Publications

Research Summary

Fairness and Efficiency in Resource Allocation

In studying the relationship of fairness and efficiency, Professor Trichakis takes the novel approach of looking at varied industries for unifying factors, and he pays special attention to inequities by incorporating both quantitative work in social welfare and the... View Details

Research Summary

Reforming Social Science

By: Max H. Bazerman

Social science research affects all of us. When researchers learned organ donation rates are higher in countries where human organs are automatically available for donation unless you specifically “opt-out” of the system, as opposed to countries like the U.S., where... View Details

December 2006 (Revised February 2007)
Case

Opportunity International: Measurement and Mission

By: Herman B. Leonard, Marc J. Epstein and Melissa Tritter

After a "first career" in business, HBS graduate Christopher Crane becomes CEO of a worldwide microfinance network. The organization's twin challenges are: 1) developing metrics to give it an accurate picture of its situation and impacts, and 2) generating rapid... View Details

Keywords: Microfinance; Measurement and Metrics; Problems and Challenges; Growth and Development Strategy; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Business Model; Nonprofit Organizations; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Financial Services Industry

2008
Book

Social Entrepreneurship: A Modern Approach to Social Value Creation

By: Arthur C. Brooks

This text brings together the established pedagogy of entrepreneurship with cutting edge nonprofit and public management tools.
Measuring social value, earned income, donations and government income, entrepreneurial fundraising and marketing, and social... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Nonprofit Organizations; Management

10 Sep 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Feeling Good about Giving: The Benefits (and Costs) of Self-Interested Charitable Behavior

Keywords: by Lalin Anik, Lara B. Aknin, Michael I. Norton & Elizabeth W. Dunn

July 2010 (Revised September 2012)
Case

Public Architecture

By: Lakshmi Ramarajan, Christopher Marquis and Bobbi Thomason

Public Architecture is a non-profit architecture company dedicated to creating social and professional change through design for the public good. Public has focused on three strategies to create change: 1) promoting the design community's commitment to pro bono work,... View Details

Keywords: Design; Innovation and Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Nonprofit Organizations; Business Strategy; Integration

01 Mar 2013
News

Cadaver supply: The last industry to face big changes

April 2, 2018
Article

The Right Way for Companies to Publicize Their Social Responsibility Efforts

By: Mark R. Kramer

It’s a common complaint. Companies keep trying to show the world that they are socially conscious and keep losing the battle. Anheuser-Busch and Hyundai even devoted this year’s Super Bowl ads to lauding their philanthropic efforts with decidedly mixed responses.... View Details

Keywords: Public Relations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Communication Strategy

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24 Jan 2014
News

U.S. Vets Exposed to Cadaver Parts From Contaminated Lab

21 May 2013
First Look

First Look: May 21

rather than on oneself. In Experiment 1, we show that prosocial bonuses in the form of donations to charity lead to happier and more satisfied employees at an Australian bank. In Experiment 2, we show that prosocial bonuses in the form of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2023
Article

Giving-by-proxy Triggers Subsequent Charitable Behavior

By: Samantha Kassirer, Jillian J. Jordan and Maryam Kouchaki

How can we foster habits of charitable giving? Here, we investigate the potential power of giving-by-proxy experiences, drawing inspiration from a growing trend in marketing and corporate social responsibility contexts in which organizations make charitable... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Behavior

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21 May 2013
News

The Link Between Super Bowl L And Asking Apple For Money

January 2022
Case

Bee-ing Better at Bombas

By: Elizabeth A. Keenan, Youngme Moon and John Masko

David Heath and Randy Goldberg founded Bombas in 2013 to serve two missions: to deliver the “best socks in the history of feet,” and to donate socks (the most requested item in homeless shelters) to Americans experiencing homelessness. Eight years later, Bombas had... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Values and Beliefs; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Digital Marketing; Distribution; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Quality; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Human Needs; Poverty; Growth and Development Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; New York (city, NY)

May 2017 (Revised November 2017)
Case

Cotopaxi: Managing Growth for Good

By: Andy Wu and Laura Huang

Cotopaxi, an innovative outdoor gear business targeting millennials, focuses on profit and social impact. This registered benefit corporation was formed by Davis Smith who coalesced his experiences as a Wharton MBA student along with professional knowledge from an... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Social Venture; Benefit Corporation; B-Corp; Retail; Consumer Products; Apparel; Social Impact; Social Entrepreneurship; Business Model; Product Positioning; Social Enterprise; Mission and Purpose; Consumer Products Industry; Retail Industry

April 2021
Case

The Incentive for Legacy: Tsinghua University Education Foundation

By: Lauren Cohen, Hao Gao and Spencer C.N. Hagist

Vivian Yuan seeks to bolster the Tsinghua University Education Foundation's fundraising efforts and investment goals in a new era of Chinese higher education. Competing with elite members of China's C9 League of top universities, she must develop a set of incentives... View Details

Keywords: Finance; Marketing; Strategy; Negotiation; Organizations; Markets; Higher Education; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Motivation and Incentives; China

June 2007
Article

Efficient Kidney Exchange: Coincidence of Wants in a Structured Market

By: A. E. Roth, Tayfun Sonmez and M. Utku Unver

Patients needing kidney transplants may have donors who cannot donate to them because of blood or tissue incompatibility. Incompatible patient-donor pairs can exchange donor kidneys with other pairs only when there is a "double coincidence of wants." Developing... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Structure; Size; Emotions; Human Needs; Health Care and Treatment; Health Testing and Trials; Infrastructure; Supply Chain Management; Fairness; Performance Improvement; Health Industry

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March 2025
Supplement

No One Left Behind (D)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Herman B. "Dutch" Leonard, Max Hancock and David Lane

In September 2021, the board of directors for the nonprofit No One Left Behind (NOLB) faced a crucial decision. Since its 2013 founding, NOLB had helped resettle in the United States thousands of Afghans and Iraqis who had assisted U.S. forces as combat translators;... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Mission and Purpose; Nonprofit Organizations; Service Industry; Afghanistan; United States

March 2025
Supplement

No One Left Behind (C)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Herman B. "Dutch" Leonard, Max Hancock and David Lane

In September 2021, the board of directors for the nonprofit No One Left Behind (NOLB) faced a crucial decision. Since its 2013 founding, NOLB had helped resettle in the United States thousands of Afghans and Iraqis who had assisted U.S. forces as combat translators;... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Mission and Purpose; Nonprofit Organizations; Service Industry; Afghanistan; United States

March 2025
Supplement

No One Left Behind (B)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Herman B. "Dutch" Leonard, Max Hancock and David Lane

In September 2021, the board of directors for the nonprofit No One Left Behind (NOLB) faced a crucial decision. Since its 2013 founding, NOLB had helped resettle in the United States thousands of Afghans and Iraqis who had assisted U.S. forces as combat translators;... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Mission and Purpose; Nonprofit Organizations; Service Industry; Afghanistan; United States