Publications

03 Jan 2007
First Look

First Look: January 3, 2007

Philips Electronics, which is headquartered in the Netherlands, as an example of a company with a two-tiered board. The company is governed by both a supervisory board and a board of management. Examines the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

Decoding Insider Information and Other Secrets of Old School Chums

cover, hypothesizing that analysts gain comparatively good information if they attended the same college as a firm's top executives or board members. In short, the researchers found that the analysts outperformed on their stock... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Financial Services

05 May 2009
First Look

First Look: May 5, 2009

oversight by the board of directors. The case explores the history of AFSCME's shareholder activism on this front and particularly its use of shareholder proposals voted on by shareholders at annual meetings. The case then looks at the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

06 Sep 2017
What Do You Think?

Summing Up: What Are the Limits of CEO Activism?

CEOs face difficult choices when deciding to speak out under the company's brand. Credit: fizkes Summing Up: Should Boards Specify Limits on CEO Activism? Opinions about suitable CEO activism—taking public positions and actions on social... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

30 Oct 2006
First Look

First Look: October 31, 2006

rules, and agreements to the governance process. Discusses the roles of three structures in family business governance: the top management team, the family employee council, and the board of directors. Purchase this note:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

August 2011 (Revised October 2015)
Case

Boardroom Battle Behind Bars: Gome Electrical Appliances Holdings—A Corporate Governance Drama

By: William C. Kirby and Tracy Yuen Manty

Despite widespread news of the incarceration of Gome Electronics' CEO, Huang Guangyu, Bain Capital felt they carefully undertook due diligence before making a significant investment in the company. The venture capital firm was confident that it and the current... View Details

Keywords: China; Legal Aspects Of Business; Corruption; Risk; Corporate Governance; Crime and Corruption; Power and Influence; Risk Management; Business and Shareholder Relations; Venture Capital; Ethics; Governing and Advisory Boards; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Values and Beliefs; Private Equity; China

22 Apr 2002
Research & Ideas

Profits and Prophets: The Role of Values in Investment

Domini, who runs a fund specializing in socially responsible investments, was posed a similar, although theoretical, problem. Would she invest in a company doing great works for society, but whose board was all male? Hayes and Domini took... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

19 Jun 2018
Research Event

Has Environmental Sustainability Lost its Relevance?

iPhoto For businesses and other organizations seeking to overcome roadblocks to sustainability over the last few decades, much can be learned from the debates I heard at the recent Harvard Business School conference, Understanding and Overcoming Roadblocks to... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey G. Jones; Energy

06 Mar 2017
Research & Ideas

Why Comparing Apples to Apples Online Leads To More Fruitful Sales

display Apples to Apples and other board games, rather than attempting a cross-promotion with, say, Halloween costumes. The study results are outlined in a forthcoming Journal of Behavioral Decision Making article, The Impact of... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail; Advertising

05 Feb 2015
Research & Ideas

How New BofA Executives Learn its ’Deep Smarts’

the business the new executive is entering. The coach is responsible for meeting regularly with the newcomer, explaining expectations, serving as a sounding board for any issues that may arise, providing feedback and guidance, and... View Details

Keywords: Re: Dorothy A. Leonard; Banking

October 2017 (Revised April 2024)
Case

Snap Inc. Goes Public (A)

By: Lynn Sharp Paine and Will Hurwitz

Snap Inc.’s chairman must decide how to address investor concerns about the company’s unprecedented plans to issue only non-voting shares in its upcoming IPO. The case is set in early 2017 following the public availability of Snap’s IPO filing with the U.S. Securities... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Capital Structure; Corporate Accountability; Governing and Advisory Boards; Corporate Governance; Going Public; Business and Shareholder Relations; Leadership; Management; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Venture Capital; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Information Technology Industry; United States; California

01 Dec 2015
First Look

December 1, 2015

https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/816051-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 916-404 Novell (A): When an Activist Hedge Fund Came Calling on the Board No abstract available. Purchase this case:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

23 Oct 2007
First Look

First Look: October 23, 2007

at least 3 decades. This paper outlines the range of accountability mechanisms currently in place at the World Bank along 4 basic levels: (1) staff, (2) project, (3) policy, and (4) board governance. We argue that civil society... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

13 Jun 2016
Lessons from the Classroom

That's Classic: Modern-Day Business Lessons from Ancient Rome

not a serious daily threat for them. But then we’d hear, “I’m not going to be killed, but I could be fired by my board of directors.” Q: Give an example from the course of how you compare and contrast contemporary and ancient texts. Frei:... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

05 May 2003
Research & Ideas

What It Takes to Restore Trust in Business

According to Mills, these conflicts of interest include the well-publicized conflicts between chief executives and their shareholders; banks and customers' investments; and auditors and boards of directors and their shareholders. Less... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Financial Services

15 Jun 2010
First Look

First Look: June 15

nature of accounting standards proposed between 1973 and 2007. Among other results, we find that length of service on the board and a prior career in investment banking/investment management are associated with proposing standards... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

November 2020
Supplement

Integrating Beam Suntory (B)

By: David G. Fubini, Rawi Abdelal and David Lane

Supplements (A) case: The spring 2014 acquisition of U.S. alcoholic spirits maker Beam Inc. by Japan’s Suntory Holdings vaulted Suntory from 15th to third-largest international spirits company in the world. Yet Suntory had borrowed nearly the entire $16 billion... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Communication; Borrowing and Debt; Globalization; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Retention; Leadership; Supply Chain; Organizational Structure; Ownership; Relationships; Conflict and Resolution; Integration; Value Creation; Food and Beverage Industry; Japan; United States; Chicago

17 Nov 2009
First Look

First Look: Nov. 17

independent of the shortcomings in the regulatory system. Managers and boards of directors in scores of systemically important firms failed to protect employees, customers, or shareholders and placed the global financial system at risk. I... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

October 2008 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Executive Pay and the Credit Crisis of 2008 (A)

By: V.G. Narayanan, Fabrizio Ferri and Lisa Brem

The credit crisis of 2008 placed compensation practices at publicly traded firms in the United States under scrutiny. This case examines perceived excessive pay and severance packages at several firms implicated in the credit crisis of 2008, the executive compensation... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Governing and Advisory Boards; Government Legislation; Executive Compensation; United States