Published since March 20, 2017

Zeitschrift für Unternehmensgeschichte

Journal of Business History

ISSN: 2367-2293

Edited by: Carsten Burhop, Christian Kleinschmidt, Jan-Otmar Hesse

In cooperation with: Hartmut Berghoff, Andreas Fahrmeir, Christina Lubinski, Werner Plumpe, Mary O'Sullivan, Raymond Stokes

Managing Editor: Andrea H. Schneider-Braunberger

About this journal

The Journal of Business History addresses all facets of business history, taking a broad approach that encompasses neighboring disciplines, international developments, and an expanded definition of the firm. In order to publish first-class research that actively engages with companies, the economy, and the political sector, the journal solicits contributions from promising authors around the globe. Articles are accepted in German or English. All submissions undergo a double-blind peer review.

Submit your manuscript here: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/zug

ZUG allows for articles in hybrid Open Access. Futher information can be found on our page on Open Access articles.

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Supplementary Materials

Topics

Volume 68 Issue 2

September 2023

Publicly Available September 19, 2023

Titelseiten

Page range: I-IV

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Aufsätze (Articles)

Open Access September 19, 2023

«Seitenwechsel» – Unternehmer in der Politik und Politiker in der Wirtschaft. Eine Einleitung

Jan-Otmar Hesse, Alexander Nützenadel

Page range: 143-149

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Open Access September 19, 2023

Kaufleute als Konsuln – Zu den Anfängen deutscher Handelsdiplomatie in Ostasien im 19. Jahrhundert

Friederike Sattler

Page range: 151-183

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Abstract

From the 1840s onwards, German merchants increasingly settled in China, Japan and other countries in East Asia and at the same time took on consular duties for their home cities and countries. They remained primarily independent entrepreneurs, but also acted as state representatives, which could lead to considerable tensions. The article explores for whom the activities of merchant consuls in the two spheres of business and politics proved especially useful, what typical conflicts they encountered, and how these conflicts were resolved. The aim is to give a general overview of the activities of German merchant consuls in East Asia before the founding of the German Empire and at the same time to stimulate increased interest in the merchants of the 19th century from the perspective of modern business history.

Open Access September 19, 2023

Januskopf der deutschen Geldwirtschaft: Karl Helfferich (1872 bis 1924)

Werner Plumpe

Page range: 185-204

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Abstract

The case of the financial scientist Karl Helfferich is one of the most spectacular «revolving door» incidents between academia, business and politics in the late Empire and early Weimar Republic. The historical judgement of Helfferich, however, is shaped by his polemical agitation against the so-called fulfilment policy after the First World War, as well as against Matthias Erzberger and Walther Rathenau in particular. This essay aims at a more differentiated view of Helfferich and draws on texts left by Helfferich himself, some of which are autobiographical, in order to make his position in and between the various «systems» clear. His career in the Wilhelmine era is described and his contribution to the difficult negotiations on the construction of the Baghdad Railway and to overcoming inflation is discussed. The end of the Empire also brought an end to this career of power-based expertise. While Helfferich’s bitterness about the end of the empire was vented in polemics, his sobriety and expertise continued to come to the fore in debates on financial, budgetary and monetary policy. Helfferich’s career is only superficially a case of a «revolving door» in that expertism and his supposedly superior expertise always determined his self-image and his uncompromising manner of appearance and argumentation differed significantly from the habitus of other politicians of the early Weimar Republic.

Open Access September 19, 2023

Universalitätsansprüche – Verbandsvertreter in der deutsch-französischen Wirtschaftsdiplomatie der 20er und frühen 30er Jahre

Philipp Müller

Page range: 205-225

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Abstract

In the 20s and 30s German and French representatives of entrepreneurial interests often changed from the civil service to the management of business associations. In their new function, they were responsible for bringing their members’ interests to a common ground. In this context, they claimed to speak on behalf of the overall national economic cause. This strategy was due to the attempt to legitimize their coordination efforts through symbolic capital that lent itself to the justification of state officials. However, their proposals often met with resistance by members. In practice, their claim to represent the overall national economic interest only became effective as soon as their role was legitimized by the state. Such a situation emerged during the Great Depression when Franco-German economic relations were being renegotiated. Ironically, the actions of former state officials in the service of the private sector thus gained power precisely when the delegation of economic diplomatic tasks to business representatives tended to erase the boundary between state and economy.

