International Differences in the Business Practices and Productivity of Firms
International Differences in the Business Practices and Productivity of Firms
In recent years, globalization and the expansion of information technologies have reshaped managerial practices, forcing multinational firms to adjust business practices to different environments and domestic companies to adjust to their foreign competitors. In International Differences in the Business Practices and Productivity of Firms, a distinguished group of contributors examines the phenomenon of widespread differences in managerial practices across firms, establishments within firms, and countries.
This volume brings together eight studies that combine qualitative and quantitative insider analysis of business practices such as the use of teams, incentive pay, lean manufacturing, and quality control, revealing the elements that determine which practices are adopted and why. International Differences in the Business Practices and Productivity of Firms offers a much-needed model for measuring the productivity and performance of international firms in a fast-paced global economy.
288 pages | 24 line drawings, 50 tables | 6 x 9 | © 2009
National Bureau of Economic Research Conference Report
Economics and Business: Business--Business Economics and Management Studies, Business--Industry and Labor, Economics--International and Comparative
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Richard B. Freeman and Kathryn L. Shaw
I. Cross- Firm Studies
1. Work- Life Balance, Management Practices, and Productivity
Nick Bloom, Tobias Kretschmer, and John Van Reenen
2. International Differences in the Adoption and Impact of New Information Technologies and New HR Practices: The Valve- Making Industry in the United States and United Kingdom
Ann Bartel, Casey Ichniowski, Kathryn L. Shaw, and Ricardo Correa
3. The Guy at the Controls: Labor Quality and Power Plant Efficiency
James B. Bushnell and Catherine Wolfram
II. Within- Firm Studies
4. Labor Practices and Outcomes across Countries: Analysis of a Single Multinational Firm
Richard B. Freeman, Douglas Kruse, and Joseph Blasi
5. Within-firm Labor Productivity across Countries: A Case Study
Francine Lafontaine and Jagadeesh Sivadasan
6. Productivity Differences in an International Pharmaceutical Firm
Tor Eriksson and Niels Westergaard-Nielsen
7. Measuring the Productivity of Software Development in a Globally Distributed Company
Alec Levenson
8. International Differences in Lean Production, Productivity, and Employee Attitudes
Susan Helper and Morris M. Kleiner
Contributors
Author Index
Subject Index