Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(2,544)
- Faculty Publications (469)
- 2006
- Working Paper
On the Origin of Shared Beliefs (and Corporate Culture)
This paper shows why members of an organization often share similar beliefs. I argue that there are two mechanisms. First, when performance depends on making correct decisions, people prefer to work with others who share their beliefs and assumptions, since such... View Details
- June 2005 (Revised October 2007)
- Background Note
The Law of One Price
By: Joshua D. Coval, Erik Stafford, Rodrigo Osmo, John Jernigan, Zack Page and Paulo Passoni
Demonstrates the Law of One Price in practice. Using synthetic securities, students should observe opportunities to earn profits when spreads emerge between portfolios that offer identical payoffs. Uses separate uptick financial simulation software. View Details
Keywords: Price
- March 2005 (Revised July 2007)
- Case
Capital Controls in Chile in the 1990s (A)
By: Laura Alfaro, Rafael M. Di Tella and Ingrid Vogel
In 1991, Chile adopted a framework of capital controls focused on reducing the massive flows of foreign investment coming into the country as international interest rates remained low. Capital inflows threatened the Central Bank's ability to manage the exchange rate... View Details
- December 2004 (Revised July 2005)
- Case
Extend Fertility
By: Myra M. Hart and Sylvia Sensiper
Focuses on the search for opportunity, the generation and evaluation of business concepts, creation of a business plan, and the start-up process. Follows experienced entrepreneur Christy Jones as she combines her business skills and personal experience to generate new... View Details
- September 2004
- Article
Trust in Agency
Existing models of the principal-agent relationship assume the agent works only under extrinsic incentives. However, many observed agency contracts take the form of a fixed payment. For such contracts to succeed, the principal must trust the agent to work in the... View Details
- March 2004
- Article
Do Police Reduce Crime? Estimates Using the Allocation of Police Forces after a Terrorist Attack
By: Rafael Di Tella and Ernesto Schargrodsky
An important challenge in the crime literature is to isolate causal effects of police on crime. Following a terrorist attack on the main Jewish center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in July 1994, all Jewish institutions received police protection. Thus, this hideous event... View Details
- February 2004 (Revised March 2010)
- Case
Brazil 2003: Inflation Targeting and Debt Dynamics
By: Laura Alfaro, Rafael M. Di Tella and Ingrid Vogel
In October 2002, Brazilians elected a left-wing president, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, for the first time in that country's history. As markets faltered in response, Lula sought to reaffirm his commitment to fiscal discipline, a floating exchange rate, and inflation... View Details
Keywords: Economy; Inflation and Deflation; Money; Borrowing and Debt; Policy; Emerging Markets; Brazil
- January 2004
- Background Note
Beyond the IT Monolith
By: Marco Iansiti and Gregg Rotenberg
Leading companies are employing a radical new approach to IT--an approach that points the way to a new model of software architecture and deployment. These companies' successes seem to indicate that the problems IT critics have correctly identified are not, in fact,... View Details
- January 2004 (Revised February 2005)
- Case
Timberland and Community Involvement (Abridged Version)
By: James E. Austin and James Quinn
When Jeffrey Swartz became the third generation in his family to lead the Timberland Co., he made community involvement an integral part of the company's strategy. Under Swartz's leadership, Timberland formed a close partnership with City Year, the national corps of... View Details
- October 2003 (Revised April 2005)
- Case
Innovation Corrupted: The Rise and Fall of Enron
Presents an historical overview of Enron's rise and fall and summarizes what is currently known about (1) the evolution of Enron's business model, (2) the organizational processes Enron officials relied on to drive and monitor the business, (3) emergent behavior... View Details
- June 2003
- Case
Peabody Elementary School (A)
By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Kevin Morris
A new principal, Marty Pettigrew, has just joined this inner-city optional school--which offers special programs in international studies to attract children from all over the city. Entering mid-way through the school year, he observes a number of areas of concern,... View Details
- 2003
- Other Unpublished Work
Capital Market Intermediaries: Summary Observations on a Workshop Held at Harvard Business School
Keywords: Capital Markets
- 2003
- Conference Paper
Follow the Money: What Really Drives Technology Innovation in Construction
By: John D. Macomber
Technology enthusiasts, academics, and software companies remain concerned about the slow pace of innovation in the construction industry. Tools are widely available that seem to provide eminently sensible and clearly apparent improvement to the process of design and... View Details
- February 2003
- Background Note
Identity Issues in Teams
By: Jeffrey T. Polzer and Hillary Anger Elfenbein
This note explains how identity dynamics underlie many of the observable interpersonal problems that team members encounter, ranging from lack of participation and low involvement to misunderstandings and dysfunctional emotional conflict. It provides a framework for... View Details
- December 2002 (Revised February 2003)
- Case
Broken Trust: Role of Professionals in the Enron Debacle
By: Ashish Nanda
Discusses the role of professionals in the Enron debacle. Argues that professionals failed to prevent or predict Enron's collapse because of the conflicts of interest they faced. Concludes with observations on management and regulation of conflicts of interest facing... View Details
- November 2002 (Revised March 2010)
- Case
The Newsprint Industry
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Nabil I. Al-Najjar and James Pyke
Describes the 1990s consolidation on the newsprint industry. Questions whether consolidation will ever deliver on its promise. Whereas some industry observers maintain that the effects of consolidation are already visible, others argue that further consolidation is... View Details
- October 2002
- Supplement
NerveWire: A Tale of Two Executives
By: Nitin Nohria
A series of five segments that include NerveWire, Inc., A Day in the Life of Malcolm Frank, A Day in the Life of Kirk Arnold, Employee Observations of Malcolm and Kirk, and Malcolm and Kirk Discuss Co-Leadership. View Details
- April 2002 (Revised June 2003)
- Case
News Corporation
By: Bharat N. Anand and Kate Attea
In 2001, News Corp. is the smallest of the major media and entertainment conglomerates, but it has the broadest global presence. In an effort to establish a major distribution presence in the United States, News Corp. had looked to acquire DirecTV, the largest U.S.... View Details
- December 2001 (Revised April 2002)
- Case
Synthes
Synthes is the recognized leader in the U.S. orthopedic implant market, with a 50% market share in the metallic plates, rods, and screws used to fix severe bone fractures. Synthes' marketplace strength lies in the strength of its sales force and in the quality and... View Details
- October 2001 (Revised November 2017)
- Case
Japan: The Miracle Years
By: Louis T. Wells
Japan experienced rapid growth in the 1950s and 1960s while following a set of policies that differ from current policies in fashion. Although some observers believe that Japanese growth occurred in spite of the policies rather than because of them, several countries... View Details