Publications

08 Aug 2023
Research & Ideas

The Rise of Employee Analytics: Productivity Dream or Micromanagement Nightmare?

With more data available than ever before, why would any executive gamble on a hunch—especially for decisions that involve their own employees? An emerging field that uses data to study human behavior at work, “people analytics” is beginning to transform the View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand

June 2011
Article

Implicit Voice Theories: Taken-for-granted Rules of Self-censorship at Work

By: J. R. Detert and Amy C. Edmondson

This article examines, in a series of four studies, the nature and impact of implicit voice theories-largely taken-for-granted beliefs about when and why speaking up at work is risky or inappropriate. In Study 1, qualitative data from 190 interviews conducted in a... View Details

Keywords: Spoken Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Employees; Managerial Roles; Organizational Culture; Risk and Uncertainty; Behavior

2015
Article

Approach, Ability, Aftermath: A Psychological Framework of Unethical Behavior at Work

By: C. Moore and F. Gino

Many of the scandalous organizational practices that have come to light in the last decade—rigging LIBOR, misselling payment protection insurance, rampant Wall Street insider trading, large-scale bribery of foreign officials, and the packaging and sale of toxic... View Details

Keywords: Working Conditions; Ethics; Decision Making

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December 2013
Article

The Costs of Ambient Cultural Disharmony: Indirect Intercultural Conflicts in Social Environment Undermine Creativity

By: Roy Y.J. Chua

Intercultural tensions and conflicts are inevitable in the global workplace. This paper introduces the concept of ambient cultural disharmony—indirect experience of intercultural tensions and conflicts in individuals' immediate social environment—and demonstrates how... View Details

Keywords: Creativity; Culture

2008
Book

Moral Gray Zones: Side Productions, Identity, and Regulation in an Aeronautic Plant

By: Michel Anteby

Anyone who has been employed by an organization knows not every official workplace regulation must be followed. When management consistently overlooks such breaches, spaces emerge in which both workers and supervisors engage in officially prohibited, yet tolerated... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Moral Sensibility; Governance Controls; Production; Organizational Culture; Practice; France

17 Apr 2022
Book

How to Avoid the 'Ethical Slide' That Leads Companies Astray

ethical practice is the best compass, she advises. “The world is changing around businesses,” Nelson says. “There is more pressure to make profits, and at the same time to respond to environmental, social, and governance issues.” And, she... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

March 2020
Article

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

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict between women’s family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is incomplete: men also experience it and nevertheless... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems-psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

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19 Mar 2006
Research & Ideas

Do I Dare Say Something?

and accessible and taking action on ideas or reporting back on why action can't or won't be taken. These are behavioral skills that all of us can continue to practice and improve. These don't need to be grand, highly contrived actions.... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert

April 2019 (Revised January 2025)
Case

Clear Link Technologies, LLC: Driving Sales with Peer Effects

By: Christopher Stanton, Richard Saouma and Olivia Hull

The importance of a good peer or coworker is widely discussed, but understanding the glue that makes coworkers valuable is less understood. This case sheds light on the importance of peers and the practices and environments that make a group greater than the sum of its... View Details

Educators

18 Apr 2013
Working Paper Summaries

The Impact of Pooling on Throughput Time in Discretionary Work Settings: An Empirical Investigation of Emergency Department Length of Stay

Keywords: by Hummy Song, Anita L. Tucker & Karen L. Murrell; Health

9 Jul 2021
Interview

Matthew Barzun and Amy Edmondson

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Matthew Barzun

Writer Matthew Barzun speaks with Harvard Professor and author Amy Edmondson about Barzun's book, "The Power of Giving Away Power: How the Best Leaders Learn to Let Go". Matthew Barzun has served as U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom and Sweden. He served as... View Details

08 May 2019
Blog Post

In the Business of Flexibility

addressing today’s evolving workplace flexibility trend—offering high-caliber talent solutions that benefit employees, businesses, and the environment. “The fact is, flexibility is there whether or not your company is actively embracing... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Nonprofit / Government

22 Nov 2022
Blog Post

Leading in Tough Times: HBS Faculty member Amy C. Edmondson on Psychological Safety

Amy C. Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at Harvard Business School, has long studied the performance of teams in the workplace. Her latest book is The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the View Details

2 Sep 2021
Interview

Amy Edmondson

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Deepak Jayaraman

Amy C. Edmondson is the Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at the Harvard Business School. Amy has been recognized by the biannual Thinkers50 global ranking of management thinkers since 2011, and most recently was ranked #3 in 2019. She studies teaming,... View Details

Keywords: Psychological Safety; Organizational Culture; Communication; Performance Effectiveness

Leslie A. Perlow is the Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership in the Organizational Behavior Unit at Harvard Business School. She leads the Crafting Your Life Special Project, dedicated to helping individuals make purposeful life choices while gathering... View Details

2018
Book

Rebel Talent: Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and Life

By: F. Gino

The world’s best chef.
An airline captain who brought his flight to safety in a daring water landing.
A magician known for his sensational escape acts.
A computer scientist who founded a world-renowned animation studio.
What do all of these... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Personal Characteristics; Success; Behavior