swelling in quantity and price. Voluntary and compulsory savings are being used up. New demands for pensions and subsidies are challenging the national ideology of family network and self-reliance. Despite a wealth of prospective problems, the author argues that viable solutions can be found. Discretionary savings can increase. Reverse mortgages can monetise owner-occupied property. A higher participation rate can give the elderly the opportunity to earn a living for themselves. This book concludes that public policy must play its part in facilitating these solutions. It must ensure that the old retain their dignity. The old should not lie where they fall.This comprehensive, intelligible and highly original cross-disciplinary study will appeal to a wide-ranging audience. Readers will include academics, researchers and students with an interest in health economics, the economics of development, social policy and administration, public policy and the socio-economic aspects of medicine.

Read more less

This thoroughly revised Handbook provides an assessment of the scope and content of environmental sociology, and sets out the intellectual and practical challenges posed by the urgent need for policy and action to address accelerating environmental change. More than a decade has passed since the first edition of the Handbook was published to considerable acclaim, and environmental sociology has since become firmly established as a critical social science discipline. This second edition is a major interdisciplinary reference work comprising more than 25 original essays authored by leading scholars, many of whom are intimately involved in national, regional or global environmental policy processes. It marks some of the changes and continuities in the field of environmental sociology, and highlights today?s substantive concerns and theoretical debates. The Handbook is divided into three parts covering concepts and theories, critical issues and international perspectives, each with an introduction outlining the content of the constituent chapters and cross-referencing some of the more significant themes that link them together.Authoritative and comprehensive, this Handbook will prove to be essential reading for academics, researchers and students across the social sciences who are interested in the environment. It will also be enthusiastically received by sustainable development policy-makers and practitioners.

Read more less

One might mistakenly think that the long tradition of economic analysis in antitrust law would mean there is little new to say. Yet the field is surprisingly dynamic and changing. The specially commissioned chapters in this landmark volume offer a rigorous analysis of the field's most current and contentious issues. Focusing on those areas of antitrust economics that are most in flux, leading scholars discuss topics such as: mergers that create unilateral effects or eliminate potential competition; whether market definition is necessary; tying, bundled discounts, and loyalty discounts; a new theory of predatory pricing; assessing vertical price-fixing after Leegin; proving horizontal agreements after Twombly; modern analysis of monopsony power; the economics of antitrust enforcement; international antitrust issues; antitrust in regulated industries; the antitrust-patent intersection; and modern methods for measuring antitrust damages. Students and scholars of law and economics, law practitioners, regulators, and economists with an interest in industrial organization and consulting will find this seminal Handbook an essential and informative resource. Contributors: J.B. Baker, R.D. Blair, A. Bradford, N. Economides, A. Edlin, E. Elhauge, D.S. Evans, J.S. Haynes, B. Klein, A.K. Klevorick, I.B. Kohler-Hausmann, J. Kwoka, D. Reitman, D.L. Rubinfeld, H.A. Shelanski, C.J. Sprigman, A.L. Wickelgren

Read more less

This book contributes to the current debates on the shadow economy and related issues of tax evasion and corruption. The approach taken here is one that will develop a better understanding of these related issues, which are increasingly seen as impediments to country competitiveness and economic growth.Economists and policymakers are increasingly focused on how the shadow economy operates. The contributors discuss how effective corporate governance may help to reduce both the occurrence and effects of illegal activities. The book begins by considering institutional governance and how issues such as economic growth and development can be better understood by gaining a deeper understanding of the decision-making process. The importance of collective persuasion and collective decision-making in an institutional context is illustrated. The remainder of the work details a series of empirical studies outlining the role of governance and institutional capacity in assessing economic performance, the role of political competition in reducing corruption and measures of, and influences on, corruption in different countries around the world.Institutions such as the WTO, World Bank and the IMF will find much to engage them in this book as will policy makers in government and research policy agencies. It will also hold great appeal to academics (postgraduate and above) in the fields of political economy, economic development and international economics.

Read more less

This volume offers outstanding works of recent scholarship on Darwinism covering three major fields of enquiry: How Darwinism affects our conception of human nature and challenges long-standing assumptions such as self-interested behaviour. Analysis of the nature of socio-cultural evolution, its differences from biological evolution and whether it is Lamarckian. The possibility of generalizing core Darwinian principles to cover evolving entities in the economic and social world, as well as in biology. Exploring the huge potential impact of Darwinism on the social sciences, this collection is an insightful reference tool for scholars and others recognising the importance of new developments in this discipline.

