The Vanishing American Corporation
Navigating the Hazards of a New Economy
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Narrated by:
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Jeff Hoyt
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By:
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Gerald F. Davis
About this listen
It may be hard to believe in an era of Walmart, Citizens United, and the Koch brothers, but corporations are on the decline. The number of American companies listed on the stock market dropped by half between 1996 and 2012. In recent years we've seen some of the most storied corporations go bankrupt (General Motors, Chrysler, Eastman Kodak) or disappear entirely (Bethlehem Steel, Lehman Brothers, Borders).
Gerald Davis argues this is a root cause of the income inequality and social instability we face today. Corporations were once an integral part of building the middle class. He points out that in their heyday, they offered millions of people lifetime employment, stable career paths, health insurance, and retirement pensions. They were like small, private welfare states.
The businesses that are replacing them will not fill the same role. For one thing, they employ far fewer people - the combined global workforces of Facebook, Yelp, Zynga, LinkedIn, Zillow, Tableau, Zulily, and Box are smaller than the number of people who lost their jobs when Circuit City was liquidated in 2009. And in the "sharing economy", companies have no obligation to most of the people who work for them - at the end of 2014 Uber had over 160,000 "driver-partners" in the United States but recognized only about 2,000 people as actual employees.
Davis tracks the rise of the large American corporation and the economic, social, and technological developments that have led to its decline. The future could see either increasing economic polarization, as careers turn into jobs and jobs turn into tasks, or a more democratic economy built from the grass roots. It's up to us.
©2016 Gerald F. Davis (P)2016 Gerald F. DavisListeners also enjoyed...
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Born in Italy, University of Chicago economist Luigi Zingales witnessed firsthand the consequences of high inflation and unemployment - paired with rampant nepotism and cronyism - on a country’s economy. This experience profoundly shaped his professional interests, and in 1988 he arrived in the United States, armed with a political passion and the belief that economists should not merely interpret the world, but should change it for the better.
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Enjoyable but a tad predictable.
- By Kevin on 12-24-12
By: Luigi Zingales
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The Great Reversal
- How America Gave Up on Free Markets
- By: Thomas Philippon
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Why are cellphone plans so much more expensive in the United States than in Europe? It seems a simple question. But the search for an answer took Thomas Philippon on an unexpected journey through some of the most complex and hotly debated issues in modern economics. Ultimately, he reached a surprising conclusion: American markets, once a model for the world, are giving up on healthy competition.
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Eye-opening, but better as a book - a must-READ
- By Ash on 11-29-19
By: Thomas Philippon
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Capitalism in America
- A History
- By: Alan Greenspan, Adrian Wooldridge
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 16 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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From the legendary former Fed Chairman and the acclaimed Economist writer and historian, the full, epic story of America's evolution from a small patchwork of threadbare colonies to the most powerful engine of wealth and innovation the world has ever seen.
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Explains a lot
- By Scott on 02-18-19
By: Alan Greenspan, and others
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Out-Innovate
- How Global Entrepreneurs - from Delhi to Detroit - Are Rewriting the Rules of Silicon Valley
- By: Alexandre Lazarow
- Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris, Alexandre Lazarow
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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As venture capitalist Alexandre Lazarow shows in this insightful and instructive book, this Silicon Valley "gospel" is due for a refresh - and it comes from what he calls the "frontier", the growing constellation of startup ecosystems, outside of the Valley and other major economic centers, that now stretches across the globe. The frontier is a truly different world where startups often must cope with political or economic instability and lack of infrastructure, and where there might be little or no access to angel investors, venture capitalists, or experienced employee pools.
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Great material for SF and Frontier entrepreneurs!
- By Brett Fulmer on 04-15-20
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Plutocrats
- The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else
- By: Chrystia Freeland
- Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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There has always been some gap between rich and poor in this country, but in the last few decades what it means to be rich has changed dramatically. Alarmingly, the greatest income gap is not between the 1 percent and the 99 percent, but within the wealthiest 1 percent of our nation-as the merely wealthy are left behind by the rapidly expanding fortunes of the new global super-rich. Forget the 1 percent; Plutocrats proves that it is the wealthiest 0.1 percent who are outpacing the rest of us at break-neck speed.