Open Access September 19, 2023

Vom Röhren-Manager zum Verteidigungs-Staatssekretär und zurück: Der mehrfache Seitenwechsel von Ernst Wolf Mommsen

Jan-Otmar Hesse

Page range: 227-254

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Abstract

Ernst Wolf Mommsen (1910–1979) was one of the best-known steel managers of the old German Federal Republic. In 1970 he was recruited as an under-secretary of state by the Federal Ministry of Defence with responsibility for armaments and procurement and returned to industry in 1973 as Chairman of Friedrich Krupp GmbH. Based on extensive archival research, the article examines the background to this twofold switch through the «revolving door». The focus is on the question of whether Mommsen’s entrepreneurial activity could be used successfully in the state administration. Furthermore, the meaning of this revolving door phenomenon with respect to the entanglement of politics and industry in the German Federal Republic of the 70s will be discussed.

Open Access September 19, 2023

Seitenwechsler im Zentralbankwesen – Karrieren im Beziehungsdreieck von Finanzwelt, Wissenschaft und Politik (1948 bis 1970)

Christian Marx

Page range: 255-287

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Abstract

The article examines the careers of German central bankers and the phenomenon of the revolving door in the first two postwar decades. It focuses on the personnel changes between central banking and politics resp. private banking and asks for the social structure of German central bankers, their training paths and changes in comparison to the Reichsbank era. Finally, the impact of recruitment practices on central bank policy will be outlined. The paper is based on the thesis that party-political orientation became significant for the rise of the presidents of the land central banks (Landeszentralbankpräsidenten) after 1945 and that relations to private banking were primarily evident in training, whereas such aspects were of secondary importance for central bank monetary policy.

September 19, 2023

Donald Trump, anti-establishment populism and the revolving door between business and politics in the United States

Daniel Kinderman

Page range: 289-314

Abstract

Revolving door dynamics are pervasive in the United States. There are vast literatures on the revolving door and on Donald Trump, but so far, no attempts to bring these literatures together. This paper represents a first attempt to do so and answer the following questions: Can Trump’s rise be understood as a culmination of revolving door dynamics, under which managers become politicians and politicians become lobbyists? What motivated Trump to revolve, and how has Trump’s presidency affected the revolving door? The paper places Trump into the context of the revolving door and compares him with previous presidents and presidential candidates. In recent decades, revolving door activity has increased. While this suggests that the revolving door paved the way for Trump, a close examination of the evidence reveals a more complex picture. Many American businesspeople have unsuccessfully run for president. Like the businessmen-turned-presidents who preceded him, Trump is a family businessman, not a manager or a CEO of a listed company. A multitude of additional factors contributed to Trump’s 2016 win including his status as a reality TV celebrity, his charisma, and his right-wing populism: Trump is from business but not from the business establishment. In addition, Trump revolved from business into politics, rather than from Capitol Hill to K Street. Candidate Trump railed against the revolving door and pledged to drain the swamp. President Trump swamped the drain and precipitated one of the most serious crises and threats to American democracy in the country’s history.

Rezensionen (Reviews)

September 19, 2023

Joachim Scholtyseck, Die National-Bank. Von der Bank der christlichen Gewerkschaften zur Mittelstandsbank, 1921–2021, C.H. Beck, München 2021, 464 S., € 39,95.

Benedikt Brunner

Page range: 315-316

September 19, 2023

Patrick Bormann/Friederike Sattler, Die DZ HYP. Eine genossenschaftliche Hypothekenbank zwischen Tradition und Wandel (1921–2021), C.H. Beck, München 2021, 523 S., € 44,00.

Daniel Meis

Page range: 316-318

September 19, 2023

Martin Schmitt, Digitalisierung der Kreditwirtschaft. Computereinsatz in den Sparkassen der Bundesrepublik und der DDR 1957 bis 1991, Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 2021, 656 S., € 58,00.

Richard Vahrenkamp

Page range: 318-321

September 19, 2023

Sebastian Justke, Ein ehrbarer Kaufmann? Albert Schäfer, sein Unternehmen und die Stadt Hamburg 1933–1956, Metropol, Berlin 2022, 264 S., € 24,00.

