Publications

August 1996 (Revised January 1999)
Background Note

Achieving and Sustaining Superior Profits

A basic premise of strategy is that superior profits occur when a corporation secures favorable positions in attractive industries, and pursues economies of scope across business units. This note draws on research that documents the importance of industry, positioning,... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Profit

09 Aug 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Shareholder Activism on Sustainability Issues

Keywords: by Jody Grewal, George Serafeim, and Aaron Yoon

October 2003
Case

Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund

By: Mihir A. Desai and Julia Stevens

The Global Conservation Fund is an international nonprofit organization with a $100 million endowment and an exclusive focus on land preservation. The fund and its director must decide which projects to fund over the next year and what financing mechanism to use.... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Protection; Project Evaluation; Environmental Sustainability; Projects; Finance; Decision Making; Financial Instruments; Nonprofit Organizations

19 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

Designing Cities for a Sustainable Future

On a June day in Manhattan with temperatures heading into the 90s, a straphanger named Mike is taking his customary subway ride to work. People are grumbling about the heat, but hey, it's summer, it's supposed to be hot, and besides, "Whaddya gonna do?" New Yorkers... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Construction; Real Estate

October 2009 (Revised January 2014)
Teaching Note

Sustainability at Millipore (TN)

By: Michael W. Toffel

Teaching Note for [610012]. View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Organizational Structure; Investment; Projects; Performance Improvement; Framework; Measurement and Metrics; Corporate Disclosure; Biotechnology Industry

2013
Chapter

Market Imperfections and Sustainable Competitive Advantage

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Dennis Yao

This chapter reviews the main theories in strategic management that seek to explain persistent differences in profitability across companies. We argue that these differences are ultimately explained by market imperfections. Studying differences in financial performance... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Management; Market Imperfections; Five Forces Framework; Competitive Advantage; Profit

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2010
Working Paper

Law and Finance c. 1900

By: Aldo Musacchio

How persistent are the effects of legal institutions adopted or inherited in the distant past? A substantial literature argues that legal origins have persistent effects that explain clear differences in investor protections and financial development around the world... View Details

Keywords: Law; Finance; Corporate Governance; Practice; Growth and Development

Read Now

December 2022 (Revised February 2023)
Case

Marfrig's Quest for Sustainable Beef

By: Jose B. Alvarez, Pedro Levindo and Ruth Costas

Marfrig, one of the world’s leading meatpackers, strived to comply with its commitment to have a deforestation-free value chain in Brazil by 2030. The company also pledged to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases in accordance with the guidelines set by the... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Animal-Based Agribusiness; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Acquisition; Family Business; Communication Strategy; Environmental Management; Climate Change; Environmental Regulation; Environmental Sustainability; Bonds; Food; Global Strategy; Goods and Commodities; Government and Politics; Political Elections; Leading Change; Marketing; Product Marketing; Product Positioning; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Government Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Brazil; Latin America; Argentina; Uruguay; North America; United States; Europe; Asia; China

January 2025
Case

Negotiating a Legacy at Sustainable Harvest (A)

By: Jillian Jordan, Julian Zlatev, Alicia Dadlani and Martha Hostetter

The specialty coffee importer Sustainable Harvest was the first certified B Corp in the coffee industry due to its investments in building coffee farmers’ capacity and livelihood. But in 2022, after coffee prices plummeted and the company’s bank declined to extend its... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Trust; Ethics; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Volatility; Futures and Commodity Futures; Social Enterprise; Valuation; Business Model; Credit; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; Europe

June 2008 (Revised October 2008)
Case

International Carbon Finance and EcoSecurities

By: Andre F. Perold, Forest L. Reinhardt and Mikell Hyman

In late 2007, EcoSecurities had to decide whether to undertake a new Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project in China. EcoSecurities was an aggregator of carbon credits and also invested directly in projects that produced carbon credits. Governments and firms... View Details

Keywords: Non-Renewable Energy; Cost Management; Investment Return; Business and Government Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Investment; Cash Flow; Valuation; Pollutants; Environmental Sustainability; Financial Services Industry; China

31 May 2017
Working Paper Summaries

Stock Price Synchronicity and Material Sustainability Information

Keywords: by Jody Grewal, Clarissa Hauptmann, and George Serafeim; Accounting; Financial Services

2021
Article

The Sustainable Corporate Governance Initiative in Europe

By: Mark Roe, Holger Spamann, Jesse M. Fried and Charles C.Y. Wang

In July 2020, the European Commission published the “Study on directors’ duties and sustainable corporate governance” by EY. The Report purports to find evidence of debilitating short-termism in EU corporate governance and recommends many changes to support sustainable... View Details

Keywords: Short-termism; Hedge Funds; Shareholder Activism; Securities Regulation; Agency Costs; Political Economy; Payouts; Repurchases; Corporate Governance; Investment Funds; Investment Activism; Research and Development; Investment; European Union

SSRN

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January 2025
Supplement

Negotiating a Legacy at Sustainable Harvest (B)

By: Jillian Jordan, Julian Zlatev, Alicia Dadlani and Martha Hostetter

The specialty coffee importer Sustainable Harvest was the first certified B Corp in the coffee industry due to its investments in building coffee farmers’ capacity and livelihood. But in 2022, after coffee prices plummeted and the company’s bank declined to extend its... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Trust; Ethics; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Volatility; Futures and Commodity Futures; Social Enterprise; Valuation; Business Model; Credit; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; Europe

09 Mar 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Impact Investing: A Theory of Financing Social Entrepreneurship

Keywords: by Benjamin N. Roth; Financial Services

24 Nov 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry

Keywords: by George Serafeim and Katie Trinh; Financial Services

October 2012 (Revised April 2017)
Case

Brazil's Enigma: Sustaining Long-Term Growth

By: Laura Alfaro, Hilary White and Haviland Sheldahl-Thomason

Over the past decade, Brazil's future as a leading world economic power appeared certain. An expanding middle class and commodity boom had fueled economic growth, with GDP growth hitting a peak of 7.5% in 2010. However, the high cost of conducting business in Brazil,... View Details

Keywords: Capital Controls; Inflation; Exchange Rates; Stimulus; Competitiveness; Productivity Growth; Foreign Investment; Infrastructure; Inflation and Deflation; Currency Exchange Rate; Brazil

2021
Working Paper

The Green Bonding Hypothesis: How Do Green Bonds Enhance the Credibility of Environmental Commitments?

By: Shirley Lu

This paper proposes and provides evidence on a green bonding hypothesis, where green bonds act as a commitment device that subjects firms to institutions holding them accountable to their environmental promises. I find that green-bond issuers face higher climate change... View Details

Keywords: Bonding Hypothesis; Sustainable Finance; Climate Change; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Bonds; Corporate Accountability