Publications

June 2021
Supplement

Linda Oubré at Whittier College (C)

By: Debora L. Spar and Haley P. Brown

The case follows President Linda Oubré (HBS MBA Class of 1984) as she seeks to move Whittier College towards a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus.
In 2020, the student body of Whittier, a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles County, California,... View Details

Keywords: Women And Leadership; Racial Disparity; Higher Education; Education; Diversity; Race; Change Management; Gender; Los Angeles; California; United States

October 2002 (Revised February 2011)
Case

Union Corrugating Company (A)

By: Paul W. Marshall and Julia Stevens

Lauri Union graduates from Harvard Business School and takes over her family's steel-corrugated roofing and siding manufacturing firm, which her mother has most recently run. The industry is mature, entry barriers to competitors are low, and the company is over 50... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leading Change; Family Business; Entrepreneurship; Organizational Culture; Family Ownership; Gender; Manufacturing Industry; Steel Industry; Industrial Products Industry

Article

Going It Alone: Competition Increases the Attractiveness of Minority Status

By: Erika L. Kirgios, Edward H. Chang and Katherine L. Milkman

Past research demonstrates that people prefer to affiliate with others who resemble them demographically. However, we posit that when competing for scarce opportunities, strategic considerations moderate the strength of this tendency toward homophily. Across six... View Details

Keywords: Homophily; Group Selection; Diversity; Gender; Race; Competition

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Article

The Mixed Effects of Online Diversity Training

By: Edward H. Chang, Katherine L. Milkman, Dena M. Gromet, Robert W. Rebele, Cade Massey, Angela L. Duckworth and Adam M. Grant

We present results from a large (n = 3,016) field experiment at a global organization testing whether a brief science-based online diversity training can change attitudes and behaviors toward women in the workplace. Our preregistered field experiment included an... View Details

Keywords: Diversity Training; Bias; Field Experiment; Training; Gender; Race; Prejudice and Bias

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May 5, 2020
Article

Why the Crisis Is Putting Companies at Risk of Losing Female Talent

By: Colleen Ammerman and Boris Groysberg

There has been a massive shift in how work gets done inside many companies and the global pivot to working remotely will likely change how many think about face time and rigid work schedules. Might these changes benefit women? The authors argue that will depend on how... View Details

Keywords: Coronavirus Pandemic; Remote Work; Flexible Work Arrangements; Health Pandemics; Employees; Working Conditions; Gender

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February 2024 (Revised May 2024)
Case

Johnson Security Bureau: Building Multigenerational Success

By: Henry McGee, Annelena Lobb and David Muoser

Jessica Johnson-Cope, CEO of Johnson Security Bureau (JSB), pondered options for scaling the firm. JSB was the oldest Black-owned security firm in New York, and among the oldest Black-owned security firms in the United States. It provided mostly unarmed security guards... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Gender; Race; Cybersecurity; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; New York (state, US)

March 2024
Case

Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Personalization

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

“Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Personalization” (HBS No. 524-052) investigates algorithmic bias in marketing through four case studies featuring Apple, Uber, Facebook, and Amazon. Each study presents scenarios where these companies faced public criticism for... View Details

Keywords: Race; Gender; Marketing; Diversity; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Customization and Personalization; Technology Industry; Retail Industry; United States

October 2017
Supplement

Maggie Wilderotter: The Evolution of an Executive: Video Supplement

By: Boris Groysberg, Sarah L. Abbott and Robin Abrahams

In a career that spanned over 30 years, Maggie Wilderotter served as CEO of two publicly traded companies and served on 32 corporate and nine association and non-profit boards of directors. The case looks at the progression of Wilderotter’s career; the decisions she... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Managing People; Networks; Strategy And Leadership; Personal Development and Career; Personal Characteristics; Leadership Style; Social and Collaborative Networks; Gender; Power and Influence; Telecommunications Industry; United States

March 1998 (Revised March 1999)
Case

Shepard Quraeshi Associates (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Harold F. Hogan Jr

Samina Quraeshi, principal of Boston-based Shepard Quraeshi Associates, must decide whether to take legal action against her key employees after they leave her firm to start their own, taking with them key clients and data. Quraeshi sees the situation as reflecting... View Details

Keywords: Ethnicity; Nationality; Ethics; Employees; Gender; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Immigration; Growth and Development Strategy; United States

15 Dec 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Biased Sampling of Early Users and the Direction of Startup Innovation

Keywords: by Ruiqing Cao, Rembrand Koning, and Ramana Nanda

May 2014 (Revised August 2014)
Teaching Note

Women MBAs at Harvard Business School: 1962–2012

By: Boris Groysberg and Robin Abrahams

July–August 2013
Article

Looking Up and Looking Out: Career Mobility Effects of Demographic Similarity among Professionals

By: Kathleen L. McGinn and Katherine L. Milkman

We investigate the role of workgroup sex and race composition on the career mobility of professionals in "up-or-out" organizations. We develop a nuanced perspective on the potential career mobility effects of workgroup demography by integrating the social... View Details

Keywords: Professional Service Firms; Race And Ethnicity; Ethnicity; Race; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Legal Services Industry

July 2000
Case

Dawn Riley at America True (B)

By: Linda A. Hill and Kristin Doughty

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Leadership; Problems and Challenges; Sports; Gender; Business Startups; North and Central America; New Zealand; San Francisco

April 1999 (Revised August 2004)
Case

Women's Professional Basketball and the American Basketball League

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Natalie Zakarian

Chronicles the growth and development of women's professional basketball. Particular emphasis is on the impact of Title IX, the 1996 women's gold medal Olympic team, and the advent of the American Basketball League (ABL). The structure and "basic business model" of the... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Problems and Challenges; Sports; Gender; Planning; Growth and Development; Sports Industry

September 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Teaching Note

Algorithmic Bias in Marketing

By: Ayelet Israeli and Eva Ascarza

Teaching Note for HBS No. 521-020. This note focuses on algorithmic bias in marketing. First, it presents a variety of marketing examples in which algorithmic bias may occur. The examples are organized around the 4 P’s of marketing – promotion, price, place and... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Race; Ethnicity; Gender; Diversity; Prejudice and Bias; Decision Making; Ethics; Customer Relationship Management; Retail Industry; Technology Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

October 2010
Article

Power Posing: Brief Nonverbal Displays Affect Neuroendocrine Levels and Risk Tolerance

By: Dana R. Carney, Amy J.C. Cuddy and Andy J. Yap

Humans and other animals express power through open, expansive postures and powerlessness through closed, constrictive postures. But can these postures actually cause power? As predicted, results revealed that posing in high-power (vs. low-power) nonverbal displays... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Nonverbal Communication; Behavior; Decision Choices and Conditions; Gender; Power and Influence

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September 2008 (Revised March 2009)
Supplement

Traversing a Career Path: Pat Fili-Krushel (B)

By: Kathleen L. McGinn, Deborah M. Kolb and Cailin B. Hammer

Pat Fili-Krushel has agreed to take on the job of first executive vice president of administration for AOL Time Warner, leading corporate human resources, internal communications, real estate and facilities, and other administrative roles for the combined company. She... View Details

Keywords: Conflict Management; Leadership; Managerial Roles; Negotiation Tactics; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Power and Influence; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Publishing Industry; United States