Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(1,107)
- Faculty Publications (265)
- May 2020
- Teaching Note
Big Boom Beverages: Fight or Flight? (Brief Case)
By: Stephen A. Greyser and William Ellet
Teaching Note for HBS Brief Case No. 920-557. The case addresses analysis and decisions related to the entrepreneurial life of a distinctive energy beverage, including its niche market launch, early problems, reformulation, social media impact, market success, and... View Details
- March 2020
- Article
Governance Through Shame and Aspiration: Index Creation and Corporate Behavior
By: Akash Chattopadhyay, Matthew D. Shaffer and Charles C.Y. Wang
After decades of deprioritizing shareholders' economic interests and low corporate profitability, Japan introduced the JPX-Nikkei400 in 2014. The index highlighted the country's "best-run" companies by annually selecting the 400 most profitable of its large and liquid... View Details
- February 2020
- Article
Why Prosocial Referral Incentives Work: The Interplay of Reputational Benefits and Action Costs
By: Rachel Gershon, Cynthia Cryder and Leslie K. John
While selfish incentives typically outperform prosocial incentives, in the context of customer referral rewards, prosocial incentives can be more effective. Companies frequently offer “selfish” (i.e., sender-benefiting) referral incentives, offering customers financial... View Details
- Article
Signaling When Nobody Is Watching: A Reputation Heuristics Account of Outrage and Punishment in One-shot Anonymous Interactions
By: Jillian J. Jordan and David G. Rand
Moralistic punishment can confer reputation benefits by signaling trustworthiness to observers. However, why do people punish even when nobody is watching? We argue that people often rely on the heuristic that reputation is typically at stake, such that reputation... View Details
Keywords: Signaling; Morality; Trustworthiness; Anger; Third-party Punishment; Moral Sensibility; Behavior; Trust; Reputation
- December 2019
- Case
Steemit: A New Social Media?
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Alexander White and Karen Elterman
This case discusses the alternative social media site Steemit, including the principles it was founded on in 2016 and the challenges it faced in 2019. Steemit was a blockchain-based platform that aimed to differentiate itself from other social media companies by... View Details
Keywords: Decision Making; Decisions; Voting; Economic Systems; Money; Fairness; Values and Beliefs; Goals and Objectives; Digital Platforms; Product Design; Design; Problems and Challenges; Network Effects; Motivation and Incentives; Social and Collaborative Networks; Reputation; Business Strategy; Competition; Internet and the Web; Social Media; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States; Virginia; New York (city, NY)
- November 2019 (Revised January 2020)
- Case
Bayer Crop Science
By: David E. Bell, Damien McLoughlin, Natalie Kindred and James Barnett
In mid-2019, a year after German conglomerate Bayer Group closed its acquisition of U.S.-based seeds giant Monsanto, the leadership of Bayer’s Crop Science division (which absorbed Monsanto) is reflecting on the opportunities ahead. Some observers have questioned... View Details
- 2019
- Working Paper
Why Does Business Invest in Education in Emerging Markets? Why Does It Matter?
By: Valeria Giacomin, G. Jones and Erica Salvaj
This working paper examines why a significant number of businesses have made non-profit investments in education in emerging markets between the 1960s and the present day. Using a sample of 110 interviews with business leaders from an oral history database at the... View Details
- July–August 2019
- Article
Where Is Your Company Most Prone to Lapses in Integrity?
By: Eugene F. Soltes
Every sizable organization has integrity gaps—areas where what’s considered appropriate behavior diverges from the norms set by its leaders. Within these pockets, things like offensive language, overly aggressive sales practices, or conflicts of interest may be... View Details
- June 2019
- Case
Fangda Partners: A Step Ahead
By: Ashish Nanda and Lisa Rohrer
Elite Chinese law firm Fangda Partners has steered Alibaba and other Chinese and international clients through the complex legal, corporate, and regulatory challenges associated with executing international transactions. “Fangda has traveled a long distance in a short... View Details
- 2019
- Working Paper
Bank Boards: What Has Changed Since the Financial Crisis?
By: Shiva Rajgopal, Suraj Srinivasan and Forester Wong
Several government-mandated committees investigating the financial crisis highlighted four key deficiencies in the composition of bank boards before the crisis: (i) group think among bank board members; (ii) absence of prior banking experience of board members; (iii)... View Details
- February 2019
- Article
The Market for Financial Adviser Misconduct
By: Mark Egan, Gregor Matvos and Amit Seru
We construct a novel database containing the universe of financial advisers in the United States from 2005 to 2015, representing approximately 10% of employment of the finance and insurance sector. We provide the first large-scale study that documents the economy-wide... View Details
- January–February 2019
- Article
What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand For?
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde
While most firms are adept at defining product brands, they’re less sure-footed with their corporate brands. What exactly does a parent company’s name represent, and how is it perceived in the marketplace?
A strong corporate identity provides direction and... View Details
A strong corporate identity provides direction and... View Details
- December 2018
- Teaching Note
The Swedish Academy #MeToo Scandal and the Reputation of the Nobel Prize
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde
A classroom guide to teaching the case, “The Swedish Academy #MeToo Scandal and the Reputation of the Nobel Prize” (HBS No. 5-919-410). A fictional case protagonist must present his evaluation to the Nobel Foundation of the scandal affecting one of the Nobel... View Details
- December 2018
- Case
The Swedish Academy #MeToo Scandal and the Reputation of the Nobel Prize
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde
This case focuses on the potential for “reputational contagion” to the Nobel Prize from a scandal affecting one of its independent network member entities, the Swedish Academy. The latter is responsible for selecting the Nobel Prize in Literature, by appointment of... View Details
- October 2018 (Revised March 2019)
- Background Note
Note on Managing Workforce Reductions
By: Ethan Bernstein and Carin-Isabel Knoop
Each individual who enters an organization will, at some point, leave. And yet most future leaders spend significantly more effort learning about recruiting than departures, despite the sensitivity and challenges associated with the latter. This note is intended to... View Details
- October 2018 (Revised February 2018)
- Case
Masayoshi Son and the Vision Fund
In October 2016, SoftBank Group Corp., the Japanese conglomerate giant caused a significant shock to the worldwide market for venture capital and private equity by announcing the Vision Fund, the largest tech investment fund in the world at close to $100 billion. The... View Details
- October 2018 (Revised July 2019)
- Technical Note
The Brand Management of Places
By: E. Ofek and Nathaniel Schwalb
The brand management of places, such as countries, cities and regions, has received increasing attention in recent years. The associations, impressions and reputations that people have of a certain place can have a big impact in a number of areas – from tourism, to... View Details
- September 2018 (Revised January 2019)
- Case
Sobha Group Real Estate: Backward Integration for Quality
By: John Macomber and Alpana Thapar
From humble beginnings in Kerala, India, Mr. PNC Menon built a reputation for quality, detail, and trustworthiness, earning him major construction commissions in the Gulf region. This paved the way for venturing into real estate development in Dubai, UAE. Striving to... View Details
- September 2018
- Case
The Reputation of the 'World's Most Prestigious Award': The Nobel Prize
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde
Nobel Foundation leadership is addressing a range of issues related to its key role to safeguard the reputation of the Nobel Prizes. Included are outreach to global audiences, the variety of sources of communications about the Prizes, the advent of new high-value... View Details
- September 2018
- Teaching Note
The Reputation of the 'World's Most Prestigious Award': The Nobel Prize
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde
A comprehensive treatment of classroom use of the case on issues affecting the reputation of the Nobel Prize (9-919-401). These encompass a global outreach initiative, the variety of entities that speak for the Prizes, the impact of new high-value awards, and a... View Details