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(1,112)
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Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(1,112)
- People (3)
- News (224)
- Research (756)
- Events (3)
- Multimedia (7)
- Faculty Publications (455)
- 27 Mar 2023
- News
Striking the Balance Between Profits and Purpose
- October 16, 2023
- Article
How a Defined Purpose Drove Unilever’s Turnaround
By: Ranjay Gulati
Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Leadership; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability
Gulati, Ranjay. "How a Defined Purpose Drove Unilever’s Turnaround." Inc.com (October 16, 2023).
- May 2009 (Revised November 2009)
- Case
Ralph Nader: When Purpose and Legacy Collide
By: Nitin Nohria and Umaimah Mendhro
This case tells the story of Ralph Nader's leadership, from his success as a crusader for consumer interests and active public participation in the political process to his controversial campaigns for the U.S. presidency. View Details
Keywords: Values and Beliefs; Government and Politics; Leadership; Personal Development and Career; Reputation; Public Opinion; Public Administration Industry
Nohria, Nitin, and Umaimah Mendhro. "Ralph Nader: When Purpose and Legacy Collide." Harvard Business School Case 409-117, May 2009. (Revised November 2009.)
- November 2024
- Case
Meghna Modi at Revlon India: Leading with a Bold Purpose
By: Aiyesha Dey, Sarah Mehta and Sarah Sasso
This case is about Meghna Modi, the head of struggling cosmetics company Revlon India, as she tries to both turn the company around and implement her personal purpose at work. Influenced by her own life struggles, Modi feels compelled to empower her frontline... View Details
- 2015
- Chapter
Managerial Responsibility and the Purpose of Business: Doing One's Job Well
By: Nien-he Hsieh
Business managers routinely make decisions that significantly affect the lives of others in both positive and negative ways. In the light of these wide-ranging effects, much scholarship has been devoted to specifying the responsibilities of managers of for-profit... View Details
Hsieh, Nien-he. "Managerial Responsibility and the Purpose of Business: Doing One's Job Well." Chap. 5 in Ethical Innovation in Business and the Economy, edited by Georges Enderle and Patrick E. Murphy, 95–118. Studies in Transatlantic Business Ethics. Northhampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2015.
- Fast Answer
Companies: social responsibility
most sustainable corporations. The following websites give background information on social responsibility issues and companies: Benefit Corp Information Center: Benefit corporations have a corporate View Details
- 03 Feb 2018
- Op-Ed
How to Heed BlackRock's Call for Corporate Social Responsibility
attempt to incorporate a social purpose frequently have to deal with competing market demands that still push them to focus exclusively on financial performance. We must take action to create an ecosystem... View Details
Keywords: by Julie Battilana
- September 2023 (Revised September 2024)
- Technical Note
Measuring and Managing Social Impact
By: Brian Trelstad, Gerald Chertavian and Susan Pinckney
A brief overview of how to measure social impact at nonprofits, social organizations, and impact investments. View Details
Keywords: Analysis; Change; Transformation; Decision Making; Cost vs Benefits; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decisions; Forecasting and Prediction; Public Sector; Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Fairness; Entrepreneurial Finance; Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Policy; Innovation and Management; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Management Practices and Processes; Resource Allocation; Measurement and Metrics; Standards; Strength and Weakness; Mission and Purpose; Success; Performance; Performance Evaluation; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Strategic Planning; Programs; Risk and Uncertainty; Social Enterprise; Non-Governmental Organizations; Social Issues; United States
Trelstad, Brian, Gerald Chertavian, and Susan Pinckney. "Measuring and Managing Social Impact." Harvard Business School Technical Note 324-017, September 2023. (Revised September 2024.)
- 27 Jul 2009
- Research & Ideas
Social Network Marketing: What Works?
