147 Posts Found

Once in Golconda is a dramatic chronicle of the breathtaking rise, devastating fall, and painstaking rebirth of Wall Street in the years between the wars. Focusing on the lives and fortunes of some of the era’s most memorable traders, bankers, boosters, and frauds, John Brooks brings to vivid life all the ruthlessness, greed, and reckless euphoria of the ’20s bull market, the desperation of the … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: John Brooks | Subjects: Finance, History | Industry: Investing

The world’s most famous management writer may have spent most of his working life in the US, but he owes many of his ideas to his European origins.

Content: Article | Author: Peter Starbuck | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subjects: History, People

Before Charles Ponzi (1882-1949) sailed from Italy to the shores of America in 1903, his father assured him that the streets were really paved with gold – and that Ponzi would be able to get a piece. As journalist Zuckoff observes in this engaging and fast-paced biography, Ponzi learned as soon as he disembarked that though the streets were often cobblestone, he could still make … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Mitchell Zuckoff | Subjects: Finance, History | Industry: Finance / Banking

Developed in tandem with a four-part PBS series, Evans’s profusely illustrated and elegantly written book offers the same breadth and scope as his previous bestseller, The American Century. Evans, former president and publisher of Random House, profiles 70 of America’s leading inventors, entrepreneurs and innovators, some better known than others. Along with such obvious choices as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and the Wright brothers, Evans … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Authors: David Lefer, Gail Buckland, Harold Evans | Subject: History

Taylorism laid the foundations for science-based management more than 100 years ago. But early implementations led to worker resistance and distortions that have never quite gone away.

Content: Article | Author: Morgen Witzel | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: History

The Ladies Paradise (Au Bonheur des Dames) recounts the rise of the modern department store in late nineteenth-century Paris. The store is a symbol of capitalism, of the modern city, and of the bourgeois family: it is emblematic of changes in consumer culture and the changes in sexual attitudes and class relations taking place at the end of the century. This new translation of the … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Emile Zola | Subjects: History, Miscellaneous

With wit and verve, Walter Friedman gives us a cast of memorable characters who turned salesmanship from ballyhoo to behaviorism, from silliness to science. Informed by prodigious research, Birth of a Salesman also clarifies the birth of modern marketing–from an angle that humanizes its subject through wry, ironic, but serious analysis. This is a pioneering work on a subject crucial to American social, cultural, and … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Walter A. Friedman | Subjects: History, Marketing / Sales

Starting from the perspective of the future of technological innovations such as computers and software, Samuels looks into the past, placing those innovations in historical context and giving life to what is generally considered an esoteric subject. He notes that U.S. copyright laws have been sufficiently flexible and adaptive to accommodate new issues. He examines contemporary issues from the MP3 music-sharing litigation to restrictions on … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Edward Samuels | Subjects: History, Legal

The management philosophy of the Cadburys and the Rowntrees, 19th century commercial rivals, resulted in happy and well-paid workers and strong, profitable and creative companies.

Content: Article | Author: Morgen Witzel | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: History

“History is bunk” – Henry Ford

In general, most marketing experts have agreed with Ford’s conclusion. While some researchers have advocated using historical or longitudinal approaches to study marketing phenomena, others have dismissed the vast field of history as inherently subjective and hopelessly unscientific.

Content: Article | Author: Peter Golder | Source: STERNbusiness (NYU) | Subjects: History, Marketing / Sales

Britain had it all – brains, ideas, and inventions like radar and pencillin – but the U.S. brought the best to the market. The lesson is sobering: Native brilliance needs a national backup drive.

Content: Article | Author: Harold Evans | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: History, International

Al Gore’s infamous claim that he invented the Internet is more widely known than the names of the scientists and engineers who really made it happen. Despite its profound impact on just about everything, the Internet’s origins simply aren’t common knowledge.

John Naughton sets out to remedy that by giving the largely anonymous “boys in the back room” credit for what they did. He chronicles the … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: John Naughton | Subjects: History, IT / Technology / E-Business

This site provides exchange rate data for any year or range of years between the United States dollar and other currencies. Time periods covered vary for different countries, but generally cover the early 1900s to 1999. Also presents descriptions of changes in currency units for countries throughout the world, a list of sources, and links to related sites. Part of the Economic History Service. [LII … [ Read more ]

Content: Online Resource | Sources: Economic History Service, EH.net | Subjects: Finance, History

Management journals and New Economy magazines are filled with an unending stream of thinking and writing about entrepreneurship. But amid the proliferation of management gurus, there’s one theorist whose voice pierces through the clutter: Joseph Schumpeter. More than a half-century ago, the Moravia-born economist coined the enduring term “creative destruction” as a great metaphor for capitalism. But his understanding of the dynamics of capitalism and … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Thomas G. McCraw | Source: STERNbusiness (NYU) | Subjects: History, People

Protectionism grew out of mercantile economics 500 years ago. Although long discredited, ailing industries in the US and Europe are often rescued by mercantilism.

Content: Article | Author: Morgen Witzel | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subjects: Economics, History

The Benedictines and the Cistercians were much more than religious orders – they were powerful multinational organisations from which the modern manager can learn.

Content: Article | Author: Morgen Witzel | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: History

The Harvard University Library Open Collections Program mines Harvard’s large number of libraries to create digital collections of primary historical materials for use by teachers, students, and researchers. Women Working is OCP’s first project, a searchable archive of materials to be drawn ultimately from 2,200 books, 1,000 photographs, and 10,000 pages of manuscript collections. The site can be searched by keyword or browsed by topic. … [ Read more ]

Content: Online Resource | Source: Harvard Business School (HBS) | Subjects: History, Women in Business

Life can only be understood by looking back, but can only be lived by looking forward.

Content: Quotation | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subjects: History, Life

It can be said that the human being has changed very little during the known course of history. The statements by Plato, Aristotle, or Seneca about the human being, his/her behaviour and conduct, are as accurate today as they were in ancient times. We gain, therefore, valuable insight when we interpret current developments and the future in light of historical analogies.

Content: Quotation | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subjects: History, Personality / Behavior

This companion book to CNBC’s acclaimed documentary Money and Power provides an expansive global view of the moguls and dynasties that have defined business in the last millennium. Deftly tracing the movement of trade, banking, industry, and commerce from East to West, from ancient times to modern, it offers important lessons that are of timeless value-and inspiration for the next generation of groundbreakers and visionaries … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Howard Means | Subject: History