Hard Power - Publications - Faculty & Research

10 May 2011
First Look

First Look: May 10

without controversy, to be a tool for empowering women. Here, using a randomized controlled trial, we examine whether access to and marketing of an individually held commitment savings product lead to an increase in female decision-making View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Jun 2014
News

Ready for Takeoff

iron ore among them—found a growing market as China's demands grew with its economy. And because Brazil had done the hard work of building a better policy foundation, the boom meant sustained economic growth. So while other Latin American... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell; Air Transportation; Transportation

01 Jun 2022
News

Blissful Thinking

is the theme of every Disney movie I watched as a kid. Why is it so hard for us to forgo that chase? Your dreams are liars. Here’s the problem: Your genetic proclivities are not biasing you toward happiness. They’ve biased you toward... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell; illustration by Dan Winters

08 Jul 2014
First Look

First Look: July 8

Overall, the findings demonstrate the power of non-financial rewards to motivate agents in settings where there are limits to the use of financial incentives. Publisher's link: http://www.people.hbs.edu/nashraf/NoMarginNoMission_JPubE.pdf... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

23 Jul 2018
Research & Ideas

The Open Office Revolution Has Gone Too Far

only work hard to avoid distraction (by, for example, putting on big headphones) but—because you have an audience at all times—also feel pressure to look really busy. Indeed, all of the cues in open offices that we give off to get focused... View Details

Keywords: Re: Ethan S. Bernstein

13 Feb 2017
Research & Ideas

Paid Search Ads Pay Off for Lesser-Known Restaurants

York, which is great for customers but also means that even some businesses with solid reputations on Yelp can be hard for people to discover,” Luca says. Dai adds: “Going into the project, we weren’t sure exactly what to expect, but our... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Food & Beverage

07 Apr 2003
Research & Ideas

How the U.S. Army Develops Leaders

ourselves from our experiences. Second, we progress through a finite series of universal and progressively more complex stages in how we construct our understanding. These two ideas in combination make Kegan's approach to identity development a View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

29 Apr 2016
News

The First Five Years: Kelly McKenna (MBA 2015)

Why is the mission of ArtLifting so important? “We’re demonstrating how something as simple as optimism can change lives and create jobs. This is very powerful and very personal to me. My older brother has a rare metabolic disorder that... View Details

01 Jul 2013
Research & Ideas

Crowdfunding a Poor Investment?

usually required in a venture capital presentation. “A lot of companies that probably shouldn't get funding will get it” As enticing as crowdfunding is as a concept, it may ultimately have little power to shake up the investing world,... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Financial Services

13 Feb 2024
Blog Post

Harvard Students Reflect on COP28

clarity in messaging underscored the real human impact of climate change and the critical need for inclusive climate action. Their voices served as a powerful reminder to us, technologists, investors, and policymakers in the climate... View Details

09 Mar 2021
News

Addressing Education Inequities Exacerbated by the Pandemic

includes devices and broadband, but also the quality and usability of digital learning products. Given the systemic nature of education inequities, it’s hard to rank them. That said, here are two priorities for US business leaders to... View Details

Keywords: Jennifer Gillespie

23 Jul 2001
Research & Ideas

How the Giants of Enterprise Seized the Future

price of success; and, more generally, 3. The American business tradition. 1. Lord Acton taught the world that power corrupts. These giants of enterprise teach us also that power deranges. Think of the word... View Details

Keywords: by Richard S. Tedlow

04 Apr 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Can Mark Zuckerberg Rebuild Trust in Facebook?

else is watching the store, as it were? George: Mark has absolute power. He has over 50 percent of the voting shares and you remember Lord Acton said, "Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely." And I think he has... View Details

Keywords: Re: Andi Wang

06 Sep 2017
What Do You Think?

Summing Up: What Are the Limits of CEO Activism?

government. After all, many organizations rely on government for fair or outright supportive legislation. This is not a simple decision driven only by personal feelings. On one level, it requires analyzing the economic consequences of any particular action, something... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

31 Aug 2016
Research & Ideas

One Quarter of Entrepreneurs in the United States Are Immigrants

immigrants are responsible for a lot of great companies,” says William Kerr, the Dmitri V. D’Arbeloff — MBA Class of 1955 Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. “After all, they argue, [Google founder] Sergey Brin was an immigrant—look at the... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

12 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Private Sector, Public Good

global leaders I meet are beginning to think quite hard about addressing their role in these problems," Henderson said. "There is so much power at firms. They have the ability to make a... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

05 Feb 2009
What Do You Think?

Why Can’t We Figure Out How to Select Leaders?

give important insight ...." Stephanie Fuentes said that "It's not hard if you take the time to do the planning and preparation." But the comments of the first group leave us wondering whether theory serves us well when it... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

30 May 2005
Research & Ideas

Germany’s Pioneering Corporate Managers

the executive board. In certain senses, the speaker is the primary representative of the executive board, not an all-powerful executive. Naturally, the power of the speaker varies enormously from firm to firm. Some are more autocratic... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

19 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

Codeacademy’s Delicate Work of Adding Monetization Without Crushing Mission

help families save money for college. That experience convinced me of the power of for-profit, mission-driven companies as a force for change. Because they are for-profit, they can attract amazing talent and command huge resources.... View Details

Keywords: Re: Jeffrey J. Bussgang; Technology

11 Apr 2018
Research & Ideas

Sexual Harassment: What Employers Should Do Now

joke and saying, ‘Am I being politically correct?’ is also insulting, and someone needs to let that person know. That’s when you start to tilt the balance in the culture.” Place women in powerful positions Sexual harassment is a View Details