by James Sebenius - Publications - Faculty & Research

03 Feb 2020
What Do You Think?

Can an Organization Have Too Much 'Rebel Talent'?

pot, “we need to channel the energy through coaching to effectively use the energy.” Shann Turnbull commented that rebel talent often encounters the real problem: us. As he put it, “humans, like all other social creatures, are hardwired View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

02 Aug 2020
What Do You Think?

Is the 'Experimentation Organization' Becoming the Competitive Gold Standard?

level. Their work has been both influenced by and reported recently by several academics. Harvard Business School professors Michael Luca and Max Bazerman track experimentation in decision-making back to the... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Technology

04 Oct 2022
What Do You Think?

Have Managers Underestimated the Need for Face-to-Face Contact?

to a rubber band that snaps back toward a somewhat constant middle ground even after pandemic-level disruptions. Here’s the argument as it applies to remote work or “work from anywhere”: Remote work, already common, was first required by... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

05 Jul 2022
What Do You Think?

Have We Seen the Peak of Just-in-Time Inventory Management?

supply of “safety stock” was the order of the day for those using slower forms of transportation. "The result, of course, was what came to be known as 'just-in-time' inventory management, as championed by firms such as Toyota." One of my... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Manufacturing; Shipping; Transportation

Research Summary

Implications of Limits of Arbitrage (with James Choi)

In this project we investigate the relationship between limits to arbitrage facing mutual fund managers and asset pricing anomalies. We measure changes in the limits to arbitrage by computing the average of slopes on current and past returns in quarterly... View Details

01 Feb 2023
What Do You Think?

Will Hybrid Work Strategies Pull Down Long-Term Performance?

hybrid work strategies make jobs that can be performed from the “home” more attractive by eliminating the need for some commuting. They raise productivity modestly, and provide employees more control over their personal and work lives.... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

01 Jan 2020
What Do You Think?

Why Not Open America's Doors to All the World’s Talent?

of H-1B temporary foreign workers are at ‘Level IV’ (above the median wage) officially defined by the Department of Labor as those who are ‘fully competent.’” On the other hand, Ted G. argued, “The unemployment rate is low in the US. Let... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Technology

06 Jul 2016
What Do You Think?

How Do We Pay for the Costs of Globalization?

three-sentence summary of responses to this month’s very thorny question on how the human and societal costs caused by globalization can be remedied. As if the topic were not sufficiently complex, Hugh Quick questioned my use of the term... View Details

Keywords: by James L. Heskett; Manufacturing

02 Nov 2020
What Do You Think?

Is Antitrust Just a Quaint Notion in the Digital Age?

Joel put it, “Though I get the point that their behavior excludes competitors, the consumer would seem to benefit for now. What I wonder is why there is not more aggressive enforcement where the consumer is clearly being hurt, as demonstrated View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Retail; Technology; Telecommunications; Communications; Consumer Products; Service

04 Feb 2010
What Do You Think?

What’s the Best Way to Make Careful Decisions?

Summing Up What is the right mix between intuition and analysis? Several clear themes characterized responses to this month's column. Dominant among these was that the best way to reach a decision depends on a number of factors, including the nature of the decision,... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

01 Jun 2022
What Do You Think?

Is Stakeholder Management Facing New Headwinds?

debate between economists such as the Chicago school’s Milton Friedman, who argued that the sole purpose of business is to generate profit for (and presumably transfer wealth to) shareholders by any legal and ethical means, and Yale’s... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

02 Aug 2017
What Do You Think?

Summing Up: Why Can’t Organizations Engage Their Employees?

and sometimes outside of work.” He added, “Everybody needs to be touched by someone who cares.” Of course, this takes time that many managers don’t feel they can spare. As Guy put it, “Improving employee engagement is not done through... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

05 Jun 2023
What Do You Think?

Is the Anxious Achiever a Post-Pandemic Relic?

appreciated Jenny Odell’s thesis that “doing nothing” offers us several useful “tools,” including those of repair (personal reflection and recovery), “a sharpened ability to listen”—a critical resource in a world dominated by telling and... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

06 Sep 2017
What Do You Think?

Summing Up: What Are the Limits of CEO Activism?

with outspoken banking executives, argued that, “Silence may be both a more eloquent statement and a more intelligent one ” CEOs and other high-profile people “do a service by restraining their knee-jerks and shutting their mouths.” RCD... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

01 Aug 2019
What Do You Think?

Has the Twitter Age Left the Case Method Behind?

ease of use by instructors, and even useability in an age of “fake facts.” The most negative views came from those experiencing problems arising largely from the way cases were being taught or used. Those utilizing the method in their... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Education

01 Jun 2020
What Do You Think?

Will Challenged Amazon Tweak Its Retail Model Post-Pandemic?

asked, “Is this a good time to begin thinking about prudential limits so that the brick-and-mortar stores will continue to be around when the next lockdown happens?” Perhaps the most basic question was one raised by NickC when he said,... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Retail

02 Aug 2021
What Do You Think?

Can Companies with Remote Management Succeed?

experiences is done, the position of CXO will be eliminated. The first point was made by Yale Schwartz, who commented that, “It all starts with the organization’s desire to improve the overall customer experience and become the brand that... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

02 Mar 2020
What Do You Think?

Are Candor, Humility, and Trust Making a Comeback?

report to you succeed, I think it’s pretty hard to lead with anything other than humility and vulnerability.” Dfallah said, “I believe candor, humility and trust are core values for visionary companies ” Michael H. added, “For several years, I’ve been advocating a... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

04 May 2016
What Do You Think?

What Does Boaty McBoatface Tell Us About Brand Control on the Internet?

When Should Control Over a Brand Be Ceded to the Public? The verdict is in. Our hardly scientific poll has endorsed the name of Boaty McBoatface for the new research vessel being commissioned by the UK’s National Environment Research... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Advertising