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Chinese Business History Public Lecture
Capitalism and Resilience
Professor Geoffrey Jones (Harvard Business School)
Date/Time: November 21, 2024 (Thu) 18:00-20:00 HKT
Venue: May Hall, The University of Hong Kong
Language: English
Enquiry: (Email) ihss@hku.hk
Chinese Business History Public Lecture
Capitalism and Resilience
Professor Geoffrey Jones (Harvard Business School)
Date/Time: November 21, 2024 (Thu) 18:00-20:00 HKT
Venue: May Hall, The University of Hong Kong
Language: English
Enquiry: (Email) ihss@hku.hk
Title:
Speaker:
Professor Geoffrey Jones (Harvard Business School)
Date/Time:
November 21, 2024 (Thu) 18:00-20:00 HKT
Venue:
Lecture Hall, G/F, May Hall, The University of Hong Kong (Map)
Language:
English
Enquiry:
Title:
Capitalism and Resilience
Speaker:
Professor Geoffrey Jones (Harvard Business School)
Date/Time:
November 21, 2024 (Thu) 18:00-20:00 HKT
Venue:
Lecture Hall, G/F, May Hall, The University of Hong Kong (Map)
Language:
English
Enquiry:
Capitalism is a remarkable system which has re-invented itself throughout history. It has proved capable of co-existing with entirely different political and economic contexts. Firms are much more fragile institutions than the capitalist system, although there are prominent examples of resilience, very occasionally for hundreds of years. Business historians have typically assumed that firm growth and survival are positives for society, while the failure of a firm is a problem which needs explaining and is bad for society. This lecture argues that historically the correlation between firm survival and societal good is not automatic. The lecture will discuss cases when corporate resilience is, in the words of the economist William Baumol, productive for society, but also unproductive and even destructive. It will consider historically firms based in both China and the Global South and developed countries.
Geoffrey Jones is the Isidor Straus Professor of Business History at the Harvard Business School in the United States. He holds the degrees of MA and PhD from Cambridge University in Britain. Professor Jones researches the history, impact and responsibility of global business, and has a special interest in the business history of emerging markets. Professor Jones’s more recent books include Beauty Imagined: A History of the Global Beauty Industry (Oxford University Press, 2010), Profits and Sustainability. A Global History of Green Entrepreneurship (Oxford University Press, 2017) and Deeply Responsible Business. A Global History of Values-Driven Leadership (Harvard University Press, 2023). He is a Fellow of the Academy of International Business and an International Fellow of the British Academy.
This monthly webinar series features the newest research on the history of Chinese business and entrepreneurship. If you have any questions about this webinar series or would be interested in giving a talk, please contact Professor John D. Wong (jdwong@hku.hk) or Professor Ghassan Moazzin (gmoazzin@hku.hk).
Light refreshments will be served for registered participants attending the seminar in person.
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