Publications

30 Jun 2015
First Look

First Look: June 30, 2015

Publications Forthcoming Berrett-Koehler Publishers What Great Service Leaders Know and Do: Creating Breakthroughs in Service Firms By: Heskett, James L., W. Earl Sasser, and Leonard A. Schlesinger Abstract—Based on decades of... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

January 2009
Article

Turbulent Firms, Turbulent Wages?

By: Diego A. Comin, Erica L. Groshen and Bess Rabin

Has greater turbulence among firms fueled rising wage instability in the U.S.? Gottschalk and Moffitt [1994] find that rising earnings instability was responsible for one third to one half of the rise in wage inequality during the 1980s. These growing transitory... View Details

Keywords: Wages; Production; Business Earnings; Fluctuation; Performance; Volatility; Relationships; Sales; Business Ventures; United States

10 Oct 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, October 10, 2017

forthcoming New York: Palgrave Macmillan New Perspectives on the History of Political Economy By: Fredona, Robert, and Sophus A. Reinert, eds. Abstract—This volume offers a snapshot of the resurgent historiography of political economy in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

06 Mar 2018
First Look

First Look at Research and Ideas, March 6, 2018

provide insights into why and how investors use reported environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. Relevance to investment performance is the most frequent motivation for use of ESG data followed by client demand and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

19 Jan 2011
First Look

First Look: Jan. 18

case:http://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cb/product/511015-PDF-ENG Malaysia: People First? Diego Comin and John AbrahamHarvard Business School Case 710-033 On March 30, 2010, Prime Minister Najib Razak presented his... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2008
Dictionary Entry

Total Factor Productivity

By: Diego Comin

Total Factor Productivity (TFP) is the portion of output not explained by the amount of inputs used in production. The following definition describes the measurement and importance of TFP for growth, fluctuations and development as well as likely future directions of... View Details

Keywords: Business Cycles; Economic Growth; Measurement and Metrics; Production; Performance Productivity; Research

27 Jan 2009
First Look

First Look: January 27, 2009

Working PapersWhen Does Domestic Saving Matter for Economic Growth? Authors:Philippe Aghion, Diego Comin, Peter Howitt, and Isabel Tecu Abstract Can a country grow faster by saving more? We address this... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

25 Jan 2011
First Look

First Look: Jan. 25

Technology Adoption Author:Diego A. Comin Publication:In Handbook of Economic Growth, edited by Philippe Aghion and Steven Durlauf. Elsevier, forthcoming Abstract We present a... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Sep 2010
First Look

First Look: September 28, 2010

equilibria, and reduce the severity of the coordination problem faced by users. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/11-030.pdf The Intensive Margin of Technology Adoption Authors:Diego Comin... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

Named Fellowship Funds - Alumni

collaboration and innovation between HBS and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences by supporting students enrolled in the MS/MBA joint degree program. E Sharyn and Matt Eby... View Details

November 2009
Journal Article

A Theory of Growth and Volatility at the Aggregate and Firm Level

By: Diego A. Comin and Sunil Mulani

This paper presents an endogenous growth model that explains the evolution of the first and second moments of productivity growth at the aggregate and firm level during the post-war period. Growth is driven by the development of both (i) idiosyncratic R&D innovations... View Details

Keywords: Volatility; Microeconomics; Innovation and Invention; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Performance Productivity; Mathematical Methods; Research and Development

Article

Diverging Trends in Macro and Micro Volatility

By: Diego Comin and Sunil Mulani

This paper documents the diverging trends in volatility of the growth rate of sales at the aggregate and firm level. We establish that the upward trend in micro volatility is not simply driven by a compositional bias in the sample studied. We argue that this new fact... View Details

Keywords: Volatility; Mathematical Methods; Theory; Sales; Growth and Development

2013
Working Paper

From Green Users to Green Voters

By: Diego Comin and Johannes Rode

We estimate the effect of the diffusion of photovoltaic (PV) systems on the fraction of votes obtained by the German Green Party. The logistic diffusion of PV systems offers a new identification strategy. We take first differences and instrument adoption rates (i.e.... View Details

Keywords: Voting; Political Elections; Technology Adoption; Environmental Sustainability; Green Technology Industry; Public Administration Industry; Germany

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2012
Working Paper

An Exploration of Luxury Hotels in Tanzania

By: Diego A. Comin

Tourism is a tradable service activity that could allow some African countries to generate significant growth. Tanzania, given its unique natural assets, is an ideal candidate. However, despite being so richly endowed in touristic resources, Tanzania receives very few... View Details

Keywords: Natural Environment; Business Ventures; Luxury; Revenue; Price; Developing Countries and Economies; Accommodations Industry; Tourism Industry; Tanzania

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Web

HBS - The year in Review

experienced colleagues. Assistant Professors Anjali M. Bhatt Organizational Behavior Julian De Freitas Marketing Summer R. Jackson Organizational Behavior Jung Koo Kang Accounting & Management Rebecca A. Karp Strategy Shirley Lu... View Details

2011
Chapter

An Exploration of the Japanese Slowdown during the 1990s

By: Diego A. Comin

Why was the 1990s a lost decade for Japan? How is it possible that the Japanese economy stagnated for a decade if none of the shocks that arguably hit the economy seemed to have persisted for much more than three years or so? In this paper I show that the endogenous... View Details

Keywords: Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Performance Productivity; Mathematical Methods; Research and Development; Technology Adoption; Japan

March 2012
Article

How Early Adoption Has Increased Wealth--Until Now

By: Diego Comin and Bart Hobijn

Societies that are better at utilizing tools are likely to be more productive. The authors have studied when 161 countries adopted 104 technologies over the past 200 years, and they conclude that profound economic advantages-as measured by per capita income-accrue to... View Details

Keywords: Technology Adoption; Wealth; Development Economics; Performance Productivity; Competitive Advantage

April 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Case

Malaysia: People First?

By: Diego A. Comin and John Abraham

On March 30, 2010, Prime Minister Najib Razak presented his new economic model (NEM) for Malaysia. With the goal of raising per capita income to over $15,000 by 2020 from the current level of $6,634, the plan included measures to improve human capital, reduce migration... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Economies and Regions; Problems and Challenges; Crime and Corruption; Developing Countries and Economies; Development Economics; Emerging Markets; Transformation; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Wealth and Poverty; Equality and Inequality; Malaysia