Knowledge, Scale and Transactions in the Theory of the Firm

An important fresh theoretical framework for examining the key influences on the competitiveness of firms.

Mario Morroni (Author)

9780521862431, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 18 May 2006

372 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.5 cm, 0.72 kg

' … provides a very welcome addition to the discussion on the theory of the firm, one that I can recommend to many a scholar who works in the field of the economics of organizations and firms.' De Economist

Firms in market economies vary enormously in size, nature and competitiveness. In this important contribution to the literature on the theory of the firm, Mario Morroni provides a fresh analytical framework which improves our understanding of the causes of this diversity in organisational design and performance. The relations between internal and external basic conditions, decision-making mechanisms and organisational co-ordination are addressed, as are the circumstances in which capabilities, transactions and scale-scope considerations interact. With the emergence of the knowledge-based economy and the increasing pressure of global competition, the development of capabilities is acquiring ever greater importance in boosting competitiveness. Morroni shows that long-term relational agreements enhance learning processes and offer powerful tools for improving competitiveness in a context of conflicting interests, incomplete knowledge and uncertainty.

Figures
Tables
Acknowledgements
Introduction and summary
1. Basic conditions
2. Decision making
3. Organisational co-ordination
4. Wrestling with uncertainty
5. Uncertainty-decreasing strategies within firms
6. By way of a conclusion: growth of the firm as the interplay between the three aspects of organisational co-ordination
Glossary
References.

Subject Areas: Business & management [KJ], Labour economics [KCF], Economics of industrial organisation [KCD]