Publications

December 1996 (Revised December 1997)
Case

NAPOCOR Privatization: Power in the Philippines

In the summer of 1993, brownouts reached 10 hours a day in Metro Manila, the center of the Philippine economy. Solving the electricity crisis was central to recently elected President Fidel Ramos's plan to transform the Philippines from the "sick man of Asia" to the... View Details

Keywords: Energy Generation; Privatization; Energy Industry; Philippines

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February 2018 (Revised October 2019)
Technical Note

The Art and Science of Brand Valuation

By: Jill Avery

Brand valuation, the art and science of calculating the economic value accruing to a firm from its use of an intangible brand asset, yields frustratingly inconsistent, discrepant, and, therefore, controversial results. While it is widely accepted that brands are... View Details

September 2012 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Doing Business in Turkey

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee, Robin J. Ely, Daniela Beyersdorfer, Emilie Billaud and Cigdem Çelik

In a rather flat international business environment characterized by shrinking markets and economic turmoil, Turkey promoted itself as one of the safe havens for investments. Led by the strong domestic demand of a young population, the country had tripled its GDP... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market Finance; Emergent Countries; Business History; Economic History; Fieldwork; Emerging Markets; Business Ventures; Strategy; Turkey

27 Feb 2007
First Look

First Look: February 27, 2007

Working PapersPublic Action for Public Goods Authors:Abhijit Banerjee, Lakshmi Iyer, and Rohini Somanathan Abstract This paper focuses on the relationship between public action and access to public goods. It begins by developing a... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

March 2024
Case

Nomad: A License to Bank

By: Paul A. Gompers and Pedro Levindo

In late 2023, Lucas Vargas, CEO and co-founder of Nomad, a fintech that offered financial services in the United States for Brazilian residents, had to decide what to do to ensure the company’s continued expansion. Nomad launched its first product, a U.S. digital bank... View Details

September 2024
Article

Activist Directors: Determinants and Consequences

By: Ian D. Gow, Sa-Pyung Sean Shin and Suraj Srinivasan

This paper examines determinants and consequences of hedge fund activism, focusing on activist directors, i.e., directors appointed in response to activist demands. Using a sample of 3,259 activism events from 2004 to 2016, we identify 1,623 activist directors.... View Details

Keywords: Governing and Advisory Boards; Investment Activism; Business and Shareholder Relations

09 Jul 2024
Research & Ideas

Are Management Consulting Firms Failing to Manage Themselves?

before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, strategy firms initiated a growth-driven hiring spree. However, as economies slowed, these firms faced a significant imbalance between their staffing “supply” and the declining demand View Details

Keywords: by David Fubini; Consulting

Working Paper

Covenant-Light Contracts and Creditor Coordination

By: Bo Becker and Victoria Ivashina

In 2015, 70% of newly issued leveraged loans had weaker enforcement features, called covenant-light or "cov-lite"; this is nearly a three-time increase in cov-lite issuance compared to a previous peak in 2007. We evaluate whether this development can be attributed to... View Details

Keywords: Credit Cycles; Loan Contracts; Debt Covenants; Contracts; Financing and Loans; Credit; Borrowing and Debt

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25 Sep 2015
Working Paper Summaries

Invest in Information or Wing It? A Model of Dynamic Pricing with Seller Learning

Keywords: by Huang Guofang, Hong Luo & Jing Xia; Auto

02 Sep 2014
First Look

First Look: September 2

California By: Simcoe, Timothy, and Michael W. Toffel Abstract—We study how government green procurement policies influence private-sector demand for similar products. Specifically, we measure the impact of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

22 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

When Will the Hot Housing Market Finally Start to Cool?

They may still be working from home, but they’re working from home in those cities. Gazette: Why does inventory remain so low across the country, and can anything be done to help ease the crunch? Gerardo Lietz: At the end of the day, it’s a function of supply and... View Details

Keywords: by Christine Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette

27 Nov 2006
Research & Ideas

Manly Men, Oil Platforms, and Breaking Stereotypes

condition—psychological safety—refers to team members' shared belief that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking, in other words, that members' well-intentioned actions will not lead to rejection or... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Energy; Utilities

2022
Working Paper

Why Do Index Funds Have Market Power? Quantifying Frictions in the Index Fund Market

By: Zach Y. Brown, Mark Egan, Jihye Jeon, Chuqing Jin and Alex A. Wu

Index funds are one of the most common ways investors access financial markets and are perceived to be a transparent and low-cost alternative to active investment management. Despite these purported virtues of index fund investing and the introduction of new products... View Details

Keywords: Mutual Funds; Passive Investing; Asset Management; Financial Markets; Investment Funds; Financial Management; Financial Services Industry; United States

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June 2024
Module Note

Value Creation Potential of New Business Models

By: David J. Collis

A business model is composed of three elements. These describe a generic way of creating value and identify the maximum potential value of that model for customers. The elements of a business model are the “job to be done” for the customer, the asset configuration, or... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Corporate Strategy; Mission and Purpose; Competitive Strategy; Value Creation

21 Apr 2009
First Look

First Look: April 21, 2009

Financial Literacy, Financial Decisions, and the Demand for Financial Services: Evidence from India and Indonesia Authors:Shawn Cole, Thomas Sampson, and Bilal Zia Abstract Why is View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 2011 (Revised September 2011)
Case

Exchange-Traded Funds at Vanguard (A)

By: Robert C. Pozen and Steven Vickers

Vanguard Group management, led by CEO John Brennan, was considering whether to launch exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in early 2000. ETFs, first created in the early 1990s, combined aspects of traditional mutual funds and closed-end funds. The US ETF industry had reached... View Details

Keywords: Investment Funds; Managerial Roles; Growth and Development Strategy; Experience and Expertise; Market Entry and Exit; Network Effects; Profit; Business and Shareholder Relations; Product Launch; Asset Management; Distribution Channels; Ownership; Financial Services Industry; United States

12 Feb 2008
First Look

First Look: February 12, 2007

variation in average asset returns than aggregate or non-stockholder consumption risk and provides more plausible economic magnitudes. We find that risk aversion estimates around 10 can match observed risk premia View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

September 2019 (Revised February 2020)
Teaching Note

Fishbowl: Scaling Up

By: Leslie K. John

Email mking@hbs.edu for a courtesy copy.

Teaching Note for HBS No. 919-013. Fishbowl is a social media app that allows professionals to connect with other relevant professionals both within their company and... View Details