Foundations of Corporate Empire

Foundations of Corporate Empire sketches the history of international business from the emergence of ancient Assyria around 2000 BC through the Phoenician, Carthaginian and Grecian periods up to the time of the Roman Imperium under Augustus, and then on to the medieval and modern eras ending with today's post-modern times.

The history of these civilisations has developed around different economic models, which have regularly re-emerged across time and are still present today.

Foundations of Corporate Empire looks at our past economic foundations to better understand where we are today and where we should be tomorrow.

1. Introduction: la Longue Durée
• Key Management Lesson: The resource-based view of the firm or history matters
2. International business and the Electic Paradigm
3. Cradles of civilization… and capitalism
• The international economy of the Bronze Age: 3500-1600 BCE
4. Cradle of multinational enterprise 
• Assyria and Babylonia: 2000-1000 BCE
• Key Management Lesson: A deeper understanding of social capital
5. The multinational becomes intercontinental
• Ugarit and Tyre: 1400-600 BCE
• Key Management Lesson: Ancient sources, modern insights
• 4000 years of Knowledge Management
6. Birth of free enterprise
• The Aegan market revolution: 1000-336 BCE
• Key Management Lesson: Lessons of the Greeks
7. Overture to world economy
• India, China and the heirs of Athens and Tyre: 331-146 BCE
8. Rendering unto Caesar
• Roman multinationals in a world economy: 146 BCE-476 CE
9. Dark Age capitalism
• Faith meets economics in the age of Muhammad and Charlemagne: 500-1000
10. Merchants of Venice, Inc.
• Europe's road to the multinational: 1000-1450
11. China's change
• The enduring decree of heaven
12. A global economy
• The age of the chartered trading company: 1450-1800
13. The Second Global Economy
• The 'Hellenic' free-trade world of the Pax Britannica: 1800-1931
14. The Second Global Economy
• America's 'Legionary Capitalism': 1800-1970
15. World-class rivals
• The paternalistic capitalism of Germany and Japan
16. The Third Global Economy
• Multinationals, microchips and the Information Age: 1970-2000
17. Should the world become American?

Interesting history book. Well worth the money.