home Magazine Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity briefly. Basic organizational and legal forms and types of business activities

Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity briefly. Basic organizational and legal forms and types of business activities

Brief lecture notes on the disciplines “Enterprise Economics”,

"Economics of an Organization"

	p.

Topic 2. Organizational capital
Topic 3. Fixed assets of the enterprise
Topic 4. Working capital of the enterprise
Topic 5. Enterprise costs
Topic 6. Cost of production of the enterprise
Topic 7. Enterprise profit, profitability indicators
Topic 8. Enterprise personnel: composition, utilization indicators. Remuneration of company personnel
Topic 9. Enterprise production capacity
Topic 10. Product quality and competitiveness of the organization
Topic 11. Innovation and investment policy of the enterprise
Topic 12. Production planning at the enterprise
Application

Topic 1. Enterprise: essence, types of production, structure

Manufacturing enterprise: essence, classification

Company- the main structural link of industry, where the workforce, using means of production, creates consumer values in the form of products, works and services.

According to the Law of the Russian Federation, an enterprise is an independent entity with the rights of a legal entity. A legal entity has its own property, bears property liability for debt obligations, has the right to acquire, use and dispose of property, as well as carry out other actions permitted by law on its own behalf; the right to be a plaintiff and defendant in court and arbitration on one’s own behalf; have an independent balance sheet, a bank account, a seal with the name of the enterprise, and a charter. The enterprise (firm) carries out commercial activities producing goods and services for sale for the purpose of obtaining economic benefits- arrived. That is, the main goal of an enterprise in market conditions is to obtain maximum profit based on the qualitative and quantitative supply of consumer goods to the population.

The most important functions of the enterprise:

– production – associated with the manufacture of products or provision of services;

– economic and entrepreneurial – designed to provide production with the necessary raw materials and ensure sales of products;

– financial and accounting activities – accounting and control over the movement of material assets, timely payment of bills, creation of favorable conditions for business;

– organizational and managerial – coordination of the listed types of activities, creation of better conditions for the economic growth of the enterprise.

Enterprise can be interpreted as a synonym for firm. Firm is an organization or institution that owns one or more enterprises and manages the activities of these enterprises.

Enterprises are classified according to a number of criteria:

I. Enterprise size

1. Small – they are classified as if the share of the state and other organizations in the authorized capital of the organization is no more than 25%, and the number of employees does not exceed 100 people.

2. Large.

II. Legal forms:

1. A private company is a company whose owner independently conducts business, receives all profits and bears unlimited liability for its debts with all his property.

2. Partnership - a company organized by a number of individuals who jointly own and manage the enterprise.

3. Corporation - a company that has the form of a legal entity, where the rights and responsibilities of each owner are limited to his contribution to the enterprise.

III. Enterprise structure:

1. Highly specialized - produce a limited range of mass or large-scale products. For example, production of iron, grain, electricity generation, etc.

2. Multidisciplinary – they produce a wide range of products for various purposes. Such enterprises are most often found in industry and agriculture. For example, an enterprise can simultaneously specialize in the production of cars, washing machines, bicycles, and tools. And in agriculture - in growing grain, producing feed, fattening livestock.

3. Combined - the essence of combining production is that one type of raw material or product is transformed sequentially into another, and then into a third. For example, growing cotton, making fiber, linen, clothing. Such enterprises are most often found in the chemical, textile and metallurgical industries, and in agriculture.

IV. Organizational and legal forms

see below

Organizational and legal forms of business structures

Organizations can be non-profit (Fig.) and commercial (Fig.).

Non-profit organization– a legal entity for which the receipt of profit and its distribution among the founders is not the main goal; the profit received is used for self-development, achieving the statutory goals of the organization: educational, charitable, etc.

Non-profit organizations can carry out entrepreneurial activities only insofar as it serves the achievement of the goals for which they were created and is consistent with these goals.

Rice. . Organizational forms of non-profit organizations

Non-profit organizations can be established to achieve social, charitable, cultural, educational goals; in order to protect the health of citizens, protect the rights and legitimate interests of citizens and organizations; resolving disputes and conflicts, providing legal assistance, as well as for other purposes aimed at achieving public benefits.

commercial organization– a legal entity whose main purpose is to receive profit and distribute it among the founders (individuals and legal entities).

Rice. . Organizational forms of commercial organizations

Individual entrepreneurship– based on the personal property of citizens. The owner of a business is a single person or family who receives all the income and bears all the risk from the results of the business. The owner bears unlimited liability for debt obligations with all his personal property.

General partnership

General partnership- a partnership whose participants (at least two participants) are engaged in business activities on behalf of the partnership and bear unlimited liability for its obligations with the property belonging to them.

The business name must contain either the names (titles) of all its participants and the word “full partnership”, or the name (title) of one or more participants with the addition of the words “and company” and the word “general partnership”. Management of activities is carried out by common agreement of all participants. Each participant in a general partnership has one vote, unless the constituent agreement provides for a different procedure. When conducting the affairs of a partnership jointly, each transaction requires the consent of all participants in the partnership.

At the time of registration, the participant is obliged to make half of his contribution to the share capital of the partnership. The rest must be paid by the participant within the time limits established by the constituent agreement.

The profits and losses of a general partnership are distributed among its participants in proportion to their shares in the share capital.

Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity(OPF) are the forms in which a specific person (person or organization) can conduct business. Russian legislation provides for many types of OPF. What do they have in common, what is the difference and how to classify different OPFs? We will talk about all this in detail in our article.

What is a form of entrepreneurial activity?

Entrepreneurship, or commercial activity, is a special type of activity that in Russia is carried out by citizens or their associations, who act on their own initiative, at their own peril and risk, with the goal of maximizing profit. In modern Russia, entrepreneurship is expressly permitted by law, but must proceed in accordance with one of the organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity. OPF refers to the status that a specific person has, the totality of his rights, opportunities and obligations provided for by law.

It should be noted that organizational and legal characteristics apply not only to commercial entities: organizations that do not aim to make a profit, but were created to solve other social or political problems, can also be registered in the Russian Federation. An example would be parties, churches and other religious organizations, public foundations, etc. The key feature for them is that although the law does not prohibit them from having income from their activities, generating it should not be the main activity for these organizations.

Classification of forms of entrepreneurial activity

Classification of OPF in Russia can be carried out according to various criteria. The roughest division would be into those who:

has the status of a legal entity (LLC, JSC, MUP, etc.);
and does not have such status (individual entrepreneurs, branches, representative offices, etc.).

If we take as a basis the determination of whether the persons who create the organization are its members (this is the main classification now under the Civil Code), then we get 2 other groups:

Corporate organizations. Most of the OPF falls into this category.
Unitary organizations. These are various types of municipal unitary enterprises and other enterprises created by local authorities or the state. The key factor here is that these organizations, although created in order to make a profit, do not themselves own the property that is transferred to them to carry out their activities. All this property cannot be divided into shares or shares and transferred to anyone (even the employees of the enterprise themselves).

Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity - is it possible to separate them?

In regulations and theoretical literature, the term “organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity” is often used. Is it possible to draw a line between the organizational and legal forms?

