The Competitive Advantage of Nations l Michael E. Porter

Based on research in ten leading trading nations, The Competitive Advantage of Nations offers the first theory of competitiveness based on the causes of the productivity with which companies compete. Porter shows how traditional comparative advantages such as natural resources and pools of labor have been superseded as sources of prosperity, and how broad macroeconomic accounts of competitiveness are insufficient. The book introduces Porter's "diamond," a whole new way to understand the competitive position of a nation (or other locations) in global competition that is now an integral part of international business thinking. Porter's concept of "clusters," or groups of interconnected firms, suppliers, related industries, and institutions that arise in particular locations, has become a new way for companies and governments to think about economies, assess the competitive advantage of locations, and set public policy.

Plowing the Sea l Michael Fairbanks

This powerful book argues that the tremendous advantages developing nations have in natural resources, inexpensive labor, and fertile soil have actually kept these nations poor. Their advantages–easily imitated in other areas around the world–have not been sufficient engines for growth. Billions of dollars have been spent to eradicate poverty; still these regions remain as dependent as ever on volatile natural resource exports and foreign aid. Plowing the Sea is the authors' attempt to unearth and nurture the hidden sources of growth–knowledge, innovation, and human capital–that remain untapped in developing countries.
Challenging conventional wisdom, the authors advocate creative approaches to competitiveness, encourage new leadership roles within the private and public sectors, and promote an integrated approach to national development strategy.

Can Japan Compete? l Michael E. Porter

Japan has been in an economic slump for more than half a decade. Why did this once–strong economy topple? What do its troubles tell us about competing in the new global marketplace? In Can Japan Compete?, world–renowned competition strategist Michael Porter and his colleagues explain why American assumptions about Japan have proved so inaccurate, what Japan must do to regain its strength, and what its journey can tell us about how to succeed in the new global economy. The research behind this book began in the early 1990s, at a time when Japan's economic success was overwhelmingly credited to the Japanese government and its unique management policies. Porter and his colleagues started by asking a crucial but previously overlooked question: If Japanese government policies and practices accounted for the nation's extraordinary competitiveness, then why wasn't Japan competitive in many of the industries where those policies had been prominently implemented?