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Good Storytelling but ... analysis is "eh'
- By Susan on 11-04-12
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The Great Reset
- How New Ways of Living and Working Drive Post-Crash Prosperity
- By: Richard Florida
- Narrated by: Eric Conger
- Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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We tend to view prolonged economic downturns, such as the Great Depression of the 1930s and the Long Depression of the late 19th century, in terms of the crisis and pain they cause. But history teaches us that these great crises also represent opportunities to remake our economy and society and to generate whole new eras of economic growth and prosperity.
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glorification of City Life
- By Ryan Riggs on 11-25-20
By: Richard Florida
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Aftershock
- The Next Economy and America’s Future
- By: Robert B. Reich
- Narrated by: Robert Reich
- Length: 4 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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The author of 12 acclaimed books, Robert B. Reich is a Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and has served in three national administrations. While many blamed Wall Street for the financial meltdown, Aftershock points a finger at a national economy in which wealth is increasingly concentrated at the top - and where a grasping middle class simply does not have the resources to remain viable.
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Very plausible assessment of our economy
- By CAR TOP CAMPER on 10-06-10
By: Robert B. Reich
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The Entrepreneurial State
- Debunking Public vs. Private Sector Myths
- By: Mariana Mazzucato
- Narrated by: Callie Beaulieu
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In this sharp and controversial international best seller, an award-winning economist debunks the pervasive myth that the government is sluggish and inept, and at odds with a dynamic private sector. She reveals in detailed case studies that the opposite is true: The state is, and has been, our boldest and most valuable innovator. Denying this history is leading us down the wrong path. A select few get credit for what is an intensely collective effort, and the US government has started disinvesting from innovation.
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Myth Breaker-a new model for innovation
- By Carl A. Gallozzi on 12-12-20
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How Are You Going to Pay for That?
- Smart Answers to the Dumbest Question in Politics
- By: Ryan Cooper
- Narrated by: Ryan Cooper
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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How Are You Going to Pay for That? is filled with engaging discussions and detailed strategies that policymakers and citizens alike can use to assail even the most entrenched lines of neoliberal logic and start to undo these long-held misconceptions. Equal parts economic theory, history, and political polemic, this is an essential roadmap for winning the key battles to come.
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Not horrible but not correct either
- By David on 03-20-23
By: Ryan Cooper
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The Zero Marginal Cost Society
- The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism
- By: Jeremy Rifkin
- Narrated by: David Cochran Heath
- Length: 14 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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In this provocative new book, Rifkin argues that the coming together of the Communication Internet with the fledgling Energy Internet and Logistics Internet in a seamless twenty-first-century intelligent infrastructure—the Internet of Things—is boosting productivity to the point where the marginal cost of producing many goods and services is nearly zero, making them essentially free.
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Not a convincing argument-just stories & ideology
- By Pierre Parent on 07-26-17
By: Jeremy Rifkin
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The Instant Economist
- Everything You Need to Know About How the Economy Works
- By: Timothy Taylor
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Economics isn't just about numbers: It's about politics, psychology, history, and so much more. We are all economists - when we work, save for the future, invest, pay taxes, and buy our groceries. Yet many of us feel lost when the subject arises. Award-winning professor Timothy Taylor here tackles all the key questions and hot topics of both microeconomics and macroeconomics, so you can understand and discuss economics on a personal, national, and global level.
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Timothy Taylor is the best
- By Jake on 02-15-15
By: Timothy Taylor
What listeners say about The Vanishing American Corporation
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Philo
- 04-20-16
Updates all the critical big-picture discussions
The familiar publicly-traded corporation in the title is but one major piece in a puzzle shown with great clarity here, from history through the present, of the economic and social order in USA which has been the basic organizing, structural backbone of most people's lives and livelihoods. A little patience is rewarded in getting the background and context, delivered here in a magnificent, clear US business history walk-through: you will be pretty sophisticated on this history after a few hours. This is several books in one, all converging on the stresses and changes on these central organizers, institutional and legal, and, given the present disruptions (also masterfully described, with a nice tutorial on the critical language and concepts, e.g., "uberization" of former careers and jobs into "micro-entrepreneurial" piece-work tasks) where this is heading, for anyone wondering about "navigating the hazards of a new economy." This is of vital interest to the investor as much as the worker, the parent, the educator, etc. The author does not stop at describing and warning of pitfalls and worries; he comes up with positive views and possibilities in the emerging economy. Throughout, there is a refreshing lack of BS razzle-dazzle in one direction or another. For those who treat "corporate" as a swear-word, try another view: US income equality topped out in the heyday of giant corporations, 1968. But there is no misty-eyed nostalgia either: we are where we are. The bell cannot be un-rung. Many facile assumptions about these things and eras are gently shaken, with new views layered on, and well backed by data and studies, without ever being tedious. Many thumbs up!
