The effects of privatization on productive efficiency: evidence from the Baltic republics

By using new and unusual data sets for large samples of firms in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania we find that, since privatization, diverse patterns of enterprise ownership have emerged and ownership configurations are quite dynamic.   To test competing theories on the productivity effects of alternative ownership structures, identical cross sectional production functions specifications are estimated for each country for varying years during 1993 1996. While the effects of private ownership upon productivity are found to vary considerably over time and across countries, productivity effects are always found to be either zero or positive, thus providing partial support for the hypothesis that state ownership is less efficient than private ownership.   Findings are mixed concerning hypotheses on the effects of particular ownership structures. Often (e.g. for Lithuania) estimates indicate that all forms of private ownership have zero productivity effects. However, some estimates for Estonia provide support for the mainstream hypothesis that outside (and especially foreign) ownership is preferred to insider ownership. But in other estimates (again for Estonia) majority ownership by employees is found to deliver better business performance than majority ownership by managers (thus refuting the hypothesis that the preferred form of insider ownership is ownership by managers).     

Competitive trade models and real world features

Competitive small-dimension international trade models perform well in comparing free (or restrictive) trade with autarky, especially in emphasizing that consumption patterns can differ from production patterns and that production becomes highly concentrated while consumption patterns are expanded. Variations on these small-dimensional models can usefully show how with trade production patterns may nonetheless be more diverse and a country’s labor force become more heterogeneous in its skills. The paper illustrates how the Middle Products framework can be reinterpreted to support variety in production and in labor skills.      

Telematics: Decision Time for Detroit

With implications for navigation, safety, entertainment and vehicle maintenance as well as regulation and infrastructure investment in roads, telematics has the potential to transform driving more than any other innovation for decades. In the already well-established Asian telematics industry, revenue tends to come from extra charges at the time of vehicle-sale, with most subsequent services provided free. The US model has evolved differently, with much of the cost of telematics hardware and software subsidized in the initial vehicle sale price and revenue coming from services used. The decision to invest in telematics is therefore riskier in the US. This article first briefly summarizes the potential of telematics. It then analyzes the investment risks, particularly for automakers. It concludes with recommendations on how the US auto industry can minimize risk and make the most of the opportunities.     

Developing countries and the future of the automobile industry

This paper reassesses the controversial view which has assumed that, at some point in the future, the global automobile industry, having reached maturity, would naturally migrate to the leading developing countries where the markets are growing more rapidly and wages are substantially lower. The authors argue that the threshold facing a developing country seeking to establish a domestic automobile industry has risen because of two recent developments: the rise of Japan as a major automobile producer; and a new wave of technological and organizational innovation. This involves use of state-of-the-art microelectronics and flexible manufacturing system, as well as complete restructing of component supply resulting in considerable unit cost and lead-time advantages.The authors look at what these trends mean for both the OECD and the developing countries. They outline the conventional view in more detail and then present an alternative analysis of the evolution of the industry. New policy options for the developing countries are spotlighted.     

Accounting Revolution at Oxford in 1882. The Case of a Governmental ‘Deus ex Machina’

In 1882 new statutes were prepared for the University and colleges of Oxford. This paper looks at the legislative developments leading up to these changes, and by examining the case of Magdalen College shows how these external pressures led to the replacement of charge and discharge accounting by double entry bookkeeping and the appointment of external auditors.     

Technology Management in a Mature Firm: Structuration Theory and the Innovation Process

Most innovation studies focus on the activities or characteristics of individuals (agency) or on organizational attributes such as size and formalization (structure). In attempting to reconcile this agency-structure dichotomy we draw on structuration theory to examine the innovation process in detail. Structural properties (signification, domination and legitimation) are constantly reproduced from social interaction (communication, power and sanctions) by means of the modalities (interpretative schemes, facilities and norms) drawn on by knowledgeable, reflexive actors. This framework is utilized to examine the case of a mature manufacturing company in which managers and engineers were attempting to access new technologies. The data were acquired by means of a 6-year, on-going study which began in 1992 and which we suggest is essential for a thorough understanding of the innovation process.     

From promise to performance

Book reviewed in this article:
Bauman, Robert P., Jackson, Peter and Lawrence, Joanne T. From Promise to Performance: A Journey of Transformation at SmithKline Beecham     

The Economic Puzzle of Oskar Schindler:

ABSTRACT The popular film Schindler's List is a cinematic portrayal of Oskar Schindler , the German industrialist who rescued more than a thousand of his Jewish workers during the Holocaust . While the film has generated much debate over the character's motivations, the historical Oskar Schindler can be viewed as an economic actor who made several choices. Examined together, these various choices make an excellent case for amenity potential , a concept from the work of Harold Demsetz which explains how one's control over a firm's resources gives one opportunities to use those resources for whatever purposes one sees fit, subject to legal and market constraints . Applying amenity potential to the economic puzzle of Schindler's choices reveals how and why he was able to make various choices which followed the letter of the law in Nazi Society, while violating its spirit.