Publications

2007
Working Paper

Evidence from Goodwill Non-impairments on the Effects of Unverifiable Fair-Value Accounting

By: Karthik Ramanna and Ross L. Watts

SFAS 142 requires firms to use unverifiable fair-value estimates to determine goodwill impairments. Standard setters suggest managers will use the discretion given by such estimates to convey private information on future cash flows, while agency theory predicts... View Details

Keywords: Fair Value Accounting; Goodwill Accounting; Standards; Agency Theory

December 2010
Article

Implications for GAAP from an Analysis of Positive Research in Accounting

By: S.P. Kothari, Karthik Ramanna and Douglas J. Skinner

Based on extant literature, we review the positive theory of GAAP. The theory predicts that GAAP's principal focus is on control (performance measurement and stewardship) and that verifiability and conservatism are critical features of a GAAP shaped by market forces.... View Details

Keywords: Fair Value Accounting; Standards; International Accounting; Financial Markets; Financial Reporting

Find at Harvard

01 Sep 2009
First Look

First Look: September 1

Working PapersWhat Should GAAP Look Like? A Survey and Economic Analysis Authors:S.P. Kothari, Karthik Ramanna, and Douglas J. Skinner Abstract Based on extant literature, we articulate a positive theory of GAAP under the assumption... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

07 Apr 2009
First Look

First Look: April 7, 2009

between domestic employment conditions and the growth of foreign operations by American firms have led to calls for increased taxation on foreign operations—the so-called "end to tax breaks for companies that ship our jobs... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 2012 (Revised March 2014)
Case

I Paid a Bribe (Dot) Com

By: Karthik Ramanna and Rachna Tahilyani

Anti-corruption web platform "ipaidabribe.com" leverages the transparency and anonymity of the Internet to encourage private citizens in India who have been the victims of corruption to self-report details of bribes paid, including the bribe amount, the name of the... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Internet and the Web; Ethics; Service Industry; India

Educators

Purchase

22 Apr 2014
News

Exploring and defining a vision of responsible business leadership

Harvard Business School Visiting Scholar Karthik Ramanna talks about the School's role in promoting ethical thinking and responsible action by business leaders. (Published... View Details

February 2012 (Revised June 2012)
Case

Rospil.info

By: Paul Healy, Karthik Ramanna and Matthew Shaffer

What should business leaders do about corruption? In December 2011, four HBS alumni met to debate how to engage the unprecedented protests against Vladimir Putin's corrupt government, which had erupted in Russia in response to alleged fraud in the recent parliamentary... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Crime and Corruption; Government and Politics; Social and Collaborative Networks; Blogs; Information Industry; Russia

Educators

Purchase

September 16, 2022
Article

A Causal Test of the Strength of Weak Ties

By: Karthik Rajkumar, Guillaume Saint-Jacques, Iavor I. Bojinov, Erik Brynjolfsson and Sinan Aral

The authors analyzed data from multiple large-scale randomized experiments on LinkedIn’s People You May Know algorithm, which recommends new connections to LinkedIn members, to test the extent to which weak ties increased job mobility in the world’s largest... View Details

Keywords: Job Mobility; Social Networks; Social Ties; Networks; Personal Development and Career

Register to Read

06 Apr 2010
First Look

First Look: April 6

quality. Download the paper: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1557231 Evidence on the Use of Unverifiable Estimates in Required Goodwill Impairment Authors: Karthik Ramanna and Ross L Watts Abstract SFAS 142... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

12 Apr 2011
First Look

First Look: April 12

Handbook for Banking and Governance, edited by James Barth, Chen Lin, and Clas Wihlborg. Cheltenham, U.K.: Edward Elgar Publishing, forthcoming Abstract In this chapter, we examine the characteristics of acquisition of private firms View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

19 Apr 2011
First Look

First Look: April 19

the answers in ways that are right for you. By asking these questions, you can craft new strategies for staying on top of your game. Publisher's Link:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

Events - Private Capital Project

webinar featured Abdulaziz Albassam (CEO, AIMS Investments), Karim El Solh (Co-Founder & CEO, Gulf Capital), and Tariq Al-Sudairy (Managing Director & CEO, Jadwa Investment), and was moderated by Professor Josh Lerner (Co-Head of the HBS... View Details

2013
Working Paper

Managers and Market Capitalism

By: Rebecca Henderson and Karthik Ramanna

In a capitalist system based on free markets, do managers have responsibilities to the system itself? If they do, should these responsibilities shape their behavior when they are engaging in the political process in an attempt to structure the institutions of... View Details

Keywords: Market Design; Economic Systems; Managerial Roles; Government and Politics

2015
Other Unpublished Work

Do Managers Have a Role to Play in Sustaining the Institutions of Capitalism?

By: Rebecca Henderson and Karthik Ramanna

In a capitalist system based on free markets, do managers have responsibilities to the system itself? If they do, should these responsibilities shape their behavior when they engage in the political processes that structure the institutions of capitalism? The... View Details

Keywords: Capitalism; Lobbying; Leadership; Economic Systems; Managerial Roles; Business and Government Relations

11 Sep 2012
First Look

First Look: September 11

they made by history, or do they make it? In Indispensable, Harvard Business School professor Gautam Mukunda offers an enticingly fresh look at how and when individual leaders really can make a difference. View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

26 Nov 2013
First Look

First Look: November 26

Empowerment By: Huckman, Robert S., and Mark A. Kelley M.D. Abstract—No abstract available. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=45889 Working Papers Managers and Market Capitalism By: Henderson, Rebecca M., and View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

18 Sep 2007
First Look

First Look: September 18, 2007

http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/08-013.pdf Evidence on the Effects of Unverifiable Fair-Value Accounting Authors:Karthik Ramanna and Ross L. Watts Abstract SFAS 142 requires firms to use fair-value estimates to determine goodwill... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

05 Jun 2012
First Look

First Look: June 5

PublicationsTowards an Understanding of the Role of Standard Setters in Standard Setting Authors:Abigail M. Allen and Karthik Ramanna Publication:Journal of Accounting & Economics (forthcoming)... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2021
Working Paper

How to Fix ESG Reporting

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Karthik Ramanna

Investors, advocacy groups, academics, and the 200 CEOs of the US Business Roundtable have asked corporations to take on an added purpose beyond a narrow pursuit of shareholder value. In response, many companies now issue ESG (Environmental, Societal, and Governance)... View Details

Keywords: ESG Reporting; Sustainability; Corporate Purpose; Greenhouse Gas; Activity-Based Costing; Environmental Sustainability; Environmental Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Measurement and Metrics; Goals and Objectives; Agreements and Arrangements; Corporate Accountability