Publications

03 Oct 2023
Research Event

Build the Life You Want: Arthur Brooks and Oprah Winfrey Share Happiness Tips

can manage yourself. That's the key thing that we talk about. That's that's something, that's something that was actually impactful for you, wasn't it? Winfrey: Yes, because one of the, one of the challenges, especially when you're going... View Details

Keywords: by HBS Staff

November 2023 (Revised June 2025)
Case

Aviva plc: Examining Net Zero

By: Peter Tufano, Brian Trelstad and Matteo Gasparini

The board of Aviva Plc, one of the world’s largest insurers, must review its climate risk exposures and evaluate next steps. Risk experts at the firm have conducted a robust set of analyses prepared for its regulator, the Bank of England, simulating how various climate... View Details

Keywords: Analysis; Climate Change; Insurance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Risk Management; Adaptation; Financial Services Industry; Insurance Industry; Europe; United Kingdom

01 Nov 2021
What Do You Think?

How Long Does It Take to Improve an Organization’s Culture?

(iStockphoto/skynesher) Most CEOs recognize the power of organizational culture and the impact that it can have on the bottom line. They acknowledge the importance of shared values and behaviors that influence the way an organization... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

Research Summary

Reforming Social Science

By: Max H. Bazerman

Social science research affects all of us. When researchers learned organ donation rates are higher in countries where human organs are automatically available for donation unless you specifically “opt-out” of the system, as opposed to countries like the U.S., where... View Details

February 2024 (Revised February 2024)
Case

CLSA: Integrating ESG in Stock Valuation

By: Shirley Lu, Aaron Yoon and Billy Chan

In 2023, a senior financial analyst at the Hong Kong-based stock brokerage firm CLSA was surprised to see that, based on his calculations, the financial impact from climate risks on a major Indian cement manufacturing company’s projected earnings could be massive.... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Corporate Governance; Analysis; Stocks; Valuation; Environmental Sustainability; Financial Services Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Hong Kong; China; India; Asia

17 Jun 2010
Working Paper Summaries

When Do Analysts Add Value? Evidence from Corporate Spinoffs

Keywords: by Emilie Rose Feldman, Stuart C. Gilson & Belén Villalonga

January 2025
Case

Shifting Winds: DEI in Corporate America

By: Clayton S. Rose, Maisie Wiltshire-Gordon and David Lane

In the 2020s, intense and conflicting social and political pressures challenged organizational leaders around the world. Prominent among these were powerful competing views on workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion programs (DEI) in the United States. Public... View Details

20 Dec 2011
First Look

First Look: December 20

technological development offered by the Royal Agricultural Society of England at annual competitions between 1839 and 1939. We find that the effects of prizes on competitive entry are large, and we also detect an impact of the prizes on... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

12 Jul 2016
First Look

July 12, 2016

Calibrating the model to data from the Financial Accounts of the U.S., the optimal capital requirement is around 20%. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=51305 Bias in Official Fiscal Forecasts: Can... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

04 Feb 2013
Research & Ideas

Are the Big Four Audit Firms Too Big to Fail?

over flexibility goes too far, it could stifle innovation in accounting methodologies. This would have a negative impact on the ability of accounting information to facilitate... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Accounting

August 2005 (Revised April 2006)
Case

Kemps LLC: Introducing Time-Driven ABC

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Kemps is making a strategy shift: from being focused on fulfilling customer requests to becoming the best cost dairy producer in the industry. Its existing manufacturing cost system, however, fails to capture the costs associated with handling special flavors, small... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Customer Relationship Management; Cost Accounting; Managerial Roles; Cost Management; Earnings Management; Business Strategy; Time Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Teams; Decisions; Food and Beverage Industry

12 Sep 2023
What Do You Think?

Who Gets the Loudest Voice in DEI Decisions?

(AdobeStock/ Katleho S/peopleimages.com) Business leaders today face decisions of increasing complexity. They have to take into account far more than economics, in particular the increasing influence of matters under debate in the broader... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

17 Dec 2013
First Look

First Look: December 17

lower. One benefit of CDVCs may be their effect in bringing traditional VC investment to underserved regions: when we control for the presence of traditional VC investments, each additional CDVC investment results in an additional 0.06 new traditional VC firm in a... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

07 Jul 2009
First Look

First Look: July 7

advantage of an exogenous shock that occurred when the agency expanded the scope of its ratings. Our study is among the first to theorize about the impact of ratings on subsequent performance, and we introduce important contingencies that... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Mar 2008
Research & Ideas

The Lessons of Business History: A Handbook

Confined to specialist journals and books, business history research too often lacks the impact it should have on the research and practice of business management and the social sciences, according to the editors of the newly published... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

November 29, 2011
Article

The Role of The Board in Creating a Sustainable Strategy

By: Robert G. Eccles, Ioannis Ioannou and George Serafeim

While conceptually elegant, the belief that a corporation's role is to maximize value for shareholders is under increasing challenge as society's expectations for companies change. An equally elegant new concept that takes account of these dual pressures has yet to... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Corporate Strategy; Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance Expectations; Governing and Advisory Boards; Management Practices and Processes; Decisions; Risk and Uncertainty; Cost vs Benefits; Information