This longitudinal case study in a Japanese owned manufacturing company examines the relationship between union-based representation and organisation and other forms of employee voice. The study covers the period before and after the passage of the Employment Relations Act 1999. During that period the Company voluntarily agreed to the recognition of an independent trade union at the same time as abandoning a pre-existing employee works council and its replacement by a Japanese-style company advisory board. The study investigates, inter alia, how far, and to what extent the inpending EU directive establishing mechanisms for employee information and consultation could influence existing trade union representation and organisation.

There is a substantial and growing body of evidence to suggest that organizations are increasingly recognising the importance of individual and group learning and knowledge management as ways of attaining competitive advantage. ᭹ A consequence of this phenomenon is the growing demand for management education and training and increasingly, this is linked with the imperative of integrating management development with other organizational systems and processes to ensure their effectiveness in delivering business goals.᭹ The purpose of this paper is to analyse this trend from the perspective of a New University Business School, i.e. one of the post 1992 Universities, created by the demise of the Polytechnics and their subsequent transfer to university status. ᭹ One of the principal aims of the paper is to suggest and identify potential market development opportunities and to highlight the competences required by business schools to successfully compete is this potentially profitable, yet increasingly competitive market. ᭹The significance of the corporate education market should not be underestimated.As an example, the Association of Business Schools (1997) estimated that this type of activity accounted for up to two-thirds of the programmes offered by its members in their provision.