Publications

SSRN

December 2024
Article

Proxy Advisory Firms and Corporate Shareholder Engagement

By: Aiyesha Dey, Austin Starkweather and Joshua White

We study how Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) affect firms’ engagement with shareholders. Our analyses exploit a quasi-natural experiment using say-on-pay voting outcomes near a threshold that triggers ISS to review engagement activities. Firms receiving ISS... View Details

Keywords: Business and Shareholder Relations; Governing and Advisory Boards; Policy; Voting

August 2010 (Revised September 2010)
Case

Paradise Travel Advisory Service

By: Paul W. Marshall, Charles Anthony Miller and Collins Pettus Ward

New managers in a troubled company are faced with developing and implementing a plan to increase revenue in a travel service business. View Details

Keywords: Business Plan; Entrepreneurship; Borrowing and Debt; Revenue; Problems and Challenges; Travel Industry

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February 2020 (Revised June 2020)
Case

Shaping the Governance Debate at ISS

By: Suraj Srinivasan, Jonah S. Goldberg and Calvin O. Liou

ISS is the world’s largest provider of corporate governance research, data, analytics, and voting services. The case uses the effort of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to impose an array of new regulations that would severely restrict the functioning of... View Details

Keywords: Proxy Advisory Services; Corporate Governance; Research; Investment; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Business and Shareholder Relations; Institutional Investing

July 2015 (Revised March 2021)
Case

Proxy Contest at DuPont

By: Jay W. Lorsch and Emily McTague

On January 9, 2015, Nelson Peltz of Trian Fund Management launched a proxy fight for four out of the twelve seats on the DuPont board. The fund had previously published a public letter addressed to shareholders outlining its proposal to break the company into three... View Details

Keywords: Board Of Directors; Hedge Fund; Activist Investing; Activist Investors; Proxy Fight; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Investment Activism; Chemical Industry; United States

2023
Working Paper

Targeting, Personalization, and Engagement in an Agricultural Advisory Service

By: Susan Athey, Shawn Cole, Shanjukta Nath and Jessica Zhu

ICT is increasingly used to deliver customized information in developing countries. We examine whether individually targeting the timing of automated voice calls meaningfully increases engagement in an agricultural advisory service. We define, estimate, and... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Knowledge Dissemination; Customization and Personalization; Performance Effectiveness

Web

Advisory Board - Entrepreneurship

Fund programs. Since inception, the programs he led have invested $120 billion in over 320,000 high-growth startups and businesses. Prior to public service he spent 20 years in various investment, entrepreneurial, operational and View Details

September 2021
Case

Vignettes on Professional Service Firm Governance

By: David G. Fubini, Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan Ni

The two vignettes within “Vignettes on Professional Service Firm Governance” (HBS No. 122-024) present various issues relating to governance in professional service firms (“PSFs”). In the first, the Managing Director of a U.S. consulting firm contemplates whether to... View Details

April 1990
Case

Gillette vs. Coniston: Communications in a Proxy Fight

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Norman Klein

Keywords: Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Governance; Communication; Governing and Advisory Boards

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June 1989 (Revised July 1989)
Case

Coniston vs. Gillette: Communications in a Proxy Fight

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Norman Klein

Keywords: Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Governance; Communication; Governing and Advisory Boards

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01 Feb 2001
News

Advisory Boards Help HBS Assess and Attain Its Goals

As the Harvard Business School confronts the challenges of the 21st century, the support and guidance of its graduates are more critical than ever. Three advisory boards, staffed by volunteer alumni and other distinguished business... View Details

Keywords: Elena N. Berg; boards; alumni; planning; leadership; advice; Educational Services; Educational Services

Web

Mastering Consulting and Advisory Skills - Course Catalog

HBS Course Catalog Mastering Consulting and Advisory Skills Course Number 2043 Senior Lecturer David G. Fubini Spring; Q3; 1.5 credits Paper Each year, hundreds of HBS students walk across the Commencement stage anticipating a near-term... View Details

11 Jan 2011
Working Paper Summaries

Does Shareholder Proxy Access Improve Firm Value? Evidence from the Business Roundtable Challenge

Keywords: by Bo Becker, Daniel B. Bergstresser & Guhan Subramanian; Financial Services

Research Summary

Executive Compensation

By: Susanna Gallani

In this line of work, Prof. Gallani explores the influence of external actors on the design and effectiveness of executive compensation. Prominent external actors she has examined in her work include compensation consultants, proxy advisory firms, and institutional... View Details

Keywords: Executive Compensation; Proxy Advisors; Compensation Consultants

January 2014 (Revised January 2014)
Case

Showdown at Cracker Barrel

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Tim Gray

In the fall of 2011, activist investor, Sardar Biglari, has acquired nearly 10% ownership in the Cracker Barrel restaurant chain. He believes that the board and senior management have failed and the company has underperformed relative to its peers. When he is denied a... View Details

01 Apr 1999
News

Alumni Career Services Update

With his enthusiasm and expertise in helping others polish their résumés, plot job search strategies, and execute savvy career moves, Robert S. ("Bob") Gardella has become a popular contact for HBS alumni since assuming the role of assistant director of Alumni Career... View Details

Keywords: Eileen K. McCluskey

2020
Working Paper

Are ISS Recommendations Informative? Evidence from Assessments of Compensation Practices

By: Ana Albuquerque, Mary Ellen Carter and Susanna Gallani

Using detailed information from the largest proxy advisor in the U.S., Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), we examine whether proxy advisors’ assessments of firms’ compensation practices are able to identify poor compensation practices as measured by subsequent... View Details

Keywords: Proxy Advisors; CEO Compensation; Say-on-Pay; Institutional Shareholder Voting; Executive Compensation; Performance

SSRN

18 Aug 2011
Working Paper Summaries

Non-Audit Services and Financial Reporting Quality: Evidence from 1978-1980

Keywords: by Kevin Koh, Shivaram Rajgopal & Suraj Srinivasan; Accounting

October 2013 (Revised September 2014)
Case

The TELUS Share Conversion Proposal

By: Lucy White, Benjamin C. Esty and Lisa Mazzanti

On February 21, 2013, TELUS announced a proposal to convert the firm's non-voting shares into voting shares on a one-to-one basis, thereby eliminating the firm's dual class structure. Shareholders were scheduled to vote on the proposal at the firm's annual general... View Details

March 2014 (Revised May 2014)
Teaching Note

The TELUS Share Conversion Proposal

By: Lucy White and Benjamin C. Esty

On February 21, 2013, TELUS announced a proposal to convert the firm's non-voting shares into voting shares on a one-to-one basis, thereby eliminating the firm's dual class structure. Shareholders were scheduled to vote on the proposal at the firm's annual general... View Details