The Corporation

(Hardback)

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Description

Today's culture is increasingly influencedeven dominatedby business; The Corporation provides readers with a basic understanding of how a corporation works and how it contributes to the wealth of its shareholders, employees, communities, and nations in which it is active. Part I addresses how and why the corporation developed historically (in legal, political, economic, and social context) and how it become the most dominant business form in the U.S. Part II covers the laws and regulations that influence the corporation's daily operations and compares it with other business entities (such as partnerships) in the U.S. and around the world. Part III explores issues related to ethical conduct and accountability, and considers the future of the corporation in an era of economic anxiety. Featuring many company examples, illustrations, charts, a glossary, timeline, and listings of resources and references, The Corporation is an essential introduction to business and its role in society. Today's culture is increasingly influencedeven dominatedby business, and the corporation is the quintessential enterprise, representing everything that is popularly considered both good and evil about business. The Corporation provides readers with a basic understanding of how a corporation works, generating wealth for its shareholders, employees, communities, and the nations in which it is active. The first part addresses the importance of the corporation in the United Stateshow and why this business form developed historically (in legal, political, economic, and social context), how it became the country's most dominant business form, and its vital role in the economy today, including its contributions to Gross Domestic Product and employment. The next section focuses on the nature of a corporation as a business entity, including the process of incorporating, laws and regulations that influence its daily operations, and a comparison with other business entities (such as partnerships) in the U.S. and around the world. The final chapters explore issues related to ethical conduct and accountabilitygovernance, auditing and financial reporting, business-government relations, social responsibility, and compensation of directors and executivesand considers the future of the corporation in an era of economic anxiety. Featuring many company examples, illustrations, charts, a glossary, timeline, and listings of resources and references, The Corporation is an essential introduction to business and its role in society.

Reviews

Truitt, a practitioner and academic, provides an accessible introduction to the nature of corporations. He begins with an overview of the historical evolution of the corporation as a form of economic organization based on the principles of capitalization and limited liability. Moving from medieval chartered companies through the postmodern corporation, he examines the transformative forces shaping the structure and strategies of contemporary business entities. An instructive example is Wal-Mart, now the largest corporation in the US with gross revenues of $288.1 billion, compared with $193.5 billion for General Motors. Other chapters cover such topics as the benefits accruing to owners and employees of corporations; the legal requirements for creating a corporation; routine operations of a corporation; international comparisons and multinational corporations; corporate governance through boards of directors; and a concluding chapter on the future of the corporation in the global economy.[T]ruitt offers an informative, readable guide to an important, often controversial topic in modern economic life. Glossary of common terms associated with corporations; selected bibliography of books and articles. Recommended. All levels of undergraduates as well as general readers. * Choice *
Truitt believes the corporation is responsible for making the American economy the largest in the world and for creating the global economy as well. Using examples from major corporations, he traces how the concept of the corporation developed over time from the Middle Ages through the age of imperialism and colonization and on into the postmodern model. He explains the advantages of incorporating and the ways corporations are structured to make best use of these advantages, describes the systems of corporate governance, and analyzes why certain people in certain corporations commit fraud. Along the way he explains historical trends and the ways corporations transformed themselves as well as the corporations to come, and closely examines why some corporations have lasted over 950 years while others seem to fail in 950 nanoseconds. * Reference & Research Book News *

Author Bio

WESLEY B. TRUITT is Professor of Public Policy at Pepperdine University's graduate School of Public Policy in Malibu, California, and former and former Executive-in-Residence at the College of Business Administration, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, specializing in business planning, business-government relations, and international business management. He is also a member of the Persius Consulting Group and serves as an independent management consultant and as advisor to the RAND Corporation. For over 25 years he served in a variety of management positions at the Northrop Grumman Corporation. He speaks to industry groups, business schools, think tanks, and government agencies, and has testified for the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee. He is the author of Business Planning (Quorum, 2001) and What Entrepreneurs Need to Know About Government (Praeger, 2004).