Part I: Geopolitical Risks and Organizational ChallengesSwiss and (Anglo)-Dutch multinationals and organizational change in the era of Total War Takafumi Kurosawa and Ben WubsMunicipalisation, war, tax and nationalisation:Imperial Continental Gas Association in an era of turmoil, 1824-1987 Ryo IzawaGo west: C&A's motives and strategies for expansion from Europe into the western hemisphere, 1945-1962Mark SpoererForeign oil majors in Japan and the Second World War Takeo KikkawaPart II: Total War and Long-Lasting ImpactMutual attraction: Siemens activities in Italy 1855-1968Luciano SegretoReinventing the Rio Tinto Company: Spain, political risk and corporate strategy before and after the Second World WarNeil ForbesWar and industry dynamics: The case of the industrial gases industry after 1940Ray Stokes and Ralf BankenPart III: Cold War and Corporate StrategiesThe afterlife of a multinational enterprise: the case of Siemens' subsidiary in Hungary after the Second World WarJudit KlementInternational business and the Cold War. The case of the Trans-European Pipeline, 1956-1960Marten BoonFrom Cold War to the Washington Consensus: evolution of the multinational corporations' strategies in ChileMarcelo Bucheli

Hitherto, the organization of international business has been studied mostly from a managerial point of view or by examining the relationship between firms and the economy. Yet, the development of the modern, multinational firm - the most important type of business organisation - has been strongly influenced by the conflicts that bedeviled the twentieth century. The volatile macroeconomic and political environments experienced by international business point to how important it is to study political risk. Consequently, Multinational Enterprise, Political Risk and Organisational Change: From Total War to Cold War breaks new ground: it argues that non-market elements and historical context are key to understanding the way international business has been organised. This edited volume offers an historical approach to analysing how multinational enterprise has developed over time and around the world, through a series of well-crafted chapters, on important topics in international economic and business history, written by authorities in their respective fields of study and research. The study is based on the underlying premise that the coming of the two World Wars, the devastating and long-term consequences of such total wars, and the ideological challenge of the Cold War acted as a pivot points in shaping the nature and character of multinational firms. By examining such phenomena, this study offers insights to anyone who has an interest in business, economic or political history, management and business studies, or international relations.