In modern legislation there are no clear boundaries. The form in which an organization registers and then conducts its activities is determined by the current rules of law. The Civil Code of the Russian Federation directly states that organizations are registered in those OPFs that are provided for by the code. Thus, the law does not provide for the possibility of creating and registering an enterprise that will have a different legal entity.

However, the legislative framework is quite flexible, so there are quite a lot of ways to engage in entrepreneurial activity. In this regard, the rules of the law only establish boundaries that cannot be crossed.

Forms of organizing business activities in Russia

Russian legislation regulates in detail only OPF of individual organizations, however, entrepreneurial activity can also be organized by combining several business entities into various structures.

Individual actors include:

individual entrepreneurs;
legal entities.

The following associations of persons act together:

cartel (an association of independent organizations producing a single type of product in order to gain control over the market for the goods sold);
trust (an association of companies operating in the same or different industries, with the loss of their independence), etc.

Changes in forms of business activity

Civil legislation is constantly evolving, including in relation to the definition of commercial OPF. In particular, the following changes occurred in 2014:

The concept of an ALC (additional liability company) has disappeared. Now new organizations cannot be registered in this form, and the same rules apply to those ALCs that still exist as to LLCs.
Producer cooperatives are no longer seen as separate groups of commercial legal entities on a par with business societies - they are now just a type of corporate organization with a commercial orientation. The corresponding paragraph of the code ceased to apply, and the previous one was supplemented with a new subparagraph consisting of 6 articles.
Subsidiaries are also no longer considered as a separate OPF. Now, separately, in the section describing the general rules that apply to commercial organizations, the criteria by which a particular company can be recognized as an affiliate or subsidiary are indicated.
A division of societies into public and non-public has been introduced. In relation to joint-stock companies, this means that closed joint-stock companies and open joint-stock companies are a thing of the past. Now a society that wants to have public status must directly indicate this in its name.
The norms describing the status of participants in partnerships and societies have been significantly changed.
The number of limited partners in a limited partnership is limited. Now there can be no more than 20 of them.
Unitary enterprises are no longer specifically divided into those that are based on the right of economic management of property and those that conduct operational management. Now they have a general status.
The founders and participants of organizations are given the opportunity to enter into internal agreements and adopt other documents regulating the management procedure. Previously, such documents concerned only a number of specific issues, but now there are almost no restrictions and any agreements can be concluded, as long as they do not contradict the law and the statutory documents of the company.

The changes didn't stop there. The list of organizational and legal forms is constantly being adjusted. For example, in 2017, notary chambers were added to corporate organizations, and the list of unitary legal entities was expanded by adding state corporations to them.

Current organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity in the Russian Federation

As of 2017-2018, commercial activities in the following forms are allowed in Russia:

Peasant farms

Previously, all kinds of farms formed by peasants (farmers) did not have the status of a legal entity - in fact, they had a status similar to individual entrepreneurs, only the heads of farms acted as entrepreneurs. This rather strange situation was corrected in 2012, when a corresponding subparagraph was introduced into the Civil Code. The main feature of peasant farms is that they are created primarily to conduct commercial activities in the agricultural industry.

As a result, now this term actually combines 3 separate OPFs:

Peasant farms, originally created under the old law as legal entities. They may be valid until 2021.
Peasant farms created on the basis of the federal law of the same name currently in force. They are not legal entities, representing only a contractual association of member citizens around a head who has the status of an individual entrepreneur. Now this should be the main option for the existence of such farms.
Peasant farms are legal entities. As already mentioned, innovations in civil legislation make it possible to register peasant farms as organizations. True, for this it is necessary that they have previously acted in the form provided for by the law on peasant farms.

Interestingly, a citizen can participate in several contractual peasant farms, but only one of them can be created as a legal entity. In this sense, farms are close to partnerships.

Business societies

The list of OPFs continues with the form of business entities. At their core, these are commercial organizations whose authorized capital is initially divided into shares or shares. Unlike the cooperatives discussed above, in business companies, when voting, it is taken into account how many percent of the authorized capital or how many shares (if they have the same par value) belong to the voter.

Business companies are divided into 2 types:

OOO. This is the most common of the organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity. In this company, the authorized capital is divided into shares owned by the participants. Participants are liable for the debts of the company only to the extent of the share of the authorized capital that belongs to each of them.
JSC. In this company, the authorized capital is divided into securities - shares. The shareholder does not leave the JSC, but only sells his shares to another shareholder or, if permitted, to another person. However, at the same time, he no longer has the right to demand the allocation of part of the property in kind or the return of the amount paid for the shares (except for cases where the law provides for the repurchase of shares by the company).

In turn, according to the current law, joint-stock companies are divided into the following types:

Public (formerly called OJSC). Here, free circulation of shares and the possibility of their sale to any person wishing to purchase them are allowed.
Non-public. Here, the circulation of any securities occurs only within the circle of shareholders or other persons specified in the law or the constituent documents of the joint-stock company.

It should be noted that the sign of publicity under the current civil legislation applies to all business companies. However, applying it to LLCs does not make practical sense: LLCs are expressly called non-public by law, and public organizations of this legal form simply do not exist.

Unitary enterprises

The list of existing OPFs is completed by their variant, unitary enterprises. Here are their characteristic features:

The property of a unitary enterprise is not divided into shares, shares or shares, even between its employees. It is a single complex provided for conducting business activities.
The UE is not the owner of the property that is assigned to it. The property belongs to the founder, the UE itself only uses it.
UPs are created either by the state or local municipalities, which act as property owners.
The management of the UP is not elected, but appointed by a state or municipal body.
The owner is not liable for the debts of the owner. The exception is the so-called state-owned enterprises, in relation to which a situation is allowed where, if the unitary enterprise lacks property, the outstanding part of the debt is reimbursed in a subsidiary manner from the budget of the municipality, the subject of the Federation or the Russian Federation as a whole.

Table of organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurial activity

As you can see, there are now many different legal entities in which commercial entities can operate. In order to understand all this diversity, it is more convenient to use a table. If you do not want to do the classification yourself and want to refer to already compiled tables, you need to pay attention to the following:

The date of compilation of the table must be no later than February 2017 - that is when the latest changes in civil legislation came into force.
The table should reflect not only the names of the various OPFs, but also their features (at least briefly). Without this, it is almost impossible to understand how, for example, two types of partnerships differ - full and limited.
The best option is if the table contains not only the name of the OPF, but also indicates who can be their participant, and also determines the degree of responsibility of the participants. If necessary, other information can be added.

For now, let’s offer a short version of the table:

Forms of entrepreneurial activity
Individual entrepreneur
Entity
	Commercial	Corporate	Business partnerships

			Business societies
				JSC (PJSC or non-public JSC)
			Business partnerships
			Producer cooperatives

		Unitary	Unitary enterprise

				State-owned enterprise
	Non-profit	Corporate	Public organizations
			Consumer cooperatives
			Social movements
			Real estate (housing) owners' associations
			Associations (unions)
			Notary chambers
			Cossack societies
			Communities of indigenous peoples
			Bar Chambers
			Legal entities	Lawyer's office
				Law Office
				Legal consultation
		Unitary
			Institutions
			Autonomous non-profit organizations
			Religious organizations
			State corporations
			Public law companies

Don't know your rights?

