Publications

04 Apr 2023
Book

Two Centuries of Business Leaders Who Took a Stand on Social Issues

While shareholders still reign supreme at many companies, a widespread shift toward more responsible business practices is driving more leaders to take a stand on social and environmental issues today, says Harvard Business School Professor Geoffrey Jones. Jones... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Consumer Products; Fashion; Retail; Green Technology

Article

The Impact of Penalties for Wrong Answers on the Gender Gap in Test Scores

By: Katherine B. Coffman and David Klinowski

Multiple-choice exams play a critical role in university admissions across the world. A key question is whether imposing penalties for wrong answers on these exams deters guessing from women more than men, disadvantaging female test-takers. We consider data from a... View Details

Keywords: Behavioral Economics; Standardized Testing; Gender; Higher Education; Prejudice and Bias

September 2023
Teaching Note

Roche: ESG and Access to Healthcare

By: George Serafeim

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 123-075. In May 2022, Roche Group, one of the largest healthcare companies in the world, hosted its first ESG investor event focused exclusively on its efforts to impact access to healthcare. While Roche had recently set an ambitious goal... View Details

Keywords: ESG; Access To Care; Healthcare; Healthcare Access; Innovation; Social Impact; Affordable; Health Care and Treatment; Innovation and Invention; Product Development; Resource Allocation; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Health Industry

2024
Working Paper

The Impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act on the U.S. Economy

By: Joe Long, Carlo Medici, Nancy Qian and Marco Tabellini

This paper investigates the economic consequences of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned immigration from China. The Act reduced the number of Chinese workers of all skill levels living in the United States. It also reduced the labor supply and the quality of... View Details

Keywords: Growth; Productivity; Economic Development; Business History; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Business and Government Relations; Prejudice and Bias; Government Legislation; Immigration; United States

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31 Aug 2021
Blog Post

Exploring the Art of Business: Social Enterprise Summer Fellow Felipe Ceron (MBA 2022)

How can someone learn more about your organization? Visit the School's website and Instagram. This story was originally published on the Social Enterprise Impact Insights blog. View Details

August 2022 (Revised November 2024)
Case

Sweet Teez Bakery: Projecting the Dough's Rise

By: Emily R. McComb, Mel Martin and Amy Klopfenstein

In 2021, the HBS Impact Investment Fund student team met with entrepreneur Teresa Maynard, who had applied for a $25,000 impact investment loan. The students thought the former Harvard Data Scientist’s bakery business, Sweet Teez Bakery, showed promise. Maynard had... View Details

Keywords: Impact Investment; Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Finance; Investment; Goods and Commodities; Financial Reporting; Small Business; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; Massachusetts

January 2020
Case

Terra Nova: A Social Business Trying to Unlock Land Rights for the Urban Poor in Brazil

By: Julie Battilana, Ruth Costas, Marissa Kimsey and Priscilla Zogbi

Brothers André and Daniel Albuquerque founded the company Terra Nova in 2001 to mediate land disputes between poor families illegally living in urban areas and the official landowners—with the aspiration to improve the lives of the poor. A business-led approach to the... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Social Enterprise; Entrepreneurship; Negotiation; Power and Influence; Social Issues; Conflict and Resolution; Business and Government Relations; Infrastructure; Urban Development; Real Estate Industry; Brazil; Latin America

Editorial

Can Index Funds Be a Force for Sustainable Capitalism?

By: George Serafeim

Keywords: Sustainability; Sustainable Development; Sustainable Finance; Social Impact; Indexing; Finance

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2021
Working Paper

Does Social Media Cause Polarization? Evidence from Access to Twitter Echo Chambers during the 2019 Argentine Presidential Debate

By: Rafael Di Tella, Ramiro H. Gálvez and Ernesto Schargrodsky

We study how two groups, those inside vs. those outside echo chambers, react to a political event when we vary social media status (Twitter). Our treatments mimic two strategies often suggested as a way to limit polarization on social media: they expose people to... View Details

Keywords: Political Polarization; Political Elections; Internet and the Web; Attitudes; Social Media; Argentina

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September 2016 (Revised August 2018)
Case

Pi Investments

By: Vikram S. Gandhi and Tony L. He

Pi was a large family office pioneering the concept of 100% portfolio impact investing. Tasked with preserving capital, generating moderate returns and advancing the family’s social justice goals – Pi’s Managing Directors had to identify appropriate products across... View Details

Keywords: Investment Fund; Impact Investing; Investment Portfolio; Investment Funds

20 Oct 2020
Blog Post

Exploring Technology and Public Impact Through the HBS/HKS Joint Degree Program

undergraduate degree. I spent my first couple of years at the company in the San Francisco Bay area and London in roles across the Marketing organization, including working on brand, reputation, and social responsibility initiatives. In... View Details

1998
Article

The Nature of Trust and Its Impact on Relationship Management Activities

By: Joseph P. Cannon, Greg Gundlach and Das Narayandas

Keywords: Trust; Relationships; Management

December 2006
Article

Strategy and Society: The Link between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility

By: Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer

Keywords: Strategy; Society; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact

2007
Report

Compounding Impact: Mission Investing by U.S. Foundations

By: Mark R. Kramer and Sarah E. Cooch

If foundations are to achieve their lofty ambitions for social impact, they must find creative ways to use every resource they possess. Enter mission investing (now more popularly called impact investing), a practice of using financial investments as tools to achieve a... View Details

Keywords: Foundations; Mission Investing; Impact Investing; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Investment

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February 2021 (Revised September 2022)
Case

Marie Curie: Changing the World

By: Robert Simons and Shirley Sun

This case describes the rise of Marie Curie from a poor family in Poland to the pinnacle of scientific fame. The case describes how Curie, as a young woman interested in science, found a way to earn a doctorate at the Sorbonne and perform pathbreaking research on... View Details

Keywords: Legacy; Impact; Science; Research; Personal Characteristics; Mission and Purpose; Success; Work-Life Balance; Higher Education; Personal Development and Career