Abstract

"Learnings from U.S. railroad companies pertinent to contemporary business strategies"

Aya TANAKA, Shiga University (r201370181ed@jindai.jp)

This study systematically examines the business history of railroad companies in the U.S. in the 1850s.
The research question of this study is how did the U.S. railroad companies grow in 1850s.
In the 1850s, when these companies were developing, they earlier formed large organizations, collected finances, introduced human resource management, and so on. Today, there are several employees in these companies. This study analyzes the important business strategies in developing the U.S. railroad companies to improve their management. As a result, these companies have modern management.
This research assesses two main points: the development of the U.S. railway management system by the railroad companies and the connection of these companies to nineteenth-century U.S. public policy. Initiative was lacking in the nineteenth century, but these companies were the first to take the country toward growth in this century. This growth can be attributed to the fact that the management and funding of these companies were rooted in timeless business planning.
For example, the railroad companies formed large corporations that have been operating since the nineteenth century. These companies continue operation despite changes in the top management.
In this current era, where the viewpoint of top management is primarily considered, these companies challenged by also considering the perspective of the front-line. I believe that the growth of the nineteenth-century railroad U.S. companies can be studied to understand some of the earliest management strategies. As we move toward an increasingly digital age, it is important to study early methods of business and use innovation and formed these strategies in contemporary businesses.