When deciding on the choice of organizational and legal form, the entrepreneur determines the required level and scope of possible rights and obligations, which depends on the profile and content of future activities, possible

look at abstracts similar to "Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurship"

Introduction 2
1. Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurship 3
2. Individual private enterprises 3
3. Business partnerships 7

1. General partnership 7

2. Limited partnership 9
4. Economic company 12

1. Limited liability company (LLC) 13

2. Company with additional liability 14

3. Joint stock company 14

1. Closed joint-stock company (CJSC) 15

2. Open joint-stock company (OJSC) 16

3. Corporation 17
5. S Corporation 23
6. Production cooperative 25
7. State enterprises 27
8. Conclusion 29
9. List of references 31

INTRODUCTION

Businesses are extremely diverse, ranging from giant corporations like General Motors, which had sales of $134 billion and 711,000 employees in 1993, to local specialty stores or mom-and-pop grocery stores with one or two employees and a daily sales volume of 100-150 dollars.
This diversity creates the need to classify firms according to certain criteria, such as legal status, industry, products, or size.

The purpose of this work will be to consider existing forms of business organization in Russia and other countries, to identify the advantages and disadvantages of certain forms of entrepreneurship.

1. Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurship

2. Partnership (partnership)
Partnership (partnership) is an organizational form of entrepreneurship, when both the organization of production activities and the formation of authorized capital are carried out by the joint efforts of two or more persons (individuals and legal entities). Each of them has certain rights and bears certain responsibilities depending on the share in the authorized capital and the place occupied in the management structure of such a partnership.

Partnership as a form of business organization is, to a greater or lesser extent, a consequence of the natural development of an individual private firm. It originated in an attempt to overcome some of the major disadvantages of sole proprietorship.

Thus, a business partnership is a commercial organization that has separate property as its own, with an authorized or share capital divided into shares (contributions).

A partnership can be created: 1) by individuals; 2) individuals and commercial organizations; 3) commercial organizations. There is a general partnership and a partnership of faith.

3.1. Full partnership.
From the point of view of legal consequences, a general partnership belongs to the category of undesirable forms of associations, since it does not imply a limitation of liability. For the obligations of a general partnership, its members, called general partners, are liable with all their property. Responsibility in this case is subsidiary.

Vicarious liability assumes that before making claims against a person who is liable in addition to the liability of another person, the creditor must make claims against the principal debtor. If the latter refuses to satisfy the presented demand or if there is no response to such a demand, the creditor has the right to present such a demand to the person bearing subsidiary liability.

Thus, a partnership is recognized as full if its participants
(general partners) in accordance with the agreement concluded between them, engage in entrepreneurial activities on behalf of the company and are liable for its obligations with the property belonging to them
(subsidiary liability).

Partnerships of this kind are called open trading partnerships in a number of countries (Germany, Austria). In a number of countries, it is also possible to organize another type of partnership - a civil law society (Austria), a civil code society (Germany) or a simple society (Switzerland).
They are created to achieve a specific goal and as a result of an informal agreement between several individuals. They do not have the rights of a legal entity.
Verifying the credentials of the persons representing them is difficult, since the company is not included in the trade register.

In most cases, general partnerships are formed by legal entities (large enterprises). An agreement on their joint activities in any area can already be considered as the formation of such a partnership. In such cases, neither a charter nor even registration of a partnership is required. Individual entrepreneurs and commercial organizations can be members of only one general partnership.

The partnership agreement determines the powers of each partner, the distribution of profits, the total amount of capital invested by the partners, the procedure for attracting new partners and the procedure for re-registering the partnership in the event of the death of one of the partners or his withdrawal from the partnership. Legally, a partnership ceases to exist if one of the partners dies or withdraws from it; If there is only one participant left in a general partnership, it can be liquidated or transformed.

A clear disadvantage of partnerships is that the decision-making process is difficult in them, since the most important ones must be adopted by a majority vote. To simplify the decision-making process, partnerships establish a certain hierarchy, dividing partners into two or more categories based on the importance of the decision that each partner can make.

2.2. Limited partnership (limited partnership)
Limited partnership (limited partnership) - a partnership in which, along with the participants who carry out entrepreneurial activities on behalf of the partnership and are liable for the obligations of the partnership with their property (general partners, complementaries), there are one or more participants - investors (command partners) who bear the risk losses associated with the activities of the partnership within the limits of the amounts made by them and do not take part in the implementation of business activities.

The share capital of the partnership is formed on the basis of contributions
(contributed by general partners) and shares (contributed by investors).

Citizens and commercial organizations can be general partners in only one limited partnership. A participant in a general partnership cannot be a general partner in a limited partnership.

As a rule, the affairs of a limited partnership are managed by the partners; they lead and represent society. Investing partners do not participate in commercial transactions. They are, strictly speaking, investors in society.

Many people are well known from history, scientific and fiction literature such names as “Johnson, Johnson and Co.,” “Ivanov, sons and
K(", etc. These are limited partnerships. In modern conditions, the limited partnership form is often used to finance enterprises involved in real estate transactions.

Partnerships, therefore, act as a rather risky form of association of entrepreneurs, but under certain circumstances an entrepreneur agrees to use this form of cooperation with partners.

This form of business organization has some advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of partnerships.
1. Ease of organization. Like a sole proprietorship, a partnership is easy to form. In almost all cases, a written agreement (partnership agreement) is concluded, and, as a rule, this does not involve burdensome bureaucratic procedures.
2. More financial resources. The unification of several participants in a partnership allows it to expand its financial resources in comparison with the resources of an individual private enterprise. Partners can pool their money together, and their venture usually appears less risky to bankers.
3. Collaborative management. By having multiple partners in the business, a higher degree of specialization is possible. With carefully selected partners, it is much easier to manage the daily activities of the enterprise. Members of the partnership provide each other with time free from business activities, and also have complementary qualifications and views.
Disadvantages of partnerships.
1. Unlimited liability. Each general partner (in both types of partnership) is responsible for the debts of the company, regardless of whose actions caused this debt. In fact, each partner is responsible for all failures of the enterprise - not only for the result of their own management decisions, but also for the consequences of the actions of any other partner.
2. Disagreements between members. When multiple people are involved in governance, this division of power can lead to inconsistent policies or inaction when decisive action is required. It's even worse if partners disagree on strategic issues.
3. Limited life. The duration of the partnership's activities is unpredictable. Withdrawal from a partnership or the death of one of the partners, as a rule, entails the disintegration and complete reorganization of the company, the complete cessation of its activities.
4. Limited financial resources. The financial resources of partnerships remain limited, although they usually exceed the capabilities of individual private firms. But three or four partners may also lack the funds to successfully grow their venture.
5. Difficulty of liquidation. Once you have committed yourself to a partnership, leaving it is not so easy. When a company closes, the question of what will go to whom and what will happen next is often very difficult to resolve. It is surprisingly common for law firms to encounter errors in partnership agreements and conclude that division is difficult to implement.

