Publications

30 Nov 2021
In Practice

What's the Role of Business in Confronting Climate Change?

The 26th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties, also known as COP26, ended with a hard-fought pact that called on businesses and governments to meet their climate change goals faster. The event followed an August report by the Intergovernmental... View Details

Keywords: by Lynn Schenk and Dina Gerdeman

07 Oct 2013
News

The Daily Circuit: Manufacturing may be on its way back

17 Apr 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Technology Choice and Capacity Portfolios Under Emissions Regulation

Keywords: by David Drake, Paul R. Kleindorfer & Luk N. Van Wassenhove

February 2016 (Revised October 2017)
Case

Nuclear Energy: An Answer to Climate Change?

By: Michael W. Toffel, Glen W. S. Dowell and James Weber

Environmental activist groups have traditionally opposed nuclear energy. However, the growing environmental problems associated with global climate change require major changes to reduce the carbon intensity of electricity generation. Should environmental groups... View Details

Keywords: Nuclear Energy; Nuclear Power; Climate Change; Safety; Activism; Nonprofit; Environment; Environmental Protection; Social Movements; Energy; Energy Generation; Environmental Sustainability; Non-Governmental Organizations; Non-Renewable Energy; Energy Industry; United States

August 2023 (Revised July 2024)
Technical Note

Power-to-X

By: Willy Shih, Michael W. Toffel and Kelsey Carter

To reduce greenhouse gas emissions that were contributing to climate change, the world needs to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. Power-to-X (PtX) refers to an array of processes that convert electricity (power) to various gaseous and liquid... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Strategies; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Transition; Renewable Energy; Energy Industry

January 2024 (Revised May 2024)
Case

Generation Investment Management

By: Vikram S. Gandhi, Michael Norris and David Allen

In September 2021, the sustainable investment firm Generation Investment Management (Generation) considered whether to add Schneider Electric to the focus list of companies in which it was prepared to invest. Dedicated to promoting a sustainable world through its... View Details

Keywords: Sustainable Investing; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Governance; Private Equity; Public Equity; Financial Markets; Investment Return; Investment Activism; Investment Funds; Investment Portfolio; Institutional Investing; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Financial Services Industry; United Kingdom; England; London

September 2010 (Revised January 2011)
Background Note

Using Regression Analysis to Estimate Time Equations

This note presents a simple way to estimate time equations using regression analysis in Excel. The note quickly outlines regression analysis, then presents a real-life case example from the natural gas industry that students can use to gain experience developing and... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Activity Based Costing and Management; Mathematical Methods

09 Nov 2022
In Practice

COP27: What Can Business Leaders Do to Fight Climate Change Now?

The US government’s newly passed Inflation Reduction Act will direct $370 billion toward advancing renewal energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions—the country's largest investment in fighting climate change so far. As business and government leaders around the... View Details

Keywords: by Lynn Schenk and Danielle Kost

Research Summary

Overview

My background is rooted in mathematics and science, so I am interested in strategy theory. I have a broad interest in a variety of fields, and am open to research topics. My senior thesis was on copula modelling of heating oil and natural gas futures. View Details

September 2010
Supplement

Using Regression Analysis to Estimate Time Equations (CW)

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez

This note presents a simple way to estimate time equations using regression analysis in Excel. The note quickly outlines regression analysis, then presents a real-life case example from the natural gas industry that students can use to gain experience developing and... View Details

Keywords: History; Management Practices and Processes; Activity Based Costing and Management; Learning; Outcome or Result; Financial Statements; Experience and Expertise; Adoption; Communication Technology; Knowledge Acquisition; Management Skills

Web

News - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

economist throws support behind natural gas Harvard economist throws support behind natural gas by Michael E. Porter Feb 18, 2016 Media Mention... View Details

01 Oct 2008
Working Paper Summaries

Responding to Public and Private Politics: Corporate Disclosure of Climate Change Strategies

Keywords: by Erin M. Reid & Michael W. Toffel

May 2024
Article

Design of Off-Grid Lighting Business Models to Serve the Poor: Field Experiments and Structural Analysis

By: Bhavani Shanker Uppari, Serguei Netessine, Ioanna Popescu and Rowan P. Clarke

A significant proportion of the world's population has no access to grid-based electricity and so relies on off-grid lighting solutions. Rechargeable lamp technology is gaining popularity as an alternative off-grid lighting model in developing countries. In this paper,... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Developing Countries and Economies; Consumer Behavior; Poverty; Logistics; Business Model; Utilities Industry

25 Apr 2023
Op-Ed

How SHEIN and Temu Conquered Fast Fashion—and Forged a New Business Model

matching not only for fashion but for retail goods in general. Where SHEIN has 6,000 tightly integrated producers, it appears Temu has 100,000, offering a wide range of goods at startlingly cheap prices, such as an electric cooking pot... View Details

Keywords: by John Deighton; Fashion; Retail; Consumer Products

01 Mar 2013
News

Oil Rigs and Ripe Fruit

With 40,000 employees, Singapore-based Keppel Corporation is one of the world's largest manufacturers of offshore oil rigs, both floating deep-water semisubmersibles that anchor to the seabed and "jack-up" rigs that stand on legs on the... View Details

Keywords: Oil and Gas Extraction; Oil and Gas Extraction

2017
Other Unpublished Work

Kicking Ash: Who (or What) Is Winning the War on Coal?

By: David F. Drake and Jeffrey York

Power generators throughout the U.S. have shed coal capacity at an unprecedented rate over the past few years. Multiple stakeholders have claimed credit - natural gas executives, policy makers, renewables advocates, and environmental NGOs. In this paper, we explore the... View Details

Keywords: Energy Generation; Energy Sources; Energy Industry; United States