Energy Efficiency - Publications - Faculty & Research

05 May 2022
Research & Ideas

Why Companies Raise Their Prices: Because They Can

Grocery bills may be ridiculously high these days, but supply chain problems, energy costs, and inflation aren’t the only factors to blame. New research suggests that companies are raising prices simply because they can. In 2021, US... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

08 Mar 2021
In Practice

COVID Killed the Traditional Workplace. What Should Companies Do Now?

A year ago, COVID-19 forced many companies to send employees home—often with a laptop and a prayer. Now, with COVID cases subsiding and vaccinations rising, the prospect of returning to old office routines appears more possible. But will employees want to flock back to... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

19 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

15 Podcast Episodes That Grabbed Listeners in 2023

Bühler Group, Stefan Scheiber is mapping a courageous plan to combat food waste and climate change. Ranjay Gulati hears from Scheiber about how he challenges his own company, its customers, and himself to face sustainability problems head-on. Climate Rising... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

04 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

Is Government Just Stupid? How Bad Decisions Are Made

In "You Can't Enlarge the Pie," the authors argue that barriers to effective government decision making result in poor decisions about critical issues like the environment, organ transplants, and energy policy. Why? Because... View Details

Keywords: by Max H. Bazerman, Jonathan Baron & Katherine Shonk

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

20 Apr 2015
Research & Ideas

The 5 Strategy Rules of Bill Gates, Andy Grove, and Steve Jobs

envision a world in which there was a computer on every desk at a time when personal computers didn't exist. But he also realized that the way to capitalize on that future was to focus his energies on controlling software, not hardware.... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Computer

16 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Restaurant Revolution: How the Industry Is Fighting to Stay Alive

given its drive-in and drive-through concept,” Brown said. “We’ve shut the dining rooms at Arby’s and moved to a drive-through-only format. We’re running down a little bit, but not too badly, as we can run that model quite efficiently... View Details

Keywords: by Michael S. Kaufman, Lena G. Goldberg, and Jill Avery; Food & Beverage

09 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Driven: How Human Nature Shapes Organizations

other words, all this energy probably would not be harnessed efficiently to the goals of the larger enterprise. The acquiring drive will lead to ongoing competition as everyone in the organization seeks to... View Details

Keywords: by Paul Lawrence & Nitin Nohria

06 Oct 2020
Sharpening Your Skills

18 Tips Managers Can Use to Lead Through COVID's Rising Waters

(virtually) talked with more than 50 “resilient” businesses across a variety of countries and sectors. The results of this exploration show that managers are trying to ensure safety and maintain profitability with tremendous energy and... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

16 Apr 2020
Research & Ideas

Has COVID-19 Broken the Global Value Chain?

risk considered plausible. It assigned a probability of 11 percent to such a pandemic (against, for instance, a 19 percent assigned to global energy shortage or a 17 percent assigned to shortage of labor), making it not really that rare... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

10 Sep 2020
Research & Ideas

The COVID Two-Step for Leaders: Protect and Pivot

performance while ensuring that their limited energy and processing capacity is being spent on truly mission-critical tasks. "It is nearly impossible to plan for the next six months—there simply is not enough data and information to do... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg and Katherine Connolly Baden

18 Jul 2022
Research & Ideas

After the 'Crypto Crash,' What's Next for Digital Currencies?

attention and especially energy around speculation and trading—this gives an entrepreneur more time to focus and actually develop their product carefully without constantly having to face the market. Gazette: In November, the global... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Financial Services; Technology

24 Sep 2014
Op-Ed

The ABCs of Addressing Climate Change (From a Business Perspective)

It's Climate Week in New York City. The schedule features a UN Climate Summit, a People's Climate March, the Clinton Global Initiative, substantial criticism of the whole endeavor, and plenty of agitated interaction. There is a lot of noise here. How can businesses cut... View Details

Keywords: by John Macomber; Energy; Utilities

08 Mar 2012
Research & Ideas

Unplugged: What Happened to the Smart Grid?

efficient storage would get us a long way forward." Another potential plus: Consumers would have more control over their energy usage. Homeowners would be given in-home meters to monitor their View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Energy; Energy

24 Sep 2014
Op-Ed

Tackling Climate Change Will Cost Less Than We Think

paper estimates that the electrical efficiency of computation has doubled roughly every year and a half for more than six decades, outpacing Moore's law. The paper shows also that the costs of wind and solar power have also been falling... View Details

Keywords: by Rebecca Henderson; Energy; Energy

14 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Restarting Under Uncertainty: Managerial Experiences from Around the World

across a variety of countries and sectors. The results of this exploration show that managers are trying to ensure safety and maintain profitability with tremendous energy and creativity. While specific tactics vary by company, they share... View Details

Keywords: by Raffaella Sadun, Andrea Bertoni, Alexia Delfino, Giovanni Fassio, and Mariapaola Testa

September 2013 (Revised August 2015)
Background Note

Leadership and Teaming

By: Ethan Bernstein

Small differences in the leadership of teams can have large consequences for the success of their efforts. Many initiatives fail not because of a fatal error in judgment or insufficient ideas, knowledge, motivation, or capabilities to deliver a solution. They fail... View Details

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08 Nov 2024
Op-Ed

How Private Investors Can Help Solve Africa's Climate Crisis

by rainfall and intense heat. This amount goes beyond the financing of carbon mitigation projects like wind and solar energy efficiency, and the money dedicated to these projects has increased from near-zero just five years ago. The... View Details

Keywords: by John Macomber; Energy; Energy

26 Apr 2011
Op-Ed

HBS Faculty Comment on Environmental Issues for Earth Day

that provided economically efficient and environmentally sound energy sources. But due to political legacies, these markets fail to function in nearly every energy sector... View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Energy; Energy

24 Sep 2014
Op-Ed

We Need a Miracle. New Nuclear Might Provide it.

On September 4, the US Energy Information Agency (EIA) published its 2014 International Energy Outlook. Earlier this year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released its latest World Energy Investment Outlook. Both watchdogs tell us the same story. Energy... View Details

Keywords: by Joseph Lassiter; Energy; Utilities

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