Publications

September 2017 (Revised June 2019)
Case

Dianrong: Marketplace Lending, Blockchain, and 'The New Finance' in China

By: Christopher J. Malloy, Lauren H. Cohen and Anthony K. Woo

This case examines the strategic positioning of Dianrong, one of the largest online peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms in China, in its attempt to become a foundational player in the expansion of the FinTech sector in Asia. Dianrong had recently announced the... View Details

Keywords: Financing and Loans; Internet and the Web; Supply Chain; Finance; Innovation and Invention; Competition; Product Positioning; Strategy; Financial Services Industry; China

08 Jul 2024
Research & Ideas

The Critical Computer Science Principles Every Strategic Leader Needs to Know

says. Not only that, but “increasingly, the tech architectures inside firms are a source of competitive advantage.” Wu suggests executives study up on these five computer science principles—and leave the... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Technology; Information Technology

06 Nov 2012
First Look

First Look: November 6

with firm value and operating performance persisted. Read the paper: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1589731 Does Management Really Work? Authors: Nicholas Bloom, Raffaella Sadun, and John Van Reenen Publication:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Program

Investment Management Workshop

Summary The Investment Management Workshop convenes the world's top principals, portfolio managers, and executives to explore the latest industry strategies and best practices. Focused on asset management, business strategy, business... View Details

September 21, 2018
Article

Innovation Should Be a Top Priority for Boards. So Why Isn't It?

By: J. Yo-Jud Cheng and Boris Groysberg

Corporate directors and executives alike recognize that today’s pace of change continues to accelerate and that firms need to innovate to stay ahead. But are boards doing enough to support innovation, as they should? We conducted a survey of over 5,000 board members... View Details

Keywords: Board Of Directors; Innovation; Technology; Innovation and Invention; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Business Strategy

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June 2014
Article

Acquirer-Target Social Ties and Merger Outcomes

By: Joy Ishii and Yuhai Xuan

This paper investigates the effect of social ties between acquirers and targets on merger performance. Using data on educational background and past employment, we construct a measure of the extent of cross-firm social connection between directors and senior executives... View Details

Keywords: Mergers; Acquisitions; Social Ties; Social Connections; Mergers and Acquisitions; Relationships; Outcome or Result

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23 Nov 1999
Research & Ideas

What’s Your Strategy for Managing Knowledge?

Some large consulting companies, such as Andersen Consuiting and Ernst & Young, have pursued a codification strategy. Over the last five years, they have developed elaborate ways to codify, store, and reuse knowledge. (See the exhibit "How Consulting View Details

Keywords: by Morten T. Hansen, Nitin Nohria & Thomas Tierney; Consulting

03 Mar 2003
What Do You Think?

Are Conditions Right for the Next Accounting Scandal?

same accounting firm, suggest hiring someone else, even though accountants for both clients insist that proper barriers are maintained within their firm. A search for another Big Four accounting firm is... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Accounting; Financial Services

February 2013 (Revised February 2014)
Case

Phu My Hung

By: John Macomber and Dawn H. Lau

Privately held city development promoters decide whether to partner on next phase or go it alone in a 20-year, 4000-acre project. Set outside of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, this decades-long project led by two Taiwanese families reshaped and built the economic... View Details

Keywords: Urban Development; Infrastructure; Real Estate Industry; Viet Nam

15 Feb 2000
Lessons from the Classroom

Delivering Information Services: A 30-Year Perspective

As the information economy emerges and technology transforms "business-as-usual," senior-level executives need to understand the "big picture" of how IT impacts their entire organization—from top to bottom. The HBS... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

03 May 2010
Research & Ideas

What Is the Future of MBA Education?

degrees, even though it set out each year to hire twice as many. These latter individuals are viewed as essential because the fields of finance and strategy have become increasingly analytical and because leading financial services firms... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Education

20 Feb 2006
HBS Case

Oprah: A Case Study Comes Alive

The best and brightest executives in the world are common visitors to the MBA classrooms at Harvard Business School, giving students a personal opportunity to talk to the likes of Ann Fudge, Lou Gerstner, Meg Whitman, and Jack Welch.... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Media & Broadcasting; Consumer Products; Entertainment & Recreation

July 2020
Background Note

Gender Diversity on Boards: Views from Norway

By: Aiyesha Dey

The issue of gender diversity on boards has received increased attention in U.S markets over the past few years. In 2018, California introduced a law which required boards of U.S-listed firms with headquarters in California to include at least one female director by... View Details

Keywords: Board Of Directors; Board Decisions; Gender; Diversity; Governing and Advisory Boards; Norway; United States

18 May 2011
Working Paper Summaries

Embracing Paradox

Keywords: Re: Michael L. Tushman

Research Summary

Career Histories and the Biotechnology Industry

Professor Higgins' other major project focuses on the consequences of individuals' career experiences for firms and industries. This second research stream centers on the careers of executives in the biotechnology industry.

Professor Higgins has written... View Details

17 Sep 2024
HBS Case

The Climate Targets Leaders Need to Know as Regulations Loom

Professor of Business Administration; a new cohort begins every few months. First, a math lesson Many firms use the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol developed by the World Resources Institute and World Business Council for Sustainable... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

16 Jul 2001
Research & Ideas

How to Compete Like a Judo Strategist

stay a leader," as Donna Dubinsky (CEO of Handspring, Inc.) says. Once a smaller or weaker firm starts to play defense, the game is usually over. So "play offense and play to win," is the advice of Intuit founder Scott... View Details

Keywords: by David B. Yoffie & Mary Kwak

February 2015 (Revised May 2017)
Case

Delhaize Group: Developing Leaders

By: Boris Groysberg and Sarah L. Abbott

Delhaize Group, the Belgian-based global food retailer, was focused on competing in the food retailing industry by developing leading positions in key markets via localized retailing strategies. Delhaize was committed to offering its customers superior value while... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Organizational Alignment; Talent Management; Leadership Development; Globalized Firms and Management; Human Capital; Talent and Talent Management; Corporate Strategy; Organizational Culture; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Belgium

March 2009
Article

The Impact of Shareholder Activism on Financial Reporting and Compensation: The Case of Employee Stock Options Expensing

By: F. Ferri and Tatiana Sandino

We examine the economic consequences of more than 150 shareholder proposals to expense employee stock options (ESO) submitted during the proxy seasons of 2003 and 2004, the first case in which the SEC allowed a shareholder vote on an accounting matter. Our results... View Details

Keywords: Shareholder Activism; Shareholder Votes; Stock Option Expensing; Executive Compensation; Financial Reporting; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Corporate Governance; Business and Shareholder Relations; Investment Activism