Filter Results:
(1,184)
Show Results For
- All HBS Web (1,512)
- Faculty Publications (866)
Show Results For
- All HBS Web (1,512)
- Faculty Publications (866)
Sort by
- March 2019 (Revised May 2019)
- Case
Philips Lighting: Light-as-a-Service
By: Mark R. Kramer, Thijs Geradts and Bhanuteja Nadella
As LEDs with a 25-year lifespan replace incandescent lightbulbs, Philips Lighting faced major disruption and began to explore a new shared value business model of selling light as a service. Although it offers better profit margins and a reduced environmental... View Details
Keywords: Disruptive Innovation; Business Model; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Competitive Strategy
Kramer, Mark R., Thijs Geradts, and Bhanuteja Nadella. "Philips Lighting: Light-as-a-Service." Harvard Business School Case 719-446, March 2019. (Revised May 2019.)
- 2025
- Chapter
Sustainability and Green Business in Latin America
By: Geoffrey Jones
This chapter argues that since the nineteenth century capitalism has created much wealth, but at the cost of massive ecological destruction, which has been particularly severe in Latin America. During the first global economy before 1929, considerable wealth was... View Details
Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Business History; Globalization; Economic Growth; Latin America
Jones, Geoffrey. "Sustainability and Green Business in Latin America." Chap. 8 in A Business History of Latin America, edited by Andrea Lluch, Martin Monsalve Zanatti, and Marcelo Bucheli, 159–174. New York, NY, United States: Routledge, 2025.
- Research Summary
Overview
My research examines the processes, mechanisms and institutions that influence the effectiveness of organizational interactions between societal sectors (business, government and civil society). My work is motivated by the belief that more study of what makes... View Details
- October 2021
- Article
Shareholder Activism and Firms' Voluntary Disclosure of Climate Change Risks
By: Caroline Flammer, Michael W. Toffel and Kala Viswanathan
This paper examines whether—in the absence of mandated disclosure requirements—shareholder activism can elicit greater disclosure of firms’ exposure to climate change risks. We find that environmental shareholder activism increases the voluntary disclosure of climate... View Details
Keywords: Transparency; Reporting; Shareholder Engagement; Shareholder Activism; Climate Change; Risk and Uncertainty; Environmental Management; Investment Activism; Corporate Disclosure; Communication Strategy; Information Publishing; Measurement and Metrics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Problems and Challenges; United States
Flammer, Caroline, Michael W. Toffel, and Kala Viswanathan. "Shareholder Activism and Firms' Voluntary Disclosure of Climate Change Risks." Strategic Management Journal 42, no. 10 (October 2021): 1850–1879. (Featured in Harvard Business Review.)
- March 1999
- Teaching Note
Conceptual Overview: "Business and the Environment," An Elective for MBA Students TN
Intended to assist faculty who teach courses on environmental management at business schools. Other people interested in the relationships between business and the environment may also find it useful. View Details
- November 2011 (Revised June 2013)
- Case
Natura Cosméticos, S.A.
Rodolfo Guttilla, Director of Corporate Affairs for Natura Cosméticos S.A. (Natura), prepared for a meeting with key stakeholders to discuss the future of integrated reporting at Natura. A cosmetics company with a strong brand, robust growth in international and... View Details
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Integrated Corporate Reporting; Decision Making; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Brazil
Eccles, Robert G., George Serafeim, and James Heffernan. "Natura Cosméticos, S.A." Harvard Business School Case 412-052, November 2011. (Revised June 2013.)
- May 2015
- Teaching Note
Aviva Investors
By: George Serafeim
Keywords: Responsibility; Responsibilities To Society; Sustainability; Sustainability Reporting; Corporate Social Responsibility; Corporate Sustainability; Activist Investors; Investment Management; Investment Strategy; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Integrated Corporate Reporting; Environmental Sustainability; Investment Activism
- September 1996 (Revised December 1997)
- Case
Cytec Industries' Spin-Off (A): Sink or Swim?
In the wake of market pressure to restructure, American Cyanamid spun off its poorly performing Chemicals Unit into a new publicly traded corporation, Cytec Industries. In addition to weak operations, Cytec inherited the bulk of Cyanamid's environmental and... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Management Practices and Processes; Restructuring; Performance Improvement; Chemical Industry; United States
Wruck, Karen, and Sherry P. Roper. "Cytec Industries' Spin-Off (A): Sink or Swim?" Harvard Business School Case 897-053, September 1996. (Revised December 1997.)
- 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
- December 2011 (Revised May 2015)
- Case
Aviva Investors
By: George Serafeim
The Aviva Investors case describes the challenge of integrating sustainability considerations into the strategy and business practices of companies and into the decision making process of the investment community. Steve Waygood, Chief Responsible Investment Officer at... View Details
Keywords: Investing; Investment Management; Shareholder Activism; Disclosure; Stock Exchanges; Sustainability; Sustainable Development; Sustainability Reporting; ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Social Impact; Activism; Investment; Management; Business and Shareholder Relations; Environmental Sustainability; United Kingdom
Serafeim, George, Robert G. Eccles, and Kyle Armbrester. "Aviva Investors." Harvard Business School Case 112-047, December 2011. (Revised May 2015.)
