Publications

01 Jun 2017
News

Why Finance Needs More Humanity, and Why Humanity Needs Finance

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 23 Oct 2019
HBS Online

HBS Online Leading with Finance

Gain a deep understanding of the principles of finance - a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to communicate those decisions to key stakeholders. Program Dates: October 23, 2019 - December 4, 2019 View Details

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 27 Mar 2019
HBS Online

HBS Online Leading with Finance

Gain a deep understanding of the principles of finance - a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to communicate those decisions to key stakeholders. Program Dates: March 27, 2019 - May 8, 2019 View Details

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 14 Aug 2019
HBS Online

HBS Online Leading with Finance

Gain a deep understanding of the principles of finance - a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to communicate those decisions to key stakeholders. Program Dates: August 14, 2019 - September 25, 2019 View Details

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 05 Jun 2019
HBS Online

HBS Online Leading with Finance

Gain a deep understanding of the principles of finance - a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to communicate those decisions to key stakeholders. Program Dates: June 5, 2019 - July 17, 2019 View Details

9 AM – 10 AM EST, 16 Jan 2019
HBS Online

HBS Online Leading with Finance

Gain a deep understanding of the principles of finance - a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to communicate those decisions to key stakeholders. Program Dates: January 16, 2019 - February 27, 2019 View Details

2024
Article

Political Polarization and Finance

By: Elisabeth Kempf and Margarita Tsoutsoura

We review an empirical literature that studies how political polarization affects financial decisions. We first discuss the degree of partisan segregation in finance and corporate America, the mechanisms through which partisanship may influence financial decisions, and... View Details

Keywords: Government and Politics; Investment Portfolio; Decisions; Governance

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January 2020 (Revised May 2021)
Case

Salary Finance US

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In October 2019, Dan Macklin, the newly-appointed chief executive of Salary Finance Inc., was weighing his options for the future of the business. The company’s value proposition was quite simple: partner with employers to offer employees affordable loans that were... View Details

Keywords: Employees; Credit; Financing and Loans; Wages; Innovation and Invention; Expansion; Growth Management; Decision Making; Financial Services Industry; United States

February 2024 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Financing Matillion's Scaleup (A)

By: Raymond Kluender, Emanuele Colonnelli and Ramana Nanda

In 2019, Matthew Scullion, founder and CEO of U.K. startup Matillion, faced a decision about which term sheet to accept for the lead investor in his company’s $35 million Series C financing round. Would the connections and opportunities offered by Silicon Valley-based... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Negotiation; Ownership; Business Startups; Decisions; Venture Capital; Financing and Loans; Valuation; Information Technology Industry; United Kingdom

Leading with Finance is a flexible, 6-week, highly-interactive online course which is designed to provide participants with a thorough understanding of the principles of finance – a toolkit for making smart financial decisions and the confidence to clearly... View Details

October 2003 (Revised January 2005)
Case

Shared Decision Making

By: Richard M.J. Bohmer, Karen Sepucha and Laura Feldman

The Foundation for Informed Medical Decision-Making has created an interactive videodisc system that provides patients with customized support regarding medical treatment or screening decisions when they face a choice between two equally effective courses of action.... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Borrowing and Debt; Health Care and Treatment; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Product Marketing; Distribution Channels; Production; Partners and Partnerships; Research and Development; Information Technology

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 19 Oct 2017
Webinars: Trending@HBS

Innovative Finance for the Common Good

Whether it's a vaccine or green bond, drought insurance, pay-as-you-go financing for solar electricity in Kenya, or discounted metro cards in New York, innovative finance is as much about incentives and sound decision making as it is about money; when it works,... View Details

January 2001 (Revised July 2003)
Case

Pharmacyclics: Financing Research & Development

By: Malcolm P. Baker, Richard S. Ruback and Aldo Sesia

Pharmacyclics (NASDAQ: PCYC), a pharmaceutical company that manufactures products that will improve existing therapeutic treatments for cancer, arteriosclerosis, and retinal disease, was considering a $60 million private placement in February 2000. The company had more... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Cash Flow; Financing and Loans; Business Startups; Financial Strategy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; Health Industry

Teaching Interest

Finance II (MBA Required Curriculum)

By: Benjamin C. Esty

This course builds on the foundation developed in Finance I, focusing on three sets of managerial decisions:

How to evaluate complex investments.
How to set and execute financial policies within a firm.
How to integrate... View Details

Keywords: Finance

December 1999
Case

E Ink: Financing Growth

By: William A. Sahlman and Matthew C. Lieb

A set of financial and strategic decisions confront the management of a company trying to develop a technology for creating "electronic ink." If successful, the company will be able to create "radio paper," essentially turning a piece of paper into a computer monitor... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Financial Management; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Strategy; Hardware

May 2007 (Revised July 2007)
Case

JetBlue: Prepare for Financing

The CFO of JetBlue is trying to decide which of two financing proposals to pursue. A straight equity issue will dilute his principal shareholders' ownership, but seems like the safer alternative in an industry that is notorious for its high failure rate. On the other... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Private Equity; Public Equity; Financing and Loans; Air Transportation Industry; United States