Daniel Meis

Page range: 321-323

September 19, 2023

Angela Bhend, Triumph der Moderne. Jüdische Gründer von Warenhäusern in der Schweiz, 1890–1945, Chronos Verlag, Zürich 2021, 351 S., € 58,00.

Werner Plumpe

Page range: 323-325

September 19, 2023

Philipp Julius Meyer, Kartographie und Weltanschauung. Visuelle Wissensproduktion im Verlag Justus Perthes 1890–1945, Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 2021, 480 S., € 56,00.

Jonathan Voges

Page range: 325-327

September 19, 2023

Michael A. Kanther, Thyssengas. Die Geschichte des ersten deutschen Unternehmens der Ferngasversorgung von 1892 bis 2020, Aschendorff Verlag, Münster 2021, 434 S., € 29,80.

Horst A. Wessel

Page range: 327-328

September 19, 2023

Zur Rezension in der Geschäftsstelle eingegangene Bücher

Page range: 329-331

Mitteilung (information)

September 19, 2023

Preis für Unternehmensgeschichte Ausschreibung 2024

Page range: 333-333

Volume 68 (2023)

Volume 67 (2022)

Volume 66 (2021)

Volume 65 (2020)

Volume 64 (2019)

Volume 63 (2018)

Volume 62 (2017)

Volume 61 (2016)

Volume 60 (2015)

Volume 59 (2014)

Volume 58 (2013)

Volume 57 (2012)

Volume 56 (2011)

Volume 55 (2010)

Volume 54 (2009)

Volume 53 (2008)

Volume 52 (2007)

Volume 51 (2006)

Volume 50 (2005)

Volume 49 (2004)

Volume 48 (2003)

Volume 47 (2002)

Volume 46 (2001)

Volume 45 (2000)

Volume 44 (1999)

Volume 43 (1998)

Volume 42 (1997)

Volume 41 (1996)

Volume 40 (1995)

Volume 39 (1994)

Volume 38 (1993)

Volume 37 (1992)

Volume 36 (1991)

Volume 35 (1990)

Volume 34 (1989)

Volume 33 (1988)

Volume 32 (1987)

Volume 31 (1986)

Volume 30 (1985)

Volume 29 (1984)

Volume 28 (1983)

Volume 27 (1982)

Volume 26 (1981)

Volume 25 (1980)

Volume 24 (1979)

Volume 23 (1978)

Volume 22 (1977)

Volume 17 (1972)

Volume 16 (1971)

Issue 5-6

Volume 15 (1970)

Volume 14 (1969)

Volume 13 (1968)

Volume 12 (1967)

Volume 11 (1966)

Volume 10 (1965)

Volume 9 (1964)

Volume 8 (1963)

Volume 7 (1962)

Volume 6 (1961)

Volume 5 (1960)

Volume 4 (1959)

Volume 3 (1958)

Volume 2 (1957)

Volume 1 (1956)

Issue 1

CiteScore	0.3	2022, Scopus (Elsevier B.V., 2023)
SCImago Journal Rank	0.127	2022, SJR (Scimago Lab, 2023; Data Source: Scopus)
Source Normalized Impact per Paper	0.337	2022, CWTS Journal Indicators (CWTS B.V., 2023; Data Source: Scopus)

More information about journal rankings

Editorial

Editors
Prof. Dr. Carsten Burhop (University of Bonn, Germany) (Managing Editor)
Prof. Dr. Christian Kleinschmidt (University of Marburg, Germany)
Prof. Dr. Jan-Otmar Hesse (University of Bayreuth, Germany).

Editorial Board
Prof. Dr. Hartmut Berghoff (University of Göttingen, Germany)
Prof. Dr. Andreas Fahrmeir (Goethe University of Frankfurt, Germany)
Prof. Dr. Christina Lubinski (Copenhagen Business School, Denmark)
Prof. Dr. Mary O'Sullivan (University of Geneva, Switzerland)
Prof. Dr. Werner Plumpe (Goethe University of Frankfurt, Germany)
Prof. Dr. Raymond Stokes (University of Glasgow, UK)

CEO of GUG / Editorial Manager
Dr. Andrea H. Schneider-Braunberger (Frankfurt, Germany)

(Deutsch)

Online ISSN: 2367-2293
Print ISSN: 0342-2852
Type: Journal
Languages: German, English
Publisher: De Gruyter Oldenbourg
First published: March 20, 2017
Publication Frequency: 2 Issues per Year