"This collection of essays is based on the 1994 F. de Vries lectures held at the Erasmus University, Rotterdam, March 1994. The authors in this volume discuss the changing role of small firms in the modern economy from different angles. Bo Carlsson pays attention to the introduction of flexible automation. He explains that this change of technology has resulted in a decrease of the size of firms. Zoltan Acs argues that small firms play a ..."