The Economics of Ownership, Organization and Industrial Development

There is an increased awareness of the importance of the interaction between firms with different types of ownership form and organizational form in the industrial development process. For example, private equity funds have during the last decade become important owners of corporate assets in many countries.

But the activities of private equity funds are sometimes met with concern from policy makers and the media, who argue that shortsightedness and an aggressive search for profits can lead to inefficiencies and increased unemployment. Simultaneously, there are worries that large established publicly held firms impede industrial development through pre-emptive behavior towards small privately owned firms.

To advance research in this area, the Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN) organized an international two-day conference on September 10 - 11, 2009. The topics were the economics of ownership, organization and industrial development. The first purpose of the workshop is to contribute to the understanding of the interaction between ownership and organizational form and its effects on firm behavior. The second purpose is to enhance our understanding of the economic effects of private equity and venture capital activity. In particular, the focus is on real economic effects such as effects on innovation, restructuring, productivity, employment, and welfare.