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- All HBS Web
(681)
- News (73)
- Research (544)
- Events (1)
- Multimedia (1)
- Faculty Publications (281)
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- 23 Apr 2024
- In Practice
Getting to Net Zero: The Climate Standards and Ecosystem the World Needs Now
With each month clocking record-breaking temperatures across the planet, this Earth Day reflected the renewed urgency of regulators and businesses to find climate-change solutions. The US Securities and Exchange Commission recently adopted new rules that will mandate... View Details
Keywords: by Rachel Layne
- 11 Oct 2007
- Working Paper Summaries
How Firms Respond to Being Rated
- September 2016
- Article
The Effect of Target Difficulty on Target Completion: The Case of Reducing Carbon Emissions
By: Ioannis Ioannou, Shelley Xin Li and George Serafeim
Targets are an integral component of management control systems and play a significant role in achieving desirable performance outcomes. We focus on a key environmental performance objective—reduction of carbon emissions—as a setting in which to examine how target... View Details
Keywords: Sustainability; Target-setting; Management Accounting; Management Accounting And Control Systems; Control Systems; Sustainable Development; Environment; Goals and Objectives; Climate Change; Management Systems; Accounting; Environmental Sustainability
Ioannou, Ioannis, Shelley Xin Li, and George Serafeim. "The Effect of Target Difficulty on Target Completion: The Case of Reducing Carbon Emissions." Accounting Review 91, no. 5 (September 2016): 1467–1492.
- September 1996 (Revised December 1997)
- Case
Cytec Industries' Spin-Off (A): Sink or Swim?
In the wake of market pressure to restructure, American Cyanamid spun off its poorly performing Chemicals Unit into a new publicly traded corporation, Cytec Industries. In addition to weak operations, Cytec inherited the bulk of Cyanamid's environmental and... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Management Practices and Processes; Restructuring; Performance Improvement; Chemical Industry; United States
Wruck, Karen, and Sherry P. Roper. "Cytec Industries' Spin-Off (A): Sink or Swim?" Harvard Business School Case 897-053, September 1996. (Revised December 1997.)
- 2022
- Article
Which Corporate ESG News Does the Market React To?
By: George Serafeim and Aaron Yoon
Using a dataset that classifies firm-level ESG news as positive and negative, we examine how stock prices react to different types of ESG news. We analyze 111,020 firm-day observations for 3,126 companies and find that prices react only to issues identified as... View Details
Keywords: ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; ESG Ratings; Social Capital; Environment; Sustainability; CSR; Stock Price; Stock Market Expectations; Materiality; Market Reaction; Environmental Sustainability; Governance; Social Issues; Performance; News
Serafeim, George, and Aaron Yoon. "Which Corporate ESG News Does the Market React To?" Financial Analysts Journal 78, no. 1 (2022): 59–78.
- 2019
- White Paper
Impact-Weighted Financial Accounts: The Missing Piece for an Impact Economy
By: George Serafeim, T. Robert Zochowski and Jennifer Downing
Reimagining capitalism is an imperative. We need to create a more inclusive and sustainable form of capitalism that works for every person and the planet. Massive environmental damage, growing income and wealth disparity, stress, and depression within developed... View Details
Keywords: Impact-Weighted Accounts; IWAI; Background; Economic Systems; Economy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Measurement and Metrics; Financial Statements
Serafeim, George, T. Robert Zochowski, and Jennifer Downing. "Impact-Weighted Financial Accounts: The Missing Piece for an Impact Economy." White Paper, Harvard Business School, Boston, MA, September 2019.
- September 20, 2024
- Article
It’s Time to Unbundle ESG
By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel
ESG is at an inflection point. It has come to represent a broad and inchoate aspiration for what business should be doing beyond maximizing shareholder value. With ESG advocates on the defensive, business leaders need a new roadmap to determine which factors to... View Details
Keywords: ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; ESG Ratings; ESG Reporting; ESG Disclosure; Sustainability; Climate; Climate Finance; Climate Risk; Social Accounting; Investment; Governance; Safety; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Financial Services Industry
Chatterji, Aaron K., and Michael W. Toffel. "It’s Time to Unbundle ESG." Harvard Business Review (website) (September 20, 2024).
