Publications

12 Aug 2020
Research & Ideas

Why Investors Often Lose When They Sue Their Financial Adviser

rulings, allowing them to eliminate arbitrators that might sympathize with customers. However, many consumers “have no idea who these arbitrators are. They’re just names on a list,” Egan says. “But the firms know each one of these... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Financial Services

22 Feb 2018
Book

The New History of American Capitalism

property come into being and inflect material and ideological life. The study of finance as a concept constructed by law and naturalized by economics is one theme that the new history of American capitalism emphasizes and that exemplifies... View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing

February 2008 (Revised September 2010)
Case

Enterprise Culture in Chinese History: Zhang Jian and the Dasheng Cotton Mills

By: Elisabeth Koll

This case focuses on the legal and managerial evolution of limited-liability firms in China, using the example of the Dasheng cotton mills in Nantong near Shanghai. Dasheng, one of the earliest and most successful industrial enterprises in pre-war China, was founded by... View Details

Keywords: History; Law; Organizational Culture; Family Ownership; State Ownership; Corporate Governance; Financial Crisis; Business and Government Relations; Entrepreneurship; Change; Manufacturing Industry; Shanghai; China

01 Feb 2007
Working Paper Summaries

Noncompetes and Inventor Mobility: Specialists, Stars, and the Michigan Experiment

Keywords: by Matt Marx, Deborah Strumsky & Lee Fleming

11 Jun 2018
Research & Ideas

Why South Korea's Samsung Built the Only Outdoor Skating Rink in Texas

once its suits changed venue, Samsung dropped its holiday sponsorships like so much Christmas coal.) “I think what we are seeing is just the tip of the iceberg” “We saw the lengths that Samsung was going through to curry favor in Marshall,” he says. “It got us... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Legal Services

26 Sep 2006
First Look

First Look: September 26, 2006

the economy that have occurred during the same time and argue that they are consistent with an increased use of information technology (IT) in general and enterprise information technology in particular. In a series of case studies, we find that IT can enable View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

02 Aug 2021
Research & Ideas

What If Closing the Wage Gap Means Everyone Earns Less?

companies an advantage in salary negotiations. Interestingly, union workers’ wages remained higher. When Cullen broke out firms whose employees aren’t typically union members, she found their salaries dropped by 3.2 percent three years... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

Article

Exclusivity, Contingent Control Rights, and the Design of Internet Portal Alliances

By: Josh Lerner and Dan Elfenbein

We explore the relationship between exclusivity and state-contingent control rights using a sample of over 100 Internet portal alliance contracts. We find that stronger exclusivity arrangements are associated with more frequent usage of contingent control rights. For... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Contracts; Governance Controls; Internet and the Web; Ownership

Find at Harvard

09 Jun 2008
Lessons from the Classroom

Monetizing IP: The Executive’s Challenge

country is substantial, so it is hard to generalize. But it is clear that intellectual property laws are not a cure-all. In many cases, rivals can "patent around" even the broadest award, and copyright View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Video Game; Web Services

13 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

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

another so that they can deal with that incoming. Neeley: Whether it's inside of their workplace or outside? Frazier: Yes. For me, it was always broader. I was a lawyer in a law firm in Philadelphia, But I... View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Pharmaceutical

October 2016
Case

The Quiet Ascension of LA Fitness

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In 2016, LA Fitness was the largest chain of non-franchised fitness clubs in North America, operating 676 clubs, serving 4.9 million members, and generating revenues of over $1.9 billion. Founded by Chinyol Yi, Louis Welch, and Paul Norris in 1984, the privately held... View Details

Keywords: LA Fitness; Health Clubs; Fitness; Gyms; Chain; Exercise; Personal Training; Retention; Bally Total Fitness; 24 Hour Fitness; Planet Fitness; Buildings and Facilities; Acquisition; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; For-Profit Firms; Customers; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Demographics; Age; Gender; Income; Residency; Borrowing and Debt; Capital; Capital Structure; Cash; Cash Flow; Cost; Private Equity; Financial Condition; Financial Liquidity; Financing and Loans; Investment Return; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Business History; Employees; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Human Capital; Contracts; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Operations; Service Operations; Leasing; Private Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Sales; Salesforce Management; Situation or Environment; Opportunities; Sports; Strategy; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Mobile Technology; Technology Platform; Health Industry; United States; California; Los Angeles

04 Nov 2013
Research & Ideas

The Real Cost of Bribery

The World Bank estimates that the equivalent of $1 trillion is offered in bribes every year. In the age of globalization, it's easy to see how giving into bribery might be competitively advantageous. In fact, research by Harvard Business School's Paul M. Healy and... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

17 Jun 2008
First Look

First Look: June 17, 2008

loans to small firms and those with more "soft information"—particularly in states with weak legal enforcement of financial contracts. However, decentralized banks are also more responsive to the competitive environment when... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

August 2002 (Revised July 2003)
Case

LAE Enterprises Corp.

Jay Entrepreneur had to decide whether it was worth his time to plow through a 12-page term sheet for a Series A round of preferred stock prepared by HBS Investors, a well-established venture capital firm that did seed, early-round, and mezzanine financings. He could... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Contracts; Decision Choices and Conditions; Business Startups; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry