Publications

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Summer 2021
Article

The Cost and Evolution of Quality at Cipla Ltd, 1935–2016

By: Muhammad H. Zaman and Tarun Khanna

This article examines the evolution of Indian pharmaceutical manufacturer Cipla towards producing drugs that met the quality standards of European and U.S. regulators. It employs new research in Cipla’s corporate archives, the Creating Emerging Markets database, and... View Details

Keywords: Cipla; Pharmaceuticals; Drug Quality; Generics; Quality; Standards; Information Technology; Cost; Organizational Culture; Business History; Pharmaceutical Industry; India

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14 Apr 2022
Op-Ed

Let’s Move Forward from COVID—Without Forgetting What We’ve Learned

innovation. Organizations consistently applied new metrics to measure performance but used activity and time logged into systems to proxy for the actual value. Forging a new,... View Details

Keywords: by Hise O. Gibson and MaShon Wilson

January 2016
Teaching Note

Groom Energy Solutions: Selling Efficiency

By: Michael W. Toffel, Kira Fabrizio and Stephanie van Sice

This case examines a start-up service provider that helps clients improve the energy efficiency of their factories, warehouses, and commercial and office spaces by integrating and installing lighting, heating, and cooling technologies. The company seeks to double... View Details

Keywords: Energy Efficiency; Energy Efficiency Paradox; Environment; Environmental Strategy; Growth; Energy; Energy Conservation; Entrepreneurship; Environmental Sustainability; Energy Industry

May 2001 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Jumpstart

By: Allen S. Grossman

Many in the nonprofit sector doubt whether organizational performance can be measured. Jumpstart, a 10-year-old nonprofit, developed performance measurement and management systems from its inception. The organization has experienced explosive growth and attributes a... View Details

Keywords: Management Systems; Measurement and Metrics; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Nonprofit Organizations

January 2020 (Revised July 2020)
Case

BlackRock: Linking Purpose to Profit

By: Rohit Deshpandé, Aiyesha Dey and George Serafeim

The case revolves around the actions that Barbara Novick, co-founder and Vice-Chair of Blackrock, and Michelle Edkins, Global Head of Investment Stewardship, would need to take in response to the controversial CEO letters from Laurence (Larry) Fink, Chairman and CEO of... View Details

05 Feb 2007
Research & Ideas

Business and the Global Poor

thereby bring down prices, ultimately benefiting the poor. To minimize negative public perception, however, companies that find that they are "profiting from the poor" must be willing to publicly address the profit debate, work collaboratively with NGOs View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

2019
Working Paper

Biometric Monitoring, Service Delivery and Misreporting: Evidence from Healthcare in India

By: Thomas Bossuroy, Clara Delavallade and Vincent Pons

Developing countries increasingly use biometric identification technology in hopes of improving the reliability of administrative information and delivering social services more efficiently. This paper exploits the random placement of biometric tracking devices in... View Details

Keywords: Biometric Technology; Health Care and Treatment; Technological Innovation; Analytics and Data Science; Quality; Performance Improvement; India

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May 2011
Article

Incentives and Problem Uncertainty in Innovation Contests: An Empirical Analysis

By: Kevin J. Boudreau, Nicola Lacetera and Karim R. Lakhani

Contests are a historically important and increasingly popular mechanism for encouraging innovation. A central concern in designing innovation contests is how many competitors to admit. Using a unique data set of 9,661 software contests, we provide evidence of two... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Problems and Challenges; Risk and Uncertainty; Innovation and Invention; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Value; Applications and Software; Competition; Performance; Theory; Practice

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24 Feb 2020
Research & Ideas

The Hidden Vulnerabilities of Open Source Software

naming conventions. Perhaps the most pressing problem is the lack of a standardized software component naming schema. “Until one exists, strategies for software security, transparency, and more will have... View Details

Keywords: by Frank Nagle and Jenny Hoffman; Computer

November 2005 (Revised July 2006)
Background Note

Understanding Economic Value Added

By: Mihir A. Desai, Fabrizio Ferri and Steve Treadwell

Explores the concept of economic value added (EVA) and its practical applications as a management control system for performance measurement and incentive compensation. Explains how EVA is measured and explores some of the adjustments to financial statements that are... View Details

Keywords: Value

Forthcoming
Article

Confronting the Limits of Symbolic Actions: How Entrepreneurs Narrow the Presentation-Performance Gap

By: Rebecca Karp and Siobhan O'Mahony

Entrepreneurs often skillfully leverage symbolic actions to manage impressions and gain acceptance for their innovations. Impression management can generate interest, but also heighten expectations beyond an innovation’s capabilities, creating a gap between... View Details

Keywords: Digital Innovation; Entrepreneurship; Integration Strategy; Impression Management

February 1995 (Revised June 1999)
Case

Chemical Bank: Implementing the Balanced Scorecard

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Norman Klein

The retail bank division of Chemical Bank faces declining margins and increased competition in its credit and deposit gathering and processing business. It wishes to implement a new strategy to become a preferred financial service provider to target customer groups.... View Details

Keywords: Balanced Scorecard; Adoption; Growth and Development Strategy; Communication Strategy; Customer Relationship Management; Management Systems; Performance Evaluation; Banks and Banking; Measurement and Metrics; Banking Industry

22 Apr 2015
Op-Ed

Reforming Greece: Myths and Truths

require that the counterparts in the transaction expect each other to perform their responsibility even in the absence of legal enforcement. In summary, the recessionary measures that were taken in Greece... View Details

Keywords: by George Serafeim

March 2018 (Revised March 2018)
Supplement

Sandlands Vineyards

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Greg Saldutte

Approximately 80% of the wineries in the US breakeven or lose money. An even greater percentage lose money on an economic basis (i.e., after a charge for the cost of equity). Tegan Passalacqua is a successful, young, Californian winemaker who specializes in making... View Details

February 2003 (Revised March 2004)
Case

Store24

By: Susan L. Kulp, V.G. Narayanan and Dennis Campbell

Illustrates how nonfinancial performance measures can be used to manage a business and evaluate the success of a strategy. View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Balanced Scorecard; Performance Evaluation; Strategy; Retail Industry

2004
Working Paper

Judging Fund Managers by the Company They Keep

By: Randolph Cohen, Joshua Coval and Luboš Pástor

We develop a performance evaluation approach in which a fund manager's skill is judged by the extent to which his investment decisions resemble the decisions of managers with distinguished performance records. The proposed performance measures are estimated more... View Details

Keywords: Measurement and Metrics; Performance Evaluation; Investment Funds; Investment

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09 May 2017
First Look

New Research and Ideas, May 9

index-based benchmarks perform 14% worse in their time-series return-regression R2 and 16% worse in measurement error variance; firms' choices of specific peers only modestly... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

06 Mar 2018
First Look

First Look at Research and Ideas, March 6, 2018

provide insights into why and how investors use reported environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. Relevance to investment performance is the most frequent... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

February 2003 (Revised February 2006)
Background Note

Use and Abuse of Analogies, The

By: Giovanni M. Gavetti and Jan W. Rivkin

Examines how managers use, and sometimes misuse, analogical reasoning as they formulate their strategies. Suggests a process that managers can employ to use analogies productivity. View Details

Keywords: Managerial Roles; Performance Productivity; Strategy