- 2021
- Article
Decarbonizing Everything
By: Alex Cheema-Fox, Bridget LaPerla, George Serafeim, David Turkington and Hui (Stacie) Wang
We analyze how the use of different climate risk measures leads to different portfolio carbon outcomes and risk-adjusted returns. Our findings are synthesized in a rules-based investment framework, which selects a different type of climate metric across industries and... View Details
Keywords: Climate Risk; ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; ESG Disclosure; ESG Disclosure Metrics; ESG Ratings; Investing; Investing For Impact; Investment Strategy; Environment; Decarbonization; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Environmental Management; Environmental Accounting; Investment; Strategy; Investment Portfolio; Investment Return
Cheema-Fox, Alex, Bridget LaPerla, George Serafeim, David Turkington, and Hui (Stacie) Wang. "Decarbonizing Everything." Financial Analysts Journal 77, no. 3 (2021): 93–108.
- 2018
- Working Paper
When to Take the Leap: The Antecedents and Consequences of Leapfrog CEOs
By: J. Yo-Jud Cheng
Much of the prior research on CEO successions focuses on differences between CEOs appointed from within the firm and those appointed from outside; however, this dichotomy neglects significant heterogeneity in CEOs’ career trajectories. In this study, I examine the... View Details
- September 2010 (Revised December 2011)
- Case
Southwest Airlines One ReportTM
By: Robert G. Eccles, Beiting Cheng and Susan Thyne
In 2009, Southwest Airlines produced its first integrated annual report, the Southwest Airlines One Report, combing financial and nonfinancial performance information. This case examines Southwest's environmental and corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports... View Details
Keywords: Environmental Accounting; Financial Reporting; Integrated Corporate Reporting; Innovation and Invention; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Air Transportation Industry; United States
Eccles, Robert G., Beiting Cheng, and Susan Thyne. "Southwest Airlines One ReportTM." Harvard Business School Case 411-042, September 2010. (Revised December 2011.)
- 04 Jun 2008
- Working Paper Summaries
Coming Clean and Cleaning Up: Is Voluntary Disclosure a Signal of Effective Self-Policing?
Keywords: by Michael W. Toffel & Jodi L. Short
- February 1985 (Revised September 1988)
- Case
Caterpillar Tractor Co.
Describes the structure and evolution of the earth moving equipment industry worldwide in the post war era, particularly focusing on developments in the 1960s and 1970s. Describes Caterpillar's strategy in becoming the dominant worldwide competitor (industry market... View Details
Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry
Bartlett, Christopher A. "Caterpillar Tractor Co." Harvard Business School Case 385-276, February 1985. (Revised September 1988.)
- September–October 2020
- Article
Social-Impact Efforts That Create Real Value
By: George Serafeim
Until the mid-2010s few investors paid attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data—information about companies’ carbon footprints, labor policies, board makeup, and so forth. Today the data is widely used by investors. How can organizations create... View Details
Keywords: Sustainability; Sustainability Management; ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; ESG Disclosure; ESG Disclosure Metrics; ESG Ratings; ESG Reporting; Social Impact; Impact Measurement; Social Innovation; Purpose; Corporate Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility; Strategy; Social Enterprise; Society; Accounting; Investment; Environmental Sustainability; Climate Change; Corporate Strategy; Mission and Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Financial Services Industry; Chemical Industry; Technology Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; North America; Europe; Japan; Australia
Serafeim, George. "Social-Impact Efforts That Create Real Value." Harvard Business Review 98, no. 5 (September–October 2020): 38–48.
- 2010
- Other Paper
Clear and Present Danger: Planning and New Venture Survival Amid Political and Civil Violence
By: Shon R. Hiatt and Wesley Sine
Prior strategy research is divided on the utility of new-venture planning. Some scholars argue that planning enhances new-firm performance and others make the opposite argument. This paper attempts to reconcile these contradictory views by exploring the extent of... View Details
Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Government and Politics; Success; Performance Effectiveness; Strategic Planning; Business and Government Relations; Colombia
Hiatt, Shon R., and Wesley Sine. "Clear and Present Danger: Planning and New Venture Survival Amid Political and Civil Violence."
