Publications

While current levels of economic inequality in Africa receive ample attention from academics and policymakers, we know little about the long-run evolution of inequality in the region. Even the new and influential ‘global inequality literature’ that is associated... View Details

18 Jun 2024
Research & Ideas

Industrial Decarbonization: Confronting the Hard Challenges of Cement

Cities like Cairo; Chongqing, China; Delhi; and Kinshasa, Congo are experiencing population explosions accompanied by unprecedented demand for homes, offices, factories, and infrastructure. In the United States, the Biden Administration’s policy-driven infrastructure... View Details

Keywords: by by Janelle Conaway; Green Technology; Energy; Industrial Products; Manufacturing

Research Summary

Game Theory for Business Strategy

Game theory--the mathematical study of strategic interactions--came of age, in a sense, when three of the field's pioneers were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994. Yet despite the development of the theory and the widespread use of game-theoretic jargon in... View Details

January 2008
Article

The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy

By: Michael E. Porter

This article includes a one-page preview that quickly summarizes the key ideas and provides an overview of how the concepts work in practice along with suggestions for further reading. In 1979, a young associate professor at Harvard Business School published his first... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Five Forces Framework; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Business and Government Relations; Competitive Strategy

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December 1999 (Revised April 2002)
Case

International Business Machines Corporation (A)

By: David F. Hawkins

Perform financial ratio analysis to identify changes in IBM's business mix and profitability. Teaching purpose: Ratio analysis. View Details

Keywords: Information Infrastructure; Capital Structure; Performance Efficiency; Business Earnings; Business Model; Private Sector; Commercialization; Computer Industry; Accounting Industry

May 2025
Article

The Diffusion of New Technologies

By: Aakash Kalyani, Marcela Carvalho, Nicholas Bloom, Tarek Hassan, Josh Lerner and Ahmed Tahoun

We identify phrases associated with novel technologies using textual analysis of patents, job postings, and earnings calls, enabling us to identify four stylized facts on the diffusion of jobs relating to new technologies. First, the development of economically... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Geography; Innovation; R＆D; Technological Innovation; Research and Development; Employment; Geographic Location

17 May 2021
News

Key Inflation Gauge Overstating Prices, Harvard’s Cavallo Says

2013
Working Paper

Bank Failures and Output During the Great Depression

By: Jeffrey Miron and Natalia Rigol

In response to the Financial Crisis of 2008, macroeconomic policymakers employed a range of tools designed to prevent failures of large, complex financial institutions (“banks”). The Treasury and the Fed justified these actions by arguing that bank failures exacerbate... View Details

Keywords: History; Policy; Financial Crisis; Financial Institutions; Failure

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2015
Working Paper

Lost in the Clouds: The Impact of Changing Property Rights on Investment in Cloud Computing Ventures

By: Josh Lerner and Greg Rafert

Our analysis seeks to understand the impact of changing allocations of property rights on investment in new firms. We focus on the Cartoon Network, et al. v. Cablevision decision in the U.S., which narrowed the protection enjoyed by content creators (e.g., movie... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Venture Capital; Internet and the Web; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Copyright

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September 1972 (Revised February 1984)
Case

Blanchard Importing and Distribution Co., Inc.

By: Paul W. Marshall

Illustration of the two main types of errors resulting from use of the economic order quantity (EOQ) as a tool in production scheduling. Designed to permit class discussion to begin with a consideration of one common type of mistake, errors in calculation of the EOQ... View Details

Keywords: Mathematical Methods; Production; Debates; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques

12 Feb 2008
First Look

First Look: February 12, 2007

competitive strategy; (2) accounting analysis for representing the firm's business economics and strategy in its financial statements and for developing adjusted accounting measures of performance; (3)... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Feb 2003
Other Presentation

Swedish Clusters

By: Michael E. Porter

A cluster analysis of the Swedish economy using the methodology developed at the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness for the Cluster Mapping Project. View Details

Keywords: Economics; Sweden

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January 2011
Case

Clean Edge Razor: Splitting Hairs in Product Positioning

By: John A. Quelch and Heather Beckham

After three years of development, Paramount Health and Beauty Company is preparing to launch a new technologically advanced vibrating razor called Clean Edge. The innovative new design of Clean Edge provides superior performance by stimulating the hair follicles to... View Details

Keywords: Project Management; Interdepartmental Relations; Organizational Change; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership; Conflict Management; Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Relationships; Product Development; Consumer Products Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

March 1990 (Revised May 1993)
Case

USSR--1990

By: Willis M. Emmons III

Describes the political, economic, and social development of the USSR from 1921-90. Particular emphasis is placed on 1) institutional change, 2) the costs and benefits of central economic planning, and 3) the political economy of perestroika under Mikhail Gorbachev.... View Details

Keywords: Country; Strategy; Cost vs Benefits; Change; Government and Politics; Russia

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10 Jan 2005
Research & Ideas

Professors Introduce Valuation Software

In an age when mergers, acquisitions, and spin-offs are increasingly common in business, you need a new skill in your kit bag: the ability to analyze and value potential partners, deals, investments—even your own company. The Business View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

19 Nov 2014
Working Paper Summaries

The Search for Benchmarks: When Do Crowds Provide Wisdom?

Keywords: by Charles M.C. Lee, Paul Ma & Charles C.Y. Wang

Malcolm P. Baker

Malcolm Baker is the Robert G. Kirby Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School, where he teaches the required course in finance and a short immersive program on investing in life sciences.

His research is in the... View Details

Keywords: asset management; biotechnology; financial services; high technology; investment banking industry; pharmaceuticals; private equity (LBO funds); shipping; transportation

November 1985 (Revised August 1997)
Case

Harnischfeger Corp.

By: Krishna G. Palepu

Presents an analysis of Harnischfeger's quality of earnings, and the investment potential of the company's stock in light of the company's turnaround strategy. View Details

Keywords: Financial Condition; Revenue; Stock Shares; Profit; Economic Growth; Financial Reporting; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Safety; Utilities Industry