3. Economic company

A business company is a commercial organization, the authorized capital of which is formed by one or more individuals or legal entities by contributing their shares (or the full amount of the authorized capital, if one person acts as a founder). As shares, monetary or material assets, intellectual capital, securities or property rights with a monetary value can be considered.
At the same time, an expert assessment of the value of intellectual capital and property rights in monetary form is carried out.

There are four forms of business entities:

Limited Liability Company (LLC)

Additional liability company

Closed Joint Stock Company (CJSC)

Open Joint Stock Company (OJSC)

3.1. Limited Liability Company (LLC)
A limited liability company (LLC) is a commercial organization, the founder of which is one or more individuals or legal entities who bear responsibility for the obligations of the company and the risk of losses within the limits of their contributions only.

In a number of Western countries there are so-called one-person societies. These include limited liability companies, in which property is concentrated in the hands of one person. In limited liability companies, in most cases there is a close relationship between partners. For this reason, they are very suitable for organizing family businesses.

To establish an LLC, it is necessary to conclude a memorandum of association, which defines the name of the company, the location and direction of the enterprise’s activities, and also indicates the size of the authorized capital and the share participation of members of the company in it.

The highest governing body is the meeting of its participants.
The exclusive competence of the meeting is:

Change of charter

An LLC has the right to transform into a joint-stock company or a production cooperative. A company can only be liquidated by a unanimous decision of its participants.

A participant in a company has the right to sell or otherwise assign his share in the authorized capital of the company or part of it to one or more participants of the company.

Shares in the authorized capital pass to the heirs of citizens and to the legal successors of legal entities that were members of the company, unless the constituent documents of the company stipulate that such a transfer is allowed only with the consent of the company's participants.

The exit of a company participant does not require the consent of its other participants.

3.2. Company with additional liability.
The difference between this form of business company and a limited liability company is that liability for the obligations of such a company extends to the property of the founder (founders), and not only to his contribution to the authorized capital. In addition, if there are two or more founders of such a company, the provision on joint and several liability comes into force. If one of the founders goes bankrupt, his liability for the company's obligations is distributed among the other founders in proportion to their contributions.

3.31. Joint-Stock Company

A joint stock company is a company whose authorized capital is divided into a certain number of shares; Participants in a joint stock company (shareholders) are not liable for its obligations and bear the risk of losses associated with the activities of the company within the limits of the value of the shares they own.

A joint stock company, from the point of view of an individual entrepreneur,
- the optimal form of organizational and legal registration of entrepreneurial activity. It can be created by one person or consist of one person in the event that one shareholder acquires all the shares of the company.

Shareholders have the right to a share of the JSC's income. The portion of the profit paid to the owner of the stock is called a dividend. The part that is not paid as dividends is called retained earnings.

By law, a joint stock company cannot have a business entity consisting of one person as its sole participant.

Types of joint stock companies:

Open (JSC)

Closed (CJSC)

3.3.1. Closed Joint Stock Company (CJSC)
A closed joint stock company is a company whose shares are distributed only among its founders (among a predetermined circle of persons), when the form of open subscription for shares issued by the company is not used and they cannot be freely sold and bought on the stock market.

A potential buyer cannot simply instruct his broker to purchase a certain number of shares. Initially, the shares of such a company are distributed privately, and shareholders can dispose of them only with the consent of the company. This financial constraint is a major factor determining the size of companies, which tend to be small and medium-sized.

The number of members of a closed joint-stock company cannot exceed 50 (if this number of shareholders is exceeded, the company must transform into an open joint-stock company through re-registration).

A closed joint-stock company is not required by law to disclose information about itself to the extent required from an OJSC; however, it is required to submit an annual report to the Companies Registration Office, which is open to inspection by any member of the public.

At the moment, the majority of small and medium-sized enterprises in Russia are closed joint-stock companies, which makes this form of business the most popular.

3.3.2. Open Joint Stock Company (OJSC)
An open joint stock company is a joint stock company whose participants can freely sell and buy shares of the company without the consent of other shareholders. It can carry out an open subscription for shares it issues, which can be freely traded on the stock market. This implies complete openness of the society and careful control over its activities, therefore it is obliged to publish annually for public information:

Annual report;

Balance sheet;

Profit and loss account; and annually engage a professional auditor to review and confirm the annual financial statements.

The highest management body in the joint-stock company is the general meeting of shareholders. The competence of the general meeting is:

Changing the company's charter

Change in the size of the authorized capital

Approval of annual reports and balance sheets, distribution of profits and losses

Formation of executive bodies and early termination of their powers

Decision on reorganization or liquidation of the company

Election of the Audit Commission

Solving other issues

If the number of shareholders exceeds 50 people, then a Board of Directors (Supervisory Board) is created. Its competence is determined by the charter of the joint-stock company.

The executive body of a JSC can be collegial (board, directorate) and/or individual (director, general director). He carries out the current management of the company's activities and is accountable to the Board of Directors and the general meeting of shareholders.

OJSC, as well as CJSC, are a fairly popular form of entrepreneurship both in Russia and throughout the world. As a rule, open joint stock companies are large companies. In Russia, examples of such companies include RAO UES of Russia, Lukoil, RAO
Gazprom, etc.; in America - Microsoft, General Motors, Ford,
"Coca-Cola".

3.3.3. Corporations

In the American economy, publicly traded companies correspond to corporations. Despite the fact that corporations are relatively few in number, they are distinguished by their wide scale of operations and large size. As Figure 6.1 shows, corporations account for only less than 20% of the total number of business enterprises, but they account for approximately 90% of total business sector sales.

A corporation is a legal form of business that is distinct from and limited by the specific individuals who own it. Such a structure, having the status of a legal entity, has the right to acquire resources, own assets, produce and sell products, borrow, make loans, sue in court, and perform all the functions that are performed by any other type of business enterprise.

Although when hearing the word “corporation” many begin to think about such large companies as General Motors, IBM, Ford and others, for incorporation
(registering as a corporation) does not have to be a large enterprise. Many corporations are truly large, but filing as a corporation can be beneficial for smaller companies as well.

The nature of incorporating a corporation is not overly complicated, although the procedures for registering as a corporation can often be quite complex. Most people are not willing to risk everything they have to get into business. However, for a company to grow, prosper and be a source of wealth, a large number of people must be willing to invest in it. The way to solve this problem is to create an artificial person that exists only legally. Such a legal entity is called a corporation. This is nothing more than a technique for involving people in business with minimal risk for them.

This organizational and legal form of entrepreneurship has its advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of corporations.

The advantages of corporations have determined the leading role of this organizational form of business in the modern American economy.

1. More money to invest. A corporation copes with the task of attracting capital much more effectively than all other forms of business organization. Corporations have a unique way of financing—through the sale of stocks and bonds—that allows them to tap into the savings of numerous households. Through the securities market, corporations are able to pool the financial resources of a huge number of people into a common fund.

Financing through the sale of securities also has certain advantages from the point of view of their buyers. First of all, households in this case can participate in a business enterprise and expect a certain monetary reward; there is no need to take an active part in the management of the enterprise. In addition, a person has the opportunity to distribute risks by purchasing securities of several corporations. Finally, holders of corporate securities can usually easily dispose of them by selling them to another owner.

