This book is one of the ?nal products of a research project on the effects of market imperfectionson economic behavior and decisions. The project was put together by four Italian universities (Universita di Roma Tor Vergata and La Sapienza U- versita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Piacenza and the Universita di Urbino Carlo Bo ) in 2005 and funded by the Italian Ministry of Higher Education and Research for the period 2006 2007. The research title of the project Corporate governance, ?nancial systems and ?rms performances was indicative of its agenda: to inv- tigate the role of market...

Is small still beautiful? The recent economic and financial crisis has shown that developed countries in which firms are smaller suffered the biggest GDP plunges. Today, economic growth depends more than in the past on sound and well-organized firms, which means more innovation, a better educated labor force, higher likelihood of access to financial resources and efficient investments. This does not mean the end of small-sized firms, but that they need to be different from the way they were in the past. This book provides an international perspective on analyses and policy recommendations for...

Analyses of how small and medium businesses react to the economic and financial crisis. This title focuses on the activities and strategies of SMEs in the areas of innovation, R&D investment, labor markets and finance.

This book is one of the ?nal products of a research project on the effects of market imperfectionson economic behavior and decisions. The project was put together by four Italian universities (Universita di Roma Tor Vergata and La Sapienza U- versita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Piacenza and the Universita di Urbino Carlo Bo ) in 2005 and funded by the Italian Ministry of Higher Education and Research for the period 2006 2007. The research title of the project Corporate governance, ?nancial systems and ?rms performances was indicative of its agenda: to inv- tigate the role of market...

This book seeks to analyze how small and medium businesses react to the economic and financial crisis. Its focus is on the activities and strategies of SMEs in the areas of innovation, R&D investment, labor markets and finance. The book takes an international perspective and includes both comparative and national analyses and policies, with authors representing acdemia and international institutions such as the ECB, OECD, Kauffman Foundation, Federal Reserve, and US Small Business Administration.