Publications

March 2021
Article

Active Choice, Implicit Defaults, and the Incentive to Choose

By: John Beshears, James J. Choi, David Laibson and Brigitte C. Madrian

Home-delivered prescriptions have no delivery charge and lower copayments than prescriptions picked up at a pharmacy. Nevertheless, when home delivery is offered on an opt-in basis, the take-up rate is only 6%. We study a program that makes active choice of either home... View Details

Keywords: Active Choice; Defaults; Implicit Defaults; Incentives; Consumer Behavior; Decision Choices and Conditions; Motivation and Incentives

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27 Aug 2013
First Look

First Look: August 27

pre-selected alternative. The intervention increases plan enrollment rates by 10 to 20 percentage points. We find that a similar intervention can be used to increase contribution rates among employees who are already participating in a... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

05 Dec 2018
Research & Ideas

Why Managers Should Reveal Their Failures

person. As prior research has shown, this type of envy can be toxic in the workplace, stifling worker productivity, leading employees to behave less cooperatively, interfering with group cohesion, and making people feel more justified in... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

19 Dec 2022
Research & Ideas

The 10 Most Popular Articles of 2022

even in a job you don't love. 9. Rituals at Work: Teams That Play Together Stay Together Rituals—even seemingly silly ones—help employees bond and add meaning to their work, says research by Michael Norton, Francesca Gino, and colleagues.... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

2017
Article

The Energizing Nature of Work Engagement: Toward a New Need-Based Theory of Work Motivation

By: Paul Green, Eli Finkel, Grainne Fitzsimons and Francesca Gino

We present theory suggesting that experiences at work that meet employees’ expectations of need fulfillment drive work engagement. Employees have needs (e.g., a desire to be authentic) and they also have expectations for how their job or their organization will fulfill... View Details

Keywords: Needs; Motivation; Work Engagement; Disengagement; Authenticity; Self-Expression; Employees; Motivation and Incentives; Behavior; Human Needs

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Web

Japan - Global

Innovation Ecosystem.” During their time in Japan, the students participated in team-based consulting projects and attended a venture capital panel session in Tokyo. In Tohoku, they met local social entrepreneurs, engaged with the Mayor... View Details

03 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 3, 2009

Publication: Il Sole 24 Ore S.p.A., in press Abstract A collection of papers on ethics, translated into Italian. Social Decision Making: Social Dilemmas, Social Values, and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

March 2000 (Revised January 2001)
Case

Microsoft's Vega Project: Developing People and Products

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Meg Wozny

With a focus on Matt MacLellan and his careful development as a project manager under his boss and mentor, Jim Kaplan, the case describes the evolution of Microsoft's human-resource philosophies and policies and illustrates how they work in practice to provide the... View Details

Keywords: Human Resources; Competitive Advantage; Retention; Personal Development and Career; Organizational Design; Information Technology; Motivation and Incentives; Leadership Development

Educators

29 Jul 2002
Research & Ideas

Time Pressure and Creativity: Why Time is Not on Your Side

Harvard Business School professor Teresa Amabile is in the midst of a ten-year study looking at, among other things, how time pressure in a corporate setting affects employee creativity. She recently presented early findings and an... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Education; Fine Arts

Web

2023 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

by launching the Akamai Technical Academy, which asked the question: “Why don’t we go out and find smart people to train, and create our own talent pool?” Slides Impact Investing at a Crossroads Amelia Angella (MBA 2001), Director, HBS View Details

September 2023 (Revised December 2023)
Case

Twiddy & Company: Trust in a Chaotic Environment

By: Sandra J. Sucher, Shalene Gupta and Tom Quinn

Twiddy & Company, known for Southern hospitality rooted in personal interactions, needed to adjust to contactless remote customer service as fear of the contagious virus prevented person-to-person contact. Local elected officials, in a bid to stop tourists from... View Details

Keywords: Trust; Health Pandemics; Organizational Culture; Disruption; Government Legislation; Transportation; Tourism Industry; North Carolina; United States

Educators

Web

The Women in the Relay Assembly Test Room – The Human Relations Movement – Baker Library | Bloomberg Center, Historical Collections

HBS Home HBS Index Contact Us A New Vision An Essay by Professors Michel Anteby and Rakesh Khurana Introduction The Hawthorne Plant Employee Welfare Illumination Studies and Relay Assembly Test Room Enter Elton Mayo Human Relations and... View Details

Web

Healthy Outcomes - Managing the Future of Work

Research Research Healthy Outcomes: How employers' support for employees with caregiving responsibilities can benefit the organization Read the Report Read the Report By: Joseph B. Fuller Post-COVID, many more employers recognize that... View Details

01 Sep 2021
What Do You Think?

Can We Train for Trust?

(Image credit: iStockphoto/jubaphoto) How many times have we discussed the contributions of employee engagement and the loyalty it produces to an organization’s performance? Trust is, as it is for many things in society, the bedrock for... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

2011
Book

Being the Boss: The 3 Imperatives for Becoming a Great Leader

By: Linda A. Hill and Kent Lineback

You never dreamed being the boss would be so hard. You're caught in a web of conflicting expectations from subordinates, your supervisor, peers, and customers. You're constantly fighting fires. You're mired in office politics. You end each day exhausted and... View Details

Keywords: Management; Leadership; Management Skills; Employee Relationship Management; Personal Development and Career; Groups and Teams; Social and Collaborative Networks