Symposium on Harrison's "Lean and Mean": A Finance Perspective.

The article presents the author's opinions on the book "Lean and Mean," by Bennett Harrison. Harrison is to be congratulated for raising a series of tough and thought-provoking questions regarding the changing industrial structure in the United States and the world. By compiling earlier research by authors in a variety of disciplines with his own work, he argues powerfully that the case for small firms as the engine of economic growth is overstated. He presents considerable evidence suggesting that the focus of economic development officials on encouraging small enterprises, as well as industrial districts comprised of small firms, is misguided.