Mid-Sized Manufacturing Companies: The New Driver of Italian Competitiveness

The structure of Italian industry is characterized by a predominance of small sized companies and the presence of very few large companies. For a long time a conviction was shared among scholars and practitioners that the strength and safety of Italian industry were based on its industrial districts, that is, the system of interdependent and co-localized small companies which derive their competitive force from an effective and efficient division of labour. This book stresses the idea that a new, vital and promising phenomenon for the competitiveness of Italian industry is focused on mid-sized companies, and the systems of interconnected firms that form a constituent part of their business model. These companies, which originate largely from districts and other local production systems, are a strong entrepreneurial force complementing the districts that have characterized Italy and made Italian industry famous worldwide. A quantitative and qualitative analysis of these firms is provided in this book. Business models and strategies implemented by a number of successful Italian mid-sized manufacturing companies are also explored. Consequences in terms of management and industrial policies are provided. A final look at the German Mittelstand gives a useful comparison.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 8847025885
• ISBN13: 9788847025882
• Release Date: December 2012
• Publisher: Springer
• Length: 193 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.1" x 9.2"