Publications

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July 2004 (Revised September 2004)
Background Note

Note on Antidilution Provisions: Typology and a Numerical Example

Antidilution provisions are an important element of most financings offered to entrepreneurs by venture capitalists and business angels. Yet few entrepreneurs are familiar with the different types of antidilution provisions and their mechanics. Compares the three most... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship

01 Mar 2010
News

How to Spur Prosperity

by venture capital in the past decades, there were many failures. But collectively, the companies that did succeed represent a significant fraction of the private-sector jobs in the United States today. The... View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg; Administration of Economic Programs; Administration of Economic Programs; Administration of Economic Programs; Administration of Economic Programs

29 Jan 2019
Research & Ideas

'Green Bonds' May Be Our Best Bet for Environmental Damage Control

Municipalities have been selling bonds to pay for public works projects—fire stations, parking garages,sewage treatment systems—for 200 years. It’s only in the past decade or so, however, that they’ve been selling them with an extra perk: helping the environment. In... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Energy; Utilities; Construction; Green Technology; Public Administration

March 1994 (Revised June 1999)
Background Note

Real Options: Valuing Managerial Flexibility

Provides a basic understanding of real options in corporate finance. Traditional discounted cash flow techniques (NPV) do not deal well with managerial flexibility or future response to uncertainty. The value of this flexibility can be significant and is handled well... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Capital Budgeting; Corporate Finance

22 Aug 2012
Research & Ideas

Advertising: It’s Not ‘Mad Men’ Anymore

favor a highly diverse and geographically dispersed industry, especially low-entry costs and limited economies of scale. The advertising business continues to attract creative talent who form and staff... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Advertising

20 Sep 2021
Blog Post

Student Spotlight: Summer Internships in Business and Environment

What are the career opportunities in business and environment? In Summer 2021, over 60 MBA students found internships at the intersection of business and the environment. This post provides a sample of some... View Details

07 Oct 2014
News

Network Effect

Henry McCance, founder (left), and Tim Armour, President & CEO, of Cure Alzheimer's Fund Twelve years ago, when Henry McCance (MBA 1966) and his wife initially faced her diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, the... View Details

Keywords: Linda Kush

Mar 2012
Article

Macroeconomic Policy and U.S. Competitiveness

there's no change in direction. The authors examine how fiscal policy relates to the three drivers of productivity: improving human capital, increasing physical capital (equipment or software, for example),... View Details

30 Apr 2014
Research & Ideas

Venture Investors Prefer Funding Handsome Men

personal persuasion. Kearney, her twin sister, is an entrepreneur and scholar whose research is fueled by both a frustration with and curiosity about the dearth of venture capital for women. (In the first... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Financial Services

April 2016
Supplement

Canadian Pacific's Bid for Norfolk Southern Spreadsheet Supplement

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Scott Mayfield

In December 2015, Canadian Pacific Railroad (CPR) has just made its third bid to acquire Norfolk Southern Corporation (NSC), one of the largest railroads in the United States. Having rejected the prior offers, NSC’s CEO James Squires and the NSC board must now value... View Details

Keywords: Capital Structure; Cash Flow; Cost of Capital; Financial Strategy; Investment Activism; Bids and Bidding; Negotiation Offer; Corporate Strategy; Rail Transportation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Transformation; United States; Canada

27 Jan 2015
First Look

First Look: January 27

Publications January 2015 American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings Do Strict Capital Requirements Raise the Cost of Capital? Bank Regulation, View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2024
Working Paper

Investor Influence on Media Coverage: Evidence from Venture Capital-Backed Startups

By: Brian K. Baik and Albert Shin

We examine the role of investors on the media coverage of their private firm investments. Specifically, we survey VC investors and find that 78% of the respondents take active steps to increase their portfolio companies’ media coverage. The survey results also... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; Media; Reputation; Information

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28 Jun 2004
Research & Ideas

Microfinance: A Way Out for the Poor

tread." All-in Cost The relevant measure for people struggling to build a microenterprise, be it selling onions, scrap metal, cell phones, or translation services, has to be the all-in cost View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

April 1993 (Revised September 1996)
Case

General Mills, Inc.: Analyzing an Annual Report

By: William J. Bruns Jr. and Marc H. Zablatsky

A directed analysis of the General Mills 1992 Annual Report. Focuses on the basics of reading an annual report including analysis of financial statements, calculations of financial ratios, and study of the layout and message of an annual report. View Details

Keywords: History; Cost Management; Activity Based Costing and Management; Financial Statements; Financial Strategy

October 2024
Article

Founder-CEO Compensation and Selection into Venture Capital-Backed Entrepreneurship

By: Michael Ewens, Ramana Nanda and Christopher Stanton

We show theoretically that a critical determinant of the attractiveness of VC-backed entrepreneurship for high-earning potential founders is the expected time to develop a startup’s initial product. This is because founder-CEOs’ cash compensation increases... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Executive Compensation

August 1986 (Revised September 2004)
Case

Hanson Ski Products

By: William J. Bruns Jr. and Julie H. Hertenstein

At the end of the budget cycle, the manager must test whether plans are feasible given financing arrangements and constraints. Cash needs are great due to seasonality. Needed loans must be calculated at five separate dates, and financial position projected. This is a... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Capital Budgeting; Cash Flow; Financial Strategy; Activity Based Costing and Management; Financing and Loans; Managerial Roles; Credit; Insurance