Personal Capitalism and Corporate Governance: British Manufacturing in the First Half of the Twentieth Century

This book is specifically aimed at addressing a gap in the study of the evolution of corporate governance in Britain.

In particular its key theme, the relationship between corporate governance and personal capitalism in British manufacturing in the first half of the twentieth century, provides the means for a systematic and critical examination of the dominant Chandlerian paradigm that the long-running persistence of personal capitalism shaped the governance of British manufacturing firms well into the twentieth century and acted to erode their competitive performance.

The book helps to identify those aspects of corporate governance that have undergone change, with some critical observations on the magnitude of change and those aspects which have displayed characteristics of continuity.