Read more less

This authoritative title presents seminal papers from leading academics on the evolving field of globalization and its effects on corporations and enterprises. Professor Buckley has selected key works which define the global factory and cover important research areas including the antecedents of the global factory, the effect of globalization on international networks, offshoring and outsourcing as well as formal theoretical models. This indispensable book will be of immense value to students, scholars and practitioners interested in this topical and relevant field.

Read more less

Bringing together over a dozen post-Keynesian experts on the issues of employment, growth, development and exchange rates, this book breaks new ground by offering interesting and innovative insights into the problems faced today in both developed and developing countries. This topical book addresses unemployment in Europe, the wrong-headed reliance on NAIRU to formulate policy, distributional conflicts and financial factors, as well as problems faced in developing countries with respect to exchange rate policy, central banking, challenges to growth, and international financial flows. In the first part of the book the chapters deal with issues related to employment policies, economic growth and development while the second part is dedicated to development and growth issues in open-economy developing countries. Employment, Growth and Development offers an interesting analysis of the current economic issues from a post-Keynesian perspective that will appeal to academics and graduate students interested in development and economics. Contributors: M. Aslam, R. Bellofiore, M. Ben Guirat, F.J. Cardim de Carvalho, T. Chaiechi, M. Clevenot, E. Correa, C. Gnos, Y. Guy, J. Halevi, D. Lang, N. Levy Orlik, J. Lopez, W.C. Marshall, E. Ortiz Cruz, C. Pastoret, L.-P. Rochon, M. Setterfield, E. Stockhammer, D. Tropeano, V. Vernay

Read more less

Denmark exemplifies the puzzle of socio-economic success in Scandinavia. Populations are thriving despite the world s highest levels of tax, generous social benefits and scarce natural resources. It would appear to be a land of paradise for free-riders and those who want 'money for nothing'. However, the national personality is characterized both by cooperation in everyday life and the numerous 'hard-riders' who make extraordinary contributions. Applying Bourdieuconomics, the authors focus on contemporary case studies to explain how social capital and trust are used to counteract free-riding and enable the flight of the Scandinavian welfare state 'bumblebee'.Insightful and interdisciplinary, the authors' approach offers qualitative case studies which explore trust, social capital and wealth in the Scandinavian welfare state. Key to the topic is the authors' discussion of free-riders versus 'hard-riders' as well as civic engagement in the welfare state. The application of Bourdieuconomics, a new theoretical approach, to a range of examples using economics, sociology, anthropology and history, will make this highly cross-disciplinary book accessible to a broad group of readers.This unique work will be of great value to researchers, students, policy makers and all of those who are interested in the fundamental question of how economies work, specifically how people build, exchange and convert tangible as well as intangible forms of capital.

Read more less

Fiscal autonomy could raise economic growth and efficiency in Scotland, benefiting both Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom. C. Paul Hallwood and Ronald MacDonald discuss how other reform proposals, which amount to cutting Scotland's block grant, would not be seen as legitimate by Scottish voters, and would be unlikely to reduce the burden on the Westminster budget. The authors demonstrate how public finances can be organized to minimize the price of tranquillity in multi-regional states. Advances proposed in the 'new fiscal federalism' literature are used to explain why fiscal autonomy would be a superior system compared to the present block grant system and fiscal federalism, whereby Scotland would be granted limited tax powers. Their extensive review of recent econometric studies finds that tax devolution in other countries has been largely successful.

Read more less

This book combines currency matters with competitiveness considerations, with a view to raising the understanding of exchange rate dynamics and to analysing the role of exchange rates in reinforcing economic competitiveness. The overall focus is on highlighting the link between currency developments and the real side of the economy. From a regional perspective, the contributions centre on developments in Central, Eastern and South-eastern Europe and thus put a special emphasis on aspects of transition and convergence. More specifically, the book addresses key issues of financial globalization and global imbalances; the role of macroeconomic fundamentals in exchange rate economics; the role, objectives and challenges of regional monetary unions; exchange rate dynamics in transition economies and the competitiveness of catching-up countries. It also addresses the structural aspects of competitiveness and the significance of qualitative and quantitative aspects of competitiveness. Offering the views of eminent academics and professionals, this book will be of great interest to economists and central bankers as well as to international organizations, universities and research institutes.

Read more less

The Kenyan economy has experienced improved economic growth in recent years, and the government has maintained a commitment to generating 500,000 new jobs per year. But the country still faces severe problems of poverty-level employment - people working full-time yet living with their families in poverty. This study develops detailed proposals for greatly expanding decent employment opportunities in Kenya, and to accomplish this in a manner that also creates a wide range of employment and business opportunities, including those for small and medium-sized enterprises, agricultural small holders, commercial banks, and microfinance institutions.

