High-tech Industries, Employment and Global Competitiveness

The process of development in recent times has been characteristically marked by the expanding reach of multinational enterprises, flows of foreign direct investment, unprecedented growth of information and communication technologies (ICT) and knowledge-based industries, and infusion of ICT across the entire spectrum of industries and activities. High-tech knowledge-based industries like information technology, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and so on have played an important role in the transition of Chinese and Indian economies―the two largest and fastest growing economies.

This inter-disciplinary book offers an in-depth understanding of the behaviour of firms in these industries, analysing the strategies they adopt in a globally competitive environment, the role they have played in ushering in the growth revolution in China and India, and the contribution they have made to the nature and growth of employment. This study also dwells upon the emerging nature of scientific and technological developments like nanotechnology, novel materials, spintronics and quantum computers, with the conclusion that in the future, knowledge and technology are going to be the real sources of wealth for nations.

S. R. Hashim is Director, Institute for Studies in Industrial Development, New Delhi; President, India Water Patnership; and Vice-President, Forum for Global Knowledge Sharing. Prior to this he was Chairman, Union Public Service Commission; Ambassador of India to the Republic of Kazakhstan; and Member, Planning Commission. His book (co-authored with M.M. Dadi) Capital Output Relations in Indian Industries (1973) is widely regarded as a seminal work. Dr Hashim has received several academic honours and has made significant contributions to development planning and policies.

N. S. Siddharthan is Member Secretary and Honorary Director, Forum for Global Knowledge Sharing and Honorary Professor of Economics, Madras School of Economics. He has published several books, among them Global Business, Technology and Knowledge Sharing: Lessons for Developing Country Enterprises (2002); Technology, Market Structure and Internationalisation (1997); and Conglomerates and Multinationals in India (1981). He has also published numerous articles in academic journals.