Learning By Thinking - Publications - Faculty & Research

02 May 2019
Sharpening Your Skills

How To Ask Better Questions

not in having all the right answers, but rather in asking the right questions. Teaching The DealShowing emotion, asking questions, and understanding your own strengths and weaknesses can be key to a successful agreement. About the Author Kristen Senz is a writer and... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

16 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Brand Power from Wedgwood to Dell: Part One

A conversation with Nancy Koehn, author of Brand New: How Entrepreneurs Earned Consumers' Trust From Wedgwood to Dell, HBS Press, 2001. "I am just fascinated by the power, the quirks, the determination, and the durability of... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

23 Sep 2015
Research & Ideas

Men Want Powerful Jobs More Than Women Do

Desirable. “Even in the most progressive, gender-balanced households, on average, women seem to think about a greater diversity of pursuits” While you let that provocative title sink in, it’s worth noting that the research was conducted... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

26 Jan 2009
Research & Ideas

Where is Home for the Global Firm?

[PDF]. To start, responding strategically to these changes requires a reconceptualization of what a corporate home is, says Desai. "Managers need to make conscious choices about how to unbundle the activities that have traditionally been centered in a home country... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

Apr 03 2014
Testimonial

Finding Your Unique Leadership Voice

02 Aug 2021
Research & Ideas

What If Closing the Wage Gap Means Everyone Earns Less?

laws that seek to give workers more bargaining power by requiring companies to disclose employee salaries. However, opening up the books for all to see has put 2 to 3 percent less cash in workers’ pockets, at least in the US private... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

13 Jun 2022
Research & Ideas

Extroverts, Your Colleagues Wish You Would Just Shut Up and Listen

rather than maintaining genuine interest. Unexpected result amplified in pandemic workplaces While extroverted managers and employees may feel discouraged by the results, the research points to practical methods for improving business... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

17 Oct 2019
Research & Ideas

‘Chick Beer’ for Women? Why Gender Marketing Repels More Than Sells

considered if the company hadn’t hyped their gender, according to a study by Harvard Business School. Why do these gender appeals alienate the very audience they aim to attract? People resist being categorized—or made to feel like they... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Consumer Products

18 Oct 2010
Lessons from the Classroom

Venture Capital’s Disconnect with Clean Tech

MBA students often fall into one of two categories—those hungry to rush into careers as venture capitalists, and those eager to found a venture-funded start-up. For all of them, Harvard Business School professor Joseph Lassiter has some intriguing advice: Spend a few... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Energy; Utilities; Financial Services

02 Sep 2008
Research & Ideas

Indulgence vs. Regret: Investing in Future Memories

the indulgence scale; their assessment supported Keinan's findings.) "It's possible to motivate consumers to indulge and enjoy themselves by simply asking them what they think they will regret 10 years... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

21 Apr 2023
Research & Ideas

The $15 Billion Question: Have Loot Boxes Turned Video Gaming into Gambling?

players use to compete. "People are thinking about ways to design policies and products so you can actually engage with the product in more responsible ways without getting people too overinvolved in playing and spending." A new paper... View Details

Keywords: by Scott Van Voorhis; Video Game; Media & Broadcasting

14 Feb 2011
Research & Ideas

Clay Christensen’s Milkshake Marketing

organizations are already organized around product categories or customer categories," Christensen says, "and therefore people only see opportunities within this little frame that they've stuck you in. So you have to think inside of a... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail; Service; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

16 Nov 1999
Lessons from the Classroom

Leading Change and Organizational Renewal

manager to the corporate officer who might manage a portfolio of businesses. However, it is also appropriate for the functional manager who clearly is on a general management track. Tushman: Companies do gain by having multiple... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

25 Feb 2019
Research & Ideas

How Gender Stereotypes Kill a Woman’s Self-Confidence

abilities, likely from a very young age,” Coffman says. “Until we can change these stereotypes, it’s essential to think about how we can better inoculate individuals from biases induced by stereotypes,... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

19 Jul 2017
Research & Ideas

Why Government 'Nudges' Motivate Good Citizen Behavior

thinking. For everyday decisions made by citizens, however, governments should at least consider nudges as a way to supplement—if not replace—traditional incentives. “When governments are thinking about how... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

07 Mar 2022
Research & Ideas

Effective Leaders Share the Spotlight with Their Teams

impact on both employees and companies, new research shows. In fact, managers who elevate others like Bradway did are more likely to hold on to valued employees, according to a study by Yuan Zou, assistant professor of business... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

17 Sep 2012
Research & Ideas

Blue Skies, Distractions Arise: How Weather Affects Productivity

doesn't matter because we're already distracted by the sun," Gino explains. "But on bad weather days, people tend to make more errors and perform more slowly when you just make them think about outside... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

24 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

Part-Time Employees Want More Hours. Can Companies Tap This ‘Hidden’ Talent Pool?

felt needs of women and by rethinking the routes to advancement. “Most career paths are still very much rooted in 1960s and 1970s logic.” “Most career paths are still very much rooted in 1960s and 1970s logic,” Fuller says. “Companies... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin

16 Feb 2023
HBS Case

ESG Activists Met the Moment at ExxonMobil, But Did They Succeed?

The impact-investment hedge fund Engine No. 1 made a big splash in May 2021 when it managed to get three nominees elected to the ExxonMobil board of directors. It was an open effort to prod the oil giant toward renewable energy and test whether activist investing could... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Financial Services

24 Feb 2016
Research & Ideas

Why It's Best to Take Tests Early in the Day

students’ performance on standardized tests.” Published in the February 15 edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study was authored by Hans Henrik Sievertsen, a postdoctoral researcher at the Danish National... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Education

Publications