Collective action by firms is a central societal phenomenon, whereby firms set up specific devices, referred to by the authors as ‘Firms’ Collective Action Devices’ (FCADs). This timely book shows how the phenomenon has been studied in a variety of academic disciplines, including history, political science, economics, sociology, management and organization theory, and how FCADs are used in lobbying, and to tackle issues such as those related to the environment and human rights. The book uses the concepts of meta-organization and heterarchy to give a fascinating overview of firms’ collective action, investigate some little-known aspects of the phenomenon, and examine the impact of FCADs on the economy and democracy.

Collective action by firms is a central phenomenon in society, seen for example in standards setting, multi-stakeholder initiatives, and in relation to climate change, environmental and human rights issues. This incisive book reveals how firms set up specific devices, referred to by the authors as FCADs (Firms' Collective Action Devices), of which trade associations and chambers of commerce are the traditional forms, and investigates how firms organize themselves collectively, and their impact on the economy and democracy.Delving deeply into previously under-explored aspects of collective actions by firms, using the concepts of meta-organization and heterarchy, the book combines and expands on insights from history, political science, economics, sociology, management and organization theory. It demonstrates empirically how FCADs function on the basis of compromise and consensus, and analyzes their forms of action, their organizational dynamics and their recent evolution.This rigorous and pluridisciplinary evaluation of how businesses organize collectively will appeal to researchers and PhD students in organization studies and business management, as well as those in other disciplines who are interested in firms' collective action. It will also be a useful resource for business practitioners, public servants and politicians in contact with firms' collective action, and NGO members.

How much power does business exercise in Britain and the United States? Are giant firms that operate on a global scale beyond the control of elected governments? Are political parties in the pocket of business interests? All these questions go to the heart of the viability of a modern democracy, and have been given increased urgency since the end of 2007 and the economic crisis that has reverberated around the world. Business, Politics, and Society compares business and politics in two of the most important capitalist democracies: the United States and the United Kingdom. It introduces the big analytical and moral issues involved in the study of business power; traces the historical origins of business politics in the two nations; examines the role of giant firms, and the relationship between business and political parties; describes the special politics of the small business sector; scrutinizes the changing social and cultural environment of business; and sums up by raising problems of legitimacy and reward that are now the stuff of public policy. Boxed features in each chapter also extend the range of book, to business politics in the European Union, and to national systems beyond the United States and the United Kingdom. The book will be invaluable for students of business systems who now need to grasp the political setting of business, and to students of American and British politics, who now need to grasp the impact of business power on the workings of democratic government.

This book offers a labour perspective on wage-setting institutions, collective bargaining and economic development. Sixteen country chapters, eight on Asia and eight on Europe, focus in particular on the role and effectiveness of minimum wages in the context of national trends in income inequality, economic development, and social security.

This insightful book examines the role of micro-politics in the life of global industry associations. Karsten Ronit addresses the various rules and norms required to administer these associations, highlighting the importance of managing variations in complex member demands and responding to expectations in their institutional environment.

This engaging and timely book demonstrates how a deeper understanding of theories about organizations are necessary for the development of a relational sociology and provides an in-depth explanation of globalization and social change. It also examines how social bonds are constructed through combinations of different forms of communication and investigates the bonds of intimate relationships and partially organized relationships such as street gangs, brotherhoods, and social movements.

Online publication: https://pub.norden.org/temanord2020-513/ Abstract [en] This report explores how the platform economy is evolving in the Nordic countries and how its evolution is influenced by the Nordic labour market models and vice-versa. Here, we include all the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden), except Iceland, where platform work is still very marginal. While remaining a marginal phenomenon in the Nordic countries, platform work can be seen as one important case in which many key aspects of the changing world of work coalesce. This report on platform work in the Nordic countries thus connects some of the themes explored in the other pillars of the NFoW project, such as digitalization, new forms of employment and the legal and regulatory challenges currently faced by the social partners, governments and Nordic labour market models.