Publications

Professor Toffel is the Senator John Heinz Professor of Environmental Management. His research examines how companies are addressing climate change (especially decarbonization) and other environmental and working condition issues in their operations and supply... View Details

Research Summary

Managing Innovation

I continue to study the disruptive processes by which innovation transforms -- or fails to transform -- industries and companies. There are three elements to these transformations. The first is a technological enabler -- an innovation that makes complicated, expensive... View Details

January 2023
Case

Thomas Buberl: Refounding AXA

By: Hubert Joly, Mihir Desai and Amram Migdal

In 2022, AXA and its CEO Thomas Buberl faced new types of challenges, including systemic risks such as climate change, geopolitical instability, public health crises, and social tensions caused by economic risks. AXA was one of the world’s largest insurers. Since... View Details

September 2002 (Revised April 2006)
Case

Istituto Clinico Humanitas (A)

By: Richard M.J. Bohmer, Gary P. Pisano and Ning Tang

Istituto Clinico Humanitas is a newly built private hospital, south of Milan, Italy, that has attained unusual profitability while treating public system patients. The hospital was built and is managed by Techosp, a subsidiary of Techint, a global engineering and... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Management Systems; Infrastructure; Managerial Roles; Integration; Performance; Health Industry; Milan

November 3, 2020
Article

Gender Differences in COVID-19 Attitudes and Behavior: Panel Evidence from Eight Countries

By: Vincenzo Galasso, Vincent Pons, Paola Profeta, Michael Becher, Sylvain Brouard and Martial Foucault

Using original data from two waves of a survey conducted in March and April 2020 in eight OECD countries (N = 21,649), we show that women are more likely to see COVID-19 as a very serious health problem, to agree with restraining public policy measures adopted in... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19; Health Pandemics; Attitudes; Behavior; Gender; Policy; Governance Compliance

Find at Harvard

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22 Jan 2014
News

Why babus can’t be ignored

Andy Zelleke

Andy Zelleke is the MBA Class of 1962 Senior Lecturer of Business Administration. A member of the General Management unit, he is the Faculty Chair of HBS’ Middle East & North Africa Research Center.

Since Spring 2021, Dr. Zelleke has taught “Unpacking... View Details

Keywords: federal government; professional services; defense; financial services

21 Nov 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, November 21, 2017

forthcoming Journal of Political Economy Internalizing Global Value Chains: A Firm-Level Analysis By: Alfaro, Laura, Pol Antràs, Davin Chor, and Paola Conconi Abstract—In recent decades, advances in information and communication... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Jun 2019
News

Business as Usual Will Not Save the Planet

January 2004 (Revised September 2004)
Background Note

Confidentiality in Settlement Negotiations: Ethics & Law

By: Michael A. Wheeler, Dana Nelson and Gillian Morris

Legal policy has a long history of protecting confidentiality of negotiations that are designed to produce settlement. However, within the past several decades there has been a significant push toward openness. Compelling arguments support confidentiality: It helps... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Lawsuits and Litigation; Attorney and Client Relationships; Policy; Corporate Disclosure; Negotiation

11 Dec 2014
News

No silver lining in partisan gridlock

02 Jan 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, January 3, 2018

in U.S. politics: CEOs are taking very public stands on thorny political issues that have nothing to do with their firms’ bottom lines. Business leaders like Tim Cook of Apple, Howard Schultz of Starbucks, and Marc Benioff of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Nov 2017
First Look

New Research and Ideas: November 7, 2017

Abstract—The most important of Lenin’s writings was, arguably, Imperialism: the Highest Stage of Capitalism. That work shifted the focus from workers’ struggles within one country to the dynamics of capitalism as a global system. The... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

21 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

What's Missing from the Racial Equity Dialogue?

The Institute for the Study of Business in Global Society (BiGS) welcomed scholars to Harvard Business School last year to advance their research about race, diversity, inclusion, and inequality. As the nation reflects on issues such as... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

01 Jan 2003
News

2025
Working Paper

Social Protection and Social Distancing During the Pandemic: Mobile Money Transfers in Ghana

By: Dean Karlan, Matt Lowe, Robert Osei, Isaac Osei-Akoto, Benjamin N. Roth and Christopher Udry

We randomized mobile money transfers to a sample of low-income Ghanaians during the COVID-19 pandemic. Treated households received eight transfers that sum to roughly one month’s income, while control households only received one transfer. The mere announcement of... View Details

Keywords: Social Distancing; Social Welfare; Economic Relief; Health Pandemics; Poverty