Eugen Schmalenbach, Austrian economics, and German business economics

Michael Olbrich (), David J. Rapp () and Florian Follert ()
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Michael Olbrich: Institute of Auditing, Saarland University
David J. Rapp: Law, Economics, and Finance Department, Institut Mines-Télécom Business School
Florian Follert: Institute of Auditing, Saarland University

The Review of Austrian Economics, 2022, vol. 35, issue 2, No 5, 205-233

Abstract: Abstract Eugen Schmalenbach was one of the founding fathers of business economics theory in the German-speaking world in the first half of the twentieth century. While Mises mentions or discusses Schmalenbach’s work several times and Schmalenbach refers to, for example, Menger and Böhm-Bawerk, his opus and its significance for Austrian theorizing is largely ignored by today’s Austrian scientific community. This fact is astonishing given that Schmalenbach’s work smoothly integrates with and, even more importantly, enhances the reach of Austrian theory into the field of business economics, particularly with regard to the vast field of economic calculation. Based on Austrian insights, Schmalenbach published extensive approaches to both retrospective and anticipatory monetary calculation that serve the entrepreneur in making decisions on the use of scarce resources and in assessing the success of such decisions ex post. Hence, he operationalized Austrian economic calculation to enable the individual entrepreneur to concretely exercise it in his routine course of business. The conceptual ideas of Schmalenbach are cornerstones of Prussian-German business economics (Betriebswirtschaftslehre) which has been taught in universities and business schools in German-speaking countries for more than a century now. This paper, therefore, aims to introduce the Austrian community to Schmalenbach’s work, to emphasize its significance for the advancement of Austrian theorizing, and to illustrate the close relations between Austrian economics and German business economics.

Keywords: Eugen Schmalenbach; Austrian economics; German business economics; Economic calculation; Capital accounting; Cost accounting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: B25 M21 M41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11138-020-00520-x

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