Publications

Third Quarter 2018
Article

Why and How Investors Use ESG Information: Evidence from a Global Survey

By: Amir Amel-Zadeh and George Serafeim

Using survey data from a sample of senior investment professionals from mainstream (i.e., not SRI funds) investment organizations, we provide insights into why and how investors use reported environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. Relevance to... View Details

Keywords: ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Sustainability; Investment Management; Investment Strategy; Metrics; Standard Setting; Accounting Standards; Finance; Investment; Information; Environmental Sustainability; Governance; Performance Effectiveness; Strategy

SSRN

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27 Mar 2013
News

Wells Fargo Investment Unit Paid Board Member’s Son $1.4 Million

14 Apr 2015
News

The Type of Socially Responsible Investments That Make Firms More Profitable

March 2018 (Revised March 2018)
Teaching Note

OpenInvest

By: Boris Vallee and Caitlin Reimers Brumme

Founded by a team of hedge fund and NGO alumni, OpenInvest launched its platform in 2015 to enable retail investors to tailor their portfolio to their personal values in an automated way, for instance by screening out weapon manufacturers stocks or overweighting LGBTQ... View Details

Keywords: Socially Responsible Investing; Investing For Impact; Robo-advisors; Investment; Values and Beliefs; Customization and Personalization; Technology; Financial Services Industry

September 2021 (Revised October 2021)
Case

Dream: Impact Through Real Estate

By: Michael Chu and John Masko

The Canadian city of Toronto had one of the largest housing affordability problems of any city in the developed world. One company trying to address this problem was Dream, one of the largest real estate groups in Canada. In 2021, Dream had just launched a new system... View Details

2023
Book

Deeply Responsible Business.: A Global History of Values-Driven Leadership

By: Geoffrey Jones

Corporate social responsibility has entered the mainstream, but what does it take to run a successful purpose-driven business? This book examines leaders who put values alongside profits to showcase the challenges and upside of deeply responsible business. Should... View Details

04 Nov 2022
News

Vikram Gandhi At India Today Conclave |Save Planet Earth: ESG & The Reality Of Sustainable Investing

January 2015 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Omar Selim: Building a Values-Based Asset Management Firm (A)

By: George Serafeim, Rebecca Henderson and Shannon Gombos

The sustainable investing market was a recent phenomenon in the first decade of the 21st century. However, an increasing number of investors began to integrated Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues in investment decisions. At Barclays Capital, Omar Selim... View Details

17 Apr 2022
Book

How to Avoid the 'Ethical Slide' That Leads Companies Astray

Nelson says. They will seek them out, be willing to take less money, push innovation, and be more committed than to other companies. “Ethics are an enormous competitive advantage in every way,” she says. “Savvy companies understand this, and View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

July 2012
Case

Barclays Capital and the Sale of Del Monte Foods

By: John Coates, Clayton Rose and David Lane

This case explores the reputational and legal issues that arise as Barclays Capital attempted to manage client conflicts by following established industry practice in the face of changing legal norms. In February 2011, Judge Travis Laster granted a preliminary... View Details

Keywords: Client Management; Fiduciary Duty; Mergers ＆ Acquisitions; Investment Banking; Private Equity; Ethics; Finance; Reputation; Banking Industry; United States

October–December 2015
Article

Reducing Bounded Ethicality: How to Help Individuals Notice and Avoid Unethical Behavior

By: Ting Zhang, Pinar O. Fletcher, Francesca Gino and Max H. Bazerman

Research on ethics has focused on the factors that help individuals act ethically when they are tempted to cheat. However, we know little about how best to help individuals notice unethical behaviors in others and in themselves. This paper identifies a solution:... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Management Skills; Behavior; Perception

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07 Jul 2008
Research & Ideas

Innovation Corrupted: How Managers Can Avoid Another Enron

"In the end, Enron was at the center of a truly delinquent society. Once Enron's ethical drift took hold, its collapse was only a matter of time," says HBS professor emeritus Malcolm S. Salter. As he explains in this Q&A and... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Energy; Utilities

December 1987 (Revised May 1991)
Case

One Leather Street

By: William J. Poorvu and Jeffrey A. Libert

Presents a problem involving rehabilitating a small office building in Boston. Describes an investment decision which is knowingly underfunded. As construction proceeds, the developer realizes that it is not up to building code and faces difficult business and ethical... View Details

Keywords: Financial Management; Ethics; Investment; Decisions; Decision Choices and Conditions; Property; Real Estate Industry; Construction Industry; Boston

2021
Working Paper

Spiritual Philanthropy in Emerging Markets

By: Valeria Giacomin and G. Jones

This working paper discusses the ethics and drivers of philanthropic foundations in emerging markets. A foundation organizes assets to invest in philanthropic initiatives. Previous scholarship has largely focused on developed countries, especially the United States,... View Details

Keywords: Foundations; Philanthropy; Business Leaders; Spirituality; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Emerging Markets; Ethics; Values and Beliefs

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04 Jan 2018
News

How to Monetize Happiness

August 2011 (Revised October 2015)
Case

Boardroom Battle Behind Bars: Gome Electrical Appliances Holdings—A Corporate Governance Drama

By: William C. Kirby and Tracy Yuen Manty

Despite widespread news of the incarceration of Gome Electronics' CEO, Huang Guangyu, Bain Capital felt they carefully undertook due diligence before making a significant investment in the company. The venture capital firm was confident that it and the current... View Details

Keywords: China; Legal Aspects Of Business; Corruption; Risk; Corporate Governance; Crime and Corruption; Power and Influence; Risk Management; Business and Shareholder Relations; Venture Capital; Ethics; Governing and Advisory Boards; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Values and Beliefs; Private Equity; China

03 Sep 2020
News

Social-Impact Efforts That Create Real Value

September 2022
Article

Drivers of Philanthropic Foundations in Emerging Markets: Family, Values and Spirituality

By: Valeria Giacomin and Geoffrey Jones

This article discusses the ethics and drivers of philanthropic foundations in emerging markets. A foundation organizes assets to invest in philanthropic initiatives. Previous scholarship has largely focused on developed countries, especially the United States, and has... View Details

Keywords: Philanthropy; Foundations; Spirituality; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Social Enterprise; Emerging Markets; Values and Beliefs; Africa; Asia; Latin America; Middle East