A History of British Business System

Research Project

Project/Area Number	01530074
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Research Field	商学・経営学
Research Institution	Meiji daigaku-Tankidaigaku, Womens' Coleege, Meiji University
Principal Investigator	OKAYAMA Reiko Womens' College, Meiji University, Professor, 短期大学, 教授 (90201392)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	IWAUCHI Ryoichi Meiji Univ. Business Administration, Professor., 経営学部, 教授 (20104599) 湯沢威学習院大学, 経済学部, 教授 (70017549) 安部悦生明治大学, 経営学部, 教授 (50130795)
Project Period (FY)	1989 – 1991
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 1991)
Budget Amount *help	¥2,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,300,000) Fiscal Year 1991: ¥200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥200,000) Fiscal Year 1990: ¥600,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000) Fiscal Year 1989: ¥1,500,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,500,000)
Keywords	British business history. / Business strategy / Managerial hierarchy / Internal labor market / Education system / Capitalization / Business finance / マネジャリアル・ヒエラルキ- / 内部労仂市場 / 教育・訓練制度 / 人的資源管理 / 内部労働市場 / 産業資金 / 持株会社
Research Abstract	The purpose of this project is to clarify peculiar characteristics of British businesses in terms of business strategies and of human resources management from the turn of this century to the 1970s. Through the period that this research grant was given, OKAYAMA, the head investigator, and IWAUCHI, the collaborative investigator, worked up materials into a comprehensive list of references. At the same time, OKAYAMA concentrated on research into the development of mergers and aquisitions, managerial structures and organizations, and human resources management. Whereas IWAUCHI concentrated on industrial training and educational systems. OKAYAMA has published an article concerning the development of labor management in British industry and also has given a paper entitled Shop-floor management in British automobile industry. Although there have been still left some questions to be explored, in particular, in the field of capitalizations in industry, we have come to a conclusion that since the second industrial revolution British industrialists were very much behind their counterparts in other industrialized countries in managerial organization developments, which resulted in poor managerial hierarchies in the firm. This organizational incapability of the British firm was much to do with its defensive strategies of marketing. We note that the business strategies and structures that British firms had developed since the early twentieth century have been crucial facotrs responsible for. a decline in the economy in the postsecond-world war period.