It should be suspicious that not one single firm within the market is organized the same way the market is. If markets and the price motive are the best way to decide how to allocate resources, why don’t any of the agents actually making the decisions within the capitalist economy use markets within themselves to make those decisions? Sears famously tried this and the company immediately cannibalized itself.
One of the biggest examples was Sears under Eddie Lampert whose internally-competitive business units, among a couple other factors, basically destroyed the company.
Someone else mentioned it in this thread, but they cover it in the book “People’s Republic of Walmart” but I suppose you could find books or articles about the Sears example specifically. I’m not really aware of any other big corporate names trying it.
It should be suspicious that not one single firm within the market is organized the same way the market is. If markets and the price motive are the best way to decide how to allocate resources, why don’t any of the agents actually making the decisions within the capitalist economy use markets within themselves to make those decisions? Sears famously tried this and the company immediately cannibalized itself.
Ok that sounds very interesting. Are there any good books or articles about it?
One of the biggest examples was Sears under Eddie Lampert whose internally-competitive business units, among a couple other factors, basically destroyed the company.
Someone else mentioned it in this thread, but they cover it in the book “People’s Republic of Walmart” but I suppose you could find books or articles about the Sears example specifically. I’m not really aware of any other big corporate names trying it.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-07-11/at-sears-eddie-lamperts-warring-divisions-model-adds-to-the-troubles
https://www.salon.com/2013/07/18/ayn_rand_killed_sears_partner/
Thanks!