Publications

August 2010 (Revised July 2012)
Case

Cork'd: Building a Social Network for Wine Lovers

Lindsay Ronga and Gary Vaynerchuk are launching Cork'd, an online social network for wine lovers. Despite Gary's status as a celebrity wine connoisseur, the team faces a significant challenge: several other wine social networks are well established and already have... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Product Launch; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competitive Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry

Educators

Purchase

October 2014
Article

Hidden Structure: Using Network Methods to Map System Architecture

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin, Alan MacCormack and John Rusnak

In this paper, we describe an operational methodology for characterizing the architecture of complex technical systems and demonstrate its application to a large sample of software releases. Our methodology is based upon directed network graphs, which allows us to... View Details

Keywords: Architecture; Modularity; Dominant Designs; Complexity; Product Design; Software

Research Summary

The Unexpected Effects of Workplace Connectivity

By: Ethan S. Bernstein

While investigating how workplace transparency and privacy shape organizational behavior and performance, I wondered about the related effects of workplace connectivity. As new digital tools and organizational forms make it far easier for employees to communicate... View Details

Keywords: Human Behavior; Performance; Virtual Work; Hybrid Work; Office Space; Workplace Design; Organizations; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Groups and Teams; Networks; Behavior; Social and Collaborative Networks; Communication

Article

Incorporating Interpretable Output Constraints in Bayesian Neural Networks

By: Wanqian Yang, Lars Lorch, Moritz Graule, Himabindu Lakkaraju and Finale Doshi-Velez

Domains where supervised models are deployed often come with task-specific constraints, such as prior expert knowledge on the ground-truth function, or desiderata like safety and fairness. We introduce a novel probabilistic framework for reasoning with such constraints... View Details

09 Feb 2015
Research & Ideas

Professional Networking Makes People Feel Dirty

The study, titled The Contaminating Effects of Building Instrumental Ties: How Networking Can Make Us Feel Dirty, appeared in the December 2014 issue of Administrative Science Quarterly. “Even when people... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

2020
Working Paper

Socioeconomic Network Heterogeneity and Pandemic Policy Response

By: Abhishek Nagaraj, Mohammad Akbarpour, Cody Cook, Aude Marzuoli, Simon Mongey, Matteo Saccarola, Pietro Tebaldi, Shoshana Vasserman and Hanbin Yang

We develop and implement a heterogeneous-agents network-based empirical model to analyze alternative policies during a pandemic outbreak. We combine several data sources, including information on individuals’ mobility and encounters across metropolitan areas,... View Details

Keywords: Health Pandemics; Policy; Outcome or Result; Analysis

Research Summary

The Global Networks of Multinational Firms (with Maggie Chen)

By: Laura Alfaro

In this paper we characterize the topology of global multinational networks and examine the macro and micro patterns of multinational activity. We construct indices of network density at both pairwise industry and establishment level and measure agglomeration in a... View Details

2014
Working Paper

Hidden Structure: Using Network Methods to Map System Architecture

By: Carliss Baldwin, Alan MacCormack and John Rusnak

In this paper, we describe an operational methodology for characterising the architecture of complex technical systems and demonstrate its application to a large sample of software releases. Our methodology is based upon directed network graphs, which allows us to... View Details

Keywords: Complexity; Applications and Software; Product Design

SSRN

June 2013
Article

Signals across Multiple Networks: How Venture Capital and Alliance Networks Affect Interorganizational Collaboration

By: Umit Ozmel, Jeffrey J. Reuer and Ranjay Gulati

In this paper, we examine the contingent effects of signals generated by different types of networks on new ventures' formation of future strategic alliances. We argue that the signaling value of a given tie in reducing adverse selection is more pronounced when another... View Details

Keywords: Networks; Venture Capital; Alliances

2008
Working Paper

The Effect of Labor on Profitability: The Role of Quality

By: Zeynep Ton

Determining staffing levels is an important decision in retail operations. While the costs of increasing labor are obvious and easy to measure, the benefits are often indirect and not immediately felt. One benefit of increased labor is improved quality. The objective... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Selection and Staffing; Service Delivery; Business Processes; Quality; Retail Industry

June 2013
Background Note

Mobilizing an Online Business

By: Peter Coles and Benjamin Edelman

Entrepreneurs starting online businesses often need to mobilize multiple sets of users or customers, each of whom hesitates to participate unless others join also. This case presents several challenges with similar structure. View Details

Keywords: Mobilization Strategy; Network Effects; Platforms; Internet; Entrepreneurship; Strategy; Two-Sided Platforms; Technology Adoption; Innovation Strategy; Information Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Computer Industry

Educators

Purchase

July 2006
Article

Dynamic Mixed Duopoly: A Model Motivated by Linux vs. Windows

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Pankaj Ghemawat

This paper analyzes a dynamic mixed duopoly in which a profit-maximizing competitor interacts with a competitor that prices at zero (or marginal cost), with the cumulation of output affecting their relative positions over time. The modeling effort is motivated by... View Details

July 2010
Article

Board Interlocks and the Propensity to Be Targeted in Private Equity Transactions

By: Toby E. Stuart and Soojin Yim

In this paper, we examine the propensity for U.S. public companies to become targets for private equity-backed, take-private transactions. We consider the characteristics of 483 private equity-backed deals in the 2000-2007 period relative to public companies, and find... View Details

Keywords: Board Interlocks; Board Networks; Social Networks; Private Equity; Corporate Governance; Public Ownership; Market Transactions; Governing and Advisory Boards; United States

02 Oct 2000
Research & Ideas

Networked Incubators: Hothouses of the New Economy

important and lasting way of creating value and wealth in the new economy? Morten Hansen, Henry Chesbrough, Nitin Nohria, and Donald Sull argue that one type of incubator, called a networked incubator, represents a fundamentally new and... View Details

Keywords: by Morten T. Hansen, Henry W. Chesbrough, Nitin Nohria & Donald N. Sull

25 Apr 2019
Research & Ideas

Incubators Take Notice: Your Entrepreneurs Are Networking with the Wrong People

solutions, says Koning, who studies the ripple effects that occur when entrepreneurs fail to harness new advice, skills, or marketing opportunities. It’s difficult to shake the gravitational pull of sameness and comfort that people feel... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

Research Summary

The Unexpected Effects of Workplace Transparency

By: Ethan S. Bernstein

Workplace transparency provides a foundation for learning and control, and therefore for satisfaction and productivity. Yet my research shows that an obsession with transparency-enhancing tools and structures can backfire, producing the unintended consequences of... View Details

Keywords: Transparency; Privacy; Productivity; Field Experiments; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Behavior; Social and Collaborative Networks; Human Resources; Leadership; United States; Europe; China; Japan

09 Nov 2021
Research & Ideas

The Simple Secret of Effective Mentoring Programs

Old-fashioned mentoring may be one of the most effective ways to improve job performance, but many mentorship programs don’t reach new hires who need guidance most, new research suggests. Newly hired employees at a United States call... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald

22 May 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Hidden Structure: Using Network Methods to Map System Architecture

Keywords: by Carliss Y. Baldwin, Alan MacCormack & John Rusnak

September – October 2010
Article

The Effect of Product Variety and Inventory Levels on Retail Sales: A Longitudinal Study

By: Zeynep Ton and Ananth Raman

We examine the effects of product variety and inventory levels on store sales. Using four years of data from stores of a large retailer, we show that increases in product variety and inventory levels are both associated with higher sales. We also show that increasing... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Design; Logistics; Product; Quality; Sales; Retail Industry