Why do badly managed firms survive?

Why do badly managed firms survive?

I read the piece in a back issue of the Economist last Friday. The London School of Economics and the business consultants McKinsey think they may have found at least part of the answer
I'd welcome your comments....

At the time I was rattling across the West Country my way to interview someone who makes a living telling companies how to dismantle chemical plants so they can be shipped around the world and rebuilt. Look out for that in European Chemical News.

Simon