Publications

Web

Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability Course | HBS Online

balancing value creation for investors with accountability to other constituencies. Highlights What Can We Learn Briefing on Wilder's Plan Show Hide Details Concepts Theranos: Where Does the Responsibility Lie? Power and Money at TXU... View Details

March 22, 2016
Article

The Globalization of Corporate Environmental Disclosure: Accountability or Greenwashing?

By: Christopher Marquis, Michael W. Toffel and Yanhua Zhou

This article is a layman summary of "Scrutiny, Norms, and Selective Disclosure: A Global Study of Greenwashing," published in Organization Science 27, no. 2 (March–April 2016): 483–504. View Details

Keywords: Reporting; Environmental Performance; Civil Society; Corporate Disclosure; Integrated Corporate Reporting; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Civil Society or Community; Environmental Sustainability

Read Now

11 Feb 2022
Lecture

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-Family Narrative as a Social Defense Against the 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic and Robin J. Ely

Are women’s family responsibilities the reason for their stalled advancement?

Conventional wisdom says “yes.” But is it true? When companies create solutions to address work-life conflict instead of rethinking the 24/7 work culture, they find their... View Details

Keywords: Gender; Equality and Inequality; Work-Life Balance

Read Now

March 2017 (Revised June 2019)
Case

CEO Activism (A)

By: Michael W. Toffel, Aaron K. Chatterji and Julia Kelley

This case introduces CEO activism, a phenomenon in which business leaders engage in political or social issues that do not relate directly to their companies. The case uses several examples to describe why business leaders are engaging in CEO activism and the potential... View Details

05 Jun 2013
Op-Ed

Corporate Leaders Need to Step Up on Climate Change

Green initiatives are ubiquitous these days, implemented with zeal at companies like Dupont, IBM, Walmart, and Walt Disney. The programs being rolled out—lighting retrofits, zero-waste factories, and carpool incentives—save money and provide a green glow. Most large... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Toffel & Auden Schendler

January 2020 (Revised July 2020)
Case

BlackRock: Linking Purpose to Profit

By: Rohit Deshpandé, Aiyesha Dey and George Serafeim

The case revolves around the actions that Barbara Novick, co-founder and Vice-Chair of Blackrock, and Michelle Edkins, Global Head of Investment Stewardship, would need to take in response to the controversial CEO letters from Laurence (Larry) Fink, Chairman and CEO of... View Details

Article

On Derivatives Markets and Social Welfare: A Theory of Empty Voting and Hidden Ownership

By: Jordan M. Barry, John William Hatfield and Scott Duke Kominers

In the past twenty-five years, derivatives markets have grown exponentially. Large, modern derivatives markets increasingly enable investors to hold economic interests in corporations without owning voting rights, and vice versa. This leads to both empty... View Details

Keywords: Voting; Corporate Disclosure; Financial Markets; Ownership

Read Now

22 Sep 2021
Keynote Speech

Getting Serious About Sustainability: Corporate Governance for a New Era

By: Lynn S. Paine

March 2018
Teaching Note

Making Target the Target: Boycotts and Corporate Political Activity (A) and (B)

By: Nien-hê Hsieh and Victor Wu

Through the challenges facing Target, the case examines the ways in which corporations can become involved in political and legislative debates and processes, ranging from campaign contributions to lobbying. In 2016, Target CEO Brian Cornell must determine how to... View Details

Web

Eligibility & Criteria | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

organizations/management issues for profit organizations in which the mission and the core activities of the organization have a direct social purpose business approaches where the core focus is social... View Details

24 Jan 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Punctuated Generosity: How Mega-events and Natural Disasters Affect Corporate Philanthropy in US Communities

Keywords: by András Tilcsik & Christopher Marquis

Web

A Life’s Work | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

Chertavian founded Year Up. With 15 U.S. cities and counting, Year Up seeks to help young urban adults reach their full potential through a one-year program that provides hands-on IT and professional skills development, college credits, and View Details

Web

How to Apply | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

Eligibility & Criteria Awards How to Apply Past Projects Application Process Students submit one Social Enterprise Independent Project Reimbursement Grant Application form per team, which includes a detailed program budget that will be... View Details

08 Oct 2021
Research & Ideas

How Newspaper Closures Open the Door to Corporate Crime

Some may shrug at the inevitable passing of the local newspaper, writing it off as a dinosaur that doesn’t have much to offer in our modern world of blogs, social media sites, and streamed soundbites. But no news is not necessarily good... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

28 Apr 2014
Research & Ideas

Football Stars Debate ‘The Social Capital of the Savvy Athlete’

"Richard Sherman sets Twitter off." T-shirts emblazoned with "Don't you ever talk about me" are now available on Sherman's website for $29.95. Sherman was among the panelists at a recent forum entitled "Unrealized Value? The View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Sports

January–February 2018
Article

The Leader's Guide to Corporate Culture: How to Manage the Eight Critical Elements of Organizational Life

By: Boris Groysberg, Jeremiah Lee, Jesse Price and J. Yo-Jud Cheng

Executives are often confounded by culture, because much of it is anchored in unspoken behaviors, mindsets, and social patterns. But when properly managed, culture can help them achieve change and build organizations that will thrive in even the most trying times. In... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Culture; Performance Effectiveness; Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation

Find at Harvard

Register to Read

2011
Chapter

Multinational Enterprises and Corporate Responsibility: A Matter of Justice?

By: Nien-he Hsieh

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Ethics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Lawfulness

Web

Introduction - The Response - The Human Factor – Baker Library | Bloomberg Center, Historical Collections

HBS Home HBS Index Contact Us Harvard Business School Baker Library Historical Collections The Human Factor Introducing the Industrial Life Photograph Collection at the Baker Library Introduction The Exhibition The Request The Response... View Details

June 2013 (Revised January 2024)
Case

Governance and Sustainability at Nike (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Nien-hê Hsieh and Lara Adamsons

Two members of Nike's executive team must decide what sustainability targets to propose to Nike's CEO and to the corporate responsibility committee of Nike's board of directors. Set in 2012, the case traces the evolution of Nike's approach to environmental and social... View Details

Keywords: Nike; Hannah Jones; Mark Parker; Phil Knight; Philip Knight; Eric Sprunk; Jill Ker Conway; Phyllis Wise; Don Blair; Sustainable Business And Innovation; SB＆I; Flyknit; DyeCoo; Footwear; Athletic Footwear; Apparel; Athletic Apparel; Sustainability; Greenpeace; Detox Campaign; Dirty Laundry; Water; Water Use; Water Pollution; Water Resources; Corporate Responsibility Committee; Judgment; Board Of Directors; Board Committees; Environmental And Social Sustainability; Footwear Industry; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decisions; Ethics; Fairness; Globalized Firms and Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governance; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Innovation and Invention; Innovation and Management; Innovation Leadership; Innovation Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance; Alignment; Supply Chain; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Judgments; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Asia; China; United States; Oregon; Portland