Production &
Business
Organization
Chapter 6
Samuelson, Nordhaus 18e
Production & Business
Organization
The
relationship between the quantity of
output (such as wheat, steel, or automobiles)
and the quantities of inputs (of labor, land, and
capital) is called the production function.
Total
product is the total output produced.
Average
product equals total output divided
by the total quantity of inputs.
Chapter 6
Figure 6-1
Marginal Product Is Derived
from Total Product
Production & Business
Organization
According
to the law of diminishing
returns, the marginal product of each
input will generally decline as the
amount of that input increases, when
all other inputs are held constant.
Chapter 6
Table 6-1
Total Product, Marginal
Product & Average Product
Production & Business
Organization
The
returns to scale reflect the impact on
output of a balanced increase in all inputs.
technology in which doubling all inputs
leads to an exact doubling of outputs
displays constant returns to scale.
When
doubling inputs leads to less than
double (more than double) the quantity of
output, the situation is one of decreasing
(increasing) returns to scale.
Chapter 6
Figure 6-2
Diminishing Returns in Corn
Production
Production & Business
Organization
Technological
change refers to a change in
the underlying techniques of production, as
occurs when a new product or process of
production is invented or an old product or
process is improved. In such situations, the
same output is produced with fewer inputs or
more output is produced with the same
inputs.
Technological
change shifts the production
function upward.
Chapter 6
Figure 6-3
Technological Change Shifts
Production Function Upward
Chapter 6
Figure 6-4
Value of Networking Increases
as Membership Rises
Business Organizations
Business
firms are specialized
organizations devoted to managing
the process of production.
Business Organization
Types
of Business Organization
There are three types of business
organization:
Proprietorship
Partnership
Corporation
Business Organization
Proprietorship
A proprietorship is a firm with a single owner
who has unlimited liability, or legal
responsibility for all debts incurred by the firm
up to an amount equal to the entire wealth of
the owner.
The proprietor also makes management
decisions and receives the firms profit.
Profits are taxed the same as the owners other
income.
Business Organization
Partnership
A partnership is a firm with two or more owners
who have unlimited liability.
Partners must agree on a management
structure and how to divide up the profits.
Profits from partnerships are taxed as the
personal income of the owners.
Business Organization
Corporation
A corporation is owned by one or more
stockholders with limited liability, which means
the owners who have legal liability only for the
initial value of their investment.
The personal wealth of the stockholders is not
at risk if the firm goes bankrupt.
The profit of corporations is taxed twiceonce
as a corporate tax on firm profits, and then
again as income taxes paid by stockholders
receiving their after-tax profits distributed as
dividends.
Business Organization
Pros
and Cons of Different Types of Firms
Each type of business organization has
advantages and disadvantages.
Table 10.4 summarizes the pros and cons of
different types of firms.
Read Chapter 7