Existing stock exchanges facilitate the movement of securities between buyers and sellers. Needless to say, this increases the willingness of people with savings to purchase corporate securities.

Moreover, corporations usually have an easier time than other forms of business to access bank credit. Firstly, corporations are more reliable, and secondly, they are more likely than all others to provide banks with profitable deposits.
2. Limited liability. Corporations also have one distinct advantage: limited liability. Owners of the corporation

(i.e. stockholders) only risk the amount they paid to purchase the stock. Their personal assets are not at risk, even if the corporation faces bankruptcy. Creditors can sue a corporation as a legal entity, but not the owners of the corporation as individuals. Limited liability makes it much easier for corporations to raise cash capital.
3. High degree of specialization. Because of its advantages in attracting cash capital, a successful corporation can more easily increase volume, expand operations, and realize the benefits of growth. In particular, the corporation is able to take advantage of mass production technologies as well as greater specialization in the use of human resources. While the manager of a sole proprietorship must divide his time between production, accounting, and marketing functions, a large corporation is able to attract specialized personnel in each of these areas and thereby achieve greater efficiency. In addition, corporations may purchase other corporations operating in other industries to diversify risk. (This means that a corporation can engage in different activities at the same time, and if one area fails, the impact on the entire corporation will be reduced).
4. Permanent existence. As a legal entity, a corporation exists independently of its owners and its own officers. Individual firms can die suddenly and unpredictably, but corporations, at least legally, are eternal. The transfer of ownership of a corporation through the sale of shares does not undermine its integrity and going concern. In other words, corporations have a certain permanence that other forms of business lack and which provides opportunities for forward planning and growth.
5. Separation of owners from management. Corporations can raise funds from many different investors without involving them in management.

The hierarchy of the corporation is shown in Fig. 6.2. The pyramid shows that owners/shareholders are separated from managers and employers. The owners elect a board of directors. The directors select the senior management team.

He, in turn, hires managers, as well as workers and employees.

The owners thus have some influence over what runs the corporation, but not control over it.

Disadvantages of corporations.
1. Registration is difficult. Registering a corporation's charter involves bureaucratic procedures and legal fees.
2. Possibility of abuse. From a societal perspective, the corporate form of business contains opportunities for some forms of abuse.

Because a corporation is a legal entity, some unscrupulous business owners are sometimes able to avoid personal liability for questionable business transactions because of the opportunities offered by the corporate form of business organization.
3. Reporting. The documents drawn up when forming a corporation are just the beginning. Tax laws require corporations to certify that all of their expenses and tax deductions are legal. In this regard, the corporation is forced to process a large number of different documents. The owner of an individual enterprise or partnership can maintain documentation in a fairly free manner, but a corporation is forced to maintain detailed records, minutes of meetings and much more.
4. Double taxation. That portion of corporate income that is paid out as dividends to shareholders is taxed twice—once as part of the corporation's profits and again as part of the shareholder's personal income.
5. Dimensions. Scale can be one of the advantages of corporations, but it can also be a disadvantage. Large corporations sometimes become too inflexible and bureaucratic, and this deprives them of the ability to quickly respond to market changes.
6. Separation of ownership and management functions. In a sole proprietorship and partnership, the owners of real and financial assets themselves directly manage and control these assets. But in large corporations, whose ownership is widely dispersed among tens and even hundreds of thousands of shareholders, the functions of ownership and management (control) are separated.

The reasons for this discrepancy lie in the inactivity of the typical shareholder. Most shareholders do not take part in voting, and if they do participate in it, it is only indirectly, transferring their votes to the current officers of the corporation and thereby giving the latter almost unlimited powers and the ability to independently determine their own destiny.

The separation of ownership and management functions does not cause serious consequences if the actions of the group performing management functions are in the interests of the group of owners of the corporation (that is, shareholders). But the interests of these two groups do not always coincide.

4. S corporations.
An issue that has received increasing interest in recent years is the creation of "S" corporations, formerly called
"Subchapter S corporations." A corporation is a special form of company authorized by law that has the characteristics of a corporation but is taxed like sole proprietorships and partnerships.
S corporations have shareholders, directors, and employees, but their profits are taxed as personal income to the shareholders. This avoids double taxation of ordinary corporations. The main advantage of this type of corporation is the federal income tax benefit. Some 37 states now also provide tax breaks to these corporations. For example, California taxes them at 2.5% instead of 9.6% for regular corporations.

Not all businesses can become S corporations. The company must meet the following requirements:

Have no more than 35 shareholders

Have shareholders who are individuals or property rights and who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States

Have only one class of shares outstanding

Do not own 80 percent or more of the stock of another corporation

Do not have more than 25 percent of income from passive sources

(rent, bank interest, etc.)

Originally, S corporations had the benefits of limited liability and some real tax advantages, including tax-deductible owner benefits, over partnerships. However, today an S corporation is more like a partnership. It still has limited liability, shareholders, directors and managers, but the fringe benefits of owners are no longer tax deductible.

The S corporation is gaining popularity among businessmen. In 1982, only 564,219 tax returns were filed by such companies. In 1987, there were more than 800,000 S corporations.

The reporting and features of S corporations are similar to regular corporations. However, the profits of such companies are taxed as ordinary shareholder income taxes. Before 1986, this meant that S corporation owners paid less in taxes than regular corporations.

The Tax Reform Act of 1986 changed the individual tax rate. This means that these corporations are not necessarily taxed at a lower rate than regular corporations. However, there is currently a lot of talk about additional increases in individual tax rates to reduce the federal budget deficit. If this happens, S corporations will once again become attractive to small businesses.

Thus, it can be seen that the benefits of S corporations change whenever tax rules change.

5. Production cooperative (artel)

A production cooperative (artel) is a commercial organization with the status of a legal entity, which is a voluntary association of citizens for joint (through the pooling of property and efforts) production or other activities. It is an organization owned by consumer members who pay annual membership fees and share in the profits.

In modern business practice, turnover cooperatives occupy a relatively small share, although they are common in many countries. In Russia, cooperatives have become widespread primarily in production activities, in the service sector and in the trade and intermediary area. The cooperative form of entrepreneurship is characterized by the establishment of a close connection between the members of the cooperative and the cooperative itself. A typical example is dacha and housing cooperatives.

The property of such a cooperative (artel) consists of shares (shares
– shared ownership).

The activities of a cooperative are based on the personal participation of its members in production (economic) activities, although legal entities are also allowed to participate in cooperatives.

Production cooperatives are created for joint production, processing, marketing of industrial, agricultural and other products, trade, and provision of services.

Members of a production cooperative bear subsidiary liability, i.e. not limited by the size of the individual share contribution, share in the common property of the cooperative. The profit received by the cooperative is distributed among its members in accordance with their labor participation.

The highest governing body of a cooperative is the general meeting of its members. The competence of the general meeting is:

Change of charter

Formation and termination of the activities of the supervisory board

Admission and exclusion of cooperative members

Approval of annual reports, balance sheets, distribution of profits and losses

Decision on reorganization and liquidation of the cooperative

If there are more than 50 members of the cooperative, then a supervisory board can be created.

