Publications

December 2017
Case

Piracy in Somalia (A)

By: Sophus A. Reinert and Alissa Davies

A Somali fisherman stands on a beach in early 2011, considering his options: should he embark in his tiny fishing vessel or join a nearby pirate crew? His war-ravaged country, entering its 20th year of civil war, was in the midst of a famine that had claimed hundreds... View Details

Keywords: Pirates; Foreign Aid; Civil War; Private Property; Human Rights; Economic Development; Globalization; War; Property; Crime and Corruption; Rights; Development Economics; Moral Sensibility; Shipping Industry; Somalia

06 Nov 2008
Op-Ed

Selling Out The American Dream

leveraging of assets, on irresponsible banks and mortgage brokers who fabricated applications for no downpayment home loans knowing that the risks could be readily laid off on unsuspecting third parties. But underpinning the collapse of the housing bubble is a... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch

May 2006 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2006

By: David B. Yoffie and Michael Slind

Examines the industry structure and competitive strategy of Coca-Cola and Pepsi over 100 years of rivalry. New challenges in 2006 include boosting flagging carbonated soft drink (CSD) sales and finding new revenue streams. Both firms also began to modify their... View Details

Keywords: History; Competitive Strategy; Industry Structures; Growth and Development Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

January 2002 (Revised January 2004)
Case

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in the Twenty-First Century

By: David B. Yoffie and Yusi Wang

Examines the industry structure and competitive strategy of Coca-cola and Pepsi over 100 years of rivalry. New challenges of the 21st century included boosting flagging domestic cola sales and finding new revenue streams. Both firms also began to modify their bottling,... View Details

Keywords: Price; Growth and Development; Brands and Branding; Emerging Markets; Industry Structures; Performance; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

25 Jan 2021
Book

In a Nutshell, Why American Capitalism Succeeded

civilization By Walter Friedman The thought of the United States becoming the world’s richest and most powerful nation would have been unimaginable at the time of the country’s founding. In 1783, at the end of the View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Manufacturing

February 2018 (Revised March 2018)
Case

ArcelorMittal and the Ebola Outbreak in Liberia

By: Sophus A. Reinert, Sarah Nam, Sisi Pan and Eric Werker

During the summer of 2014, Alan Knight, general manager of corporate responsibility at the integrated steel and mining company ArcelorMittal, observed the unfolding of an Ebola epidemic in Liberia and other countries in West Africa with great concern. On the one hand... View Details

22 Feb 2018
Book

The New History of American Capitalism

antebellum North and South into one narrative, for example, while scholars have attempted to integrate the West more broadly into an understanding of American capitalism. Similarly, issues raised by the history of capitalism transcend... View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing

Article

Considering Concessions: A Survey Experiment on the Colombian Peace Process

By: Aila M. Matanock and Natalia Garbiras-Díaz

Designing peace agreements that can be signed and sustained can be difficult in civil conflict. Many recent cases of successful settlements include electoral provisions, often for rebel groups to participate as political parties. Engaging the electoral process,... View Details

Keywords: Peace Process; Political Parties; Politics; Government; Agreements; Political Backlash; Political Discourse; Civil Unrest; Civil War; Political Issues; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Government and Politics; Policy; Conflict and Resolution; Latin America; Colombia

Find at Harvard

28 Feb 2005
Research & Ideas

Amazon, eBay and the Bidding Wars

until at least 10 minutes have passed without a bid. Q: In your study of eBay, how much sniping was going on, and what categories or products were most likely to be sniped? A: In the eBay data we collected for our 2002 American Economics... View Details

Keywords: by Sara Grant; Web Services; Technology

02 Aug 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Discrimination, Disenfranchisement and African American WWII Military Enlistment

Keywords: by Nancy Qian and Marco Tabellini

25 Apr 2005
Research & Ideas

New Learning at American Home Products

The success of American Home Products reflects a unique path of learning. The company originated with the merger of several companies in related businesses. During the seventy years following its formation in 1926, the company's senior... View Details

Keywords: by Alfred D. Chandler Jr.; Chemical; Health; Manufacturing; Pharmaceutical

September 2016
Background Note

A Brief History of African American Leaders in Unions and the Labor Movement

By: Steven Rogers and Mercer Cook

This historically focused background note highlights the role of African American Labor Leaders in both the Labor Movement and the Civil Rights Movement. In doing so, it attempts to both highlight these noteworthy individuals and demonstrate the innate connection... View Details

Keywords: Wages; Working Conditions; Political History; Social History; Economic History; Business History; Fairness; Moral Sensibility; Labor And Management Relations; Social Issues; Culture; Equality And Inequality; Rights; Leading Change; Race; Civil Society or Community; Labor Unions

12 Apr 2004
Research & Ideas

What Great American Leaders Teach Us

and study of the Great American Business Leaders database. The project identified and analyzed the accomplishments of some 860 top executives in the 20th century, and results are now starting to emerge. A portion of the database is free... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

2016
Book

Slavery's Capitalism: A New History of American Economic Development

By: Sven Beckert and Seth Rockman

During the nineteenth century, the United States entered the ranks of the world's most advanced and dynamic economies. At the same time, the nation sustained an expansive and brutal system of human bondage. This was no mere coincidence. Slavery's Capitalism... View Details

Keywords: History; Development Economics; Ethics; Social Issues; United States

Find at Harvard

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

06 Feb 2012
Research & Ideas

Kodak: A Parable of American Competitiveness

high-tech products could only be found in the United States. These successes were due in large part to government investment in basic science research and mass production. "During World War II, the View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Manufacturing

16 Nov 2009
Research & Ideas

The Times Captures History of American Business

encompassed other important inflection points. The end of the Civil War was one. The onset of the Great Depression was another. So, too, was the close of World War II. In each... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Journalism & News

December 2017
Supplement

Piracy in Somalia (B)

By: Sophus A. Reinert and Alissa Davies

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Piracy; Foreign Aid; Civil War; Private Property; Human Rights; Economic Development; Globalization; War; Property; Crime and Corruption; Rights; Development Economics; Moral Sensibility; Somalia