Publications

January 2021
Article

State and Local Government Employment in the COVID-19 Crisis

By: Daniel Green and Erik Loualiche

Local governments are facing large losses in revenues and increased expenditures because of the COVID-19 crisis. We document a causal relationship between fiscal pressures induced by COVID-19 and the layoffs of state and local government workers. States that depend... View Details

Keywords: Local Government; Municipal Finance; Public Finance; Fiscal Capacity; Fiscal Policy; Governance; Local Range; Health Pandemics; Employment; Finance; Policy; Public Sector

25 Nov 2014
First Look

First Look: November 25

cuts in all parts of the business. They face choices in whether to employ layoffs or furloughs (unpaid leaves) for any needed workforce reductions, and whether to enact hiring freezes and other cost-saving changes to employee and... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

2025
Working Paper

Private Equity and Workers: Modeling and Measuring Monopsony, Reallocation, and Trust

By: Kyle Herkenhoff, Josh Lerner, Gordon M. Phillips, Francisca Rebelo and Benjamin Sampson

We measure the real effects of private equity buyouts on worker outcomes by building a new database that links transactions to matched employer-employee data in the United States. To guide our empirical analysis, we derive testable implications from three theories in... View Details

Keywords: Monopsony; Market Power; Productivity; Private Equity; Employment; Wages; Employees

September 2024
Case

Leadership for Stretch Goals: Inspiring Employees to Achieve the Impossible at Charter Next Generation

By: Ethan Rouen and Elisabeth Powell

In 2023, Kathy Bolhous, CEO of Charter Next Generation (CNG), set out to achieve an ambitious "Moonshot"—increasing profits by $100 million within three years, purely through internal innovations and efficiency gains, without layoffs or new revenue streams. After years... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Leadership; Growth Management; Mission and Purpose; Employee Ownership; Motivation and Incentives

October 1993 (Revised December 1997)
Case

General Dynamics: Compensation and Strategy (A)

William Anders became CEO of defense giant General Dynamics in 1991 as the Cold War was ending and as the industry became saddled with excess capacity. Observing that the company was underserving shareholders and required a massive change in its culture, Anders brought... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Corporate Strategy; Executive Compensation; Manufacturing Industry; United States

October 2016
Supplement

Moshe Kahlon: Telecommunications Reform and Competition in Israel's Cellular Market (B)

By: Joshua Margolis, Amram Migdal and Kerry Herman

The case complements “Moshe Kahlon: Telecommunications Reform and Competition in Israel’s Cellular Market (A),” HBS case number 417-017, which addresses reforms to regulations in Israel’s telecommunications industry initiated and implemented under the leadership of... View Details

2019
Working Paper

Labor Market Shocks and the Demand for Trade Protection: Evidence from Online Surveys

By: Rafael Di Tella and Dani Rodrik

We study preferences for government action in response to layoffs resulting from different types of labor-market shocks. We consider the following shocks: technological change, a demand shift, bad management, and three kinds of international outsourcing. Respondents... View Details

Keywords: Labor; Markets; System Shocks; Trade; Attitudes; Surveys

01 May 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, May 1, 2018

2018 Atlas of Moral Psychology In Search of Moral Equilibrium: Person, Situation, and Their Interplay in Behavioral Ethics By: Lee, Julia J., and F. Gino Abstract—This comprehensive and cutting-edge volume maps out the terrain of moral psychology, a dynamic and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

December 2008 (Revised February 2011)
Supplement

Evan Williams: From Blogger to Odeo (B)

By: Noam T. Wasserman and Louis-Philippe Maurice

For several months, founder-CEO Evan Williams has felt trapped, unable to control Odeo and its strategic direction. He longs for the “simple” days of Blogger, the previous venture he had co-founded. Although his Blogger experiences had included a major blow-up with his... View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Entrepreneurship; Internet and the Web; Business Strategy

May 1996 (Revised August 2001)
Case

Timberland and Community Involvement

By: James E. Austin and Jaan Elias

The Timberland Co., a manufacturer and retailer of footwear, outdoor apparel, and accessories, committed itself to instituting and communicating a core set of values to its employees, stockholders, and consumers. The system of beliefs emphasized community service.... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Values and Beliefs; Business and Community Relations; Social Enterprise; Corporate Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry

2014
Book

Own Your Future: How to Think Like an Entrepreneur and Thrive in an Unpredictable Economy

By: Paul B. Brown, Charles F. Kiefer and Leonard A. Schlesinger

It used to be that if you studied and worked hard, you could be assured of an extremely satisfying career. But in a world of constant layoffs and dying industries, it has become increasingly difficult to "plan" your way to success. So what is the solution? Well, when... View Details

Find at Harvard

21 Aug 2023
Book

You’re More Than Your Job: 3 Tips for a Healthier Work-Life Balance

it part of your personal brand. The more you’re wedded to one position, the harder it will be to find a new one if layoffs happen. “Older generations are going to feel this most acutely: Equating your identity with your occupation is... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin

April 2010 (Revised October 2010)
Case

Vale: Global Expansion in the Challenging World of Mining

By: Tarun Khanna, Aldo Musacchio and Ricardo Reisen de Pinho

In 2009 the management of Vale, a Brazilian diversified mining company and the largest iron ore producer in the world, was under pressure from at least two fronts. First, the emergence of China as the most important consumer of iron ore in the last few years had... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Investment; Global Strategy; Risk Management; Market Entry and Exit; Business and Government Relations; Competitive Strategy; Mining Industry; Brazil

02 Jan 2024
Research & Ideas

10 Trends to Watch in 2024

The lightning-fast ascent of generative AI isn’t the only sea change on the horizon for businesses in the new year. The global economy is in flux as war, climate change, trade issues, and infrastructure problems demand attention. Many companies continue to struggle to... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

Web

Browse All Articles, Research, & Case Studies - HBS Working Knowledge

01 Nov 2024 In Practice Layoffs Surging in a Strong Economy? Advice for Navigating Uncertain Times by Rachel Layne Layoffs have been on the rise in some US industries as tech and professional services... View Details

03 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 3, 2018

people. The rollout of the new technology is garnering a good deal of public attention, not just for the unfamiliar new “dialing” process that customers are required to learn, but also because of the mass layoffs of the women who served... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

15 Apr 2024
Book

Struggling With a Big Management Decision? Start by Asking What Really Matters

Business leaders face a wide variety of difficult decisions: whether their companies should stay small or go big, whether layoffs are necessary for survival, whether a proposed partnership is a good idea or a recipe for disaster. When... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

March 2024 (Revised August 2024)
Case

Darktrace: Scaling Cybersecurity and AI (A)

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport and Alexis Lefort

In 2023, Darktrace CEO Poppy Gustafsson was contemplating her growth strategy at a leading U.K.-based cybersecurity venture, launched in 2013 by a group of anti-terror cyber specialists, University of Cambridge mathematicians, and artificial intelligence (AI) experts.... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Talent; Scaling; Entrepreneurship; Cybersecurity; Leadership; Business Growth and Maturation; Recruitment; Resignation and Termination; AI and Machine Learning; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Culture; Going Public; Technology Industry; United Kingdom; Europe; United States