The executive bodies of the cooperative are: the board and (or) its chairman. They exercise day-to-day management and are accountable to the supervisory board.

Only members of the cooperative can be members of the supervisory board, board and chairman of the cooperative.

A production cooperative may be liquidated or transformed into a business partnership and company by a unanimous decision of its members.

There are also other types of cooperatives in the United States, organized for other reasons. These cooperatives are formed to give members more economic power as a group than they have as individuals.

The best example of such cooperatives are agricultural cooperatives. Initially, farmers united in order to receive better prices for their products. Over time, cooperatives have expanded to also buy and sell fertilizers, farm machinery, seeds and other items needed on the farm. It has grown into a multi-billion dollar industry. Cooperatives now own many factories.
Cooperatives do not pay the same taxes as corporations and therefore have an advantage in the marketplace.

The systematization of cooperatives by type of activity is presented in Fig.
5.1:

6. State enterprises.
In many countries of the modern world, the active entrepreneur is the state, which owns from 5-10 to 35-40% of the fixed capital. In the former socialist countries, the state owned the overwhelming majority of production assets, which made it essentially the only economic entity in the economy. A state-owned enterprise is a production unit characterized by two main features.

The first is that the property of such an enterprise and its management are fully or partially in the hands of the state and its bodies (associations, ministries, departments); they either own the capital of the enterprise and have undivided powers to manage it and make decisions, or they unite with private entrepreneurs, but influence and control them.

The second concerns the motives for the functioning of a state enterprise.
In its activities, it is guided not only by the search for the greatest profit, but also by the desire to satisfy social needs, which can reduce economic efficiency or even lead in some cases to losses, which, however, are justified.

State institutions that pursue non-economic goals (hospitals, schools, public services) and do not participate in market exchange proper should be distinguished from state-owned enterprises.

State and municipal enterprises, according to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, operate in the form of unitary enterprises.

A unitary enterprise is a commercial organization that is not vested with the right of ownership of the property assigned to it.

State or municipal property does not belong to a unitary enterprise; it is indivisible:

Cannot be distributed among deposits (shares, shares)

Cannot be distributed among employees of the enterprise

He has the rights of economic management and operational management

An enterprise organized by decision of local authorities belongs to the category of municipal unitary enterprises. If it is created by decision of an authorized state body, it is considered a state unitary enterprise. Such enterprises are endowed with property with the right of economic ownership or operational management.

Among state unitary enterprises, federal state enterprises are distinguished - business enterprises created by decision of the government of the Russian Federation and endowed with property transferred to operational management.

The head of a unitary enterprise is appointed by the owner (or a body authorized by the owner) and is accountable to him.

A unitary enterprise is liable for its obligations with all its property. A unitary enterprise is not liable for the obligations of the property owner.

Conclusion.

Knowledge of the organizational and legal forms of business allows entrepreneurs to successfully open and expand their own business and make smart economic and legal decisions. Without this knowledge in Russia it is impossible to build a civilized system of business relations, which, in turn, are the basis for the economic development and prosperity of the country. Therefore, constant transformations and adjustments are now being carried out in this area in order to create an orderly system of functioning and relationships between various firms and enterprises.

Bibliography:
1. K.R. McConnell, S.L. Bru. "Economics", 1999
2. Win Hornby, Bob Gammie, Stuart Wall. "Economics for Managers", 1999
3. William G. Nickels, James M. McHugh, Susan M. McHugh. "Comprehension of Business", 1996
4. A.V. Busygin. "Entrepreneurship", 1999
5. Yu.B. Rubin, I.A. Yagodkina. "Business Fundamentals", 1999
6. S.N. Ivashkovsky. "Microeconomics", 1998

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Senior management (defines the goals of the corporation and selects managers)

Managers (supervising workers and employees)

Workers and employees

Owners/

Shareholders (elect the board of directors

Board of Directors (hires senior management)

Production cooperative (artel)

Trade (trade in partner products, mainly retail)

Cooperative for various types of work

Construction and repair (provision of construction and repair services)

Service (provision of various services)

Production (production of goods)

Processing (processing of raw materials)

Sales (sales of products produced by partners, mainly wholesale trade)

Forms of entrepreneurship

Economic partnership

General partnership

Limited partnership

Economical society

Limited Liability Company

Additional liability company

Joint-Stock Company

Closed

Open

S Corporation

State enterprise

The Civil Code of the Russian Federation defines legal entities and individuals who can engage in entrepreneurial activities. In the Russian Federation, it can be practiced by citizens without education, legal entities as individual entrepreneur from the moment of their registration in such capacity, they are liable for their obligations with all the property belonging to them. An individual entrepreneur can be declared bankrupt only by a court decision.

Entity- an organization created by citizens independently or jointly with other legal entities and individuals, which has separate property, which can be either its own or under economic control or operational management. A legal entity is liable with its property for its obligations, can acquire property and non-property rights on its own behalf (the right to use land, rights to inventions, projects, etc.), can bear responsibilities, can be a plaintiff and defendant in court, has its own balance sheet and budget .

Commercial entrepreneurial activity aimed at making a profit is recognized. If entrepreneurial activity is not related to making a profit, then such an organization is non-profit(Figure 2).

Figure 2 – Types of non-profit organizations

Consumer cooperatives– these are voluntary associations of citizens and legal entities to meet the needs of participants by combining share contributions. The responsibility of the members of the cooperative is determined by the charter. Commercial activities are allowed, the income from which is distributed among the members of the cooperative.

Social or religious organizations– voluntary associations of citizens based on common interests to satisfy spiritual or other non-material needs. The participants are not liable for the obligations of the organization, the organization is not liable for the obligations of the participants. Entrepreneurship is permitted, but only in accordance with the purpose of the organization.

Institutions are created to carry out managerial socio-cultural functions, financed by the founders, who are the owners of the property. The institution is responsible for its obligations with its own funds; if they are insufficient, the responsibility rests with the owner. Institutions cannot engage in business.

Funds– organizations that do not have membership are established on the basis of voluntary contributions and pursue socially beneficial goals. Funds are established by individuals and legal entities. The founders are not liable for the obligations of the fund, the fund is not liable for the obligations of the founders. Entrepreneurial activities consistent with the goals of the fund are permitted. The Foundation may create business associations or participate in them.

Associations– these are organizations created by agreement between the founders to protect common interests and to coordinate their activities. The founders of associations retain the status of a legal entity. Associations are not liable for the obligations of members, members are liable for the obligations of the association in the prescribed manner, the association can be transformed into a business partnership, company, or participate in the creation of a partnership or company. The name of the association must contain an indication of the subject of activity (for example, oil production) and the words “union”, “association”, “association”.

A member of an association has the right to leave it at the end of the financial year. The retired member bears subsidiary liability for the obligations of the association for two years from the date of departure.

According to the Civil Code, commercial organizations of the following organizational and legal forms can be created and operate in Russia (Figure 3).

