Publications

2018
Working Paper

Trust and Democracy: Leader Turnover during Economic Crises

By: Nathan Nunn, Nancy Qian and Jaya Y. Wen

We study the relationship between interpersonal trust and political stability in democratic countries. Using a six-decade-long annual country-level panel dataset, we find that recessions are more likely to cause political turnover in countries with lower levels of... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Trust; Recessions; Leader Turnover; Political Instability; Culture; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Trust; Political Elections

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February 2008
Supplement

Shinhan Financial Group (B)

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Matthew J. Morgan

By 2007, there were many signs that the merger of Chohung and Shinhan banks to form the Shinhan Financial Group in 2003 had met its goals. Shinhan Financial Group's stock price had increased from $31 a share at its opening on the New York Stock Exchange in September... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Global Strategy; Expansion; Markets; Strategic Planning; South Korea

September 2009 (Revised December 2009)
Case

The Future of Iraq Project (A)

By: Noel Maurer and Sogomon Tarontsi

In March 2009, the government of Iraq decided to hold its first oil field auctions. The auctions were for service contracts on the country's southern oil fields; the winner would obtain the right to produce oil above a certain target for a fixed fee. The bidders... View Details

Keywords: Non-Renewable Energy; Foreign Direct Investment; Policy; Auctions; Production; Business and Government Relations; Energy Industry; Iraq

02 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Not All M&As Are Alike—and That Matters

in part because they typically occur at an earlier stage in an industry's life cycle. Many industries exist for a long time in a fragmented state: local businesses stay local, and no company becomes dominant regionally or nationally.... View Details

Keywords: by Joseph L. Bower

January 2023
Case

Rentokil: The Terminix Acquisition

By: Ted Berk, Emily R. McComb and Julia Kelley

When announcing their agreement to merge in December 2021, creating a clear leader in global pest control, UK-based Rentokil and Tennessee-based Terminix described extensive benefits of the cross-border combination. The companies touted the advantages of their combined... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Valuation; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Business and Shareholder Relations

October 1995 (Revised March 1996)
Case

Booz.Allen & Hamilton: Vision 2000

In 1993, Booz.Allen & Hamilton forsook its previous, highly local organizational structure. It was motivated by a desire to serve multinational clients more effectively and to provide greater value to clients with more localized business by collecting best practices... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Service Operations; Service Delivery; Organizational Structure; Global Strategy; Service Industry

11 Jul 2019
Blog Post

Meet the MBA Class of 2020

View Video Andrew Baxter “YOU BUILD UP PERSONAL CAPITAL BY SHARING COMMON EXPERIENCES.” HOME REGION St. Andrews, UK UNDERGRAD EDUCATION Imperial College London, Chemical Engineering, 2011 PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE... View Details

March 2015 (Revised December 2016)
Case

Philips Healthcare Latin America

By: Sunil Gupta

On a beautiful sunny afternoon in October 2013, Daniel Mazon (GMP 15), decided to take some time out of his busy schedule of the General Management Program (GMP) at the Harvard Business School to reflect on his company's situation. Mazon was the Vice President and... View Details

Keywords: Healthcare; Latin America; Organizational Structure; Salesforce Management; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Health Industry; Latin America

November 2003 (Revised May 2008)
Case

Atlas Electrica: International Strategy

By: Michael E. Porter and Arturo Condo

Atlas must decide whether to acquire La Indeca, increasing its Central American presence, or to focus on larger Latin American markets where higher growth is possible. In the year 2000, Jorge Rodriguez was in charge of Atlas Electrica, the largest home appliance firm... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Growth and Development Strategy; Markets; Partners and Partnerships; Competition; Expansion; Latin America; Central America

20 Oct 2021
Blog Post

Mobilizing Private Sector Action For Racial Equity in Milwaukee: SE Summer Fellow Zach Komes (MBA 2022)

The HBS Summer Fellows Program enables students to apply their classroom training as they explore career opportunities in roles or regions where compensation is generally lower than the traditional MBA level. We are connecting with some... View Details

2023
Article

Bridging the Gap with the ‘New’ Economic History of Africa

By: Ewout Frankema and Marlous van Waijenburg

This review article seeks to build bridges between mainstream African history and the more historically oriented branch of the ‘new’ economic history of Africa. We survey four central topics of the new economic history of Africa—growth, trade, labor, and inequality—and... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Trade; Labor; Equality and Inequality; Development Economics; History; Africa

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10 Jan 2012
First Look

First Look: January 10

rather than truly expanding boundaries. Despite the questioning, Paulus remained committed to fulfilling her vision of the A.R.T. mission in order to solidify A.R.T. as a leading and financially stable not-for-profit regional theater.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Jul 2010
First Look

First Look: July 7

that the regional location decisions of these firms upon moving to western Germany were driven by non-economic factors and heuristics rather than existing industrial conditions. Relocating firms increased the likelihood of incumbent... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Bridging the Gap with the ‘New’ Economic History of Africa

This review article seeks to build bridges between mainstream African history and the more historically oriented branch of the ‘new’ economic history of Africa. We survey four central topics of the new economic history of Africa — growth, trade, labor, and... View Details

12 Nov 2018
Blog Post

Student Portraits - Armed Forces Alumni Association

armed forces. Many served in combat. They are proud to share this deeply personal aspect of their lives with you. CAMERON R. ARMSTRONG / 1st Battalion, 67th Armored Regiment / US Army ENTERED SERVICE FROM: Woodstock, GA REASON FOR... View Details

June 2021 (Revised November 2021)
Case

Asian Corporate Governance Association: Stemming a 'Race to the Bottom' by Stock Exchanges?

By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Billy Chan

This case describes the movement towards dual-class listings on Asian stock exchanges and the efforts of the Asian Corporate Governance Association (ACGA), a not-for-profit shareholder advocacy group, to discourage this trend. As a not-for-profit organization with no... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Governance Controls; Nonprofit Organizations; Stocks; Financial Markets; Financial Services Industry; Hong Kong; China; Asia

2024
Working Paper

The Golden Revolving Door

By: Ling Cen, Lauren Cohen, Jing Wu and Fan Zhang

Using both the onset of the US-China trade war in 2018 and the most recent Russia-Ukraine war and associated trade tensions, we show a counterintuitive pattern in global trade. Namely, while the average firm trading with these nations significantly decreases their... View Details

Keywords: Trade; Business and Government Relations; International Relations

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Michael Porter is an economist, researcher, author, advisor, speaker and teacher. Throughout his career at Harvard Business School, he has brought economic theory and strategy concepts to bear on many of the most challenging problems facing corporations, economies... View Details

Keywords: biotechnology; e-commerce industry; health care; information; information technology industry; internet; nonprofit industry; service industry; state government

December 2020
Article

Taking Innovation to the Streets: Micro-geography, Physical Structure and Innovation

By: Maria P. Roche

In this paper, we analyze how the physical layout of cities affects innovation by influencing the organization of knowledge exchange. We exploit a novel data set covering all Census Block Groups in the contiguous United States with information on innovation outcomes,... View Details

Keywords: Microgeography; Innovation; Street Infrastructure; Knowledge Exchange; Interactions; Geography; City; Innovation and Invention; Knowledge Sharing