Publications

2021
Working Paper

Connecting Expected Stock Returns to Accounting Valuation Multiples: A Primer

By: Akash Chattopadhyay, Matthew R. Lyle and Charles C.Y. Wang

We outline a framework in which accounting “valuation anchors" could be connected to expected stock returns. Under two general conditions, expected log returns is a log-linear function of a valuation (market value-to-accounting) multiple and the expected growth in the... View Details

Keywords: Expected Returns; Present Value; Investment Return; Accounting; Valuation; Information; Framework

SSRN

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17 Aug 2023
Research & Ideas

‘Not a Bunch of Weirdos’: Why Mainstream Investors Buy Crypto

ability to examine financial information and the decisions of crypto and non-crypto investors to make comparisons. The breadth of the data also allowed the team to compare crypto investing behavior to traditional investment vehicles by... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand

January 2022
Background Note

The Florange Law: Encouraging Long-Termism in Equity Markets?

By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Tonia Labruyere

This note provides background information on a French law (“the Florange law”) passed in 2014 that the French government said would encourage long-term shareholdings. The note describes the law, what led to it, the reactions it evoked, and similar initiatives in other... View Details

Keywords: Equity; Financial Markets; Investment Activism; Institutional Investing; Corporate Governance; Policy; Rights; Laws and Statutes; Business and Government Relations; Accounting Industry; France

2007
Report

From Insight to Action: New Directions in Foundation Evaluation

By: Mark R. Kramer, Rebecca W. Graves, Jason Hirschhorn and Leigh Fiske

The field of philanthropy is undergoing a fundamental transition and is moving toward more performance-centered and forward-looking evaluation approaches that provide foundations and grantees with timely information and actionable insights. Based on nearly 100... View Details

Keywords: Foundation Evaluation; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Performance Evaluation

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January 2018
Article

Innovation Incentives and Biomarkers

By: Ariel Dora Stern, Brian M. Alexander and Amitabh Chandra

Previously, we have discussed the importance of economic incentives in shaping markets for precision medicines. Here we consider incentives for biomarker development, including discovery and establishment. Biomarkers can reveal valuable information regarding diagnosis... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Innovation and Invention; Research and Development; Markets

Find at Harvard

February 2009 (Revised April 2011)
Course Overview Note

Growing, Financing, and Managing Family and Closely Held Firms

By: Belen Villalonga

This note provides instructors with an overview of the course, its module structure and its unifying framework. The note contains information that should only be available to instructors, and should not be distributed to students. A shorter version of the note for... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Corporate Finance

September 1992 (Revised July 1994)
Case

MEM Company, Inc.: English Leather

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Laura Goode

In 1992, the president of MEM (a producer of personal care products, including men's fragrances) considered a redeployment of field sales efforts and changes in sales compensation policies. Any changes, moreover, must consider the context of strategic decisions... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Consumer Behavior; Distribution Channels; Business Strategy; Consumer Products Industry

September 1998 (Revised May 2004)
Case

Becton Dickinson: Ethics and Business Practices (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine

Becton Dickinson's Global One-Company Operations Group must decide on the company's global policy on gifts, gratuities, and business entertainment. A central issue is whether the policy should be established centrally and made uniform worldwide or whether it should be... View Details

Keywords: Policy; Ethics; Law; Organizational Culture; Business Strategy; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Global Strategy; Trade; Business or Company Management

17 Feb 2016
News

Lean Strategy

November 2005 (Revised August 2006)
Case

John Whitehead: A Life in Leadership

By: William W. George and Andrew N. McLean

In 2005, John C. Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. (LMDC), confronts the collapse of a delicate agreement among business, government, and public interests in rebuilding on the World Trade Center site. Provides information on the leadership... View Details

Keywords: Education; Construction; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Biography; Leadership; Leadership Development; Agreements and Arrangements; Nonprofit Organizations

Research Summary

Engaging supply chains in climate change and sustainability issues

This research aims to develop a better understanding of the dynamics between supply chain partners in issues regarding climate change and sustainability. I am particularly interested in better understanding factors that motivate suppliers to share climate change... View Details

September 8, 2015
Article

Making Better Decisions in Your Family Business

By: Josh Baron, Rob Lachenauer and Sebastian Ehrensberger

Family businesses face complex decisions, from CEO succession to business strategies. A "four-room" model helps structure decision-making in these businesses: Owner Room (ownership goals and board election), Board Room (performance monitoring and CEO appointment),... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Decisions; Business Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Management Succession; Talent and Talent Management

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April–June 2015
Article

It Doesn't Matter If Competitors Know Your Strategy

By: Frank V. Cespedes

It is difficult for people to implement what they don't understand. Yet, research indicates that, on average, more than 50% of employees in organizations say they do not understand their organization's strategy. Further, the percentage of people reporting ignorance of... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Sales

May 2015
Case

Transforming Alkermes into a Global Biopharmaceutical Company

By: C. Fritz Foley and Nicholas Haas

In the summer of 2011, Jim Frates, CFO of Alkermes faced choices about how to finance the acquisition of Dublin, Ireland-based Elan Drug Technologies (EDT)—a deal that was expected to close in the fall. The case describes the history of Alkermes, provides information... View Details

Keywords: Financing; Debt; Merger; CFO; Financial Management; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; United States; Europe

March 2014 (Revised May 2016)
Technical Note

Angel Investments in Europe and Recent Developments in Crowdfunding

By: Lynda Applegate, Vincent Dessain, Emilie Billaud and Daniela Beyersdorfer

This technical note provides information on the evolution and current state of angel investing in Europe. The note first describes the role and types of angel investors, focusing on their investment preferences and practices. It then details the new trends in the... View Details

Keywords: Angel Investors; Crowdfunding; Financing and Loans; Investment; Financial Services Industry; Europe

2010
Working Paper

Overconfidence by Bayesian Rational Agents

By: Eric Van den Steen

This paper derives two mechanisms through which Bayesian-rational individuals with differing priors will tend to be relatively overconfident about their estimates and predictions, in the sense of overestimating the precision of these estimates. The intuition behind one... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Measurement and Metrics; Game Theory; Forecasting and Prediction