- December 2010 (Revised March 2013)
- Case
Asian Agri and the Future of Palm Oil
By: David E. Bell and Natalie Kindred
For Asian Agri and other Indonesian palm oil producers, the future promised rising demand from fast-growing Asian populations, but also intensifying criticism from environmental groups. With the highest yield and lowest production cost of any edible oil, palm oil... View Details
Keywords: Plant-Based Agribusiness; Social Marketing; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business Strategy; Supply Chain Management; Natural Environment; Marketing Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Indonesia; Malaysia
Bell, David E., and Natalie Kindred. "Asian Agri and the Future of Palm Oil." Harvard Business School Case 511-015, December 2010. (Revised March 2013.)
- January 2007 (Revised November 2007)
- Case
Organic Growth at Wal-Mart
By: Jan W. Rivkin and Troy Smith
In 2005, an executive vice president at Wal-Mart must decide whether to expand the retailer's selection of organic food. The decision is made in the context of wider attempts to move the giant retailer slightly upscale and to focus on environmental sustainability. View Details
Keywords: Food; Growth and Development Strategy; Product; Business Processes; Environmental Sustainability; Expansion; Retail Industry; United States
Rivkin, Jan W., and Troy Smith. "Organic Growth at Wal-Mart." Harvard Business School Case 707-498, January 2007. (Revised November 2007.)
- Article
Reimagining the Balanced Scorecard for the ESG Era
By: Robert S. Kaplan and David McMillan
Companies are increasingly aware that their customers and society in general expect businesses to adopt and work towards social and environmental objectives as well as the traditional financial ones. This involves not only re-evaluating firms’ models but re-imagining... View Details
Keywords: ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Business Ecosystems; Balanced Scorecard; Adaptation; Business Model; Business and Stakeholder Relations
Kaplan, Robert S., and David McMillan. "Reimagining the Balanced Scorecard for the ESG Era." Harvard Business Review Digital Articles (February 3, 2021).
- Article
Turning Waste into By-Product
By: Deishin Lee
This paper studies how a firm can create and capture value by converting a waste stream into a useful and saleable by-product (i.e., implementing by-product synergy [BPS]). We show that BPS creates an operational synergy between two products that are jointly produced.... View Details
Keywords: Value Creation; Innovation and Invention; Cost Management; Opportunities; Market Participation; Framework; Profit; Competition; Wastes and Waste Processing; Product; Business Processes
Lee, Deishin. "Turning Waste into By-Product." Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 13, no. 1 (Winter 2011).
- April 2007
- Case
ABN AMRO Bank N.V.: Global Change Agents
By: Rosabeth M. Kanter, Lance P. Pierce and Ryan Leo Raffaelli
ABN AMRO Global Banking Group developed its risk management function in response to expansion, and increasingly focused on environmental and social risks. The head of the function needed to influence policies and business decisions in a highly decentralized context in... View Details
- January 2012 (Revised August 2012)
- Case
Dirigo International
By: Christopher M. Gordon and Chad M. Carr
Dirigo International is proposing a major expansion of their life sciences research and manufacturing facilities in the heart of a major city and middle to lower income residential neighborhood. The company and city government are seeking a development solution in the... View Details
Keywords: Production; Property; Expansion; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Business and Government Relations; Research and Development; Outcome or Result; Biotechnology Industry
Gordon, Christopher M., and Chad M. Carr. "Dirigo International." Harvard Business School Case 212-056, January 2012. (Revised August 2012.)
- February 1995
- Case
Catalan Leather Industry, The
Antoni Subira, the Minister of Industry in Catalonia, Spain, must decide whether to impose strict European Union environmental guidelines on the local leather industry. Failure to impose new regulations would result in substantial fines. Imposition, on the other hand,... View Details
Enright, Michael J., Eduard Ballarin, Maria del Mar Prats, and Maria Dolores Rodriguez. "Catalan Leather Industry, The." Harvard Business School Case 795-105, February 1995.
- 14 Mar 2011
- Research & Ideas
Water, Electricity, and Transportation: Preparing for the Population Boom
By 2050, the Earth's population will likely exceed 9 billion people, up 30 percent from 6.9 billion today, according to projections from both the US Census Bureau and the United Nations. What's more, the population in the world's cities is expected to increase by 3... View Details
Keywords: by Carmen Nobel
- February 2020 (Revised February 2022)
- Case
Sustainable Product Management at Solvay
By: George Serafeim, Vincent Dessain and Mette Fuglsang Hjortshoej
In November 2019, Ilham Kadri, CEO of Solvay, a Belgian specialty chemicals and advanced materials group, with annual revenues of more than €10 billion in 2018, announced the group’s mid-term strategy, eight months after she took the helm as Solvay’s 11th CEO. The case... View Details
Keywords: Sustainability; Sustainable Business And Innovation; Sustainability Management; Sustainable Development; Management Accounting; Innovation; Carbon Emissions; Sustainability Reporting; Sustainability Targets; Target-setting; Product; Management; Transformation; Growth and Development Strategy; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Chemical Industry; Europe; Belgium
Serafeim, George, Vincent Dessain, and Mette Fuglsang Hjortshoej. "Sustainable Product Management at Solvay." Harvard Business School Case 120-081, February 2020. (Revised February 2022.)
- September 2011 (Revised May 2013)
- Case
New Resource Bank: In Pursuit of Green
By: Christopher Marquis and Juan Almandoz
New Resource Bank was founded in San Francisco in 2006 with a mission focused on environmental sustainability. The case illustrates the opportunities and challenges of banking on values and the challenges of organizations defining a social and environmental commitment.... View Details
Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Strategy; Business and Government Relations; Banking Industry; San Francisco
Marquis, Christopher, and Juan Almandoz. "New Resource Bank: In Pursuit of Green." Harvard Business School Case 412-060, September 2011. (Revised May 2013.)