Publications

21 Nov 2023
Research & Ideas

Employee Negativity Is Like Wildfire. Manage It Before It Spreads.

the organization to spread those ideas and maximize their impact. How to help people reframe negative experiences Reappraisal involves reinterpreting a negative situation to focus on the prospect of a positive outcome, explains... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

20 May 2008
First Look

First Look: May 20, 2008

Working PapersGender in Job Negotiations: A Two-Level Game Authors:Hannah Riley Bowles and Kathleen L. McGinn Abstract We propose a two-level-game (Putnam, 1988) perspective on gender in job negotiations. At Level 1, candidates negotiate with the employers. At Level... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

2021
Working Paper

The Value of Descriptive Analytics: Evidence from Online Retailers

By: Ron Berman and Ayelet Israeli

Does the adoption of descriptive analytics impact online retailer performance, and if so, how? We use the synthetic difference-in-differences method to analyze the staggered adoption of a retail analytics dashboard by more than 1,500 e-commerce websites, and we find an... View Details

Keywords: Descriptive Analytics; Big Data; Synthetic Control; E-commerce; Online Retail; Difference-in-differences; Martech; Internet and the Web; Analytics and Data Science; Performance; Retail Industry

SSRN

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October 2019 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Souqalmal: The Choice Is Yours (A)

By: V.G. Narayanan and Alpana Thapar

This case describes how Ambareen Musa, Founder and CEO of Souqalmal, a Dubai-based online comparison aggregator of banking and insurance products launched her business in 2011 and rapidly grew it over next couple of years. However, by 2017, the Mauritian entrepreneur... View Details

Keywords: Unit Economics; Finance; Accounting; Competitive Strategy; Financial Statements; Insurance Industry; Middle East

15 Nov 2019
HBS Seminar

Ashley Nunes (Senior Research Associate, Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School), Harvard Law School

29 Jun 2010
First Look

First Look: June 29

fund manager assesses investment prospects in Mexico City in the context of a major water supply and distribution crisis facing one of the world's largest cities. Can the investment manager understand the water problems so she can make a... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

January 2021 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Eaton Corporation: Portfolio Transformation and the Cost of Capital (Abridged)

By: Benjamin C. Esty, E. Scott Mayfield and Daniel Fisher

In 2000, Eaton Corporation was a broadly diversified industrial conglomerate. But its strategy was evolving and its focus was narrowing around “power management” and more recently on “intelligent power,” the use of digitally enabled products and services designed to... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Divisions; Cost of Capital; Corporate Finance; Value; Valuation; Industrial Products Industry; United States; Denmark; Republic of Ireland

October 2017 (Revised August 2020)
Case

RB

By: Joshua Margolis, Vincent Dessain and Jerome Lenhardt

As 2016 was approaching its end, Rakesh Kapoor, CEO of RB, one of the world’s major fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies, envisioned the prospect of a major acquisition that would add a line of health-related products that promised growth in the developing... View Details

Keywords: Organization Behavior; Corporate Culture; Mergers ＆ Acquisitions; Growth; Geographic Development; Mergers and Acquisitions; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Growth and Development Strategy; France

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

Hiring Organizations

Procter & Gamble Project on Workforce, The Propeller Prospect Capital Management Providence Equity Partners PSG PUBLIC Pyer Moss Q Quona Capital R RA Capital Management, L.P. Rain - rain.ai Raine Group, The red Bicycle Media REDF Relari... View Details

May 2024
Case

Naked Wines: The Profit vs. Growth Decision

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Edward A. Meyer

Nick Devlin faced a difficult strategic decision in October 2022. As the CEO of a UK-based subscription business connecting wine drinkers in the US, UK, and Australia with winemakers from around the world (which one journalist called the “Netflix of Wine”), he had to... View Details

January 2021 (Revised June 2021)
Supplement

Eaton Corporation: Portfolio Transformation and The Cost of Capital (Abridged)

By: Benjamin C. Esty, E. Scott Mayfield and Daniel Fisher

In 2000, Eaton Corporation was a broadly diversified industrial conglomerate. But its strategy was evolving and its focus was narrowing around “power management” and more recently on “intelligent power,” the use of digitally enabled products and services designed to... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Divisions; Cost of Capital; Corporate Finance; Value; Valuation; Industrial Products Industry; United States; Denmark; Republic of Ireland

September 2020
Case

Getaway

By: Ryan W. Buell and Amy Klopfenstein

Since its founding, Getaway’s service offering – tiny, modern cabins in the woods, located within a two-hour drive of major metropolitan areas – had been met with tremendous demand. Overworked and overconnected city dwellers reveled in the opportunity to take a break... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Service Operations; Management; Demand and Consumers; Marketing; Strategy; Accommodations Industry

April 2010 (Revised January 2013)
Case

California's Budget Crises, Tax Reform, and Domestic and International Tax Competition

By: Matthew C. Weinzierl and Jacob Kuipers

How do (and how should) governments design fiscal policies to compete in a globalized economy while meeting internal policy priorities including redistribution? In 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger repeatedly declared fiscal emergencies as California's state budget... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Economy; Globalization; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Taxation; Competition; California

26 Jan 2016
First Look

January 26, 2016

resulted from focusing on securing the preferences of active voters. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=50427 Commuting with a Plan: How Goal-Directed Prospection Can Offset the Strain of Commuting By:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Program

Designing and Executing Corporate Revitalization

Know when and how to take advantage of financial restructuring and private equity Overcome inertia and pivot the organization Create plans for addressing current and prospective obstacles Infuse the organization with a sense of purpose... View Details

26 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

STEM Needs More Women. Recruiters Often Keep Them Out

research suggests that gender bias seeps in before women even apply to these programs, undercutting the goal of broadening applicant pools and bolstering equity in business—particularly in technology. It’s happening as universities lean on vendors to recruit View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

Web

International Students - MBA

international students with 160 international undergraduate institutions represented. View Video Upcoming International Events Information Sessions The Admissions team hosts information sessions for prospective students all over the... View Details

September 2023
Supplement

Accelerating with Caution: Forecasting and Managing birddogs’ Growth (B)

By: Mark Egan

As 2017 was drawing to a close, birddogs’ founder and CEO, Peter Baldwin, was working with his CFO Jack Sullivan to prepare for 2018. Their task at hand? To predict the demand for their product in the coming season, determine the appropriate investments in working... View Details

Keywords: Working Capital; Forecasting and Prediction; Expansion; Production; Apparel and Accessories Industry