Publications

14 Sep 2010
First Look

First Look: September 14, 2010

problem when they first emerged but was ultimately overcome by changes in the innovation ecosystem. However, incumbents in the oil and power sector are different in two respects. First, they are producing a commodity and hence face little... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Article

Megastudies Improve the Impact of Applied Behavioural Science

By: Katherine L. Milkman, Dena Gromet, Hung Ho, Joseph S. Kay, Timothy W. Lee, Pepi Pandiloski, Yeji Park, Aneesh Rai, Max Bazerman, John Beshears, Lauri Bonacorsi, Colin Camerer, Edward Chang, Gretchen Chapman, Robert Cialdini, Hengchen Dai, Lauren Eskreis-Winkler, Ayelet Fishbach, James J. Gross, Samantha Horn, Alexa Hubbard, Steven J. Jones, Dean Karlan, Tim Kautz, Erika Kirgios, Joowon Klusowski, Ariella Kristal, Rahul Ladhania, Jens Ludwig, George Loewenstein, Barbara Mellers, Sendhil Mullainathan, Silvia Saccardo, Jann Spiess, Gaurav Suri, Joachim H. Talloen, Jamie Taxer, Yaacov Trope, Lyle Ungar, Kevin G. Volpp, Ashley V. Whillans, Jonathan Zinman and Angela L. Duckworth

Policy-makers are increasingly turning to behavioural science for insights about how to improve citizens’ decisions and outcomes. Typically, different scientists test different intervention ideas in different samples using different outcomes over different time... View Details

Keywords: Policy Making; Behavioral Science; Behavior; Change; Decision Making; Policy

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September 2005 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Spyder Active Sports - 2004

By: Belen Villalonga, Dwight B. Crane and James Quinn

David Jacobs founded a high-end ski apparel company in 1978. He successfully built and grew the company, establishing a major international brand that appealed to ski racers and other active skiers. In 1995, he sought external financing to support further growth of the... View Details

Keywords: Private Ownership; Private Equity; Financial Liquidity; Business Exit or Shutdown; Valuation; Brands and Branding; Wealth; Family Business; Financing and Loans; Globalization; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry; Colorado

October 2024
Case

Ranger Energy Services: Bridging Public & Private Markets

By: Joseph Pacelli, Ravi Ramniklal Gondalia and James Weber

In August of 2017, CSL Capital, a private equity fund founded and operated by Charlie Leykum (HBS ’04), was deciding to take one of its portfolio companies, Ranger Energy Services, public. Founded in 2014, Ranger Energy was an oilfield service company providing... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Initial Public Offering; Financial Strategy; Valuation; Private Equity; Business Strategy; Investment Portfolio; Investment Return; Financial Services Industry; Energy Industry; United States

April 16, 2021
Article

A Playbook for Negotiators in the Social Media Era

By: James K. Sebenius, Ben Cook, David Lax, Ron S. Fortgang, Isaac Silberberg and Paul Levy

The disruptive effects of social media have been felt in virtually every corner of the world. Yet the information revolution has been largely ignored in the field of negotiation. Through a series of case studies we explore how savvy practitioners can ethically harness... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Analysis; Bargaining; Negotiation; Analysis; Negotiation Tactics; Social Media; North America

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2016
Working Paper

Henry A. Kissinger as Negotiator: Background and Key Accomplishments

By: James K. Sebenius, Laurence A. Green and Eugene B. Kogan

Following a brief summary of Henry A. Kissinger’s career, this paper describes six of his most pivotal negotiations: the historic establishment of U.S. diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China, the easing of geopolitical tension with the Soviet Union,... View Details

Keywords: Kissinger; Bargaining; Diplomacy; Multiparty Negotiations; Dispute Resolution; Mediation; Coercive Diplomacy; Negotiation; International Relations; Personal Development and Career; United States

SSRN

December 2013
Case

Bruce Allyn: Negotiating with the KGB (A)

By: James K. Sebenius

Isolated by the KGB in Moscow, Harvard graduate student Bruce Allyn faces high-pressure negotiation tactics to recruit him for the Soviet spy agency. At the tense height of the Cold War, with CIA agents systematically being exposed and executed in Russia, Allyn was... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Bargaining; Hard Bargaining; KGB; Espionage; Spying; War; National Security; Alliances; Ethics; Negotiation Tactics; Decision Choices and Conditions; Negotiation Participants; Negotiation Offer; Cambridge; Moscow; Soviet Union

August 2014
Article

What Makes Annuitization More Appealing?

