Publications

01 Mar 2016
News

The HBS Fund for Leadership and Innovation

A Resource for the Next Big Idea, and More The HBS Fund for Leadership and Innovation is instrumental in bringing innovative projects to life at the School. Recent successful HBS initiatives that are advancing management... View Details

05 Jan 2011
Op-Ed

Funding Unpredictability Around Stem-Cell Research Inflicts Heavy Cost on Scientific Progress

ruling can outlaw work that was previously supported by the government. Funding can be canceled with the stroke of a pen. Great People Abandon Promising Projects The projects are less important than the people, particularly people who... View Details

Keywords: by William Sahlman; Biotechnology; Health; Pharmaceutical

June 2011 (Revised June 2012)
Case

Sephora Direct: Investing in Social Media, Video, and Mobile

By: Elie Ofek and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Julie Bornstein, senior vice president of Sephora Direct, is seeking to double her budget for social media and other digital marketing initiatives for 2011. A number of digital efforts implemented in the past two years seem to be bearing fruit and there is a desire to... View Details

Keywords: History; Leadership; Marketing Strategy; Marketing; Emerging Markets; Investment Return; Investment Funds; Budgets and Budgeting

2023
Working Paper

ESG: From Process to Product

By: George Serafeim

ESG measurement, analysis, management, and communication is a process that the financial industry has turned into a product, resulting in many investment funds using the ESG label. This has caused confusion, generating demand for a framework that defines... View Details

Keywords: ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; ESG Ratings; ESG Reporting; Investment Fund; Investment; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Financial Services Industry

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13 Jul 2020
News

Roles Foundations Play in Shaping Impact Investing

18 Oct 2016
Op-Ed

Why Business Should Invest in Community Health

improve health in their communities. The business case for investing in community health is compelling, especially for companies that depend on communities for workers and customers. Sick and absent workers cost American firms some $225... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch, Howard Koh, and Pamela Yatsko; Health

21 Feb 2024
Blog Post

Hiring at HBS: How Summer Interns Make an Impact at Bridges Fund Management

Fund Management, HBS students are motivated to propel the success of those businesses. Meet Bridges Fund Management Founded in 2002, Bridges, the UK-based impact investing... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital / Private Equity

March 2002
Article

Do After-tax Returns Affect Mutual Fund Inflows?

Keywords: Taxation; Investment

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August 2022 (Revised March 2023)
Case

Boston Impact Initiative: Investing in Local Change

By: Emily R. McComb, Amy Klopfenstein and Mel Martin

In fall 2021, Aliana Piñeiro, impact director at Boston Impact Initiative (BII) discovered that an entrepreneur the organization was considering for an investment had failed to disclose pre-existing debt with another lender. Although the business scored highly on BII’s... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Finance; Investment; Investment Funds; Investment Portfolio; Relationships; Business and Community Relations; Society; Social Issues; Wealth and Poverty; Wealth; Poverty; Risk Management; Financial Services Industry; North and Central America; United States; Massachusetts; Boston

October 2008
Article

The Small World of Investing: Board Connections and Mutual Fund Returns

By: Lauren Cohen, Andrea Frazzini and Christopher J. Malloy

This paper uses social networks to identify information transfer in security markets. We focus on connections between mutual fund managers and corporate board members via shared education networks. We find that portfolio managers place larger bets on firms they are... View Details

Keywords: Financial Markets; Information Management; Social and Collaborative Networks; Announcements; Investment Portfolio; Investment Return; Investment Funds; Asset Pricing; Governing and Advisory Boards

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2016
Working Paper

Liquidity Transformation in Asset Management: Evidence from the Cash Holdings of Mutual Funds

By: Sergey Chernenko and Adi Sunderam

We study liquidity transformation in mutual funds using a novel dataset on their cash holdings. To provide investors with claims that are more liquid than the underlying assets, funds engage in substantial liquidity management. Specifically, they hold substantial... View Details

Keywords: Financial Liquidity; Cash; Investment Funds

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18 Nov 2014
News

Helping foreign countries invest wisely

Dora Vardis (MBA 1994), managing director in the foreign exchange division of Citigroup, works with sovereign wealth funds and central banks to create successful investments for their countries. (Published... View Details

June 2016 (Revised May 2017)
Case

FANUC Corporation: Reassessing the Firm's Governance and Financial Policies

By: Benjamin C. Esty, Nobuo Sato and Akiko Kanno

In February 2015, Daniel Loeb (a U.S.–based activist investor) announced his firm had a large investment in FANUC Corporation, a leading producer of industrial robots and software for machine tools. Loeb was demanding that the Japanese firm change its financial and... View Details

Keywords: Hedge Funds; Economic Policy; Investments; Government Policy; Deregulation; Financial Management; Valuation; Investment Funds; Policy; Corporate Governance; Macroeconomics; Investment Activism; Change Management; Financial Strategy; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Japan; United States

Fast Answer

REITs (real estate investment trusts)

Where do I find information on real estate investment trusts (REITs)? General Background: National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts: Produces the global... View Details

01 Mar 2023
News

An Investment in Tomorrow's Leaders

accessible and assure prospective students that the School will support them on their educational journeys. “The impact of the fellowship program on our students, who see how invested our alumni are in their success and the success of the... View Details

Keywords: Jennifer Gillespie

01 Jun 2009
News

Donors Invest in Students’ Future

lower investment returns from the endowed funds that support the fellowships. “Now more than ever,” Light told the donors, “we are grateful for your support.” View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations; Personal Services

2008
Chapter

A New Generation of Pension Fund Management

By: Robert C. Merton

In talking about pension plans at this point in American economic and corporate history, we need to discuss three linked issues: the defined-benefit (DB) corporate plans that worked for our parents; the defined-contribution (DC) plans we're getting today because... View Details

Keywords: Asset Management; Investment Funds; Compensation and Benefits; Risk Management; Retirement; United States