Publications

March 2010
Article

Interpersonal Authority in a Theory of the Firm

By: Eric J. Van den Steen

This paper develops a theory of the firm in which a firm's centralized asset ownership and low-powered incentives give the manager, as an equilibrium outcome, interpersonal authority over employees (in a world with open disagreement). The paper thus provides... View Details

Keywords: Theory; Assets; Ownership; Motivation and Incentives; Governance Controls; Power and Influence; Projects; Perspective; Employees

28 Jun 2011
News

Beyond Case Writing

Sometimes big ideas start with small experiments. That’s been the experience of HBS associate professor Nava Ashraf, whose experimental approach to research in developing countries has produced insights that have influenced government... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; Health, Social Assistance; Health, Social Assistance; Health, Social Assistance; Health, Social Assistance

December 2015
Supplement

An Intern's Dilemma (B)

By: Sandra J. Sucher and Matthew Preble

An HBS student is asked to misrepresent himself during the course of his student internship by his employer in order to obtain data from a competitor. This case describes how the student handled the situation and what he learned about himself from it. View Details

Keywords: Conflict; Leadership; Conflict Management; Competition; Ethics; Knowledge Acquisition; Organizational Culture; Employees; Power and Influence

December 2015
Case

An Intern's Dilemma (A)

By: Sandra J. Sucher and Matthew Preble

An HBS student is asked to misrepresent himself during the course of his summer internship by his employer in order to obtain data from industry competitors. View Details

Keywords: Conflict; Leadership; Conflict Management; Competition; Ethics; Knowledge Acquisition; Organizational Culture; Employees; Power and Influence

Educators

April 2011
Case

Felipe Calderón: Leading with Light and Power (A)

By: J. Bruce Harreld and David Lane

This sequence of cases explores how leaders get their team focused on framing, analyzing, and ultimately acting upon complex decisions. The A case provides an inside look as President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, works with his cabinet ministers to decide how to... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Decisions; Public Sector; Leadership; Conflict and Resolution; Power and Influence; Urban Development; Welfare or Wellbeing

25 Jan 2018
News

Living and Learning in a Local Context

staying power and a real, impactful influence on their learning. Pine Mountain's approach is to basically base everything that we do 0n the context in the world in which we operate.” (Published January 2018) View Details

January 2009
Case

Creating The Partnership Solutions Group at Lehman Brothers

By: David A. Thomas and Stephanie Creary

Explores how two senior Wall St. executives created a successful commercial opportunity for Lehman Brothers that focused on building relationships with minority- and women-owned financial services firms. Illustrates how Patricia Miller Zollar and Nadja Fidelia aligned... View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Gender; Partners and Partnerships; Power and Influence; Value Creation; Financial Services Industry

January – February 2012
Article

How Managers Use Multiple Media: Discrepant Events, Power, and Timing in Redundant Communication

By: Paul Leonardi, Tsedal Neeley and Elizabeth M. Gerber

Several recent studies have found that managers engage in redundant communication; that is, they send the same message to the same recipient through two or more unique media sequentially. Given how busy most managers are, and how much information their subordinates... View Details

Keywords: Communication; Media; Information; Groups and Teams; Projects; Management Style; Power and Influence; Motivation and Incentives; Technology

Register to Read

June 2025
Supplement

The Miccosukee Tribe and the Battle to Save the Everglades (B): The Art of Coalition Building

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jacob A. Small

Supplement to the (A) case, 324-002 Curtis Osceola, Chief of Staff to the Chairman of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, exercised leadership to mobilize allies, deal with opposition, and forge internal and external multi-sector coalitions to help preserve the... View Details

Keywords: Communication Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Leadership; Projects; Alliances; Natural Environment; Power and Influence; Florida; Everglades National Park

March 2018 (Revised March 2019)
Technical Note

Control or Flexibility? Structured Empowerment Offers Both — Lessons from Retail & Service Chains

By: Tatiana Sandino

This note explains how several retail and service organizations use a practice described here as “structured empowerment” to balance control and flexibility as they grow. I define structured empowerment as a practice that grants employees both (a) the power to make... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Standards; Employees; Service Delivery; Decision Making; Power and Influence; Retail Industry; Service Industry

Educators

01 Dec 2013
News

Plugged In

aesthetics." 2. TARGET THE TASTEMAKERS To reach the cool kids, Camargo and Cadillac partnered with IvyConnect, a members-only social network founded by Philipp Triebel and Beri Meric (both MBA 2010). "Using the power of View Details

Keywords: Transportation Equipment Manufacturing; Manufacturing

01 Sep 2003
News

Gregg Petersmeyer

or government, influences people’s behavior,” Petersmeyer declares. “So the President would publicly and relentlessly assert that ‘Any definition of a successful life must include serving others.’ Each day we told a story — a symbolic... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons; Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support; Government; Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations; Personal Services

Web

Creating Brand Value - Course Catalog

losing control as consumers hijack brand meaning and engage in open-source branding. And, the next brand crisis is just around the corner in a 24/7 news cycle driven by social media. This course takes a contemporary view of branding as a... View Details

01 Sep 2016
News

Up to the Highest Heights

reveals: “My style says I’m super-versatile. I’ll do everything.” “The wind isn’t always blowing”: Off the water, Tai is focused on harnessing the resources and influence of the ACTAI nonprofit to support ocean conservation, among other... View Details

Keywords: April White

June 2025
Teaching Note

The Miccosukee Tribe and the Battle to Save the Everglades (B): The Art of Coalition Building

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jacob A. Small

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 325-132. Curtis Osceola, Chief of Staff to the Chairman of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, exercised leadership to mobilize allies, deal with opposition, and forge internal and external multi-sector coalitions to help preserve... View Details

Keywords: Communication Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Leadership; Projects; Alliances; Natural Environment; Power and Influence; Florida; Everglades National Park

03 Aug 2010
First Look

First Look: August 3

in bringing their products to market, yet we know very little about the kinds of strategies they can employ to influence regulatory actor decision making. In this paper, we highlight a firm's strategic use of symbolic signaling in... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

01 Jun 2010
News

MBAs on a Mission

for example — we are working to influence the environmental choices global companies make in the large-scale production of commodities such as palm oil, pulp, livestock, and soy.” The Power of Serendipity What’s your next career move when... View Details

Keywords: Sarah Auerbach;Deborah Blagg;Julia Hanna; Corporate Services; Management; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Professional Services

September 2015 (Revised July 2025)
Background Note

Ethical Analysis: Situation versus Character

By: Nitin Nohria, Sandra J. Sucher, Joseph Badaracco, Edward H. Chang and Bridget Gurtler

When we think of human behavior, especially from a moral perspective, we often rely on explanations based on character. We think that good decisions and responsible behavior require people with integrity and strong character and that immoral behavior originates within... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Ethics; Behavior; Personal Characteristics; Power and Influence; Situation or Environment; Values and Beliefs; Social Psychology

Educators