Publications

October 2022
Case

Cost Plus Drugs

By: Alexander MacKay and James Barnett

In September 2022, Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs Company CEO Alex Oshmyansky considered the future of the company. Cost Plus Drugs was a retailer for more than 340 generic oral medications, selling their drugs at significantly lower prices than typical pharmacies.... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Decision Making; Entrepreneurship; Ethics; Health; Markets; Social Enterprise; Society; Strategy; Health Care and Treatment; Business Divisions; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Health Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; United States; Texas

05 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

How Hormones Foretell Whether People Will Cheat

ethics study? For profit-based businesses, the researchers suggest a compensation system that includes more than just individual financial results. Past studies on the role of testosterone in competition have shown that it's possible to... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

Malcolm S. Salter

Malcolm Salter has been a member of the Harvard Business School faculty since 1967. His teaching and research focus on issues of corporate strategy, organization, and governance.

In addition to teaching at HBS, he has held faculty positions at the Harvard... View Details

Keywords: arts; automobiles; energy; investment banking industry; retailing; venture capital industry

28 Jan 2016
Blog Post

Why Get an MBA?

and network that would come with an HBS MBA would be invaluable. AWARENESS: Perhaps the most valuable thing HBS offered was tuning my social awareness. Classes on leadership and accountability force students to have conversations about View Details

Web

Launching Tech Ventures | HBS Online

startup ecosystem to improve your chances of raising capital Get an insider view into the venture capital (VC) process Develop an awareness of the systemic biases and ethical considerations in the startup ecosystem Who Will Benefit... View Details

20 Aug 2008
Op-Ed

The Time is Right for Creative Capitalism

In a much admired and debated speech given at the World Economic Forum in Davos last January, Bill Gates said that many of the world's biggest problems cannot be fixed by philanthropy, but instead require free-market capitalism—"creative capitalism"—to solve.... View Details

Keywords: by Nancy Koehn

27 Mar 2017
Blog Post

Should Entrepreneurs Get an MBA?

feedback, how to remain ethical in tough situations, how to focus on your career and life over the long term. It is an incredible gift to be able to carve out some time over two years to think actively about such questions. Connections: I... View Details

03 May 2024
Blog Post

From Harvard to Miss New Jersey: A Journey of Perseverance and Self-Belief

understand the importance of ethical considerations and comprehensive problem-solving. It was an experience that I know will stay with me throughout my career. What surprised you the most about SVMP/HBS? One of the most surprising and... View Details

14 Mar 2023
Cold Call Podcast

Can AI and Machine Learning Help Park Rangers Prevent Poaching?

Keywords: Re: Brian L. Trelstad; Computer; Information Technology; Technology

August 2019 (Revised March 2022)
Case

Family Matters: Governance at the Zamil Group

By: Christina R. Wing, Suraj Srinivasan and Esel Çekin

This case focuses on a large Saudi Arabian industrial conglomerate and family business Zamil Group’s corporate and family governance journey. The 12 sons of the founder led and grew the group successfully after taking over from their father in 1961. The secret to their... View Details

Keywords: Middle East; Family Ownership; Family-owned Business; Saudi Arabia; Family Business; Governance; Organizational Structure; Values and Beliefs; Steel Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Middle East; Saudi Arabia; Bahrain

13 May 2022
Research & Ideas

Company Reviews on Glassdoor: Petty Complaints or Signs of Potential Misconduct?

corporate misconduct, pointing to cultural factors that might eventually result in scandal earlier than they would otherwise attract attention. In a business environment where ethics are paramount, the findings may offer managers and... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Technology

01 Oct 1999
News

Banking on Success

you've ever received? The way my father lived his life was very important to me. He was a gifted physician who spent most of his life doing research and teaching, turning his back on the more lucrative aspects of his profession. He was an incredibly View Details

Keywords: Deborah E. Blagg

March 2000 (Revised August 2000)
Background Note

Fall Before Rising, A: The Story of Jai Jaikumar (B)

By: H. Kent Bowen, Richard Compton Squire, Sarah Patricia Vickers-Willis and Harry James Wilson

What is the relationship between good fortune, professional success, and a moral obligation to other people? Jai Jaikumar, who as a youth was saved by a shepherd woman after a tragic mountaineering accident in the Himalayas, and who later rose to the top of his... View Details

Keywords: Personal Development and Career; Moral Sensibility; Motivation and Incentives

January 2022
Case

Bee-ing Better at Bombas

By: Elizabeth A. Keenan, Youngme Moon and John Masko

David Heath and Randy Goldberg founded Bombas in 2013 to serve two missions: to deliver the “best socks in the history of feet,” and to donate socks (the most requested item in homeless shelters) to Americans experiencing homelessness. Eight years later, Bombas had... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Values and Beliefs; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Digital Marketing; Distribution; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Quality; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Human Needs; Poverty; Growth and Development Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; New York (city, NY)

May 2016 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Pal's Sudden Service—Scaling an Organizational Model to Drive Growth

By: Gary P. Pisano, Francesca Gino and Bradley R. Staats

Pal's Sudden Service has developed a unique operating model and organizational culture in the quick service restaurant business. With a deep emphasis on process control and improvement, zero defects, extensive training, and a high level of employee engagement, Pal's... View Details

Keywords: Growth Strategy; Corporate Culture; Operations Strategy; Motivation; Values; Motivation and Incentives; Strategy; Values and Beliefs; Service Operations; Organizational Culture; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

2024
Working Paper

What Makes Players Pay? An Empirical Investigation of In-Game Lotteries

By: Tomomichi Amano and Andrey Simonov

In 2020, gamers spent more than $15 billion on loot boxes, lotteries of virtual items in video games. Paid loot boxes are contentious. Game producers argue that loot boxes complement the gameplay and expenditures on loot boxes reflect players’ enjoyment of the game.... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Behavior; Policy; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Product Design; Ethics; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Video Game Industry

Read Now

08 May 2020
Blog Post

Building a World of Trusted Leaders: Taking the MBA Oath

leaders. Students representing more than 100 schools around the world have taken this important step toward building a planet with a shared standard for ethical and professional behavior. The MBA Oath Committee decided to share their... View Details

10 Oct 2016
Book

Why White-Collar Criminals Commit Their Crimes

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Financial Services

2010
Working Paper

Men as Cultural Ideals: How Culture Shapes Gender Stereotypes

By: Amy J.C. Cuddy, Susan Crotty, Jihye Chong and Michael I. Norton

Three studies demonstrate how culture shapes the contents of gender stereotypes, such that men are perceived as possessing more of whatever traits are culturally valued. In Study 1, Americans rated men as less interdependent than women; Koreans, however, showed the... View Details

Keywords: Prejudice and Bias; Perception; Values and Beliefs; Gender; Culture; Power and Influence