Figure 3 – Types of commercial organizations

1 Business partnerships and societies commercial organizations with an authorized capital (share capital) divided into shares (contributions of founders) are recognized. Property created at the expense of the authorized capital, as well as acquired in the course of activity, belongs to the specified organizations by right of ownership.

1.1.1 Full economic partnerships(with unlimited liability) are organizations whose founders are “general” partners, in accordance with an agreement concluded between them. Members of a general partnership engage in business on behalf of the partnership and are liable for obligations in the amount of all property of the partnership.

The company name must contain the names of all founders and the words “full partnership” or the name of one (several) founders and the addition of the words “and co” or “full partnership”.

The management of a general partnership is carried out by the general consent of all participants, and in cases provided for by the constituent documents, by a majority vote of the founders. Each participant has one vote, unless otherwise provided by the constituent documents. Profit or loss is distributed in proportion to the share of the founders in the authorized capital, unless otherwise provided in the constituent document. If, as a result of losses incurred, the value of the property of a general partnership becomes less than its authorized capital, then the subsequently received profit is not distributed among the participants, but is spent on the acquisition of property.

1.1.2 Business partnerships on limited basis (limited) Along with “full” partners who carry out activities on behalf of the partnership and are liable for its obligations with all their property, they include limited partners who bear the risk of losses only within the limits of the contributions made and do not take part in business activities.

The company name must contain the names of all general partners and the words “limited partnership” or the name of one (several) general partners with the addition of the words “and co” and “limited partnership”.

The management of a limited partnership is carried out by “general partners”. Limited partners have the right to receive a portion of the profits in accordance with the constituent documents. At the end of the financial year, limited partners can leave the partnership and transfer their contribution (or part of it) to third parties.

1.2 Economic societies.

1.2.1 Joint stock companies(JSC) can be open (JSC) and closed (CJSC) (Table 1). The type of company is indicated in the charter and name. A joint stock company can be created by re-establishing or reorganizing an existing legal entity (merger, division, transformation, privatization). The authorized capital (AC) is made up of the par value of shares acquired by shareholders. The size of the authorized capital for an OJSC is at least 1000 minimum wages, for a closed joint stock company - at least 100 minimum wages as of the date of registration of the company.

Table 1 – Features of open and closed joint stock companies

OJSC	Company
1 Shareholders may alienate their shares without the consent of other shareholders.	2 Has the right to conduct an open subscription for shares and their free sale.

3 Has the right to conduct a closed subscription for shares if this is provided for by the charter and the decision of the closed meeting of shareholders on the placement of shares.

4 The number of shareholders is not limited. 1 Shareholders have a pre-emptive right to purchase shares sold by another shareholder in the manner prescribed by the charter.

2 Shares are distributed only among the founders or other established circle of persons.

3 Open subscription to shares is not allowed.

4 The number of shareholders is no more than 50 (there may also be legal entities), except for companies created before 1.01.96. Otherwise, the CJSC will be transformed into an OJSC.

Shares of a joint stock company can be ordinary, preferred and cumulative.

Preference shares

may be of several types. The total par value of preferred shares is not more than 25% of the value of the charter capital. Possible set of rights for preferred shares:

1) the dividend is determined (in a fixed amount, as a percentage of the nominal value, in another order); 2) the liquid value is determined (at which the issuer undertakes to repurchase these shares, in a fixed amount, as a percentage of the par value); On issues of reorganization or liquidation of the company;

Joint-stock companies may create branches, representative offices that are not legal entities, subsidiaries and dependent companies. Branches and representative offices act on behalf of the JSC, and the JSC is responsible for their activities.

The supreme management body of the JSC is the General Meeting of Shareholders. During the period between meetings – the Board of Directors. Management of current activities is carried out by the executive body, which can be individual (director, general director, president), or collegial (Board, executive commission).

1.2.2 Limited Liability Company(LLC) is established by one or more persons. The participants of the LLC are liable for its obligations within the limits of their shares. The business name must contain the name and words LLC.

The number of participants in an LLC must be less than that established by law for a closed joint stock company. Otherwise, the LLC will be transformed into a JSC within a year or liquidated through a court order.

The highest governing body of the LLC is the meeting of founders. The executive body may be collegial or consist of one person, and the manager (director) may not be the founder.

1.2.3 O companies with additional liability. Participants in such a company jointly and severally bear subsidiary liability for the obligations of the company with all their property in the amount of a multiple of the value of their contributions. The company name must contain the title and words with “ additional responsibility."

2Production cooperative must have at least 5 members. Members of the cooperative bear subsidiary liability for the obligations of the cooperative. The full name must contain the words “production cooperative” or “artel”.

The charter of the cooperative is approved by the general meeting of its members and contains the following sections: name; location; management procedure; amount of contributions; procedure for distribution of profits and losses, liability for debts.

3 Unitary enterprises (UE)– municipal/state enterprises that do not have property rights in relation to the property assigned to them. The corporate name of a unitary enterprise must contain an indication of the owner.

3.1 UE on the right of economic management characterized by the fact that their property is in municipal or state ownership. Such enterprises are created by decision of the owner, while the owner is not responsible for the obligations of the enterprise.

3.2 Property UE with the right of operational management is state-owned and created by decision of the Government of the Russian Federation. The enterprise is liable for its obligations with all its property and is not liable for the obligations of the owner. The Russian Federation bears subsidiary liability for the obligations of a state-owned enterprise.

The main forms of business enterprises in developed countries are sole proprietorship, partnership and corporation.

Private enterprise is an economic entity that is engaged in production or other activities, the owner of which independently conducts business, manages in its own interests, receives all profits, and bears personal responsibility for all its obligations.

The owner of the company has the right to hire and fire workers, enter into agreements and contracts. The advantage of this form is the simplicity of its organization and management, freedom of action and a fairly strong economic situation (one person receives all the profits). The disadvantages are limited financial and material resources, the lack of a developed system of internal specialization of production and management, and unlimited liability.

Partnership- an enterprise organized by several persons who jointly own and manage it. An analogue of a Russian partnership, it can be with limited and unlimited liability (general partnership).

The advantages consist in facilitating the resolution of financial issues related to starting and continuing business activities, in the use of division of labor and specialization. The disadvantage is the separation of functions, as a result of which inconsistency of actions and incompatibility of interests are possible, which can lead to disintegration.

Corporation- an enterprise where the liability of each owner is limited to his contribution (share). By purchasing shares of a corporation, individuals become its owners and, receiving a portion of the income in the form of dividends, risk only the amount they paid to purchase the shares.

The corporation exists independently of its owner-shareholders, which means a certain stability. The disadvantage is that there are certain opportunities for abuse, because small and medium-sized owners cannot exercise any effective control over the activities of the corporation.

What distinguishes corporations from Russian joint-stock companies is the presence of two documents: in addition to the articles of association, internal regulations (by-laws) are drawn up, which supplement and detail the charter. Small corporations in the United States are exempt from income taxes.

Widespread in the USA sole proprietorships(sole proprietorship), operating in the field of retail and small wholesale trade, in the service sector. The liability of an entrepreneur is not limited; a lawsuit can be brought against all of his property. This form is chosen mainly by small entrepreneurs. The only official document for registration is the tax return. But some states require an administration license to conduct a certain type of business activity.

