The Challenge of Change in EU Business Associations

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The Challenge of Change in EU Business
Associations

• Justin Greenwood (ed)

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• Business Associations - A 21st Century solution
• Business needs an intermediary to reconcile
  enlightened self interest with the wider needs of
  civil society
• Two-way intermediaries in policy making, and can
  engage other stakeholders
• Well policed self-regulation helps position firms
  as part of the solution
• enable business to respond collectively so none
  risk being isolated
• a learning place for business - can lead member
  perceptions of what interests are

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• Where there are common sectoral features shared
  problems, Trade Associations work well as good
  collective action organisations
• members are a similar size
• a common enemy
• overcapacity
• Low product differentiation
• High asset specificity/transaction costs
• regulation distributes costs benefits evenly
  across members

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• Associations also add value by
• acquiring unique information
• creating mutual reliances
• carrying agendas and responses between regulatory
  agencies and members as 2 way conduits
• fostering member-member trust
• finding allies
• explaining issues to members leading member
  perceptions
• spotting member needs opportunities to develop
  itself...

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• The new(er) Challenges
• Enlargement old new
• The new draft Treaty
• Governance
• Citizen agendas
• Accountability Accreditation
• Extended Impact Assessments
• New Regulatory Agencies
• IT the opening up of policy making
• Corporate Social Responsibility, accountability
  (51/100 largest entities) new activism
• Competition Policy
• Establishment
• Corporate rationalisation
• Third Party Legislative action

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New debates in The Challenge of Change

• competition law/ business associations
• impact of WPG on associations
• role of the Secretary General
• new legal framework for associations
• enlargement old new for associations
• perspectives from public interest groups
  contested environments
• role and value of trust in associations

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Contributors to The Challenge of Change

• Paul Adamson, Bruno Alves
• Barrie Gilliatt, Edgar Grande, Wyn Grant,
  Justin Greenwood, Daniel Guéguen
• Ian Locks, Dirk Lontings
• Jim Murray
• Ulrich Paetzold, Irini Pari, Nieves Perez..
• David Rea, Alan Reid, John Russell
• Michiel Scheffer, Luc Stolle
• Werner Teufelsbauer, Zygmunt Tyszkiewicz
• Jerome Vignon, Alfons Westgeest