Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(821)
- Faculty Publications (135)
- 2019
- Working Paper
Migrant Inventors and the Technological Advantage of Nations
We investigate the relationship between the presence of migrant inventors and the dynamics of innovation in the migrants’ receiving countries. We find that countries are 25% to 50% more likely to gain advantage in patenting in certain technologies given a twofold... View Details
- 2019
- Working Paper
The Gift of Global Talent: Innovation Policy and the Economy
By: William R. Kerr
Talent is the most precious resource for today’s knowledge-based economy, and a significant share of the U.S. skilled workforce in technology fields is foreign born. The United States has long held a leading position in attracting global talent, but the gap to other... View Details
- Summer 2019
- Article
The Plight of the Graying Tech Worker
By: William R. Kerr
If you’re in tech and over 40, your experience is probably underappreciated. A global talent pool complicates matters. View Details
- February 2019
- Article
The Ethnic Migrant Inventor Effect: Codification and Recombination of Knowledge Across Borders
By: Prithwiraj Choudhury and Do Yoon Kim
Ethnic migrant inventors may differ from locals in terms of the knowledge they bring to host firms. We study the role of first-generation ethnic migrant inventors in cross-border transfer of knowledge previously locked within the cultural context of their home regions.... View Details
Keywords: Skilled Migration; Ethnic Migration; First-generation Migrant; Cultural Context; Knowledge Flows; Knowledge Reuse; Knowledge Recombination; Recombinant Creation; H1B Visas; Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Knowledge Dissemination; Immigration; Ethnicity; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues
- 2019
- Working Paper
Immigrant Networking and Collaboration: Survey Evidence from CIC
By: Sari Pekkala Kerr and William R. Kerr
Networking and the giving and receiving of advice outside of one’s own firm are important features of entrepreneurship and innovation. We study how immigrants and natives utilize the potential networking opportunities provided by CIC, formerly known as the Cambridge... View Details
- January 2019
- Article
Increasing the Electoral Participation of Immigrants: Experimental Evidence from France
By: Vincent Pons and Guillaume Liegey
Improving the political participation of immigrants could advance their interests and foster their integration into receiving countries. In this study, 23,800 citizens were randomly assigned to receive visits from political activists during the lead-up to the 2010... View Details
- November 2018 (Revised June 2019)
- Case
The Rise of Populism and Italy's Electoral 'Tsunami'
By: Rawi Abdelal, Dante Roscini and Elena Corsi
Italy’s March 2018 elections led to a populist government that included the right-wing League and the anti-establishment 5 Star Movement. To respect their electoral promises, the two parties came up with a budget plan that provided for a public deficit at 2.4%, a... View Details
- November 2018 (Revised February 2023)
- Case
Bangladesh: Into the Maelstrom
By: Reshmaan Hussam, Sophus A. Reinert and Namrata Arora
In the fall of 2018, Rohima Begum considered her options as the small island, or “char,” on which her family’s house rested slowly but inescapably eroded into the mighty Brahmaputra River in northern Bangladesh. The country, once unceremoniously dubbed a “basket case”... View Details
- 2018
- Book
The Gift of Global Talent: How Migration Shapes Business, Economy & Society
By: William R. Kerr
The global race for talent is on, with countries and businesses competing for the best and brightest. Foreign talent has transformed U.S. science and engineering, reshaped the economy, and influenced society at large. But America is bogged down in thorny debates on... View Details
- 2021
- Working Paper
From Immigrants to Americans: Race and Assimilation During the Great Migration
By: Vasiliki Fouka, Soumyajit Mazumder and Marco Tabellini
How does the arrival of a new minority group affect the social acceptance and outcomes of existing minorities? We study this question in the context of the First Great Migration. Between 1915 and 1930, 1.5 million African Americans moved from the U.S. South to Northern... View Details
- 2018
- Working Paper
Black Out-Migration and Southern Political Realignment
By: Leah Boustan and Marco Tabellini
Can emigration from less democratic and economically less developed areas induce political and economic change? We study this question in the context of the second Great Migration of African Americans (1940–1970), when more than 4 million blacks left the U.S. South and... View Details
- 2018
- Book
High-Skilled Migration to the United States and Its Economic Consequences
By: Gordon H. Hanson, William R. Kerr and Sarah Turner
Immigration policy is one of the most contentious public policy issues in the United States today. High-skilled immigrants represent an increasing share of the U.S. workforce, particularly in science and engineering fields. These immigrants affect economic growth,... View Details
- April 2018
- Case
Miami's Tech Future (Abridged): Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Leadership Challenges
By the middle of the 1990s, Miami’s reputation was changing. An influx of Spanish-speaking immigrants and major investments in the airport and seaport had changed the image of a sleepy southern city to the de facto business center of Latin America, a center for... View Details
- February 2018
- Article
Heterogeneous Technology Diffusion and Ricardian Trade Patterns
By: William R. Kerr
This study tests the importance of Ricardian technology differences for international trade. The empirical analysis has three comparative advantages: including emerging and advanced economies, isolating panel variation regarding the link between productivity and... View Details
- December 14, 2017
- Editorial
Resolving DACA Will Modernize the American Economy
- November 2017 (Revised September 2020)
- Case
Miami's Tech Future (A): Twenty-first Century Changes and Challenges
In the decade starting in 2000, a new mayor focused on infrastructure and leadership from a foundation investing in arts and culture helped the Miami region transform and attract younger people to a newly vibrant central city and arts district. In 2011, the Knight... View Details
- November 2017
- Technical Note
21st Century Populism
By: George Serafeim and David Freiberg
While the first decade of the 21st century saw a massive financial crisis that led to significant economic downturn, the second decade saw the rise of political leaders, who built their support upon a political message that championed the common person against the... View Details
Keywords: Populism; Market Efficiency; Market Liberalization; Political Influence; Political Instability; Capital Controls; Partnerships; Coalition; Inequality; Role Of Business In Society; Government Intervention In The Markets; Labor Market; Equality and Inequality; Financial Markets; Social Issues; Immigration; Financial Crisis; Capital Markets; Business and Government Relations
- 2017
- Chapter
Immigrant Entrepreneurship
By: William R. Kerr and Sari Pekkala Kerr
We examine immigrant entrepreneurship and the survival and growth of immigrant-founded businesses over time relative to native-founded companies. Our work quantifies immigrant contributions to new firm creation in a wide variety of fields and using multiple... View Details
- Fall 2017
- Article
The Alternative Business History: Business in Emerging Markets
By: Gareth Austin, Carlos Davila and Geoffrey Jones
This article suggests that the business history of emerging markets should be seen as an alternative business history rather than merely adding new settings to explore established core debates. The discipline of business history evolved around the corporate strategies... View Details
- 2017
- Working Paper
Emerging Markets and the Future of Business History
By: Gareth Austin, Carlos Dávila and Geoffrey Jones
This working paper suggests that the business history of emerging markets should be seen as an alternative business history rather than merely adding new settings to explore established core debates. The discipline of business history evolved around the corporate... View Details