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September 8, 2009
Article

The New Governance Paradigm

By: Nathaniel Foote and Michael Beer

Boards members of failed banks in 2008 or of the many companies like Enron who were caught up in scandals are by and large honorable, well intentioned, and competent people. So what went wrong and what can be done about it. This article argues that the problem lies in... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Competency and Skills; Banks and Banking; Failure; Goals and Objectives; Leadership; Management Practices and Processes; Ethics; Performance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Crime and Corruption

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12 Nov 2001
Research & Ideas

The Three Components of Family Governance

of statement. The rare family in business may have a more elaborate family governance structure, with a separate meeting for family-owner-managers or a separate council for family shareholders or periodic meetings between shareholders,... View Details

24 Oct 2005
Research & Ideas

Building an IT Governance Committee

firms." Instead, they argue, directors need their own framework to develop IT policies. First step: Determine your current approach, or mode (support, factory, turnaround, or strategic), to IT. (See sidebar.) In this excerpt, Nolan and McFarlan discuss how to... View Details

Keywords: by Richard Nolan & Warren McFarlan

April 2009
Case

Young Presidents' Organization

By: Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, John D. Macomber and David Chen

The board of Young Presidents' Organization needs to decide on the future of its Networks Initiative, designed to connect its geographically dispersed membership base through 60 different interest-based networks. So far, one half of these networks have been considered... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Governing and Advisory Boards; Leadership Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizations; Social and Collaborative Networks

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04 Dec 2019
Book

Creating the Experimentation Organization

serve as a role model, showing employees they live by the same rules and allow themselves to be governed by results as much as anyone else. 5 steps for scaling While developing that culture may seem daunting for companies that aren’t the... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

29 Aug 2005
Research & Ideas

How Organizations Create Social Value

organizations in Latin America and Spain. For good governance you need some degree of overlap between governance and management.— Ezequiel A. Reficco This research will be... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls

August 2006 (Revised July 2007)
Background Note

Governance of the Family Business

By: John A. Davis

Reviews the ways to achieve governance of the family business. Points out the importance of plans (e.g., strategic plans), statements (e.g., mission statements), policies, rules, and agreements to the governance process. Discusses the roles of three structures in... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Management Teams; Mission and Purpose

September 2021
Case

Vignettes on Professional Service Firm Governance

By: David G. Fubini, Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan Ni

The two vignettes within “Vignettes on Professional Service Firm Governance” (HBS No. 122-024) present various issues relating to governance in professional service firms (“PSFs”). In the first, the Managing Director of a U.S. consulting firm contemplates whether to... View Details

Research Summary

Venture Capital Organizations and Entrepreneurial Finance

By: Paul A. Gompers

Paul A. Gompers is examining corporate control and governance issues in venture capital organizations and entrepreneurial firms in an effort to understand how their relationships with their investors affect the venture capitalists' investment decisions. Using... View Details

25 Apr 2000
Research & Ideas

Adjusting the Fit for Government

press governments to allow space for business to work and innovate. The tenet of predictability is vital, said Wagle. "If people are going to invest in very bad conditions, they have to know the rules of the game," he charged.... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

01 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Organizing the Family-Run Business

subsystems influences the direction and operations of the family company, as well as of the family. It is essential, therefore, that each subsystem has a defined role and a clear voice in the governance of the overall system. These three... View Details

25 Jul 2005
Research & Ideas

An Organization Your Customers Understand

constituent (and ultimately a customer) to include only those who transact with the firm through markets. As a result, this analysis considers only organizations whose customers have choices. I include business firms, non-profit... View Details

Keywords: by Robert Simons

16 Nov 2010
Lessons from the Classroom

Data.gov: Matching Government Data with Rapid Innovation

generally." Goals Of The Case Study "I have several teaching goals," said Lakhani as he prepared for class. "One is to highlight the imperative for organizations to shift towards an open-data approach, especially in... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Technology

14 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Time that Government Reopens for Business

DC. Jim Aisner: The newspapers point out that a federal government shutdown has occurred 17 times before, but that really doesn't provide much solace, does it? Joe Fuller: The thing that's particularly unnerving about this shutdown is its... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Aisner

October 2023 (Revised May 2024)
Case

Governance and Growth at GenUnity

By: Brian Trelstad, Paul Healy and Annelena Lobb

Jerren Chang, CEO and co-founder of GenUnity, had to choose a strategy to scale his civic engagement-focused nonprofit. Based in Boston, Chang could grow the organization there or begin to expand to other cities. He also had to select candidates for a board of... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Nonprofit Organizations; Expansion; Governing and Advisory Boards; Boston

Article

What Do Nongovernmental Organizations Do?

By: Eric D. Werker and Faisal Z. Ahmand

Nongovernmental organizations are one group of players who are active in the efforts of international development and increasing the welfare of poor people in poor countries. Nongovernmental organizations are largely staffed by altruistic employees and volunteers... View Details

Keywords: Non-Governmental Organizations; Growth and Development; Welfare or Wellbeing; Poverty; Service Delivery; Crime and Corruption; Social Entrepreneurship; Decision Making; Resource Allocation; Product Development; Framework

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February 1998
Case

Creating the International Trade Organization

By: David A. Moss, George R. Appling and Andrew D Archer

In the late 1940s, officials at the U.S. State Department began campaigning for the creation of an International Trade Organization (ITO). This new organization would oversee global negotiations on trade liberalization, foreign direct investment, cartels, and commodity... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Trade; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Globalized Economies and Regions; Agreements and Arrangements; Foreign Direct Investment; Economic Systems; International Relations