Read more less

The growing recognition of the extent to which institutions determine economic outcomes has been one of the key developments in economic research and policy analysis in the last two decades. At the same time, the entrepreneur has made a comeback, resurrected as one of the prime value creators in society. This comprehensive title builds on Baumol's 1990 framework to categorize and classify the growing research field that explores the interplay between institutions and entrepreneurship. It also contains the unique feature of examining the ways in which entrepreneurs themselves shape institutions.

Read more less

This insightful book shows how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from some of the traditionally less dynamic peripheral economies of the ?old? EU ? namely Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain ? have responded to the twin challenges of globalisation and industrial restructuring. Through a series of unique case studies the contributing authors discuss how these economies, and in particular the SME sector, can be transformed. The book begins by examining the key drivers of the globally competitive SME sector in the EU, before moving on to explore the relationship between multinational enterprises (MNEs), SMEs and industrial development. The authors investigate important policy implications and provide lessons for SME development and growth.With empirical and theoretical contributions on SMEs in both the manufacturing and the services sectors, this essential book will be invaluable for researchers and policymakers in small business economics and management. Postgraduate students of entrepreneurship, business economics, industrial economics and European studies will appreciate this unique set of insights.

Read more less

Contemporary accounts of welfare state change have produced conflicting findings and incompatible theoretical explanations. To a large extent this is due to a 'dependent variable problem' within comparative research, whereby there is insufficient consideration of how to conceptualize, operationalize and measure change. With contributions from leading international scholars, this important book presents a comprehensive examination of conventional indicators (such as social spending), available alternatives (including social rights and conditionality), as well as principal concepts of how to capture change (for example convergence and de-familization). By providing an in-depth discussion of the most salient aspects of the 'dependent variable problem', the editors aim to enable a more cumulative build-up of empirical evidence and contribute to constructive theoretical debates about the causes of welfare state change. The volume also offers valuable suggestions as to how the problem might be tackled within empirical cross-national analyses of modern welfare states.The focus on the methodology of conceptualizing and measuring welfare state change in a comparative perspective gives this unique book widespread appeal amongst scholars and researchers of social policy and sociology, as well as students at both the advanced undergraduate and post-graduate level studying comparative social policy, research methods and welfare reform.

Read more less

Whilst the prevailing orthodoxy of the expenditure retrenchment literatureis that globalisation and neo-liberal ideas are leading to a downsizing of the state, empirical research - basing its conclusions on patterns of welfare state spending - does not support such a view. This book brings a new perspective to bear by looking at what has been happening to other areas of the state's activity.Edited by Francis G. Castles, a leading authority in the field, and bringing together an outstanding group of British, German and American scholars, it examines trends in non-social or 'core' spending on public administration, defence, public order, education, economic affairs and debt financing and in the regulatory ordering of the economic sphere. The book not only opens up new areas of comparative public policy research, >but also demonstrates clearly that there have been real reductions in the reach of state in some areas, although patterns of causation are more complex and varied than generally presumed by the retrenchment literature.The research findings reported in The Disappearing State? provide pivotal, relevant and challenging core material for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate courses in public and social policy, political economy and the sociology of the modern state.

Read more less

Competitive markets are now established in most successful economies but the question of what competition is and what it means for policy in developing countries is often overlooked. This book provides a refreshing and critical examination of the issues relating to market competition and competition policy. The book discusses competition from different theoretical perspectives and examines the implications these viewpoints have for policy. The contributors assess competitiveness in domestic markets and the impact of foreign competition. They also review the experiences of a range of countries in developing competition policy and examine both the strengths and weaknesses of these policies.Written in a non-technical manner, Competitive Advantage and Competition Policy in Developing Countries is addressed to policymakers, as well as academics, concerned with regulation and competition. It will also be of interest to regulators in dedicated agencies such as utility regulators, competition agencies and those dealing with regulatory impact assessment.

Read more less

Building on Oliver Williamson's original analysis, the contributors introduce new ideas, different perspectives and provide tools for better understanding changes in the approach to regulation, the reform of public utilities, and the complex problems of governance. They draw largely upon a transaction cost approach, highlighting the challenges faced by major economic sectors and identifying critical flaws in prevailing views on regulation. Deeply rooted in sector analysis, the book conveys a central message of new institutional economics: that theory should be continuously confronted by facts, and reformed or revolutionized accordingly. With its emphasis on the institutional embeddedness of regulatory issues and the problems generated by the 'benign neglect' of institutional factors in the reform of major public utilities, this book will provide a wide-ranging audience with challenging views on the dynamics of regulatory approaches. Economists, political scientists, postgraduate students, researchers and policymakers with an interest in institutional economics and economic organization will find the book to be a stimulating and enlightening read.

