The success of paternalistic welfare work in the period of enlightened capitalism can be partly explained by the reciprocal interest of many employers, social reformers, and politicians in best – welfare work – practices abroad, even across two continents in the North Atlantic world. In particular, Krupp's welfare work and housing policy as well as Cadbury's Bournville acted as shining examples to many in Europe and America for quite a long time. During and after the First World War, American influence on European employers became more manifest. Welfare work in Europe became more Americanized by the introduction of elements of Taylorism (time-and-motion studies, use of the stopwatch) and Fordism (the assembly line).

Today, horizontal policy learning and borrowing of ideas across borders and continents has become a regular affair. However, the question arises about whether, apart from horizontal learning across space, also vertical learning across time could be relevant with respect to future welfare work. In other words, could employers, employees, trade unions, politicians, and reformers learn from past welfare work experience?

Strictly seen, enlightened paternalistic welfare work did not completely crumble during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Some companies succeeded rather well in maintaining a substantial part of their welfare work programmes through the 1930s and the Second World War. Other companies succeeded in modernizing their welfare work programmes through this period. For example, non-unionized enterprises Kodak, Sears Roebuck, and Thompson Products in the United States modernized welfare work by making their programmes less paternalistic and welfare work more professionalized. More in general in the United States, as labour historian Jacoby contended, “with modern welfare capitalism, the emphasis shifted from control to consent; this was a kinder, gentler sort of paternalism.” However, American welfare work was no longer comparable to the rather unique joint movement of employers and reformers, often supported by workers, which it had been between 1900 and 1930. After the Second World War, the context in which these respective enterprises maintained welfare work differentiated radically from the context before the Great Depression and the Second World War.