Publications

February 2014
Article

Governance and CEO Turnover: Do Something or Do the Right Thing?

By: Ray Fisman, Rakesh Khurana, Matthew Rhodes-Kropf and Soojin Yim

We study how corporate governance affects firm value through the decision of whether to fire or retain the CEO. We present a model in which weak governance—which prevents shareholders from controlling the board—protects inferior CEOs from dismissal, while at the same... View Details

Keywords: Governing and Advisory Boards; Value; Retention; Resignation and Termination; Corporate Governance; Management Teams; Business and Shareholder Relations

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07 Nov 2005
Research & Ideas

Exit Interview: HBS Dean Kim Clark

management; in global research and scholarship; and in its commitment to values and leadership as core elements of its curriculum and mission.... View Details

Keywords: by HBS Alumni Bulletin Staff

29 Jun 2017
Research & Ideas

Why Uber Is Worth Saving and How To Do It

trying to go around all of the rules is not a particularly good idea.” The resignation last week of Uber co-founder and CEO Travis Kalanick is the latest black eye for the company, which has stepped on many... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Transportation

23 May 2011
Op-Ed

Leading and Lagging Countries in Contributing to a Sustainable Society

at the number of times investors accessed environmental and social data on Bloomberg terminals and ranked countries based on the number of "hits," accounting for the size of... View Details

Keywords: by Robert G. Eccles & George Serafeim

December 1981 (Revised February 2010)
Case

Mike Miller (A)

Mike Miller, Harvard MBA '78, resigned his first job out of HBS within six months because he believed his personal values and learning objectives could not be accommodated. Students may discuss the problems of anticipating corporate culture, learning the ropes,... View Details

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Values and Beliefs; Jobs and Positions; Organizational Culture; Personal Development and Career; Personal Characteristics

10 Oct 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, October 10, 2017

forthcoming New York: Palgrave Macmillan New Perspectives on the History of Political Economy By: Fredona, Robert, and Sophus A. Reinert, eds. Abstract—This volume offers a snapshot of the resurgent historiography of political economy in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

05 Dec 2008
News

Rebuilding America - now

15 Aug 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, August 15, 2017

sample of M&A deals from 2003 to 2015 to identify four such areas of evolution in current transactional practice: (1) termination fee "creep," which was pervasive in the 1980s and 1990s, seems... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

September 1988
Case

Vicks Health Care Division: Project Scorpio (D)

Reveals that Vicks chose a multi-condition positioning for the product. Describes testing of name and concept, and extensively reports on a four-city test market. Students are expected to evaluate both the design and results of the test, and face options ranging from... View Details

Keywords: Product Positioning; Health Industry

06 Feb 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas: February 6, 2018

2018 Columbia Studies in the History of U.S. Capitalism American Capitalism: New Histories By: Beckert, Sven, and Christine Desan, eds. Abstract—The United States has long epitomized capitalism. From its enterprising shopkeepers, wildcat... View Details

13 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Merck CEO Ken Frazier Discusses a COVID Cure, Racism, and Why Leaders Need to Walk the Talk

just one of four Black CEOs leading a Fortune 500 company. Frazier is also outspoken, having resigned from President Trump’s American Manufacturing Council to make a clear statement against “hatred, bigotry View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Pharmaceutical

9 AM – 10 AM EDT, 14 Oct 2015
Webinars: Trending@HBS

Why Smart People Won't Change

Many people with a high need for achievement find the process of individual change very difficult. Some professionals resign themselves to organizational, personal, and life situations that are miserable or where they feel caught. Professor Thomas DeLong discusses... View Details

January 1989 (Revised October 1993)
Background Note

Note: Valuing a Business Acquisition Opportunity

By: William E. Fruhan Jr.

Describes how to value an acquisition opportunity as a capital budgeting problem. Cash flows are discounted at the cost of capital and debt is deducted to value the equity capital of the target company. A key contribution of the note is the discussion of five methods... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Acquisition; Opportunities

July 2019 (Revised November 2022)
Case

Backstage at Boston Ballet

By: David G. Fubini, Ryan Raffaelli, Begum Agca Okutgen and Julia Kelley

This case asks students to consider how to prioritize goals when placed in a new leadership role. In August 2014, Meredith “Max” Hodges became the youngest Executive Director (ED) in the Boston Ballet’s 51-year history. In her first year, she was able to claim several... View Details

October 2010 (Revised July 2012)
Case

Hewlett-Packard Company: CEO Succession in 2010

By: Jay W. Lorsch, Krishna G. Palepu and Melissa Barton

Mark Hurd resigned as the CEO of Hewlett Packard in 2010 after the board discovered that he had misfiled expense reports and paid an H.P. contractor for unsubstantiated work. After Hurd left H.P., he joined Oracle, an H.P. competitor. Soon thereafter, the H.P. board... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Governing and Advisory Boards; Leadership Development; Management Succession; Competitive Strategy; Technology Industry