Harm - Publications - Faculty & Research

02 Mar 2009
Research & Ideas

When Goal Setting Goes Bad

in many cases goals do more harm than good. Worse, they can cause real damage to organizations and individuals using them. "We argue that the beneficial effects of goal setting have been overstated and that systematic View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

09 Apr 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

The Dark Side of Performance Bonuses

carefully, can open a box full of unintended consequences that ultimately harm rather than help the organization. The financial crisis of 2008 was partially fueled by origination bonuses paid to bank loan officers who were incented to... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

30 May 2005
Research & Ideas

Six Steps for Making Your Threat Credible

strategy requires careful calculation. Your sunk costs must be large and visible enough to make an impact but small enough that you are not significantly harmed by losses you may incur in the hope of influencing your counterpart. Don't... View Details

Keywords: by Deepak Malhotra

13 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Merck CEO Ken Frazier Discusses a COVID Cure, Racism, and Why Leaders Need to Walk the Talk

vaccine did more harm than good. We don't have a great history of introducing vaccines quickly in the middle of a pandemic. We want to keep that in mind. The second point that I think is very important is I think when we do tell people... View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Pharmaceutical

19 Oct 2022
Op-Ed

Cofounder Courtship: How to Find the Right Mate—for Your Startup

harm businesses more than help. Certainly, when a great match happens it can be magic, but just like any marriage, one should not enter the relationship rashly. When thinking about whether or not you need a cofounder, consider: How could... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Austin

28 May 2020
Research & Ideas

Coronavirus Could Create a 'Bankruptcy Pandemic'

many new cases arrive at the same time, companies could be much less well-served by the bankruptcy reorganization process.” What makes the current financial crisis unique is that the economic harm caused by forced shutdowns is being felt... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Financial Services; Banking

09 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Driven: How Human Nature Shapes Organizations

cutthroat competition or totally collusive bonding. Either extreme will harm the firm's performance. These swings can occur because each of the four drives was created by evolution to improve the odds of gene survival. When any one drive... View Details

Keywords: by Paul Lawrence & Nitin Nohria

05 Feb 2018
What Do You Think?

Should Companies Disclose Employee Compensation?

believes in a practice he calls “radical transparency.” That means “giving most everyone the ability to see most everything (to reduce) harmful office politics and the risks of bad behavior more likely to take place behind closed doors... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Financial Services

17 Nov 2016
Op-Ed

What's Behind the Unexpected Trump Support from Women

marginalized in our country will be harmed if the positions Trump has taken are translated into policy during his administration: Immigrant families, LGBTQ citizens, African Americans, Muslims and others are fearful that disparaging, even... View Details

Keywords: by Laura Morgan Roberts and Robin Ely

23 Aug 2021
Research & Ideas

Why White-Collar Crime Spiked in America After 9/11

cutbacks Previous studies have delved into the fact that the threat of prison time and fines can deter white-collar criminals from committing crimes that can greatly harm corporations, investors, and consumers alike, not to mention... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald

12 Aug 2020
Research & Ideas

Why Investors Often Lose When They Sue Their Financial Adviser

vulnerable, especially when they’ve been physically harmed by a product or service. Many people don’t realize that they’re waiving their right to sue in a US court when they sign contracts or click “Agree” to a company’s terms of service.... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Financial Services

01 Feb 2010
Research & Ideas

The ‘Luxury Prime’: How Luxury Changes People

executives on Wall Street. According to Chua, their research found that "people who were made to think about luxury prior to a decision-making task have a higher tendency to endorse self-interested decisions that might potentially View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert

Research Summary

Overview

Over the last decade, technology companies like Amazon, Google, and Netflix have pioneered data-driven research and development processes centered on massive experimentation. However, as companies increase the breadth and scale of their experiments to millions of... View Details

05 May 2020
Research & Ideas

China Tariffs and Coronavirus a Double Hit to American Retailers

the trade war,” Cavallo says. To the extent that tariffs exacerbate the cost of the pandemic, their continued application could further drag down the American economy, harming companies and consumers alike. In the end, companies may have... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

15 Sep 2021
Research & Ideas

Don't Bring Me Down: Probing Why People Tune Out Bad News

out negative information so they can plead ignorance and continue harmful behavior. Indeed, it may seem like people are purposely avoiding information to create an “excuse” that frees them from the accountability of their own decisions.... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

02 Mar 2021
HBS Case

The Tulsa Massacre: Is Racial Justice Possible 100 Years Later?

American history, yet descendants of residents harmed by the attack note that government officials have never made reparations for those killed or for homes and businesses that were destroyed. The killing of George Floyd by a police... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

01 Feb 2023
What Do You Think?

Will Hybrid Work Strategies Pull Down Long-Term Performance?

performed remotely without harming the organization, he tacitly agreed with CNBC pundits recently who jokingly labeled his views as a “back-to-work” strategy, especially for jobs influencing client relations in any way. In another... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

20 Jul 2021
Research & Ideas

Bankruptcy Spells Death for Too Many Businesses

reorganization, managers can steer firms into liquidations that harm junior creditors, employees, and customers. Under Section 363 of the US Bankruptcy Code, judges may grant that request without creditor consent if managers present a... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

25 Jul 2013
Research & Ideas

Why Unqualified Candidates Get Hired Anyway

information right in front of your eyes is not as helpful." Yet hope is not lost. Having identified the pervasive, often harmful effects of this universal error, the researchers' next steps will work toward formulating new methods of... View Details

Keywords: by Anna Secino; Education; Employment

24 Jan 2018
Research & Ideas

How to Get People Addicted to a Good Habit

understood by the theory of rational addiction—“a theory that fails to explain why addicts often regret their behavior or regard it as a mistake,” she says. But she found the framework, which has historically been applied only to harmful... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

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