By: John Beshears, James J. Choi, David Laibson, Brigitte C. Madrian and Stephen P. Zeldes

We conduct and analyze two large surveys of hypothetical annuitization choices. We find that allowing individuals to annuitize a fraction of their wealth increases annuitization relative to a situation where annuitization is an "all or nothing" decision. Very few... View Details

Keywords: Annuity; Pension; Retirement Income; Framing; Annuities; Retirement

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2023
Article

A Randomized Trial of Behavioral Nudges Delivered through Text Messages to Increase Influenza Vaccination among Patients with an Upcoming Primary Care Visit

By: Mitesh S. Patel, Katherine L. Milkman, Linnea Gandhi, Heather N. Graci, Dena Gromet, Hung Ho, Joseph S. Kay, Timothy W. Lee, Jake Rothschild, Modupe Akinola, John Beshears, Jonathan E. Bogard, Alison Buttenheim, Christopher Chabris, Gretchen B. Chapman, James J. Choi, Hengchen Dai, Craig R. Fox, Amir Goren, Matthew D. Hilchey, Jillian Hmurovic, Leslie John, Dean Karlan, Melanie Kim, David Laibson, Cait Lamberton, Brigitte C. Madrian, Michelle N. Meyer, Maria Modanu, Jimin Nam, Todd Rogers, Renante Rondina, Silvia Saccardo, Maheen Shermohammed, Dilip Soman, Jehan Sparks, Caleb Warren, Megan Weber, Ron Berman, Chalanda N. Evans, Seung Hyeong Lee, Christopher K. Snider, Eli Tsukayama, Christophe Van den Bulte, Kevin G. Volpp and Angela L. Duckworth

Purpose: To evaluate if nudges delivered by text message prior to an upcoming primary care visit can increase influenza vaccination rates.
Design: Randomized, controlled trial.
Setting: Two health systems in the Northeastern US between September 2020 and... View Details

Keywords: Vaccination; Health Care and Treatment; Interpersonal Communication; Communication Technology; Behavior; Health Industry

March 2007 (Revised May 2012)
Case

PRG-Schultz International

By: Paul W. Marshall and James Weber

PRG-Schultz will run out of cash within a couple of months unless the new CEO can reduce costs and restructure the company's debt. PRG was the dominant market leader in the audit recovery industry. The industry consisted of firms which employed accounting professionals... View Details

Keywords: History; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership; Restructuring; Cost Management; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Borrowing and Debt; Accounting Audits; Accounting Industry

February 2023
Article

Homophily and Acrophily as Drivers of Political Segregation

By: Amit Goldenberg, Joseph M. Abruzzo, Zi Huang, Jonas Schone, David Bailey, Robb Willer, Eran Halperin and James J. Gross

Political segregation is an important social problem, increasing polarization and impeding effective governance. Previous work has viewed the central driver of segregation to be political homophily, the tendency to associate with others who have similar views. Here we... View Details

Keywords: Political Affiliation; Extremism; Values and Beliefs; Identity; Groups and Teams; Emotions; Civil Society or Community

03 Nov 2009
First Look

First Look: Nov. 3

self-report of the licensee. The self-reporting aspect of the environment gives rise to demand for auditing by the licensor or third-party attestation by the licensee. We characterize the optimal royalty... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

01 Jan 2013
News

Thomas A. James, MBA 1966

loan. Three months later he'd repaid the loan and made a profit of $10,000. At Harvard College, he combined his business and music skills by forming a rock band, the Maniacs, and also booking–and often playing with–six other bands. View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

06 Nov 2012
First Look

First Look: November 6

understood and managed. The key to success? Incentives. Fortunately, new research has shed light on the role incentives can play in promoting new ideas, but these findings have been absent from innovation literature-until now. By using... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2018
Case

Wilderness Safaris: Ecotourism Entrepreneurship

By: James E. Austin, Megan Epler Wood and Herman B. "Dutch" Leonard

Wilderness Safaris sees itself as a conservation company that is built on a business model of providing high-end, premium-priced wildlife safaris in various locations in Africa. Dependent on functioning, healthy ecosystems for its long-term survivability as a business,... View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Conservation Planning; Corporate Social Responsibility; Ecotourism; Strategy; Social Enterprise; Social Entrepreneurship; Environmental Sustainability; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Expansion; Growth and Development Strategy; Tourism Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Travel Industry; Africa; Botswana