Publications

Find at Harvard

March 2024
Case

Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Personalization

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

“Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Personalization” (HBS No. 524-052) investigates algorithmic bias in marketing through four case studies featuring Apple, Uber, Facebook, and Amazon. Each study presents scenarios where these companies faced public criticism for... View Details

Keywords: Race; Gender; Marketing; Diversity; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Customization and Personalization; Technology Industry; Retail Industry; United States

02 Aug 2024
HBS Case

How a Mission to Cut Food Waste Launched a Multimillion-Dollar Venture

example of the growing number of social entrepreneurs whose credo is “putting purpose before profit,” as Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer and serial entrepreneur Reza Satchu chronicles in a 2024 case study, “Flashfood: The Magic of... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Technology; Information Technology

October 2023 (Revised December 2023)
Case

Compound: Lending on the Blockchain

By: Marco Di Maggio, George Gonzalez and Richard Dulude

This case critically examines Compound, an innovative decentralized finance (DeFi) platform. Focusing on Compound’s blockchain-based borrowing and lending protocol, the case explores its automated, intermediary-free system using Ethereum smart contracts. This system... View Details

Keywords: Blockchain; Cryptocurrency; Disruptive Innovation; Borrowing and Debt; Financing and Loans; Organizational Design; Technological Innovation

March 2023 (Revised November 2023)
Module Note

The Social Purpose of the Firm

By: Debora L. Spar and Julia M. Comeau

The Social Purpose of the Firm (SPF) is a short module designed to explore how, and under what circumstances, business leaders can harness the power of capitalism and markets to “make a difference in the world” – that is, to address a significant societal problem as a... View Details

Keywords: Social Accounting; Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Social Enterprise; Mission and Purpose; United States; Sweden; Kenya; Netherlands

October 2021
Article

Directors' Perceptions of Board Effectiveness and Internal Operations

By: J. Yo-Jud Cheng, Boris Groysberg, Paul M. Healy and Rajesh Vijayaraghavan

We contribute to the growing literature on the effectiveness of corporate boards by examining the effect of two insights that have been largely unexplored in prior studies that use public data. First, since boards’ responsibilities are wide-ranging, more holistic... View Details

Keywords: Boards Of Directors; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Performance Effectiveness; Perception

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May 2023
Course Overview Note

Space: Public and Commercial Economics (SPACE)

By: Matthew C. Weinzierl

SPACE is a course with two goals: to use the tools of economics to better understand the rapidly evolving space sector, and to train the next generation of commercial space leaders. We pursue these goals through a systematic study of the growing space economy,... View Details

Keywords: Industry Growth; Aerospace Industry

May 2018 (Revised June 2018)
Case

Ashar Group: Brokers and Co-opetition in the Life Settlement Industry

By: Alexander Braun, Lauren H. Cohen, Christopher J. Malloy and Jiahua Xu

Connecting life insurance policyholders with potential investors (called Life Settlement Providers), Ashar Group plays a pivotal role in the industry. Its current position is, however, increasingly being challenged by consumer-direct models, led by major providers... View Details

Keywords: Insurance; Investment; Markets; Competitive Strategy; Cooperation; Financial Services Industry

November 1990 (Revised June 1991)
Case

Final Voyage of the Challenger

Provides a summary of technical and organizational details that led to the decision to launch the Challenger Space Shuttle, and to the ensuing accident. Details of design and testing milestones of the Space Shuttle, with a focus on the Solid Rocket Booster, offer... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Risk Management; Ethics; Decision Choices and Conditions; Business Processes; Aerospace Industry; United States

28 May 2013
Research & Ideas

Can LEGO Snap Together a Future in Asia?

unique opportunity to study strategy in the making when she headed to the company's Denmark headquarters last year. The case study The LEGO Group: Envisioning Risks in Asia,... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard; Entertainment & Recreation

22 Jun 2017
Cold Call Podcast

ShotSpotter: A Gunfire Detection Business Looks for a New Market

Keywords: Re: Mitchell B. Weiss; Technology

2021
Article

Fundraising for Stigmatized Groups: A Text Message Donation Experiment

By: Katerina Linos, Laura Jakli and Melissa Carlson

As government welfare programming contracts and NGOs increasingly assume core aid functions, they must address a long-standing challenge—that people in need often belong to stigmatized groups. To study other-regarding behavior, we fielded an experiment through a... View Details

Keywords: Demographics; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Communication Strategy; Civil Society or Community; Non-Governmental Organizations; Welfare; Greece

March 2022
Article

Revealing Corruption: Firm and Worker Level Evidence from Brazil

By: Emanuele Colonnelli, Spyridon Lagaras, Jacopo Ponticelli, Mounu Prem and Margarita Tsoutsoura

We study how the disclosure of corrupt practices affects the growth of firms involved in illegal interactions with the government using randomized audits of public procurement in Brazil. On average, firms exposed by the anti-corruption program grow larger after the... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Corporate Disclosure; Business Growth and Maturation; Brazil

Read Now

20 Dec 2018
Cold Call Podcast

Using Fintech to Disrupt Eastern Bank from Within

Keywords: Banking; Financial Services

Research Summary

Consumers, Corporations and Public Health

By: John A. Quelch

Professor Quelch is developing a series of case studies on the role and responsibilities of corporations in solving public health problems, both in the United States and worldwide. View Details

19 Nov 2007
Lessons from the Classroom

Teaching The Moral Leader

taught the course. First introduced to HBS in the late 1980s by Harvard psychiatrist and educator Robert Coles, The Moral Leader uses literature to study moral decision-making and leadership. Individual faculty teach the course using... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Education

16 May 2016
HBS Case

Food Safety Economics: The Cost of a Sick Customer

parasites, or chemicals to consumers. In 2010, 582 million cases of 22 different foodborne diseases resulted in 351,000 deaths worldwide, with salmonella, E.coli, and norovirus resulting in the greatest number of fatalities, according to... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Food & Beverage

February 2021
Case

Rolex SA

By: Doug J. Chung

Rolex SA was one of the most successful watchmakers in the world. In recent years, the global demand for Rolex watches, especially the stainless-steel sports models, had dramatically increased, resulting in a supply shortage worldwide. The shortage in supply further... View Details

Keywords: Watches; Pricing; Marketing; Strategy; Demand and Consumers; Price; Marketing Channels