Rebecca A. Karp

Rebecca Karp is an Assistant Professor in the Strategy Unit at Harvard Business School. She teaches Strategy in the MBA required curriculum. Professor Karp is a field researcher and ethnographer. Her research examines how companies formulate and execute strategies. In particular, she focuses on the role innovation and product development play in creating competitive advantage. Professor Karp’s research spans the healthcare, financial services, video gaming, media and creative industries. She has also studied how large companies and entrepreneurs collaborate to innovate and achieve competitive advantage. 

Professor Karp’s research has been published in the Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal and Harvard Business Review. Her paper “Gaining Organizational Adoption: Discovering New Uses for Existing Innovations” won the 2020 Academy of Management William H. Newman Award for best paper based on a dissertation. Her dissertation was also a finalist for the 2020 Organization Science INFORMS best dissertation award. 

Prior to HBS, Professor Karp served as a Principal at Booz and Company. Her portfolio of clients included Yum Brands, Nestle, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, State Street, Barclays, Citibank and other financial institutions. She has also worked with non-profits including the Screen Actors Guild and Boston Partners in Education. She was a board member of Symphony NH. Professor Karp is also a co-founder of Emic Labs, which combines ethnographic and machine learning methodologies to aid discovery of the customer insights needed to design useful products and develop effective firm strategies. 

Professor Karp received her doctorate from Boston University, where she was awarded a Questrom teaching award. She also received an MBA from Cornell University and a BA in English with honors from the University of Michigan.