- December 2004 (Revised May 2005)
- Case
Nestle: Sustainable Agriculture Initiative
Swiss food giant Nestle attempts to improve the performance of its suppliers of agricultural commodities to raise quality, lower costs, and contribute to sustainable development. Its initiatives focus first on coffee, cocoa, and milk. Nestle managers assert that the... View Details
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Social Issues; Business and Community Relations; Corporate Strategy; Agribusiness; Supply Chain Management; Marketing Strategy; Value Creation; Food and Beverage Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry
Reinhardt, Forest L. "Nestle: Sustainable Agriculture Initiative." Harvard Business School Case 705-018, December 2004. (Revised May 2005.)
- Article
Optimizing Organic Waste to Energy Operations
By: Baris Ata, Deishin Lee and Mustafa H. Tongarlak
A waste-to-energy firm that recycles organic waste with energy recovery performs two environmentally beneficial functions: it diverts waste from landfill and it produces renewable energy. At the same time, the waste-to-energy firm serves and collects revenue from two... View Details
Keywords: Business Ventures; Energy Generation; Renewable Energy; Revenue; Customers; Strategy; Corporate Governance; Wastes and Waste Processing; Environmental Sustainability; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Cost Management; Urban Scope
Ata, Baris, Deishin Lee, and Mustafa H. Tongarlak. "Optimizing Organic Waste to Energy Operations." Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 14, no. 2 (Spring 2012): 231–244.
- June 2008 (Revised May 2017)
- Case
Cook Composites and Polymers Co.
By: Deishin Lee, Michael W. Toffel and Rachel Gordon
This case describes how a company improves resource efficiency and process quality in its manufacturing process by developing a waste by-product into a new product. The case describes how CCP cleans production equipment between batches using styrene, which becomes a... View Details
Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Product Development; Business Processes; Performance Efficiency; Natural Environment; Wastes and Waste Processing; Pollutants; Environmental Sustainability; Chemical Industry; Manufacturing Industry
Lee, Deishin, Michael W. Toffel, and Rachel Gordon. "Cook Composites and Polymers Co." Harvard Business School Case 608-055, June 2008. (Revised May 2017.)
- 2014
- Article
Framework for China's Novel Sustainable Evaluation System Strategy
By: Robert G. Eccles and Peijun Duan
China’s sustainable development faces three challenges: first, the follow-up momentum of sustainable economic growth and economic transformation is insufficient; second, some resources and environment loads have reached their limits; third, some products affecting the... View Details
Eccles, Robert G., and Peijun Duan. "Framework for China's Novel Sustainable Evaluation System Strategy." Art. 1. Zhongguo ke xue yuan yuan kan [Bulletin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences] 29, no. 4 (2014): 401–409.
- 09 Aug 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Shareholder Activism on Sustainability Issues
- June 2013 (Revised September 2016)
- Supplement
Governance and Sustainability at Nike (B)
By: Lynn S. Paine, Nien-he Hsieh and Lara Adamsons
Two members of Nike's executive team must decide what sustainability targets to propose to Nike's CEO and to the corporate responsibility committee of Nike's board of directors. Set in 2012, the case traces the evolution of Nike's approach to environmental and social... View Details
Keywords: Nike; Hannah Jones; Mark Parker; Phil Knight; Philip Knight; Eric Sprunk; Jill Ker Conway; Phyllis Wise; Don Blair; Sustainable Business And Innovation; SB&I; Flyknit; DyeCoo; Footwear; Athletic Footwear; Apparel; Athletic Apparel; Sustainability; Greenpeace; Detox Campaign; Dirty Laundry; Water; Water Use; Water Pollution; Water Resources; Corporate Responsibility Committee; Judgment; Board Of Directors; Board Committees; Environmental And Social Sustainability; Footwear Industry; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decisions; Ethics; Fairness; Globalized Firms and Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governance; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Innovation and Invention; Innovation and Management; Innovation Leadership; Innovation Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance; Alignment; Supply Chain; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Judgments; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Asia; China; United States; Oregon; Portland
Paine, Lynn S., Nien-he Hsieh, and Lara Adamsons. "Governance and Sustainability at Nike (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 313-147, June 2013. (Revised September 2016.)