Publications

February 2024
Supplement

Can Cities Beat the Heat? (B2): Boston Climate Action Snapshot

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Margot Zuckerman and Jacob A. Small

Climate snapshots provide a summary of climate actions that occurred between 2018 and 2024, highlighting major green initiatives, innovations, carbon mitigation strategy, and action across multiple levels of government and the private sector. Snapshots also provide an... View Details

Keywords: Mitigation Policies; Carbon Footprint; Climate Finance; Mobility; Adaptation; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Problems and Challenges; Sustainable Cities; City; Innovation Strategy; Investment; Boston; United States

Other Article

Sustainable Strategies and Net-Zero Goals

By: Mark L. Frigo, Robert S. Kaplan and Karthik Ramanna

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, Kaplan and Ramanna describe a rigorous approach, the E-liability method, for companies’ ESG reporting, especially as it pertains to GHG emissions measurements. They argue that the current standards for measuring... View Details

Keywords: Measurement; Sustainability; Net-zero Emissions; Environmental Sustainability; Integrated Corporate Reporting; Measurement and Metrics; Strategy

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18 May 2022
Research & Ideas

Are Banks the ‘Bad Guys’? Overdraft Fees Are Crushing Low-Income Customers

always thought of banks as being the good guys and payday lenders as being the bad guys,” says Williams. “We're saying it's not as simple View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Financial Services

February 2024
Supplement

Can Cities Beat the Heat? (B3): Chattanooga Climate Action Snapshot

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Coelin P. Scibetta and Jacob A. Small

Climate snapshots provide a summary of climate actions that occurred between 2018 and 2024, highlighting major green initiatives, innovations, carbon mitigation strategy, and action across multiple levels of government and the private sector. Snapshots also provide an... View Details

Keywords: Cities; Climate; Climate Impact; Innovation; Mitigation Policies; Carbon Footprint; Investing; Climate Finance; Mobility; Adaptation; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Problems and Challenges; Sustainable Cities; United States; Tennessee

September 2017 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Asset Allocation at the Cook County Pension Fund

By: Emil Siriwardane, Juliane Begenau and Yuval Gonczarowski

Nickol Hackett, chief investment officer of the Cook County Pension Fund, is responsible for investing the fund’s $9 billion worth of assets on behalf of the employees of Cook County, Illinois. Like many other defined-benefit pensions at the time, the Cook County... View Details

Keywords: Asset Management; Investment Funds; Financial Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions

01 Oct 2023
Blog Post

Myth Busting: Financial Aid for 2+2 Students

matriculating. That means, that as a 2+2 student, you will not complete your financial aid application until the spring before you enroll in the MBA program. In other words, you may not submit your financial... View Details

November 2015 (Revised February 2016)
Case

Allianz Turkey: Focus on the Customer (A)

By: W. Earl Sasser and Gamze Yucaoglu

At the age of 39, Solmaz Altın took over the helm at Allianz Turkey. Solmaz quickly realized that, although the insurance market was thinly penetrated in Turkey, the company was operating in a very competitive environment with pressure on prices and, hence, cost... View Details

Keywords: Service Excellence; Customer Experience; Customer Service; Emerging Market; Customer Focus; Net Promoter Score; Customer Relationship Management; Competition; Leading Change; Service Operations; Emerging Markets; Customer Satisfaction; Insurance Industry; Turkey

August 2012
Case

Messer Griesheim (A) (Abridged)

By: Josh Lerner, Eva Lutz and Kerry Herman

In 2001, Allianz Capital Partners and Goldman Sachs acquired a majority stake in Messer Griesheim, a European industrial gas concern held by Hoechst. The dealmakers faced several challenges, including delicate corporate governance issues due to partial family... View Details

Keywords: Germany; Energy; Private Equity; Venture Capital; Energy Industry; European Union

15 Feb 2024
Blog Post

How I Spent My 2+2 Deferral: Carol Wright

the only graduate school I wanted to attend was HBS. After that, it became a matter of deciding when to apply, and once I heard about the 2+2 process, I knew that was the correct path for me. I loved that... View Details

19 Feb 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, February 19, 2019

the actual recipients of the rewards and penalties. We examine the performance effects associated with receiving actual subjective rewards/penalties (i.e., the nominal effect) and performance effects associated with failing to receive... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

December 1989
Supplement

People Express Decline: Interview with Don Burr, Video

By: Michael Beer

Presents an interview with Don Burr, CEO, as he reviews his account of how and why People Express failed as a corporation and was ultimately sold to Continental Airlines. View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Failure; Business Exit or Shutdown; Air Transportation Industry

25 Mar 2022
Blog Post

Meet the HBS Women's Student Association

What is the WSA? The WSA, or Women’s Student Association, is a student-led organization at HBS for anyone who identifies as a woman. We’re the largest student organization on... View Details

18 Jul 2011
Research & Ideas

Looking in the Mirror: Questions Every Leader Must Ask

the right questions," says Kaplan, a Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School. "Most leaders spend a lot View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

February 2024
Supplement

Can Cities Beat the Heat? (B1): Birmingham Climate Action Snapshot

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Natania Elias and Jacob A. Small

Climate snapshots provide a summary of climate actions that occurred between 2018 and 2024, highlighting major green initiatives, innovations, carbon mitigation strategy, and action across multiple levels of government and the private sector. Snapshots also provide an... View Details

Keywords: Mitigation Policies; Carbon Footprint; Climate Finance; Mobility; Adaptation; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Problems and Challenges; Sustainable Cities; City; Innovation Strategy; Investment; United States; Alabama

February 2024
Supplement

Can Cities Beat the Heat? (B9): Nashville Climate Action Snapshot

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jacob A. Small

Climate snapshots provide a summary of climate actions that occurred between 2018 and 2024, highlighting major green initiatives, innovations, carbon mitigation strategy, and action across multiple levels of government and the private sector. Snapshots also provide an... View Details

Keywords: Mitigation Policies; Carbon Footprint; Climate Finance; Mobility; Adaptation; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Problems and Challenges; Sustainable Cities; City; Innovation Strategy; Investment; United States; Tennessee

22 Mar 2024
Research & Ideas

Open Source Software: The $9 Trillion Resource Companies Take for Granted

vulnerable, a realization that is slowly making its way into upper management as firms consider hiring employees to spend at least part View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Computer; Information Technology; Technology

April 1994 (Revised December 1994)
Case

Vancom Transportation, Inc. (A)

Describes the history and evolution of a school/public bus transit company that has grown rapidly and successfully by gradually pushing responsibility and trust as far down the organizational ladder as possible. A real test comes however, in two major labor relations... View Details

Keywords: Employee Relationship Management; Business Strategy; Labor and Management Relations; Transportation Industry

28 Feb 2023
Blog Post

Celebrating Socioeconomic Diversity and Inclusion at HBS (Part 1)

may be perceived as an impediment – growing up in a low-income household – in fact enabled me to discover my passion. As an FGLI, I feel apprehensive to ask for help because I... View Details

January 2012 (Revised June 2013)
Case

Dow Chemical: Innovating for Sustainability

Dow Chemical is one of the few major American industrial corporations that was founded in the late 19th century that is still in existence. From its origins producing bromine out of the brine underneath Midland, Michigan, the company has evolved from a diversified... View Details

Keywords: Innovation Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Chemical Industry