Therefore, the advertising-based business model has had only limited success on social networking sites. If the purpose of advertising is to influence consumers' purchases, our research shows that there is... View Details
- Research Summary
Governance, Accountability, and Performance for Social Enterprise
By: Dutch Leonard
This project examines the relationship between governance structures, accountability relationships, and performance outcomes for social enterprises. Most previous work in this area has examined these topics separately, or in pairs; the purpose of this project is to... View Details
- 2014
- Chapter
Corporate Social Responsibility and Multinational Corporations
By: Nien-he Hsieh and Florian Wettstein
A central question that arises from the perspective of global ethics is what standards ought to apply to the activities of multinational corporations (MNCs). This chapter surveys the contemporary theoretical literature on this question. The first section provides... View Details
Keywords: Multinational Corporation; Multinational Firms and Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Standards
Hsieh, Nien-he, and Florian Wettstein. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Multinational Corporations." Chap. 19 in The Routledge Handbook of Global Ethics, edited by Darrel Moellendorf and Heather Widdows, 251–266. London: Routledge, 2014.
- 01 Mar 2012
- News
Social Investing Pioneers
the social impact bond, an innovative approach to marrying social purpose with financial returns for investors. Still in the pilot stage in the UK, View Details
- 02 Aug 2022
- Research & Ideas
6 Strategies for Building Socially Responsible—and Profitable—Companies
A dozen years ago, Harvard Business School Professor George Serafeim wondered why some companies operated with an eye toward the greater good, while most did not. Back then, he always got the same response: Corporate leaders thought social and environmental practices... View Details
Keywords: by Lane Lambert
- 2022
- Book
Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies
By: Ranjay Gulati
This book offers a compelling reassessment and defense of purpose as a management ethos, documenting the vast performance gains and social benefits that become possible when firms manage to get purpose right. Few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent... View Details
Keywords: Purpose; Business And Society; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Performance Effectiveness; Organizational Culture
Gulati, Ranjay. Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies. New York: Harper Business, 2022.
- 01 Jun 2009
- News
Social Enterprise Visionary
John Whitehead Played a Key Role in Developing the HBS Initiative AUSTIN, WHITEHEAD, AND RANGAN: Social enterprise pioneers. In the early 1990s, legendary Wall Street executive and former deputy secretary of state John Whitehead (MBA... View Details
- May 2025 (Revised June 2025)
- Background Note
Social Enterprise in Latin America
By: Brian L. Trelstad and Karina Souza
This research note provides an overview of the social enterprise ecosystem in Latin America, exploring current dynamics across key markets, including country-specific insights on Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Central America. In a region characterized... View Details
Keywords: Impact Investing; Developing Countries and Economies; Social Entrepreneurship; Emerging Markets; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Ownership; Social Enterprise; Business Strategy; Equality and Inequality; Microfinance; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Information Technology Industry; Latin America; Brazil; Mexico; Argentina; Colombia; Chile; Guatemala; Central America; Peru; Uruguay
Trelstad, Brian L., and Karina Souza. "Social Enterprise in Latin America." Harvard Business School Background Note 325-117, May 2025. (Revised June 2025.)
- 05 Oct 2022
- News
The Chat: Driving Purpose and Profit ft. George Serafeim
- 01 Jun 2010
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: Social Reporting
accountability demands. HBS professor Alnoor Ebrahim examines the tradeoffs inherent in a range of accountability mechanisms. Key concepts include: Accountability is not simply about compliance with laws or industry standards, but is more deeply connected to... View Details
Keywords: by Staff
- 15 Sep 2008
- Research & Ideas
The Coming Transformation of Social Enterprise
sense when the for-profit and nonprofit parts are tightly linked by a common purpose or platform. For example, in health care several very successful social entrepreneurs have created a hybrid model where... View Details
Keywords: by Roger Thompson
- Web
Business for Social Impact | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School
Since its inception, the Social Enterprise Initiative has explored the role of business in creating social value. Early efforts in the late 1990s included hosting a research conference on business leadership... View Details