“Industrial Policy”: It Can’t Happen Here

During the last few years, many people concerned about our lagging economy have asserted that what the United States needs to combat competitors abroad and economic woes at home is a strong industrial policy. Advocates offer a variety of approaches, the two most popular being formation of an independent political institution and a restructuring of […]

by

David B. Yoffie

and

Joseph L. Badaracco

by

David B. Yoffie

and

Joseph L. Badaracco

From the Magazine (November 1983)

The United States’s economic problems have been around for a long time now. Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Carter all experimented with elements of Keynesianism and monetarism to turn around declining competitiveness in world markets, stagnant productivity, huge government deficits, and rising unemployment. More recently, President Reagan has turned to supply-side economics.

A version of this article appeared in the November 1983 issue of Harvard Business Review.

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David B. Yoffie is the Max and Doris Starr Professor of International Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He is co-author of The Business of Platforms: Strategy in the Age of Digital Competition, Innovation and Power (2019).
Joseph L. Badaracco is the John Shad Professor of Business Ethics at Harvard Business School, where he has taught courses on leadership, strategy, corporate responsibility, and management. His books on these subjects include New York Times bestseller Leading Quietly, Defining Moments, and his latest book, Step Back: How to Bring the Art of Reflection into Your Busy Life (HBR Press, 2020).

“Industrial Policy”: It Can’t Happen Here

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