American presidency - Publications - Faculty & Research

14 Dec 2010
Op-Ed

Tax US Companies to Spur Spending

Recent tax deal-making has relied on conventional instruments of fiscal stimulus. Yet, we live in unconventional times, and more novel approaches suited to the peculiarities of our current economy are required. In particular, the remarkable cash hoards that View Details

Keywords: by Mihir A. Desai

08 Mar 2016
Research & Ideas

Solving an Economic Mystery Surrounding Argentina and Chile

maximize the gains and minimize the risks, but all three have been in short supply in Argentina, especially, for decades. Q: What role did the Business History Initiative interviews done with Latin American business leaders for the... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

25 Mar 2014
Research & Ideas

Book Excerpt: ‘Can China Lead?’

rule this system of parallel governance limits rather than enhances the flow of ideas.) Few party secretaries—like few presidents of American universities—look favorably on the prospect of unbridled faculty... View Details

Keywords: Re: William C. Kirby & F. Warren McFarlan; Education; Technology

22 Dec 2016
Op-Ed

The Small Business Administration is a Model for How to Drive Economic Growth

the government should not be in the business of helping some small businesses and not others. The editorial writers reinforced their view of SBA by pointing to President Obama’s proposed reorganization of federal economic agencies in... View Details

Keywords: by Karen Mills

23 Aug 2019
Sharpening Your Skills

Has the Corporate Mission Just Been Disrupted?

state of failure? Michael Porter and Katherine Gehl find a rigged American political system that limits competition and works against the public interest. Green Businesses Are Incredibly Difficult to Make Profitable. Try It AnywayMaking a... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Green Technology

11 Feb 2002
Research & Ideas

Secrets of the Successful Businesswoman

A show of hands, please. "How many of you would be fifteen minutes late for an appointment with your CEO?" Gail McGovern, president of Fidelity Personal Investments, scanned the audience, but only a few hands wavered upwards.... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

26 Jul 2004
Research & Ideas

A Better Way to Negotiate: Backward

first may offer slim chances for a deal. To improve the odds, try to discern who influences the target player and to whom that player defers. In a 1993 New Yorker article, Sidney Blumenthal described how Bill Daley, then President... View Details

Keywords: by James K. Sebenius

06 Sep 2017
What Do You Think?

Summing Up: What Are the Limits of CEO Activism?

themselves. Now more than ever, American society needs this kind of exchange of ideas.” Bill added, “All it takes for evil to flourish is for good people to remain silent.” Jesteeleconsult commented, “Looking the other way in times of... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

16 Jun 2003
Research & Ideas

Peeling Back the Global Brand

Hans-Willi Schroiff, vice president of market research and business intelligence for the German company Henkel, described why detergent has made a valuable case study for new and edgy marketing. (They cautioned that they are not ready to... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Consumer Products; Retail

30 Sep 2019
Book

Book Excerpt: Why a Volume on Race, Work, and Leadership

superiority or inferiority of a given race (Gannon, 2016; Goodman, 2003; Kolbert, 2017), the color line persists as an enduring social issue in the United States. Over 150 years post-emancipation, the wealth gap between blacks and View Details

08 Nov 2024
HBS Case

What Wartime Service Taught These Historic Leaders

favor. Eisenhower prepared to win, Simons says, but kept a second speech ready to deliver to his men if the gambit failed. The rest is history: Eisenhower went on to become president of the US, using the skills he developed in the... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman; Entertainment & Recreation

13 Aug 2008
Research & Ideas

The Inner Life of Leaders

candidacy in the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute and then applying for and being granted a waiver of medical and psychiatric prerequisites so that I could receive full training in clinical psychoanalysis. The American Psychoanalytic... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

17 May 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

You Probably Have a Bias for Making Bad Decisions. Here's Why.

audience of the day with the president, believing the last idea he hears is the one most likely to be chosen. If true, the president is no better or worse than most of us in allowing cognitive biases to cloud our thinking. We are, for... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

28 Jul 2009
First Look

First Look: July 28

unsure whether America was ready to elect its first African American President. It also explores how President Obama was able to gain support from the American people despite... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

12 Jan 2018
Cold Call Podcast

Leadership Lessons from a Young Martin Luther King, Jr.

Kenny: I can't imagine there's anybody listening who isn't familiar with the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. He's obviously one of the icons of American history, and all of the contributions that he made to our country. But, I've learned... View Details

30 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Big Companies, Big Opportunities—Big Questions

Domingo, managing director of O&V Associates, said established Latin American companies face a situation in which their markets are no longer protected by national interests and suddenly face competition on all sides. Andres Obregon... View Details

Keywords: by Julie Jette

01 Oct 2024
Research & Ideas

How Politics Drives Business Decisions in a Polarized Nation

Political polarization has seeped so deeply into US society that it shapes who Americans befriend, date, and marry, where they live, raise their families, and retire—and how they run their businesses. A recent paper illustrates how the... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald

31 Jul 2015
Research & Ideas

The Faculty Reader: Who is Reading What This Summer?

perspective, and helps stimulate ideas and connections that I wouldn’t have otherwise encountered. Three books on the meaning of dignity and loss and sacrifice that I return to often are When the Legends Die: The Timeless Coming-of-Age Story about a Native View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Information; Publishing

23 Jul 2001
Research & Ideas

How the Giants of Enterprise Seized the Future

immortal, it would only be because it never rested. Henry Ford's career bears some interesting similarities to Watson's. Ford built his first automobile, the quadricycle, in 1896. Many people at the time thought the automobile was a mere plaything for the rich.... View Details

Keywords: by Richard S. Tedlow

04 Jul 2011
Research & Ideas

Making the Case for Consumer-Driven Health Care

While some consider it President Obama's greatest accomplishment, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act also has been the target of constant scrutiny and scorn since it was signed into law last year. Just last week, several news... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Health

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