Silent Partners: Taxpayers and the Bankrolling of Bombardier

Robert W. Sexty is a professor of commerce and business administration
at Memorial University of Newfoundland and the author of Canadian
Business: Issues and Stakeholders.

Silent Partners is a comprehensive look at how one large Canadian
aerospace and transportation equipment manufacturer, Bombardier Ltd.,
has perfected the art of seeking and obtaining corporate welfare from
various governments. Although the focus is on corporate welfare, the
book’s 20 chapters also provide a history of major corporate
developments. Insights are gained into the operation of a
family-dominated company with its dual class and multi-vote shares
designed to eliminate the risk of a hostile takeover.

Other interesting topics include the role of families in Canadian
entrepreneurship, the challenges in the relationship between family
owners and the “outsider” management, and the risks of
diversification through both internal growth and multiple acquisitions.
The competitiveness in the high-technology manufacturing sector is
described along with the complications of international trade law and
practice. It is noted that governments subsidize the aerospace and
transportation industries worldwide and that Bombardier’s practices
are not unique.

Relying on newspaper sources and, more importantly, on interviews with
Bombardier executives and others connected to the industry, the author,
a business columnist, provides a balanced analysis of his subject. Read
his book to gain an understanding of how and why corporate welfare is
done.