Hálózatok és hierarchiák a 19. századi üzleti életben
Networks and Hierarchies in 19th century

Summary/Abstract: The Neuschloszes and the Gregersens both reached the climax of their career during the fin de siecle period. They both were family firms or family of firms, they were both active in the building industry, dealing with wood processing that included taking forests on lease as well as manufacturing furniture. Though their activities were similar, their business organizations were radically different. At the time the Neuschloszes had been present in Hungary for about a century, and they had a wide range of relatives through intermarriages with other entrepreneur families. The founding father of the Gregersens, however, arrived only at the middle of the 19th century, the family members were participating in one firm only. The two families represent two clear types. The Gregersen firm fits well into Williamson's criteria -- hierarchy is established to compete uncertainty and mistrust. The activities of the Neuschloszes were based rather on a family of firms held together by the family network. When analyzing networks, we can look at the strong and weak ties. No wonder, business relations were evolving along the former. According to historical evidence, weak ties played a role only in the personal preparation for entrepreneurship -- informal professional education was organized this way. There is one case where we can ask if the bankruptcy of Gudbrand Gregersen was a result of weak ties. At first glance, it was, still if we have a closer look, the case shows how and why the latecomer Gregersen was in a state of uncertainty and so it gives an additional explanation why he insisted on organizing a centralized and hierarchical firm.

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