by Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel - Publications - Faculty & Research

24 Apr 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, April 24, 2018

Bird, Yanhua Z., Jodi L. Short, and Michael W. Toffel Abstract—Exploitive working conditions have spurred companies to pressure their suppliers... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2017 (Revised April 2017)
Teaching Note

CEO Activism (A) and (B)

By: Michael W. Toffel and Aaron K. Chatterji

Teaching Note for HBS Nos. 617-001 and 617-048. View Details

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Article

Assessing the Impact of CEO Activism

By: Aaron K Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

CEO activism refers to corporate leaders speaking out on social and environmental policy issues not directly related to their company’s core business. Distinct from nonmarket strategy and traditional corporate social responsibility, the recent wave of CEO activism... View Details

Keywords: Business And Society; Leadership; Policy; Ethics; Values and Beliefs; Governance; Social Issues; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Public Opinion

23 Apr 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, April 23, 2019

process of learning from experience. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=55991 forthcoming Organization & Environment Assessing the Impact of CEO Activism By: Chatterji, Aaron K., View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Article

The Right and Wrong Way to Do ‘CEO Activism’

By: Aaron K Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

CEO activism—where leaders take public stands on controversial social and political issues that aren’t related to their company’s bottom line—has become increasingly common. CEO activism has attracted favorable media attention, but has also resulted in backlash and... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Social Issues; Communication Strategy; Performance Effectiveness

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June 18, 2020
Article

What CEOs Still Haven't Said about Race and Policing

By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

While many CEOs have spoken out to share their thoughts on race and police misconduct in America, they have yet to advocate for policy solutions for police reform, focusing instead on their own corporate and personal values. But lasting change must also involve ... View Details

Keywords: Activism; CEO; Political Issues; Political Leadership; Racial Tensions; Racism; Leadership; Race; Communication; Government and Politics; Law; Organizational Culture; United States

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12 Jul 2011
First Look

First Look: July 12

in a way that is economically important, has impact on ex ante capital structure choices, and affects welfare. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/10-070.pdf How Firms Respond to Mandatory Information Disclosure... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

02 Jan 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, January 3, 2018

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=53646 January–February 2018 Harvard Business Review The New CEO Activists By: Chatterji, Aaron K., and Michael View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

21 Apr 2015
First Look

First Look: April 21

Campaign and the Upside of CEO Activism By: Chatterji, Aaron, and Michael Toffel Abstract—When Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz asked his baristas to... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel & Sean Silverthorne

March 2017 (Revised June 2019)
Case

CEO Activism (A)

By: Michael W. Toffel, Aaron K. Chatterji and Julia Kelley

This case introduces CEO activism, a phenomenon in which business leaders engage in political or social issues that do not relate directly to their companies. The case uses several examples to describe why business leaders are engaging in CEO activism and the potential... View Details

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March 24, 2015
Article

Starbucks' 'Race Together' Campaign and the Upside of CEO Activism

By: Aaron Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

When Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz asked his baristas to engage customers in a discussion about race in America, it was a clear case of the growing trend of "CEO activism." Despite the criticism of that particular initiative, CEO activism—from Shultz to Chick-Fil-A's... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Social Issues; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Communication Strategy; Race

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23 Aug 2019
Sharpening Your Skills

Has the Corporate Mission Just Been Disrupted?

their “agency” at every level will be in the best position to create change. Corporate social responsibility in action Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening Are product sales affected by the CEO's stance on... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Green Technology

22 Nov 2016
First Look

November 22, 2016

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=50058 Fall 2016 Administrative & Regulatory Law News The Integrity of Private Third-party Compliance Monitoring By: Short, Jodi L., and Michael View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

Organizational Behavior - Doctoral

Yanhua Bird, 2020 Boston University, Questrom School of Management Advisors: Julie Battilana (Chair), Ya-Wen Lei , Christopher Marquis , and Michael W. View Details

Web

Placement - Doctoral

Advisors: Michael I. Norton (Chair), Leslie K. John , Ryan W. Buell , Rebecca Ratner , and John T. Gourville 2020 Dafna Goor Marketing, 2020... View Details

April 3, 2016
Guest Column

The Power of C.E.O. Activism: How Politically Outspoken Executives Sway Public (and Consumer) Opinion

By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

Some CEOs are making news by taking public stances on controversial social issues largely unrelated to their core business. This article summarizes the insights from our research paper that shows that such "CEO activism" can influence public opinion and consumer... View Details

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Article

Divided We Lead: CEO Activism Has Entered the Mainstream

By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

Leaders in all sectors, from business to sports to education, are increasingly wading into controversial political and social issues. Based on interviews with leaders who have made activism part of their core activities, we found that they feel compelled to address... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Values and Beliefs; Social Issues; Communication Strategy

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Other Article

Sidestepping Some of the Partisan Debate: An Interview with Max Stier

By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

Whereas some organizational leaders are engaging in CEO activism by speaking out on social and political issues not directly related to their bottom line, some leaders want to avoid doing so. Some, in fact, hold neutrality as a core component of their strategy. But... View Details

Keywords: Social Issues; Government and Politics; Leadership; Communication Strategy

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