Werner Abelshauser Book order

The world marketplace is dominated by companies from North America, Europe and East Asia. But what is the role of their respective cultural background in this competitive field? The increasing dynamics of world markets make it all the more urgent to understand the cultural background via scientific research. The authors of this volume have met that call and provide interdisciplinary evidence that cultural differences are what drive economic competition and ensure its future. Both the continuity and the adaptability of economic cultures are analyzed in case studies of both successful and failed attempts.

The book offers a critical analysis of the "German Model" of industrial organization, exploring its relevance in the face of American economic standards. The author, a prominent economic historian, examines the unique characteristics of Germany's approach to the New Economy, highlighting the resilience of its structures and cultural mindset. He argues against the notion that the German Model is outdated, emphasizing the ongoing dynamics and potential of Rhenish capitalism. This work is essential for those interested in comparative economics and the future of industrial organization.

This corporate history of BASF offers a view of the functioning of an industrial organization that has managed to thrive and expand since 1865. Moreover, it reveals much about the reasons for the extraordinary economic dynamics of the German empire and the enormous expansion of the world economy before World War I. It permits the probing of the origins and spread of the knowledge society, in which science and research-based innovation have become the key determinants of economic growth and social development. Accordingly, BASF's history developed at the core of Germany's wartime economy during both world wars and highlights its strengths as well as its weaknesses.