Read more less

This expansive and practical Handbook introduces the methods currently used to increase the understanding of the usefulness and versatility of a systematic approach to qualitative research in entrepreneurship. It fills a crucial gap in the literature on entrepreneurship theory, and, just as importantly, illustrates how these principles and techniques can be appropriately and fruitfully employed.The Handbook is underpinned by the belief that qualitative research has the potential to charter hitherto unexplored waters in the field of entrepreneurship and thus contribute significantly to its further advancement. The contributors seek to assist entrepreneurship researchers in making more informed choices and designing more rigorous and sophisticated studies. They achieve this by providing concrete examples of research experiences and tangible 'how to' advice. By clarifying what these research methods entail, how they are currently being used and how they can be evaluated, this Handbook constitutes a comprehensive and highly accessible methodological toolbox.Dealing with both well-accepted qualitative approaches and lesser-known, rarer and more novel approaches to the study of entrepreneurship, this Handbook will be invaluable to those studying, researching and teaching entrepreneurship.

Read more less

The International Handbook of Maritime Business is a timely, comprehensive and insightful overview of the key contemporary research issues in maritime business. Dynamic changes in recent years have meant that maritime transport is increasingly recognized as a key integrated component of international logistics and a facilitator of global supply chains. With contributions from the world's leading scholars in the field, the Handbook reflects this new perspective and offers a unique and indispensable source of reference and information. Thoroughly international in terms of scope and coverage, this original reference work will prove invaluable to postgraduate students of maritime studies, logistics, international business and marine technology. Anyone interested in developing an understanding of contemporary research issues in maritime business should not be without this Handbook.

Read more less

This book explores the nature of the flexibility of Estonia's rapid growth, that enables it to swiftly seize opportunities and weather crises without undue cost.The distinguished cast of contributors draws upon detailed data on individual firms and households to explore the basis for Estonia's record as the most successful of all the EU accession countries over the last decade. They conclude that much of this accomplishment can be attributed to the greater flexibility of the Estonian economy, both in price setting in employment and wages, and in consumption. The book also reveals that Estonia is able to adjust to shocks more rapidly and with less real impact than other countries. Coupled with a favourable macroeconomic policy and a good institutional structure and legal framework, this indicates that Estonia will be an excellent example to other countries despite the recent downturn.This unique book will be of great interest to researchers and students of the economics of transition, and will prove invaluable to policy-makers and their advisors in both transition countries and the rest of the EU, as well as graduate students studying microeconomics and monetary policy.

Read more less

This book assesses the structure of projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol. It explains why, instead of the expected bilateral structure where a company from an industrialized country invests in a project in a developing country and receives the emission reduction credits in return, a unilateral structure prevails whereby a company from a developing country finances the emission reduction project itself and sells the emission reduction credits. The book arrives at three fundamental, interconnected, conclusions: CDM is logically a unilaterally driven investment activity; CDM investment is an irrelevant compliance instrument for companies from industrialised countries and that this state of affairs is unlikely to change post 2012; and CDM thrives in less equal and less ambitious post-2012 climate regimes.Unique in its analysis of corporate views on investment in CDM projects, this book will find widespread appeal amongst climate policy analysts, company representatives involved in developing CDM acquisition strategies and climate policymakers. It will also be of interest to anyone involved in the study of climate change, emissions reduction and trading and carbon markets.

Read more less

This informative Handbook examines successful women small business owners in both developed and emergent countries around the globe and, in particular, focuses on women entrepreneur success stories.The contributors expertly identify the issues that underpin the success of women small business owners around the globe. Each chapter provides an up-to-date, country-specific review of women?s position in employment and small business ownership and addresses the structural and contextual barriers. They also highlight two cases studies about successful women business owners, and consider strategies relating to the development of women?s business ownership by exploring practical initiatives that have worldwide transferability.International Research Handbook on Successful Women Entrepreneurs will prove essential reading for students and academics in the fields of entrepreneurship, international business and gender studies. It will also be of invaluable interest to policy-makers, government officials, and those in traditional markets who wish to understand the nature of small business ownership for women in developing and emerging countries.Contributors: T. Agarwala, M.J. Davidson, M.R. Evald, S.L. Fielden, R.T. Harrison, K.D. Hughes, J. Hussain, G. nal, D. Jamali, M. Karatas-Özkan, K. Klyver, L. Levin, K. Lewis, N.O. Madichie, S. Marlow, B. Mathur-Helm, M.C. Mattis, M. McAdam, C. Millman, R. Naz, S.L. Nielsen, M.F. Özbilgin, R.D. Pathak, C. Reis, J.M. Scott, A. Shuvalova, Y. Sidani, G. Singh, A.E. Smith-Hunter, J. Syed, M. Tremaine, G. Wood

