Publications

June 2020 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Majid Al Futtaim Retail Geographic Expansion: Brick or Click?

By: Juan Alcácer and Alpana Thapar

This case illustrates the challenges that retailers face when they aggressively pursue geographical growth by expanding both their physical store network and their online presence. It features Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Retail, a franchisee of Carrefour hypermarkets in the... View Details

Keywords: Stores; Ecommerce; Strategy; Expansion; Geographic Location; Decision Making; Internet and the Web; Digital Transformation; E-commerce; Retail Industry; Middle East

2002
Chapter

Bridging Knowledge Gaps: Learning in Geographically Dispersed Cross-Functional Development Teams

By: D. Sole and A. Edmondson

Keywords: Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Acquisition; Learning; Groups and Teams; Geographic Location; Organizational Structure

May 2010
Article

Does Product Market Competition Lead Firms to Decentralize?

By: Nicholas Bloom, Raffaella Sadun and John Van Reenen

There is a widespread sense that over the last two decades firms have been decentralizing decisions to employees further down the managerial hierarchy. Economists have developed a range of theories to account for delegation, but there is less empirical evidence,... View Details

Keywords: Product; Markets; Competition; Business Ventures; Geographic Location; Employees; Research; Programs; Decisions

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Article

Local Industrial Conditions and Entrepreneurship: How Much of the Spatial Distribution Can We Explain?

By: Edward L. Glaeser and William R. Kerr

Why are some places more entrepreneurial than others? We use Census Bureau data to study local determinants of manufacturing startups across cities and industries. Demographics have limited explanatory power. Overall levels of local customers and suppliers are only... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Geographic Location; Employment; Market Entry and Exit; Supply Chain; Manufacturing Industry

2020
Working Paper

Global Talent and U.S. Immigration Policy

By: William R. Kerr

Talent is a critical resource for today’s knowledge economy. The United States has benefited substantially from high-skilled migration since the 1970s, especially with respect to innovation and entrepreneurship. This chapter reviews data on these immigrant... View Details

Keywords: Global Talent Flows; Immigration; Policy; Talent and Talent Management; Global Range; United States

SSRN

2025
Working Paper

When Where Watt: Harnessing the Value of Time and Location for Renewable Electricity Generation

By: Vishrut Rana, Christian Kaps and Serguei Netessine

Problem definition: Investments in renewable energy have surged worldwide in recent years, with over $2 trillion spent globally on clean energy. This surge was driven by growing policy support, concerns about energy security, and, most importantly, the cost... View Details

Keywords: Wind Power; Electricity Distribution; Renewable Energy; Profit; Investment Return; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Geographic Location; Revenue; Energy Industry; Utilities Industry

SSRN

Summer 2021
Article

Predictable Country-level Bias in the Reporting of COVID-19 Deaths

By: Botir Kobilov, Ethan Rouen and George Serafeim

We examine whether a country’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic relate to the downward biasing of the number of reported deaths from COVID-19. Using deviations from historical averages of the total number of monthly deaths within a country, we find that the... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19; Deaths; Reporting; Incentives; Government Policy; Health Pandemics; Health Care and Treatment; Country; Crisis Management; Outcome or Result; Reports; Policy

05 Jun 2012
First Look

First Look: June 5

agendas, whose strategies to build viable business models proved crucially dependent on two exogenous factors: the prices of alternative conventional fuels and public policy. Supportive public policies in various geographies facilitated... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

11 Jul 2006
First Look

First Look: July 11, 2006

century, ownership, location and geography still mattered enormously in international business. They may matter more than in the past. Paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/06-052.pdf Cases & Course MaterialsEdison Schools, Inc.:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Oct 2021
Blog Post

Alumni Spotlight: Career Advice from Alums Working in Climate

Morgan Sheil (MBA 2021), Climate and Decarbonization at KKR & Co. "Climate change impacts every industry and every function in every geography globally so there are infinite opportunities for MBAs to work on addressing it. We are... View Details

Keywords: Energy / Cleantech

30 Apr 2024
Blog Post

IFC India: Urban Adaptation in a Changing World

reached 36°C and are expected to continue to rise significantly in the coming years. Likewise, due to Mumbai’s low-lying geography approximately 35% of the population is vulnerable to flood risks and low-lying areas will generally flood... View Details

08 Feb 2016
Research & Ideas

The Civic Benefits of Google Street View and Yelp

restaurants, not to tell cities where to go to inspect, but it could be used for that purpose,” says Luca. Similarly, Google searches in different geographies could give policymakers key insight into what their citizens care about.... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Consumer Products

October 2016
Case

Moshe Kahlon: Telecommunications Reform and Competition in Israel's Cellular Market (A)

By: Joshua Margolis, Amram Migdal and Kerry Herman

The case addresses reforms to regulations in Israel’s telecommunications industry initiated and implemented under the leadership of Minister of Communications Moshe Kahlon in 2009-2010. The case highlights the challenges faced by a politician attempting to institute... View Details

2013
Case

Advanced Leadership Pathways: Gilberto Dimenstein and Community Empowerment in Brazil (A)

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter, Alexandre Naghirniac, Ai-Ling Jamila Malone and Daniella Suarez

In 2011, Gilberto Dimenstein, a well-known Brazilian journalist, created a new model that connected disparate resources to revitalize Sao Paulo. He wanted his model to expand across Brazil and the world. Dimenstein covered many of the social issues facing Brazil as a... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Urban Scope; Social Issues; Education; Knowledge Dissemination; Learning; Leading Change; Brazil

2020
Chapter

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

Keywords: Global Talent Flows; Talent and Talent Management; Global Range; Immigration; Policy; Economy

October 2016 (Revised March 2017)
Case

Airbnb in Amsterdam (A)

By: Mitchell Weiss, Emer Moloney and Vincent Dessain

In February 2014, Amsterdam became the first city to issue new regulations specifically to allow home sharing. Airbnb's Molly Turner, global head of civic partnerships; her colleagues at the San Francisco–based home sharing platform; and her counterparts in Amsterdam's... View Details