Measuring and Explaining Management Practices in Italy

We use an innovative survey tool to collect management practice data from more than 900 medium sized manufacturing firms across Europe and the US. Our measures of managerial practices are strongly associated with several measures of firm level performance. Management practices display significant crosscountry and within-country differences, with US firms on average better managed than European firms. Italian firms show a significant managerial gap vis-à-vis the US, particularly among Italian companies that are owned and run by families. We document a positive association between product market competition and the overall level of skills within the firm. Product market competition and family-owned, family-run firms account for 60% of the American managerial advantage over Italians.