Small and medium-sized US enterprises form partnerships that do not pay taxes (taxes are paid on the income of participating entrepreneurs). Partners additionally fill out a special form in their individual income statements, which sets out their share in the profits and losses of the partnership, and submit it to the tax authorities. Creation of partnerships requires a certificate regarding the type of business, partnership members, capital structure, etc.

In recent years, limited liability companies (LLC) have become popular in the United States - this is a hybrid, combined legal structure that combines the features of a corporation (limited property liability of members) and a partnership (in the field of taxation).

Control questions

1 What business activity is called commercial?

2 Which organizations are considered non-profit?

3 What are the features of open and closed joint stock companies?

4 What set of rights can preferred shares have?

5 What is the difference between a limited liability company and an additional liability company?

6 What is a private enterprise?

Related information.

Organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurial activity is an independent activity carried out at one’s own peril and risk, aimed at making a profit from the use of property, sale of goods, performance of work or provision of services by persons registered in this capacity in the manner prescribed by law.

The study of the isolation of entrepreneurial activity is more complex than the isolation of the scientific field. When modeling a market economy, especially using production functions adopted in the American scientific literature, two main production factors are usually indicated: K and L, where K is capital: equipment, buildings, structures, vehicles, roads, etc. ; L is the labor factor, usually measured by hours worked or number of employees. Moreover, the “labor factor” means all possible types and methods of labor activity, both executive and managerial.

Entrepreneurship is constructive, creative work based on a critical, constructive assessment of what has been achieved to ensure profit.

Entrepreneurship is organically linked to economic freedom. For example, Felew, the author of the book “Entrepreneurship is Freedom,” interprets the connection between freedom and entrepreneurship as follows. According to Felew, economic freedom includes the right to private property, to economic initiative, and to the freedom to engage in those entrepreneurial activities that correspond to one’s own choice. A free society recognizes this right not only because it promotes the highest level of productivity, but also for two other equally important reasons.

Economic freedom complements personal freedom and allows everyone to develop based on their own views and values. To deny economic freedom means to deny personal dignity and the right of any person to control his own destiny.

Economic freedom makes it possible to organize production and distribute wealth without arbitrary government interference or the dictates of a regime based on privileges. In free economic systems, wealth is produced and distributed under democracy and market conditions.

Any entrepreneurial activity is carried out in certain organizational forms. Forms of business organization characterize the way entrepreneurs organize their business, how they interact with each other and with other participants in the business. The choice of the form of organization of entrepreneurial activity depends on personal tastes, but is mainly determined by objective conditions - the field of activity, the availability of money, the advantages and disadvantages of the corresponding forms of enterprise. To make the right choice you need to know what to choose from.

The organizational unit of entrepreneurship is a firm or company.

A company is an enterprise, an organization that carries out economic activities with the aim of making a profit. How companies can be represented by individual entrepreneurs and their associations.

A company is an association of businesses that operates on the principles of a partnership, corporation or other form of business organization.

These are only general names that are used in relation to any enterprise. They reflect only the fact that enterprises and organizations have the rights of a legal or natural person.

Forms of organization of entrepreneurial activity that are legally defined are called organizational and legal forms of entrepreneurship.

The concept of “firm” or “company” does not reflect the organizational and legal status of a business entity. Therefore, in addition to the name of the company, it is important for any entrepreneur to choose a specific organizational and legal form of his activity, that is, the unity of organizational and economic ambushes of the activities of a business entity fixed by legal norms.

The most significant features that distinguish one organizational and legal form from others should be considered:

Number of participants in the formed economic entity (association);

Who is the owner of the capital used;

Sources of property as the material basis of economic activity;

Limits of property (material) liability;

Method of distribution of profits and losses;

Form of management of a business entity.

In the conditions of a market economic system, in contrast to a planned one, as mentioned earlier, an enterprise strives to produce those goods and provide those services that bring it the greatest profit. The latter depends, on the one hand, on the correctness of establishing the demand for those goods that the enterprise can produce, and on the other hand, on its productivity as a whole, scientific and technical progress, the level of organization of production and labor, the degree of competition, etc. In practice, this means that each enterprise, due to objective and subjective reasons, must look for its own path of development, its own organization and its own forms of management. And this largely depends on the organizational aspects of ownership and disposal of production factors. After all, it is precisely the latter that is associated with the appropriation of the results of production, the nature of which is determined by the forms of ownership of the means of production, i.e. the ability to dispose of them at your own discretion. As practice shows, the following options are possible:

The subject of the organization is both the producer and the owner of the factors of production;

The subject owns the material conditions of production, is not a producer, but works as an organizer of production;

The subject owns the means of production, but transfers to another person the opportunity to be its organizer.

The determining factor in their economic behavior is the degree to which they operate their capabilities to produce goods and provide services and receive income on this basis.

The above options became the basis for the creation of enterprises with various organizational and legal forms of operation.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to propose any mathematical model for assessing the efficiency of use of any property or their totality, since the management processes of a particular property cannot be strictly described due to the complexity of the content and quantitative uncertainty. It seems that the feasibility of using various ownership structures or their combination can be assessed on the basis of three complementary criteria of efficiency: exogenous (external), endogenous (internal), public (social).

The essence of the exogenous efficiency of the functioning of a certain legal unit (firm) lies in the ability to produce such products and perform such services that would correspond to the preferences of buyers under the prevailing income distribution in society. In other words, this criterion for a particular organization is its effectiveness from the point of view of consumers, i.e. subjects external to the company. Naturally, the “adaptability” of state and private economic structures to satisfy the consumer in different conditions and situations may be different.

Endogenous efficiency is a traditional evaluation criterion that reflects the degree of use of labor, material, natural, information, financial and other resources of a given economic property in comparison with the results obtained. Its indicators are the level of profitability, wages and social protection of workers. An increase in endogenous efficiency is usually associated with an increase in the motivation of workers to work, improvement of the technological process, and the search for and practical implementation of production reserves. It is clear that private non-monopoly structures are initially interested in the maximum implementation of this factor.

Essential efficiency is understood as a qualitative criterion characterizing the degree of satisfaction of the needs of society, which, as is known, is characterized by the structure of ownership of the means of production. In other words, this is a criterion of “public approval” of the existing ownership structure. In specific socio-economic studies, this criterion should be represented by a set of indicators reflecting, for example, the level of unemployment, availability of medical care, education, social security, etc. .

When determining the feasibility of using a particular form of ownership, in addition to assessing it according to the effectiveness criteria listed above, one should also take into account how much it will contribute to:

Improving management and increasing the effectiveness of the enterprise’s economic activities;

Increasing state revenues;

Creating a competitive environment and encouraging competition;

Development of the capital market and increase in the number of owners.

These problems can be solved using factors such as the organization of enterprise management, the principle of income distribution, opportunities and sources of promising investments, the risk share of personal property in the event of bankruptcy, the possibility of withdrawing capital from the business, specific features of information about the activities of the enterprise, the possibility of terminating the business and some other economic and legal