shareholder value - Publications - Faculty & Research

04 May 2021
Book

Best Buy: How Human Connection Saved a Failing Retailer

shareholders and is a money-making machine,” he says. “But no, a company is a human organization made up of individuals working together in pursuit of a goal.” Leading with purpose and humanity Based on his own track record in... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Retail

18 Aug 2022
Op-Ed

Your Best Employees Are Burning Out: A Framework for Retaining Talent

the 1970s and enjoyed the roaring ‘90s, only to experience the dot.com bust, followed by the financial crisis in 2008. The need for employees to job-hop, along with the corporation’s requirement to increase value for View Details

Keywords: by Hise Gibson and MaShon Wilson

Web

The Role of Leaders - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

employees and shareholders look at the company. In many companies, leadership has degenerated into orchestrating operational improvements and making deals. But the leader’s role is broader and far more important. General management is... View Details

24 Apr 2017
Op-Ed

Op-Ed: Courage: The Defining Characteristic of Great Leaders

Polman immediately wheeled into action, convincing KHC to drop its bid two days later. Then he announced seven bold moves to enhance shareholder value without compromising the company’s ambitious long-term... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Auto; Food & Beverage

21 Mar 2019
HBS Case

The Ferrari Way

company was run in a more casual way, with a great deal of informality,” he says. Being accountable to shareholders caused Ferrari to have to get serious about setting performance targets and professionalizing its organizational chart.... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Auto

11 Mar 2024
Blog Post

A Day in the Life: Ben Hsieh

there were several compelling arguments on why companies should only focus on shareholder value. Since many of my close friends’ progressive values mirror mine, I’m grateful to have exposure to differing... View Details

12 Dec 2005
Research & Ideas

Using the Law to Strategic Advantage

"bridge the communications gap" between lawyers and managers. Sean Silverthorne: You argue that managers shouldn't just view the law as a compliance issue, but rather something that can be used actively to increase the firm's View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Legal Services

Web

Curriculum - Business & Environment

Acquisitions, Value Creation Under Polman's leadership, Unilever focused on long-term shareholder value accretion with a multi-stakeholder approach that emphasized global... View Details

12 Nov 2001
Research & Ideas

The Three Components of Family Governance

strengthening business-family communication and bond. A family constitution—the family's policies and guiding vision and values that regulate members' relationship with the business. This written document can be short or long, detailed or... View Details

22 Nov 2023
News

So You Want to Join a Startup

are, what are you good at? What are you interested in? What are your passions? Where do you think you can add value to an organization? And I touch on the general topic of, are you a startup person and what does it mean to work in a... View Details

09 Feb 2009
Research & Ideas

Uncompromising Leadership in Tough Times

purpose than simply profit and increasing stock price, though they were all laser-focused on profitability and saw it as essential to achieving their larger purpose for the firm. They had a multi-stakeholder view of the firm as opposed as a View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

04 Apr 2023
What Do You Think?

How Does Remote Work Affect Innovation?

they have decided to give up their weekend to come up with a better idea? Would they have agreed to break the routine of Mondays working remotely to share their response in the relative privacy of the office (vs. online)? Would the five even be sharing the same View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

08 Nov 2011
First Look

First Look: Nov. 8

the value of shareholder proxy access. We find that firms that would have been most vulnerable to proxy access, as measured by institutional ownership and activist institutional ownership in particular, lost... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

26 May 2022
HBS Case

Apple vs. Feds: Is iPhone Privacy a Basic Human Right?

would embroil the company in an ugly fight—one that risked alienating some shareholders—but he felt strongly that Apple should champion its customers’ basic human right to privacy. “We believe that a company that has values and acts on... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

23 Mar 2023
Research & Ideas

As Climate Fears Mount, More Investors Turn to 'ESG' Funds Despite Few Rules

Investor interest in social responsibility has skyrocketed in the past three years, even as US regulations to hold companies accountable remain in flux and the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) label itself draws backlash. Investors are willing to pay a... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Financial Services

07 Jul 2003
Research & Ideas

4+2 = Sustained Business Success

maintain a total return to shareholders greater than their industry peers for more than ten years. And so, it seems, there is value in being reminded from time to time what really works. Excel At Four... View Details

Keywords: by Nitin Nohria, William Joyce & Bruce Roberson

04 Apr 2023
Book

Two Centuries of Business Leaders Who Took a Stand on Social Issues

While shareholders still reign supreme at many companies, a widespread shift toward more responsible business practices is driving more leaders to take a stand on social and environmental issues today, says Harvard Business School Professor Geoffrey Jones. Jones... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Consumer Products; Fashion; Retail; Green Technology

21 Apr 2015
First Look

First Look: April 21

competitive system. April 2015 Strategic Management Journal The Throne vs. the Kingdom: Founder Control and Value Creation in Startups By: Wasserman, Noam Abstract—Does the degree to which founders keep control of their startups affect... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel & Sean Silverthorne

28 Jun 2022
Book

The Moral Enterprise: How Two Companies Profit with Purpose

How can government and business work together in this fractious political moment, when finding solutions to pressing problems like inequality and climate change are more urgent than ever? Rebecca Henderson, Harvard University’s John and Natty McArthur University... View Details