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15 May 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, May 15, 2018

May–June 2018 Harvard Business Review The Surprising Power of Questions By: Brooks, Alison Wood, and Leslie K. John Abstract—Much of an executive’s workday is spent asking others for information—requesting status updates from a team leader, for example, View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Forthcoming
Article

Organizational Emplacement as a Response to Digital Threat: The Novel Resurgence of Independent Bookstores

By: Ryan Raffaelli and Ryann Noe

This study reveals how incumbent actors leverage physical place as source of differentiation in response to the threat of digital commoditization. Through a longitudinal, qualitative analysis of the U.S. independent bookselling industry from 1995 to 2019, we outline... View Details

Keywords: Retail; Place Making; Bookstores; Industry Evolution; Digital; Commoditization; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Digital Transformation; E-commerce; Distribution Channels; Civil Society or Community; Value Creation; Retail Industry

December 1997
Case

California: The American Future?

By: Bruce R. Scott and Kevin Price

California has long been a lead state in terms of population growth, income, and societal norms. In the 1990s, California voters approved referenda to restrict benefits to immigrants and to prohibit affirmative action. Is this likely to be another leading indicator for... View Details

Keywords: Fairness; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Laws and Statutes; Civil Society or Community; Public Opinion; California

24 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

Five Questions for Debora L. Spar

privacy online, and their property as well. So even though the technology may change, it doesn't necessarily bring everything in society along with it. Q: Is there anything about the Internet that is different from past innovations such... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

September 2007
Case

Still Leading (B4): Lee Iacocca—Driving Impact

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Lance P. Pierce

Lee Iacocca, a successful CEO of an auto company, devoted himself after retirement to several social causes. Describes issues in the transition. View Details

Keywords: Transition; Transformation; Retirement; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Civil Society or Community; Auto Industry

June 2013
Teaching Note

A Politician in a Leather Suit and the Paradox of Japanese Capitalism

By: Karthik Ramanna

Two lost decades later, capitalism in Japan embodies peculiar contradictions—preserving wealth and social stability in the face of declining economic power. Scant transparency in Japanese corporate practices plays an important role in this phenomenon. Sometimes... View Details

Keywords: Japan; Tokyo; Economic Systems; Corporate Accountability; Values and Beliefs; Fairness; Crime and Corruption; Civil Society or Community; Corporate Governance; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Tokyo

21 Jul 2006
Op-Ed

Enron Jury Sent the Right Message

at the end of the day, we are a principles-based society rather than a rules-based society, even though rules and referees are important. Enron's senior management straddled many gradations of ethical and legal behavior. At one end of the... View Details

Keywords: by Malcolm S. Salter

03 Dec 2018
Research & Ideas

How Companies Can Increase Market Rewards for Sustainability Efforts

flavijus For the first time, a link has been drawn between public sentiment about a company’s sustainability practices and how that company is valued in the market. The results are important both for investors searching for under-valued, socially responsible companies,... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

November 2012 (Revised August 2013)
Case

A Politician in a Leather Suit and the Paradox of Japanese Capitalism

By: Karthik Ramanna and Matthew Shaffer

Two lost decades later, capitalism in Japan embodies peculiar contradictions—preserving wealth and social stability in the face of declining economic power. Scant transparency in Japanese corporate practices plays an important role in this phenomenon. Sometimes... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Economic Systems; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Fairness; Values and Beliefs; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Civil Society or Community; Japan; Tokyo

21 Aug 2012
First Look

First Look: August 21

Firms Greenwash? Corporate Visibility, Civil Society Scrutiny, and Environmental Disclosure Authors:Christopher Marquis and Michael W. Toffel Abstract Under increased pressure to report environmental... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

16 May 2018
Research & Ideas

How Companies Managed Risk (and Even Benefitted) in World War Internment Camps

problems. Yet, they also enjoyed unexpected benefits, including plenty of networking and after-war opportunities for the tight community of German businesspeople in India. "The business implications of View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Manufacturing

14 Nov 2012
Research & Ideas

New Agenda for Corporate Accountability Reporting

community activists? When and how does such reporting affect how managers make decisions in ways that increase or decrease shareholder value? What are the main welfare effects of corporate accountability... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Accounting; Energy; Utilities

23 Oct 2007
First Look

First Look: October 23, 2007

board accountability through greater transparency in decision making, more representative vote allocation, or better parliamentary scrutiny. In other words, although civil View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 2020
Teaching Plan

Girls Who Code

By: Brian Trelstad and Amy Klopfenstein

This teaching plan serves as a supplement to HBS Case No. 320-055, “Girls Who Code.” Founded 2012 by former lawyer Reshma Saujani, Girls Who Code (GWC) offered coding education programs to middle- and high school-aged girls. The organization also sought to alter... View Details

March 2022 (Revised November 2022)
Case

When Should CEOs Speak Out Publicly? The 2021 Georgia Voting Law

By: William W. George, Hubert Joly and Amram Migdal

This case describes the March 2021 passage of a voting and elections law in the U.S. state of Georgia and reactions by corporations and corporate leaders to the law. Included are a brief history of voting rights in the United States and Georgia and an overview of the... View Details