I wish in this presidential election year (2016) the bungling, inarticulate sideshows of the candidacies and the masses' rage and fear contained more sober discussions along these lines, which get smartly to the real underlying issues, and the potential solutions, both collectively and individually.
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1 person found this helpful
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- A. Beck
- 08-10-16
Very informative for Business Majors
This audiobook provides a summary of the 20th century way of doing business up until 2015. We all need to change but our career outlook because the mobile technology has shaken how we do business. Our society has gone from the corporation taking care of our health and retirement benefits to how we have to take care of ourselves. The once stable full time job has evolved to tasks on demand. Are you the innovator or the work bee? That will depend on you.
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- Adrian W. Rich
- 06-24-16
Exceptionally Insighful
A very well reasoned & thoughtful look at the concept of a "corporation" in the past, present & future.
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- Irish in LA
- 11-15-19
Important Read for Professionals & College Grads
This book describes the gig economy that we live in, and why companies like Facebook sell stock even though they don't need expensive manufacturing equipment.
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- Teddy DeWitt
- 07-31-17
Makes sense of our uncertain times
If you are in a position to advise on careers, plan to have one of your own, or just want to understand the shift that is rapidly taking place in our economic system, this book has context you need. Davis talks through the advent of the American corporation and its influence on inequality, social safety nets, and the political system to give the reader a picture of where we have been. He then paints a picture of our current crossroads. We are on a grim, downhill path of disconnection, dispersal, and volatility, but Davis, offering historical examples of why this path is entirely avoidable, suggests we might realistically diverge, to again leverage politics and social movements toward a better outcome, (specifically, the revival of local economies). And from there, he has some solid advice for anyone preparing to work, or even engage in the policy debate, in the face of all this uncertainty.
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- Nicholas Zinn
- 04-26-16
Davis' Book is a Millennial Must Read
What did you love best about The Vanishing American Corporation?
The best thing about Professor Davis' Vanishing American Corporation is his dedication to diagnosing the problems confronted by this phenomena but, most refreshingly, is his pursuit of relevant solutions and practical advice for today's college students and recent graduates. Professor Davis attempts to do what most authors do not - to examine a problem's past, predict consequences for the future, and to offer solutions to the problem that both confront and take advantage of non-obvious opportunities that will empower, rather than victimize, the labor force.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Vanishing American Corporation?
Part III: Consequences of Corporate Collapse. Professor Davis' examination of the relationship between the disappearance of the 20th century corporate form and the rise of the "sharing economy" to income inequality, social instability, and the increasing marginalization of the US labor force is a triumph of logic over passion.
What does Jeff Hoyt bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Mr. Hoyt does an excellent job of bringing the author's voice to the narration. Instead of making this audiobook feel removed from its source or treating it as a sort of staid anthropological recounting of events (see, e.g., "Losing the Signal: The Untold Story Behind the Extraordinary Rise and Spectacular Fall of Blackberry"), Mr. Hoyt's narration brings the story to life for the listener.
If you could give The Vanishing American Corporation a new subtitle, what would it be?
"How the fall of the traditional American corporation and the rise of the sharing economy threatens the marginalization of the US labor force, accelerates growing American inequality, and threatens the perpetuation of the American Dream".
Any additional comments?
Davis, a business school professor, has written a book whose content and conclusions resonate beyond the classroom and into the hearts and minds of every American. This book is as much prescriptive as it is academic and it deserves to be considered in conjunction with other works that seek to explain the increasing disillusionment of the average American with popular society and the money culture. It is best considered in the context of Thomas Picketty's "Capital in the 21st Century" and Lauren A. Rivera's "Pedigree: How Elite Students Get Elite Jobs" as a compendium to these earlier works.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Aden33
- 03-22-17
Amazing!
Such an insightful perspective of the business world around us, where it's been and where it's going.
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