Read more less

This book focuses on what can be learned from the complex processes of industrial, technological and organizational change in the sectoral system of information hardware (IH). The IH innovation system is deliberately chosen to illustrate how sectors act as seeds of economic progress. Detailed firm-level studies were carried out in seven countries, three in Africa (Nigeria, Mauritius and South Africa) and four in Asia (China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Indonesia). Bringing together two important areas of research (the scholarship on technology, innovation and learning, and the development literature) this book creates a useful and novel framework for understanding development, and draws very strong policy lessons for latecomer countries. It will be of great interest to graduate students working on evolutionary economics, science and technology policy studies, as well as policymakers and research institutes.

Read more less

This comprehensive Handbook provides an in-depth analysis of the origin and main substantive provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, the most influential international treaty on intellectual property currently in force. A uniquely qualified set of academics and experts from around the world discuss the historical context in which the Agreement was negotiated, its basic principles and the nature of the obligations it creates for WTO members. Together with the second volume –- Research Handbook on the Interpretation and Enforcement of Intellectual Property under WTO Rules - – it examines the minimum standards that must be implemented with regard to patents, trademarks, geographical indications, copyright and related rights, integrated circuits and test data. This Handbook is an essential tool for scholars, researchers and advanced students in the field of intellectual property. It also provides materials of direct relevance for policymakers and legal practitioners.

Read more less

The achievement of financial stability is one of the most pressing issues today. This timely and innovative book provides an analytical framework to assess financial (in)stability as an equilibrium phenomenon compatible with the orderly functioning of a modern market economy. The authors expertly show how good regulatory policy can be implemented and that its effects on the real as well as the nominal side of the economy can be properly analyzed. The core of their approach is to take realistic account of the interaction between endogenous default, agent heterogeneity and money and liquidity, and suggest how a quantifiable metric of financial fragility could be developed. This insightful book will serve as a basis for future work on financial stability management for both academics and policy makers and provide guidance on how to undertake crisis prevention and resolution.

Read more less

Corruption in organizations is creating an increasing number of victims and causing huge costs. This timely book brings together international researchers who address the causes and consequences of corruption in organizations and the action needed to reduce levels of corruption worldwide. Corruption is a worldwide problem and is likely to increase as a result of the current economic meltdown. Specific attention is devoted to causes of corruption such as individual levels of moral development, moral disengagement, greed, the routinisation of corruption, and organizational factors such as conflicts of interest, reward systems and organizational cultural values. The Companion suggests methods and examples to reduce levels of corruption that include education and training, whistleblowing, the increase of organizational controls through rules and structure, and developing an ethical organizational culture.Academics and postgraduate students interested in both crime and corruption in organizations will warmly welcome the Companion. Policymakers in government, those involved in professional services such as accountants and lawyers, as well as managers of any organization interested in conducting ethical business will find the Companion invaluable.

Read more less

This timely and thorough book offers one of the most wide-ranging, inter-disciplinary, and cross-jurisdictional analyses of corporate social responsibility so far in the 21st century. Professor Bryan Horrigan spans subjects as diverse and topical as global corporate responsibility and governance debates, practical guidelines for responsible businesses and their professional advisers, governmental roles in corporate social responsibility, corporations and human rights, and the new era of 'enlightened shareholder value'. He also highlights an emerging transnational and comparative body of law, regulation, and practice on corporate social responsibility. Illustrated throughout with meaningful controversies and examples, the book also highlights the major recent global developments in corporate social responsibility already this century, focusing especially on Europe, the UK, North America, and Australasia, and charting its future regulatory and research directions worldwide. The book's scholarly foundation,up-to-date coverage, and accessible style will appeal particularly to academic researchers and students of corporate social responsibility in the fields of law, business, management, economics, and political science in a number of countries. It will alsobe of great interest and use to those whose work involves corporate social responsibility within government, business, and civil society.

Read more less