Here are a few resources related to some of the topics John’s talks about.
There are many more and if you have a suggestion, feel free to write us an email at info (at) johnkay.com.
Please select a topic area:
Business Strategy
John’s articles in the FT (FT Sept 1999, FT Oct 1999) are a good starting point and explain how economists became interested in business strategy and how their thinking has evolved.
Read Michael Porter’s Big Ideas on why businesses need a strategy.
Here are a few interesting websites dealing with the topic:
McKinsey Quarterly covers business strategy (Look for ‘Stategy’ in the ‘Functions’ drop-down menue).
Strategy and Business, a journal run by the consulting company Booz & Company.
Harvard Business School – Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness.
Here are some of the experts in the field, and a few of them have dedicated webpages with more resources available:
Jay Barney; Margaret Peteraf; Michael Porter; Henry Mintzberg (dedicated website); Cynthia Montgomery; Richard Rumelt
Regulation and Policy
Articles
Websites
Experts
Crisis & Bubbles
Here are a few good articles on past economic and financial crisis:
Stock market bubbles
There are many parallels between past speculative bubbles and the recent Dotcom boom: Over-optimism over new technology, cheap borrowing… Read the New York Times’ retrospective on The Great Crash of 1929 and …
New economics for a New Economy?
Kevin Kelly’s New Rules for the New Economy is a good example of the claims that were made for a new economics.
Kevin Stiroh’s paper “New and Old Economics in the New Economy” complements John’s National Institute paper well in debunking many of the New Economy myths.
Productivity growth and measurement issues
Paul Krugman’s speedometer analogy developed in “Speed Trap: The Fuzzy Logic of the New Economy” provides a useful analogy to explain why changes in the statistical measurement of output do not imply that economy can suddenly achieve a higher rate of growth.
Jorgenson’s paper Raising the Speed Limit: U.S. Economic Growth in the Information Age” analyses the performance of the US economy during the 1990s and assesses the impact of the new economy.
See also Schreyer’s “Computer Price Indices and International Growth and Productivity Comparisons” for an international perspective.
Experts
Dale Jorgenson; Paul Krugman; Kevin J Stiroh; Paul Schreyer
The 2007-08 credit crunch and financial crisis
…
Ethics in Business
Articles
John’s FT article on Shell provides a good example of the kind of ethical responsibilities facing firms.
Websites
Colarado State University’s E-Ethics Centre provides some good case studies and links.
Experts
Political Economy
Articles
Websites
Competition Regulators
UK: Office of Fair Trading and The Competition Act 1998;
US: Department of Justice Antitrust Division
Experts
Governance and Accountability
Articles
Websites
Corporate Governance has a useful library section and book reviews.
Experts
Industry Analysis
Automobiles
The aim of Auto Industry is to be the “single point of reference on the web for the UK Auto Industry”. It contains news, background information, statistics on vehicle manufacturers and production figures.
Banking
For a good overview of the British banking system the Bank Review website contains a wealth of information and statistics.
Energy
DTI Energy Group
Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU) project on Energy Policy
Mobile phones
Oftel’s effective Competition Review (September 2001) concluded that the UK mobile market is “prospectively competitive”, possibly warranting lighter regulation. Provides figures on growth of mobile market and prices. A related NERA’s study looks at “The Profitability and Efficiency of the UK Network Operators”.
Paul Klumperer is expert on the auctions that took place for third generation (3G) licenses. Contains journalistic introduction and a detailed paper on the role of economists in the 3G auction.
Telecommunications
Industry is characterised by economies of scale and scope. For a good grounding on the economics of networks see The Economics of Networks maintained by Nicholas Economides.
In the UK, the Office for Telecommunications (Oftel) is useful source of post-privatisation information.
