In this volume, the authors discuss the risks for businesses when going global, using what they term an "opacity index" for measuring a country's overall risk. They define opacity--the lack of clear and widely accepted practices in the broad arena where business, finance, and government meet--and examine countries in five areas: corruption, the legal system, economic and enforcement policies, accounting standards and corporate governance, and regulation. Considering these areas, companies can examine risk, manage it, and forecast it, making better decisions for legal, accounting, and regulatory issues. The authors provide statistics, anecdotes, and case studies to describe the opacity of industrial, larger emerging countries, developing, and Heavily Indebted Poor Counties. Kurtzman, the former editor of Harvard Business Review, is associated with a consulting and advisory firm and the Milken Institute. Yago is director of capital studies at the Milken Institute. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Read Less