Publications

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June 2002
Case

"One Country, Two Systems"? Italy and the Mezzogiorno (B)

By: Bruce R. Scott and Jamie Matthews

In 1992, a corruption investigation and two assassinations created a crisis that prompted the Italian government to dispatch 7,000 troops to Sicily to "retake the island" from the Mafia. This case examines the crisis and the efforts of both the Italian state and the... View Details

Keywords: History; National Security; Crime and Corruption; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Italy

2025
Book

Negotiation: The Game Has Changed

By: Max Bazerman

The world has changed dramatically in just the past few years—and so has the game of negotiation. COVID-19, Zoom, political polarization, the online economy, increasing economic globalization, and greater workplace diversity—all have transformed the who, what, where,... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Change

Program

Women on Boards

position Understand the politics and pitfalls of corporate networks Raise your profile among directors, founders, and funders Match your skills and talents to the board's specific needs Expand your personal and professional network Extend... View Details

Michael E. Porter

Michael Porter is an economist, researcher, author, advisor, speaker and teacher. Throughout his career at Harvard Business School, he has brought economic theory and strategy concepts to bear on many of the most challenging problems facing corporations, economies... View Details

Keywords: biotechnology; e-commerce industry; health care; information; information technology industry; internet; nonprofit industry; service industry; state government

Research Summary

Institutions and Corporate Lobbying

“Institutions and Make-or-Buy Decision of Lobbying: The Role of Sociopolitical Legitimacy on Foreign MNEs’ Lobbying Internalization”

In this study, I examine how legitimacy comes into play in foreign MNEs’ make-or-buy decisions... View Details

Keywords: Institutions; Make V. Buy; Lobbying; Legitimacy; Corruption; Culture; Multinational Enterprise; United States

17 May 2017
Research & Ideas

Minorities Who 'Whiten' Job Resumes Get More Interviews

race,” DeCelles says. Some black students bleached out this information because they were concerned they might come across as politically radical or tied to racially controversial causes in a way that could turn off an employer. “People... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

March 2014 (Revised June 2015)
Case

Can Mexico Make Democracy Work?

By: Gunnar Trumbull and Jonathan Schlefer

Enrique Peña Nieto, the presidential candidate of the old Mexican ruling party elected in 2012, passed the most fundamental reforms in at least two decades. They included allowing private competition in the energy sector, including with the state-owned oil company,... View Details

Keywords: Democratization; Economic Development; Competition Policy; Exchange Rates; Comparative Advantage; Growth and Development; Government Legislation; Political Elections; Economic Growth; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Energy Industry; Communications Industry; Banking Industry; Latin America; Mexico

30 Jun 2020
News

Just Because You Can Doesn't Mean You Should

03 Sep 2017
News

A welfarist role for non-welfarist rules

Web

Case Method Project

Partisan Politics 9 Feb 2017 | Harvard Gazette David Moss spoke with the Gazette about the book and about a new initiative to bring his case studies into dozens of high school classrooms, where they're used as an . . . interactive... View Details

03 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 3, 2018

and the normative orientation of medical professionals. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54600 Summer 2018 California Management Review CSR Needs CPR: Corporate Sustainability and Politics By: Lyon,... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Research Summary

Competition and Collusion in Ocean Shipping

The liner shipping industry has been dominated by cartels since the late 19th century. Rich Sicotte's research builds on his 1997 Ph.D. thesis and employs analytical tools of industrial organization and economic history. He is examining the sources of variation in... View Details

July 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Background Note

Hiring Professionals in China: A Practitioner's Guide

By: Heidi K. Gardner

This note outlines how leading professional service firms operating in China revise their standard hiring practices to fit local challenges and customs. Based on interviews with professionals in a number of established accounting, strategy consulting, and executive... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Globalized Firms and Management; Employees; Selection and Staffing; Service Industry; China

August 2007 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Ken Durham and Unilever as a 'Multi-Local Multinational'

By: Geoffrey Jones and Stephanie Decker

Explores the opportunities and threats to Unilever's global business in 1978 based on the commercial and political challenges faced by three of its subsidiaries, Lever Brothers in the United States, Hindustan Lever in India, and United Africa Company in West Africa.... View Details

Keywords: Business Divisions; Local Range; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Management Style; Competitive Strategy; Africa; India; United States

March 2007 (Revised April 2011)
Case

Madam C.J. Walker: Entrepreneur, Leader, and Philanthropist

By: Nancy F. Koehn, Anne Dwojeski, William Grundy, Erica Helms and Katherine Miller

Madam C. J. Walker, who has been credited as the first self-made African-American woman millionaire, created a hair-care empire after years spent as a laundress in St. Louis, Missouri. Decades before the Civil Rights movement, her company gave employment to thousands... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Business History; Race; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Saint Louis

18 May 2010
News

Brands and the Dark Side of Social Media

September 2012 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Doing Business in Ghana

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Elena Corsi

An entrepreneur considered investing in tomato paste manufacturing in Ghana, an emerging economy, and pondered the opportunities and challenges of investing here. Ghana's economy had been growing over the last decade, reaching a peak of 14.4% growth rate in 2011. Now a... View Details

Keywords: Emergent Countries; Strategy; Opportunity Cost; Emerging Markets; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Ghana

January–February 2018
Article

The New CEO Activists

By: Aaron K Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

Though corporations have been lobbying the government and making campaign donations for a long time now, in recent years a dramatic new trend has emerged in U.S. politics: CEOs are taking very public stands on thorny political issues that have nothing to do with their... View Details

Keywords: Government Policy; Rights; Leadership & Corporate Accountability; Sustainability; Leadership; Corporate Accountability; Policy; Social Issues; Communication Intention and Meaning; United States

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Article

Divided We Lead: CEO Activism Has Entered the Mainstream

By: Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel

Leaders in all sectors, from business to sports to education, are increasingly wading into controversial political and social issues. Based on interviews with leaders who have made activism part of their core activities, we found that they feel compelled to address... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Values and Beliefs; Social Issues; Communication Strategy