Publications

22 Jul 2002
Research & Ideas

How Business Strategy Tamed the “Invisible Hand”

clearer in the second half of the nineteenth century. In the United States, the building of the railroads after 1850 led to the development of mass markets for the first time. Along with improved access to capital and credit, mass markets... View Details

Keywords: by Pankaj Ghemawat

February 2002 (Revised February 2003)
Case

Remaking the Rainbow Nation: South Africa 2002

By: Rawi E. Abdelal, Debora L. Spar and Katherine E. Cousins

In April 1994, the world witnessed a political milestone in South Africa. After decades of repression and racial segregation, South Africa's black majority came to power at last, as the African National Congress (ANC), led by the celebrated Nelson Mandela, rode into... View Details

Keywords: Development Economics; Race; Political Elections; Economic Growth; Business and Government Relations; South Africa

21 Jun 2010
Research & Ideas

Strategy and Execution for Emerging Markets

Emerging markets such as the BRIC countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—entice and intimidate. When managers are asked what is special about emerging markets, they typically point to rapid economic growth, potential competitors, and... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

Forthcoming
Article

The Evolution of Financial Services in the United States

By: Robin Greenwood, Robert Ialenti and David Scharfstein

This article surveys the literature on the historical growth and transformation of the U.S. financial sector. The sector expanded rapidly between 1980 until 2006, when its contribution to GDP rose from 4.8% to 7.6%. After the Global Financial Crisis, the size of the... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Financial Institutions; Financial Markets; Growth and Development; Economic Sectors

Read Now

22 Oct 2012
Research & Ideas

Not Your Father’s State-Run Capitalism

the world has many shades of gray." Over the past several decades, thousands of companies have been privatized in both the developed world and emerging markets. While every company in the former Soviet Union was once state-owned, now only... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

March 2003 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Botswana: A Diamond in the Rough

By: Laura Alfaro, Debora L. Spar, Faheen Allibhoy and Vinati Dev

In the years since independence, tiny, landlocked Botswana has gone from being one of the world's poorest nations to becoming a stable, prosperous state, blessed with the highest sustained growth rate in the world. This case highlights the role that foreign direct... View Details

Keywords: Foreign Direct Investment; Growth and Development Strategy; Economic Growth; Natural Environment; Developing Countries and Economies; Botswana

January 2006 (Revised July 2006)
Case

Drug Testing in Nigeria (A)

By: Debora L. Spar

In 1996, a meningitis epidemic swept across Nigeria. Thousands of children were struck and, lacking appropriate medicine, were liable to die from the disease. Doctors at Pfizer had an antibiotic that could probably save most of these children's lives. The drug was new,... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Health Pandemics; Health Testing and Trials; Developing Countries and Economies; Pharmaceutical Industry; Nigeria

November 2001 (Revised November 2001)
Supplement

Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Project

By: Benjamin C. Esty

Spreadsheet to (9-201-068). Download only. View Details

Keywords: International Finance; Emerging Markets; Developing Countries and Economies; Energy Industry

16 Aug 2017
Research & Ideas

Researchers Use Google Street View to See the Future of Cities

improvement and offer new methods to city planners and real estate developers looking to identify areas in need of improvement. The collaborators reveal their findings in a May 2017 paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Real Estate

25 Jan 2018
News

A Whole New Game

According to research compiled by the Federal Reserve, cities, not suburbs, are now the leading generators of US economic growth. From 2010 to 2016, urban populations grew faster than those in the suburbs, reversing a nearly 70-year-old... View Details

22 Sep 2014
Op-Ed

Online Banks Fill Funding Needs for Small Business

always been alternative forms of loan capital available, including credit unions, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), merchant cash advances, equipment leasing and factoring products. “Alternative players have the... View Details

Keywords: by Karen Mills; Banking; Financial Services

09 Jan 2019
Research & Ideas

The UK Needs a Bold Strategy Around Competition to Survive Brexit

is that the membership in the European Union has too often been a convenient scapegoat and distracted from the failure of government to mount a credible and actionable economic strategy. Hit hard by the 2008 View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

01 Oct 2000
News

Three Promoted to Full Professor

public organizations that manage natural resources, and the economics of environmental protection. Reinhardt is the author of Down to Earth: Applying Business Principles to Environmental Management, published by HBS Press this year. He... View Details

13 Dec 2022
News

The First Five Years: Christine Keung and Reggie Smith

Christine Keung (at podium) and Reginald Smith (both MBA 2020) present recommendations for economic development to the West Virginia State Senate in May 2022. How did you meet? Reggie Smith: "We first met... View Details

14 Oct 2019
Working Paper Summaries

Undisclosed Debt Sustainability

Keywords: by Laura Alfaro and Fabio Kanczuk

January 2018
Technical Note

Business at the Base of the Pyramid: Understanding Impact and Impact Evaluations

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Tricia Gregg

Unlike financial success, there is no clear consensus regarding how best to define and measure social impact. This HBS Technical Note written for students of the HBS MBA course Business at the Base of the Pyramid (BBOP), offers readers pragmatic perspectives on how the... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Social Issues; Value Creation; Human Needs; Performance Evaluation

January 2008 (Revised March 2008)
Supplement

Mayhem on Madison (B)

By: A. Eugene Kohn and David Lane

Explains the approvals and construction process for a building to be constructed against neighborhood opposition above an operating bank branch in New York City. View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Development Economics; Business and Community Relations; Conflict and Resolution; Urban Development; Real Estate Industry; New York (city, NY)