Publications

01 Aug 2008
Research & Ideas

Does Market Capitalism Have a Future?

won the Cold War. Doesn't capitalism reign supreme in the 21st century? Looking forward, we certainly can see challenges that will have to be met. So on the occasion of the School's Centennial, we felt it was appropriate to try to... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons

September 1999
Background Note

Revolution in the Communications Switching Industry

By: Jay O. Light, Lynda M. Applegate and Daniel J. Green

As data packet switches threatened the voice circuit switch industry in 1999, major switch and router vendors began paying high premiums to acquire venture-backed switch companies. This note explains what a switch is and suggests why large vendors might be so anxious... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Restructuring; Capital; Information Technology; Technology Adoption; Communications Industry; Communications Industry

March 2020
Case

Thingtesting: Launching a Brand Discovery and Testing Digital Community

By: Ayelet Israeli and Jill Avery

Thingtesting, a brand discovery and testing digital community devoted to uncovering and exploring direct-to-consumer brands, had just received seed funding and was contemplating a second year of growth. The new year brought many challenges, as founder Jenny Gyllander... View Details

December 2008 (Revised October 2010)
Case

Paul Capital Partners: Secondary Limited Partnership Investing

By: David S. Scharfstein

This case examines the proposed purchase by Paul Capital Partners of a limited partnership (LP) interest in a private equity fund. Paul Capital has a fund dedicated to buying these "secondary" LP interests. The case is intended as a vehicle for discussing the secondary... View Details

Keywords: Capital; Investment; Private Equity; Valuation; Partners and Partnerships; Interests; Markets; Debates; Financial Services Industry

19 Mar 2006
Research & Ideas

Unlocking Your Investment Capital

markets, managers can engineer a company's capital structure so that the only liabilities borne by the company are value-added risks. What are value-added risks and how are they different from passive risks? A: "Value-added"... View Details

Keywords: by Ann Cullen; Financial Services

16 Nov 2021
Cold Call Podcast

Can Mass General Brigham Diversify Its Community of Innovators?

Keywords: Re: Katherine B. Coffman; Health

February 2018
Case

Root Capital and the Efficient Impact Frontier

By: Shawn Cole and Caitlin Reimers Brumme

In 2015 Root Capital, a pioneer in the impact investing space, began to explore how to more systematically integrate impact and financial management. After much deliberation, Root Capital landed on ex-ante rating system for any potential investment that produced a... View Details

Keywords: Measurement and Metrics; Investment; Finance; Performance Efficiency; Boston

Research Summary

The Origins, Current State, and Future of Capitalism

By: Sophus A. Reinert

Starting with the dawn of market capitalism in Renaissance Italy, Professor Reinert works at the intersection of economic ideas, policies, and practices in history, particularly as seen through the lens of national strategies in international competition. He seeks to... View Details

30 Jun 2020
Book

Capitalism Is More at Risk Than Ever

The book Capitalism at Risk first appeared in 2011. The problems it identified with social inequality, global trade strife, and environmental degradation have only accelerated by 2020. The new edition of View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

26 Jan 2004
Research & Ideas

How Women Can Get More Venture Capital

technology, some business experience in the industry, and an MBA—that would be great. Education is an important ingredient, but experience is even more important. Almost no one gets venture capital money without actually having... View Details

Keywords: by Mallory Stark & Martha Lagace

16 Jun 2009
Research Event

Business Summit: The Future of Market Capitalism

Finance, and Industry; Senior Lecturer, HBSSir Ronald M. Cohen, Chairman, Portland Capital LLP, Portland Trust, Bridges VenturesLawrence H. Summers, Director of the White House's National Economic Council; Charles W. Eliot University... View Details

Keywords: Re: Michael E. Porter

17 Feb 2003
Research & Ideas

Building Communities as Well as Companies

Despite the uncertain climate for start-ups, launching a business continues to hold irresistible appeal for aspiring entrepreneurs. For many African-Americans, entrepreneurship is seen as a means of building community as well as personal... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

Research Summary

Markets of Progress: Coffee, Commerce, and Community in the Soconusco, Chiapas, 1867-1920

Markets of Progress presents a new holistic story of rural development in Mexico at the turn of the century. In the Soconusco, as in regions throughout the world, the accelerating circulation of commodities and capital, ideas and immigrants reshaped society... View Details

Keywords: Commodities; Coffee; Mexico; Foreign Investment; Institutions; Immigration; Developing Agriculture; Development; Export Crop; Emerging Market; Property Rights; Labor History; History; Capital Markets; Business History; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Latin America; Mexico; Central America

April 2025
Case

Giving Up on a Passion: Elizabeth Rowe at the Boston Symphony Orchestra

By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Maisie Wiltshire-Gordon and Alexis Lefort

For 20 years, Elizabeth Rowe was a world-renowned principal flutist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. But in 2024, Rowe decided to leave her position to pursue a new full-time career as a leadership coach. At 50, Rowe was well under the typical retirement age, and,... View Details

2011
Book

Capitalism at Risk: Rethinking the Role of Business

By: Joseph L. Bower, Herman B. Leonard and Lynn S. Paine

The spread of capitalism worldwide has made people wealthier than ever before. But capitalism's future is far from assured. The global financial meltdown of 2008 nearly triggered another Great Depression, economies in Europe are still teetering, and powerful... View Details

Keywords: Business And Society; Economic Systems; Economic Growth; Leading Change; Business and Community Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Business Strategy

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2010
Working Paper

Venture Capital Investment in the Clean Energy Sector

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Ramana Nanda

We examine the extent to which venture capital is adequately positioned for the rapid commercialization of clean energy technologies in the United States. While there are several startups in clean energy that are well-suited to the traditional venture capital... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Energy Generation; Venture Capital; Investment; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Technological Innovation; Competition; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; United States

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28 Feb 2007
Research & Ideas

Capital Rules: The Tensions of Global Finance

What fuels a global economy? Certainly the easy flow of capital across national boundaries would seem near the top of the list. But financial globalization is not an on/off switch, notes Professor Rawi Abdelal. Different countries and... View Details

Keywords: by Rawi Abdelal

November 2010
Article

Capitalizing on the Underdog Effect

By: Anat Keinan, Neeru Paharia and Jill Avery

This article presents the results of a study that investigated the use of the underdog effect in marketing. The idea of triumphing over disadvantages by impassioned determination is said to be a powerfully positive image, which can lead consumers to choose a brand over... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Brand Management; Brands; Brand Positioning; Competitive Positioning; Competition; Brands and Branding; Advertising Campaigns; Marketing Communications; Marketing Strategy; Advertising Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Fashion Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

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