Managing the Multi-Business Company : The Basis and Rationale for Successful Diversified Groups

All multibusiness companies need to be able to justify their ownership of their multiple businesses. The corporate-level strategy must show how and why the corporate parent adds value to its business. Classic strategic issues which are addressed in this book include the allocation of resources between businesses, the creation of synergy through linkages amongst the businesses and the choices faced when creating a corporate portfolio. The selection of readings chosen, including writings by leading business theorists such as Michael Porter, Alfred Chandler, Michael Jenkins, Rosabeth Moss Kanter and C. K. Prahalad, have been organised around the major issues outlined above. In the first section, the readings concern the basic justification for the existence of multibusiness companies. The next two sections concentrate much more on advice for the managers of these companies about how to handle difficult strategic issues. Section 4 offers empirical evidence on how diversified companies have performe