Publications

September 2000 (Revised May 2003)
Case

Radio One, Inc.

By: Richard S. Ruback and Pauline M Fischer

Radio One (NYSE: ROIA and RIOAK), the largest radio group targeting African-Americans in the country, had the opportunity to acquire 12 urban stations in the top 50 markets from Clear Channel Communications, Inc. (NYSE: CCU) in the winter of 2000. The stations were... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Valuation; Race; Mergers and Acquisitions; Financial Strategy; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Indiana; United States; North Carolina

23 Jun 2014
Research & Ideas

In Venture Capital, Birds of a Feather Lose Money Together

To illustrate the old adage that birds of a feather flock together, there may be no better example than the venture capital industry. A recent study finds that venture capitalists have a strong tendency to team up with other VCs whose View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Financial Services

September 2020 (Revised June 2023)
Supplement

Spreadsheet Supplement to Artea Teaching Note

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

Spreadsheet Supplement to Artea Teaching Note 521-041. This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on A/B testing analysis and... View Details

Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Algorithmic Data; Bias; Advertising; Race; Gender; Diversity; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Analytics and Data Science; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

September 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Exercise

Artea (D): Discrimination through Algorithmic Bias in Targeting

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on A/B testing analysis and targeting. Parts (B),(C),(D) Introduce algorithmic bias. The... View Details

Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Discrimination; Algorithmic Data; Bias; Advertising; Race; Gender; Marketing; Diversity; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Analytics and Data Science; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

05 Nov 2007
Research & Ideas

The Changing Face of American Innovation

science and engineering workforce and nearly 50 percent of those with science and engineering doctorates. And at the Ph.D. level, View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Technology

24 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Uncovering Racial Discrimination in the ‘Sharing Economy’

12 percent less for rentals than nonblack hosts—even when the properties were equivalent in terms of location and quality. How did the researchers find out the race of each host? The same way potential... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Construction; Real Estate; Advertising

November 2007
Case

Differences at Work: Jason (A)

By: Sandra J. Sucher and Rachel Gordon

Jason is a member of his firm's recruiting team, which has a mandate to create a more diverse workforce. When the group decides to interview a candidate based on the candidate's race, Jason wonders whether they made the right decision and how, in general, diversity... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Ethnicity; Job Interviews; Race; Recruitment; Diversity

07 Feb 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research: February 7

traditional corporate social responsibility, the recent wave of CEO activism focuses on social issues unrelated to their core business, ranging from environmental issues to LGBT rights and race relations.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 2022
Case

General Mills: Responding to the Killing of George Floyd (A)

By: Debora L. Spar and Alicia Dadlani

Jeff Harmening, CEO of General Mills, one of the world's largest manufacturers of breakfast cereals and packaged foods, was deeply disturbed and instantly aware that he and General Mills would need to respond. George Floyd, an African-American man who had been accused... View Details

Keywords: Race; Decisions; Social Issues; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Minneapolis; Minnesota; United States

June 2009
Case

The Rise of President Barack Hussein Obama

By: David A. Thomas, Laura Morgan Roberts and Stephanie Creary

This case profiles President Barack Hussein Obama's rise to the presidency as an "improbable candidate." The case illustrates the ways in which he overcame criticism from those who questioned his credibility and his values, and skepticism from those who were unsure... View Details

Keywords: Ethnicity; Race; Political Elections; Leadership; Personal Development and Career; Creativity; Trust

April 2021 (Revised April 2022)
Case

OneTen: One Million Opportunities in Ten Years

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Courtney Han

In the wake of George Floyd's killing in May 2020, and widespread protests for social justice in the United States, OneTen was formed by a coalition of 40 large companies to provide one million jobs for African-Americans in 10 years. The case describes the background... View Details

Keywords: Labor Market; COVID-19 Pandemic; Diversity; Race; Jobs and Positions; Opportunities; Social Issues; Employment; Equality and Inequality; Equity; United States

02 Feb 2017
Cold Call Podcast

Black Business Leaders Series: The Entrepreneurship Behind Ebony Magazine

Keywords: Publishing

August 2022 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Fresh Food Generation

By: Brian Trelstad, Amy Klopfenstein and Mel Martin

This case highlights one of five BIPOC entrepreneurs in the Boston area as part of the HBS Impact Investment Fund. In fall 2021, a team of HBS students reviewed the financial statements of Fresh Food Generation (FFG), a Dorchester, Massachusetts-based food service... View Details

Keywords: Impact Investing; Investment; Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurship; Race; Food and Beverage Industry; Boston