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In this paper the impact of regions on the evolution and development of technology is examined via a new paper-making technology (the twin-wire machine) as a case study. In particular, differences in raw material and physical environmental conditions, consumer tastes and preferences, and industrial organization and corporate strategies between the two regions, North America and Europe, provided different demand and supply conditions for the development of the twin-wire technology. These conditions initially influenced the development of different twin-wire trajectories in North America and Europe. Later on, these trajectories began to converge as the supply and demand conditions, which had established them, began to change.

Empowerment of employees has been a primary concern of business for many decades, under thepremise that involvement of employees in decision making leads to superior performance and results.Acceptance of the practical value of empowerment by colleges and universities is more recent andmore rare, despite the centrality of ideas such as faculty governance and recognition of the faculty’sessential role in the academic enterprise. Empowerment in academe is defined as the processwhereby stakeholders are encouraged and supported in utilizing their knowledge, skills, and creativityto embrace ownership and accountability for the well being of their department and institution. Theprocess requires stakeholders to collaborate in order to establish clear goals and expectationsfocused on the institution’s vision and mission but within agreed-upon boundaries. This alignment ofdepartmental and institutional goals is a key ingredient of empowerment, one that Black (1987) calls"enacting the vision" in organizations.