Publications

SSRN

November 29, 2011
Article

The Role of The Board in Creating a Sustainable Strategy

By: Robert G. Eccles, Ioannis Ioannou and George Serafeim

While conceptually elegant, the belief that a corporation's role is to maximize value for shareholders is under increasing challenge as society's expectations for companies change. An equally elegant new concept that takes account of these dual pressures has yet to... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Corporate Strategy; Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance Expectations; Governing and Advisory Boards; Management Practices and Processes; Decisions; Risk and Uncertainty; Cost vs Benefits; Information

2022
Book

Purpose + Profit: How Business Can Lift Up the World

By: George Serafeim

The roadmap and best practices to reap the enormous value that can emerge when your business prioritizes social and environmental goals—such as climate change, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability—right alongside the pursuit of profit.

We not only... View Details

Keywords: ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Profitability; Business And Society; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Goals and Objectives; Social Issues; Environmental Sustainability; Value Creation; Organizational Change and Adaptation

2007
Working Paper

Accountability in Complex Organizations: World Bank Responses to Civil Society

By: Alnoor Ebrahim and Steve Herz

Civil society actors have been pushing for greater accountability of the World Bank for at least three decades. This paper outlines the range of accountability mechanisms currently in place at the World Bank along four basic levels: (1) staff, (2) project, (3) policy,... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Compensation and Benefits; Business and Community Relations; Social Enterprise; Motivation and Incentives

November 2017
Technical Note

21st Century Populism

By: George Serafeim and David Freiberg

While the first decade of the 21st century saw a massive financial crisis that led to significant economic downturn, the second decade saw the rise of political leaders, who built their support upon a political message that championed the common person against the... View Details

Keywords: Populism; Market Efficiency; Market Liberalization; Political Influence; Political Instability; Capital Controls; Partnerships; Coalition; Inequality; Role Of Business In Society; Government Intervention In The Markets; Labor Market; Equality and Inequality; Financial Markets; Social Issues; Immigration; Financial Crisis; Capital Markets; Business and Government Relations

Educators

January 2011 (Revised November 2015)
Case

The National Geographic Society (A)

By: David A. Garvin and Carin-Isabel Knoop

In January 2010, John Fahey, president, CEO, and chairman of the board of trustees' executive committee of the Washington, D.C.-based National Geographic Society (NGS), must decide how best to organize the 121-year old mission-driven organization for a world of... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Information Publishing; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Growth and Development Strategy; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Internet; Publishing Industry

Educators

July 1998
Supplement

The Role of Business in Education and Welfare Reform: A Public-Private Dialogue on America's Future, Video

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter

Keywords: Welfare; Business Education

22 Apr 2002
Research & Ideas

Profits and Prophets: The Role of Values in Investment

"Profits and Prophets: The Role of Values in Investment," at the Harvard Business School Möbius Leadership Forum on April 12. Hayes... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

21 May 2014
Working Paper Summaries

The Role of the Corporation in Society: An Alternative View and Opportunities for Future Research

Keywords: by George Serafeim

2022
Book

Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies

By: Ranjay Gulati

This book offers a compelling reassessment and defense of purpose as a management ethos, documenting the vast performance gains and social benefits that become possible when firms manage to get purpose right. Few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent... View Details

Keywords: Purpose; Business And Society; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Performance Effectiveness; Organizational Culture

Find at Harvard

Research Summary

The Role of the Internet in Enhancing Service and Reducing Cost

Is delivering service (both internal and external) facilitated by the Internet a zero sum game in which costs associated with delivering superior service must always be passed on to customers in the form of higher prices? Does the quantity and type of service... View Details

30 Nov 2007
What Do You Think?

What Is Management’s Role in Innovation?

little to contribute to processes of creation and innovation. While asking "What isn't management's role in innovation?," Michelle Malay Carter states the case this... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

2020
Article

How Signal Intensity of Behavioral Orientations Affects Crowdfunding Performance: The Role of Entrepreneurial Orientation in Crowdfunding Business Ventures

By: Goran Calic and Anton Shevchenko

Backers assess a crowdfunding campaign description not merely for a project’s capacity to deliver a reward, but also for the manner in which that reward is delivered. Viewed through the lens of signalling theory, crowdfunding performance depends on the signals of... View Details

Keywords: Crowdfunding; Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurship; Consumer Behavior; Communication Strategy

04 Nov 2009
What Do You Think?

What is the Role of Government Vis-à-Vis Capitalism?

Summing Up How broad is government's role in a capitalistic society? The debate this month boiled down to the extent of government's role View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

2010
Working Paper

The Role of Institutional Development in the Prevalence and Value of Family Firms

We investigate the role played by institutional development in the prevalence and value of family firms, while controlling for the potential effect of cultural norms. China provides a good research lab since it combines great heterogeneity in institutional development... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Data and Data Sets; Law; Management; Organizational Culture; Research; Value; China

23 Nov 2009
Research & Ideas

Management’s Role in Reforming Health Care

Aligning the Nature and Management of Health Care (Harvard Business Press, 2009), explains how to create more knowledgeable, flexible, and responsive delivery organizations. “Some View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Health

2012
Chapter

The Role of Venture Capitalists in the Acquisition of Private Companies

By: Paul A. Gompers and Yuhai Xuan

Keywords: Venture Capital; Acquisition; Private Ownership

2004
Other Unpublished Work

The Role of Venture Capital in the Acquisition of Private Companies

By: P. Gompers and Yuhai Xuan

Keywords: Venture Capital; Acquisition; Private Ownership

summer 1994
Article

The Role of a Union in a Well-managed Company

By: D. Q. Mills

Keywords: Labor Unions; Business Ventures

29 Mar 2012
Other Presentation

Regional Competitiveness: The Role of Clusters

By: Michael E. Porter

This presentation draws on ideas from Professor Porter's articles and books, in particular, The Competitive Advantage of Nations (The Free Press, 1990), "Building the Microeconomic Foundations of Competitiveness," in The Global Competitiveness Report... View Details

Keywords: Economics