Publications

Web

Your Alumni Community - Alumni

2025-26 Leadership Fellows. “The Leadership Fellows are a group of extraordinary graduating MBAs who are seeking to learn from and have immediate impact on some of the most dynamic organizations tackling society’s important problems.” -... View Details

2016
Working Paper

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-Family Narrative as a Social Defense Against the 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict women experience between family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is partial at best: men, too, experience... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems Psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

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Web

RGE Report - Race, Gender & Equity

for board leaders. [...] Read more 14 May 2025 Rewiring the Workplace: Behavioral Economics and the Future of Inclusive Organizations Addressing systemic inequality is a complex, multifaceted, and often behemoth task that we attempt to... View Details

04 Oct 2021
News

How Do We Make Sure the Right People End Up with Power in Organizations?

22 Mar 2021
Research & Ideas

How to Learn from the Big Mistake You Almost Make

When employees feel free to express their ideas and concerns, the whole group benefits, particularly when it comes to close calls, Edmondson says. “In organizations like Toyota, where they recognize the richness of the almost-failure and... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Health

November 2020 (Revised March 2021)
Case

Amazon: Cult or Culture?

By: Boris Groysberg, Sarah L. Abbott and Tricia Gregg

Amazon was one of the first entrants in e-commerce. Under the leadership of founder Jeff Bezos, Amazon had expanded beyond books to manufacturing and selling a wide range of products and services globally. Bezos had built a customer-centric culture that permeated all... View Details

Keywords: Culture; Technology Companies; Retail; Human Resource Practices; Growth; Founder; Leadership; Organizational Culture; Growth Management; Information Technology; Human Resources; Talent and Talent Management; Retail Industry; Technology Industry

07 Jul 2003
Research & Ideas

4+2 = Sustained Business Success

that whatever technology you choose to implement you execute it flawlessly. Similarly, it matters little whether you centralize or decentralize your business as long as you pay attention to simplifying the way your organization is... View Details

Keywords: by Nitin Nohria, William Joyce & Bruce Roberson

September–October 2013
Article

The Role of Organizational Scope and Governance in Strengthening Private Monitoring

By: Lamar Pierce and Michael W. Toffel

Governments and other organizations often outsource activities to achieve cost savings from market competition. Yet such benefits are often accompanied by poor quality resulting from moral hazard, which can be particularly onerous when outsourcing the monitoring and... View Details

Find at Harvard

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12 Apr 2011
First Look

First Look: April 12

energized the organization through portfolio changes and a values-driven approach to managing the company. The case describes the steps he took to build a new strategy. Video is referenced that provides Palmisano's views of each step in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Mar 2024
News

Vital Signs

Estimates suggest a shortfall of about 4 million health care workers worldwide, but the World Health Organization predicts that figure will stretch to 10 million by 2030. Those industry trends are among the factors that drive Lorin... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; Hospitals; Health, Social Assistance

02 Aug 2022
Research & Ideas

6 Strategies for Building Socially Responsible—and Profitable—Companies

A dozen years ago, Harvard Business School Professor George Serafeim wondered why some companies operated with an eye toward the greater good, while most did not. Back then, he always got the same response: Corporate leaders thought social and environmental practices... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

Research Summary

Dissertation: Is the Ideal Worker Still Real? Sources and Consequences of Men's Professional Identities

My dissertation examines the implications of men's changing lives for their work identities and for gender inequality in organizations. Current theories of workplace gender inequality hinge upon the widely-shared cultural image of an "ideal worker,"... View Details

August 1975 (Revised July 1983)
Case

Lincoln Electric Co.

By: Norman A. Berg

Covers the strategy and management practices of the world's largest manufacturer of welding equipment. Discusses the compensation system and company culture, and the leadership style of management. View Details

Keywords: Construction; Compensation and Benefits; Leadership Style; Business or Company Management; Organizational Culture; Business Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

23 Mar 2023
Research & Ideas

As Climate Fears Mount, More Investors Turn to 'ESG' Funds Despite Few Rules

Investor interest in social responsibility has skyrocketed in the past three years, even as US regulations to hold companies accountable remain in flux and the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) label itself draws backlash. Investors are willing to pay a... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Financial Services

July 2002 (Revised October 2002)
Case

Cirque du Soleil

By: Thomas J. DeLong and Vineeta Vijayaraghavan

Retaining talent is an issue for any company whose success relies on the creativity and excellence of its employees. This is especially true for Cirque du Soleil, the spectacularly successful "circus without animals," whose 2,100 employees include 500 artists--mimes,... View Details

Keywords: Retention; Employee Relationship Management; Business Strategy; Talent and Talent Management; Organizational Culture; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

10 May 2010
Research & Ideas

What Top Scholars Say About Leadership

disciplines most often found in business schools. We have proposed that innovation in organizations be conceived of as a process of co-design: creative abrasion, creative agility, and integrated problem solving. We know much about the... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Education

17 Jul 2023
Blog Post

Sustainability Career Advice from the Career & Professional Development Office

a position within the nonprofit space and specifically for an organization that had mission and purpose in their DNA. I was fortunate to find a position in the marketing department for HBS’s Career Professional Development team. I spent... View Details

2021
Book

The Heart of Business—Leadership Principles for the Next Era of Capitalism

By: Hubert Joly and Caroline Lambert

A remarkable turnaround by a leader with a remarkable philosophy: Find your noble purpose. Put people at the center. Unleash human magic.
"It was fall in Minnesota. It was getting cold and we were supposed to die." This is how Hubert Joly describes the early,... View Details

Keywords: Capitalism; Leadership; Mission and Purpose; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Leading Change