Publications

Educators

22 Sep 2008
Research & Ideas

The Silo Lives! Analyzing Coordination and Communication in Multiunit Companies

likely than men to play a key "boundary spanning" role in the company. One can think of it like this. If we were to randomly remove an employee from this company's communication network, the odds that this... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert

16 Feb 2024
Research & Ideas

As AI Upends Recruiting, Job Seekers Need a Waze App for Careers

for labor, spending heavily to lure away incumbent talent from competitive firms, while decrying the lack of skilled talent. Developing partnerships The key for employers is to recognize both how their own actions create a shortage of... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Information Technology; Technology

28 Nov 2016
Blog Post

Why We Recruit: Wayfair

been key to our success. We’re lucky to have quite a few of them, and whether it’s a coffee chat, an info session on campus, or a networking event hosted in our offices, we feel the alumni connection makes engaging with students more... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products / Retail

Research Summary

The Transition to Retirement

By: Teresa M. Amabile

My current major research program is the Retirement Transitions Study: a broad study of retiring professionals' everyday experiences, including identification with work; identity stability, change, and development; meaningfulness of work; changes in life structure,... View Details

Keywords: Careers; Psychology; Creativity; Identity; Retirement; Meaning

22 Apr 2019
Research & Ideas

Why Salespeople Struggle at Leading

they can sell. “At the same time, companies shouldn’t simply be saying, ‘You’re a great salesperson, and I’m sure you can manage.’ I do think sales managers must learn how to manage.” Setting up sales-to-management success Cespedes outlines four View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

October 2020
Article

Patronage and Selection in Public Sector Organizations

By: Emanuele Colonnelli, Mounu Prem and Edoardo Teso

In all modern bureaucracies, politicians retain some discretion in public employment decisions, which may lead to frictions in the selection process if political connections substitute for individual competence. Relying on detailed matched employer-employee data on the... View Details

Keywords: Employees; Selection and Staffing; Political Elections; Public Sector; Brazil

March 1, 2023
Editorial

To Overcome Resistance to DEI, Understand What’s Driving It

By: Eric Shuman, Eric Knowles and Amit Goldenberg

Employees often resist DEI initiatives, which of course hinders their effectiveness. The authors—experts in the resistance to social-change efforts—write that the key to overcoming resistance to any effort is figuring out why people are resisting. When it comes to DEI... View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Conflict and Resolution; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Employees

Read Now

January 2007
Article

Acquisitions and Firm Growth: Creating Unilever's Ice Cream and Tea Business

By: G. Jones and Peter Miskell

This article provides a longitudinal case study of the use of acquisitions by the Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever to build the world's largest ice cream and tea businesses. The study supports recent resource-based theory which argues that complementary rather than... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Integration; Value; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Business and Shareholder Relations; Interests; Business Ventures; Employees; Food and Beverage Industry

Read Now

June 2014
Teaching Note

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.: Driving Change Through Internal Communication

By: Boris Groysberg, Sarah L. Abbott and Robin Abrahams

Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL), confronted in 2003 with an urgent need to change how it operated externally, adopted a highly innovative approach to communicating internally. This case, set in 2010, presents an overview of the new, more interactive model of employee... View Details

Keywords: Communication Strategy; Change Management; Communication; Change; Leadership; Management; Energy Industry; India

19 Mar 2012
HBS Case

HBS Cases: Overcoming the Stress of ‘Englishnization’

status loss among workers learning a new language. She searched for key words in her interviews with workers such as "diminished," "devalued," "reduced," disqualified," and "less... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard

2022
Book

Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies

By: Ranjay Gulati

This book offers a compelling reassessment and defense of purpose as a management ethos, documenting the vast performance gains and social benefits that become possible when firms manage to get purpose right. Few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent... View Details

Keywords: Purpose; Business And Society; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Performance Effectiveness; Organizational Culture

22 Feb 2010
Research & Ideas

Manager Visibility No Guarantee of Fixing Problems

Observing and understanding the tasks and challenges that workers face every day is important. But managers who merely put in time "walking the floor" are not doing enough; in fact, it can make employees feel worse about their... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Health

16 May 2023
In Practice

After Silicon Valley Bank's Flameout, What's Next for Entrepreneurs?

investments and triggered a run on deposits, gave pause to startup investors and also holds lessons for founders going forward. Harvard Business School faculty suggest some key takeaways for the startup ecosystem as the dust settles and... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman; Technology; Financial Services

June 2024
Supplement

Pal's Sudden Service (B)

By: Gary P. Pisano, Francesca Gino and Ruth Page

Pre-Abstract: Instructors should consider the timing of making videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details.

Abstract: Pal's Sudden Service has developed a unique operating model and organizational culture in the quick service... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Culture; Motivation and Incentives; Service Operations; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry

November 2022
Article

My Boss' Passion Matters as Much as My Own: The Interpersonal Dynamics of Passion Are a Critical Driver of Performance Evaluations

By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Andreas Wihler and Adam D. Galinsky

Companies often celebrate employees who successfully pursue their passion. Academic research suggests that these positive evaluations occur because of the passion percolating inside the employee. We propose that supervisors are also a key piece of this puzzle:... View Details

Keywords: Passion; Job Performance; Motivation; Emotions; Performance Evaluation; Interpersonal Communication

This study provides a comprehensive model of an agent’s behavior in response to multiple sales management instruments, including compensation, recruiting/termination, and training. The model takes into account many of the key elements that constitute a realistic... View Details

01 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Encouraging Dissent in Decision-Making

in the 1920s, GM president Alfred P. Sloan Jr. said, "Gentlemen, I take it we are all in complete agreement on the subject here." Heads nodded around the table. "Then," continued Sloan, "I propose we postpone... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons

February 1998 (Revised December 1998)
Case

Atlantic Energy/Delmarva Power & Light (A)

By: Benjamin C. Esty, Mathew M Millett and Tracy Aronson

Delmarva Power & Light and Atlantic Energy are neighboring electric utilities based in Delaware and New Jersey, respectively. In early 1996, they entered into merger negotiations, but were unable to reach an agreement on price because they could not agree on what... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Negotiation Offer; Government Legislation; Risk and Uncertainty; Mergers and Acquisitions; Contracts; Utilities Industry; Delaware; New Jersey