ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part describes what managers discovered about the seventeen firms. An assessment of the firm’s efficiency was made in 1967 and reviewed in 1968. The research assistant was to examine which problems of the organization had remained unsolved and to indicate whether other external aids were needed. Each firm was invited to suggest additions and deletions, and the first drafts sent to them were deliberately provocative in order to stimulate an emphatic reaction on matters of judgment. Paragraphs in the reports on firms have been numbered to facilitate discussion between readers. An analysis of known external contacts during one year has been summarized in each firm’s report. As some contacts could be placed in several categories, the section totals sometimes exceed the total number of contacts.
