Publications

Read Now

19 Dec 2006
First Look

First Look: December 19, 2006

demand. Download working paper: http://www.nber.org/papers/w12756 The Value of a 'Free' Customer Authors:Sunil Gupta, Carl F. Mela, and Jose M. Vidal-Sanz Abstract Central to a firm's growth and marketing policy is the revenue and profit... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 2009
Article

Influence and Inefficiency in the Internal Capital Market

By: Julie Wulf

I model inefficient resource allocations in M-form organizations due to influence activities by division managers that skew capital budgets in their favor. Corporate headquarters receives two types of signals about investment opportunities: private signals that can be... View Details

Keywords: Capital Markets; Resource Allocation; Business Processes; Capital Budgeting; Business Headquarters; Investment; Opportunities; Cost; Value; Motivation and Incentives; Equity

Read Now

August 2010 (Revised January 2012)
Case

Leaders Who Make a Difference: Sam Palmisano's Smarter IBM: Day 1

By: Joseph L. Bower and Sonja Ellingson Hout

Sam Palmisano became CEO of IBM in 2002. He dramatically energized the organization through portfolio changes and a values driven approach to managing the company. View Details

Keywords: Values and Beliefs; Multinational Firms and Management; Leadership; Growth and Development Strategy; Emerging Markets; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Corporate Strategy; Information Technology Industry; New York (state, US)

December 1999
Case

Brierley Investments Limited

By: Paul M. Healy

Brierley's is an investment company that has performed poorly in the New Zealand market. Management has prepared a report of the intrinsic value of the company's investments. View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Corporate Disclosure; Financial Strategy; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Performance Evaluation; Investment; Business Strategy; Financial Services Industry; New Zealand

October 2011 (Revised June 2013)
Case

Becton Dickinson: Opportunities and Challenges on the Road to the 'Envisioned Future'

By: Michael Beer and Russell A. Eisenstat

The case depicts a mission and values driven firm, how it was turned around, and its unique strategy of enabling others to succeed. View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

May 1996 (Revised August 2001)
Case

Timberland and Community Involvement

By: James E. Austin and Jaan Elias

The Timberland Co., a manufacturer and retailer of footwear, outdoor apparel, and accessories, committed itself to instituting and communicating a core set of values to its employees, stockholders, and consumers. The system of beliefs emphasized community service.... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Values and Beliefs; Business and Community Relations; Social Enterprise; Corporate Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry

15 Jul 2008
First Look

First Look: July 15, 2008

Theory of Corporate Debt Maturity Choice Authors:Robin Greenwood, Jeremy C. Stein, and Samuel Hanson Abstract We argue that time-series variation in the maturity of aggregate corporate debt issues arises... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

April 2006 (Revised March 2007)
Case

Drexel Burnham Lambert (A): "The Smartest People on Wall Street Can be Had"

By: Boris Groysberg, Anahita Hashemi and Brendan Reed

In February 1990, Drexel Burnham Lambert declared bankruptcy amid a slew of scandals. Equities chief Arthur Kirsch hoped to keep his high-performing 600-person team intact. Could he find a company that would take on such a massive group hire? Competitors were already... View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Decision Choices and Conditions; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Selection and Staffing; Leadership; Negotiation; Groups and Teams; Power and Influence; Society

Research Summary

Professor Wei-Skillern's research is focused in the field of Social Enterprise. Her research examines the creation of social value in both commercial and nonprofit organizations. In the former stream of research on corporate social responsibility, she has studied... View Details

2015
Other Unpublished Work

Do Managers Have a Role to Play in Sustaining the Institutions of Capitalism?

By: Rebecca Henderson and Karthik Ramanna

In a capitalist system based on free markets, do managers have responsibilities to the system itself? If they do, should these responsibilities shape their behavior when they engage in the political processes that structure the institutions of capitalism? The... View Details

Keywords: Capitalism; Lobbying; Leadership; Economic Systems; Managerial Roles; Business and Government Relations

Read Now

2024
Book

The Fading Light of Democratic Capitalism: How Pervasive Cronyism and Restricted Suffrage Are Destroying Democratic Capitalism as a National Ideal ... And What to Do About It

By: Malcolm S. Salter

What are we to do about declining public trust and confidence in democratic capitalism, which many citizens consider a cornerstone of our national ideology and identity? In this book, I address how we can rekindle the fading light of democratic capitalism as an... View Details

Keywords: Government and Politics; Power and Influence; Economic Systems; Culture

November 2001 (Revised December 2002)
Case

Tracking Stocks at Genzyme (A)

By: Malcolm S. Salter

Genzyme, a tracking stock pioneer, has used its innovative capital structure as a way to frame and grow its R&D-intensive business. Facing the question of how best to integrate a new acquisition into its tracking stock structure, Genzyme's top management is forced to... View Details

Keywords: Integration; Value Creation; Motivation and Incentives; Conflict of Interests; Stocks; Capital Structure; Research and Development; Corporate Governance; Biotechnology Industry

August 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

DBS' AI Journey

By: Feng Zhu, Harold Zhu and Adina Wong

Headquartered in Singapore, DBS Bank, one of Asia's leading financial services groups, embarked on a multi-year digital transformation under CEO Piyush Gupta in 2014. It was then that DBS also began experimenting with AI to drive value for the business and customers.... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; AI and Machine Learning; Digital Transformation; Risk Management; Value Creation; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Asia; Singapore

Forthcoming
Article

High-Yield Debt Covenants and Their Real Effects

By: Falk Bräuning, Victoria Ivashina and Ali Ozdagli

High-yield debt including leveraged loans is characterized by incurrence financial covenants, or “cov-lite” provisions. A traditional loan agreement includes maintenance covenants, which require continuous compliance with the covenant threshold, and their violation... View Details

Keywords: Debt Covenants; Incurrence Covenants; Borrowing and Debt; Banks and Banking