Publications

Read Now

31 Jan 2018
Research & Ideas

American Idle: Workers Spend Too Much Time Waiting for Something to Do

former HBS doctoral student who is now an assistant professor at McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. Despite such pitfalls of idle time, however, the phenomenon has been understudied. “There is much more focus on the opposite—having too... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

08 Sep 2015
Research & Ideas

Knowledge Transfer: You Can't Learn Surgery By Watching

While some lessons can be learned by watching—a parent’s reaction after touching a hot stove can be a good lesson for a youngster on dangers in the kitchen—other lessons are harder to learn through observation alone. No matter how many... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Health

June 2023 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Doing Business in Lima, Peru

By: Jeffrey T. Polzer, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Max Hancock

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Peru. It highlights Peru's economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2024 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case gives an overview of some of the main obstacles... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Business and Government Relations; Corporate Strategy; Mining Industry; Peru; Latin America

03 Oct 2023
What Do You Think?

Do Leaders Learn More From Success or Failure?

on a wealth of field experience, is an argument for failure—intelligent failure. She defines intelligent failure as having four key attributes: “ it takes place in new territory; the context presents a credible opportunity (in relation to risk) to advance toward a... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

20 Dec 2006
Op-Ed

Investors Hurt by Dual-Track Tax Reporting

but this logic overlooks the fact that managers don't always do the right thing for shareholders. If managers are opportunistic, then the extra latitude provided by the dual-reporting system can be costly to... View Details

Keywords: by Mihir Desai

15 Nov 2018
Working Paper Summaries

Do Fire Sales Create Externalities?

Keywords: by Sergey Chernenko and Adi Sunderam; Financial Services; Banking

September 2012 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Doing Business in Malaysia

By: C. Fritz Foley, Michael Shih-Ta Chen and Keith Chi-Ho Wong

This case focuses on the current business environment in Malaysia as of 2012 by introducing the main economic, political and cultural aspects of the country for those interested in doing business there. The advantages and challenges of investing and doing business in... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market Finance; Emergent Countries; Business History; Economic History; Fieldwork; Emerging Markets; Business Ventures; Strategy; Malaysia

September 2012 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Doing Business in China

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee, Michael Shih-ta Chen, Nancy Dai and G.A. Donovan

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in China. It highlights China's remarkable economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2012 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case summarizes the main obstacles faced... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market Finance; Emergent Countries; Business History; Economic History; Emerging Markets; Business Ventures; Strategy; China

February 2023 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Doing Business in Athens, Greece

By: Alan D. MacCormack, Carlota Moniz and Emilie Billaud

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Greece. It highlights Greece's economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2023 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case gives an overview of some of the main... View Details

Keywords: Business and Government Relations; Technological Innovation; Foreign Direct Investment; Economic Growth; Financial Crisis; Technology Industry; Tourism Industry; Shipping Industry; Greece; Athens

April 2013 (Revised October 2013)
Case

Google's Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?

By: David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Liz Kind

Google's Project Oxygen started with a fundamental question raised by executives in the early 2000s: do managers matter? The topic generated a multi-year research project that ultimately led to a comprehensive program, built around eight key management attributes,... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Behavior; Business Policy; General Management; Human Resource Management; Management; Leadership; Human Resources

September 2012 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Doing Business in Brazil

By: Aldo Musacchio, Gustavo A. Herrero, Ricardo Reisen de Pinho, Cintra Scott and Jill Avery

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Brazil. It highlights Brazil's ongoing economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2014 in the context of its historical, political, and cultural background. The case summarizes some of... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market Finance; Emergent Countries; Business History; Economic History; Emerging Markets; Business Ventures; Strategy; Brazil

25 Jun 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Why Do Countries Adopt International Financial Reporting Standards?

Keywords: by Karthik Ramanna & Ewa Sletten; Accounting

29 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Do Employees Work Harder for Higher Pay?

do a one-time, four-hour data entry task via the Internet labor market oDesk.com, which allows for online recruitment of freelancers from around the world. "Keep in mind," Malhotra said, that "all of these people previously made less than... View Details

Keywords: by Chuck Leddy & Harvard Gazette

31 Oct 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Do Measures of Financial Constraints Measure Financial Constraints?

Keywords: by Joan Farre-Mensa & Alexander Ljungqvist

11 Apr 2018
Research & Ideas

Sexual Harassment: What Employers Should Do Now

made to feel they are risking their careers by pushing back against bad behavior. “What you don’t do is put the onus on the person who is being victimized,” Ammerman says. “You have to assure people that... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

25 Jan 2008
Working Paper Summaries

What Do Non-Governmental Organizations Do?

Keywords: by Eric D. Werker & Faisal Z. Ahmed

March 1992 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Lada do Brasil

By: James E. Austin and Helen Shapiro

In an effort to capitalize on the entrepreneurial opportunity presented by the Brazilian government's trade liberalization, a Panamanian automobile trading company launched a business of importing the Russian made Lada cars into Brazil. The company confronts a complex... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Transformation; Economics; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Capital; Policy; Competition; Auto Industry; Brazil