Scaling Social Impact - Publications - Faculty & Research

21 Aug 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, August 21, 2018

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54887 forthcoming Production and Operations Management The Operational Value of Social Media Information By: Cui, Ruomeng, Santiago Gallino, Antonio Moreno, and Dennis J. Zhang... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

12 Aug 2013
Research & Ideas

‘Hybrid’ Organizations a Difficult Bet for Entrepreneurs

primarily by the sale of the glasses themselves. VisionSpring is what organization scholars call a "hybrid" social venture, since it combines the social welfare logic of a nonprofit and the commercial logic... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

December 2017 (Revised March 2019)
Case

Armarium: Luxury Fashion Brands for Rent

By: Jill Avery, David Fubini, Natasha Dossa and Devon Stewart

Armarium, a two-sided online platform that offered consumers the opportunity to rent the most coveted, current season high fashion clothing and accessories from the top global luxury brands, had emerged from its first sales season with two distinct customer segments:... View Details

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July 2009 (Revised June 2011)
Case

RiskMetrics Group

By: Jay W. Lorsch and Kaitlyn Simpson

RiskMetrics Group, a risk and governance consultancy, had a great deal of influence on U.S. companies. This case examines the history and growth of the company, the governance services it offers, the extent of its impact on shareholders, the controversy surrounding its... View Details

Keywords: Conflict of Interests; Risk Management; Governing and Advisory Boards; Corporate Governance; Power and Influence; Consulting Industry; United States

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Video

Dr. Silvia Gold

Dr. Silvia Gold, President of the Mundo Sano Foundation and co-founder of Grupo Insud, describes her foundation’s pursuit to make meaningful social change by decreasing barriers to treatment for “neglected tropical diseases” (NTDs). View Details

10 Jan 2005
Research & Ideas

Motivation and the Cross-Sector Alliance

with competitors) to a social cause related to its core business, altering the context in such a way that it produces a positive impact on its business.11 In looking at the organizational structures of... View Details

Keywords: by James Austin, Ezequiel Reficco & SEKN research team

Punctuated Generosity: How Mega-events and Natural Disasters Affect Corporate Philanthropy in U.S. Communities

This article focuses on geographic communities as fields in which human-made and natural events occasionally disrupt the lives of organizations. We develop an institutional perspective to unpack how and why major events within communities affect organizations in the... View Details

February 2020
Case

Seso Global: Building a Blockchain-enabled Property Marketplace in Nigeria

By: Boris Vallee and Yang (Dolly) Yu

The mutual aspiration of addressing the housing shortage and improving real estate market efficiency led Daniel and Phillip to co-found Seso Global in 2017. Seso Global developed a unique integrated platform to streamline and rationalize the process of acquiring and... View Details

Keywords: Fintech; Blockchain; Developing Markets; Entrepreneurial Management; Financing and Loans; Internet and the Web; Business Model; Property; Growth and Development Strategy; Developing Countries and Economies; Real Estate Industry; Africa; Nigeria

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18 Sep 2012
First Look

First Look: September 18

Them In or Revealing Their Best? Reframing Socialization Around Newcomer Self-Expression Authors:Dan M. Cable, Francesca Gino, and Brad Staats Abstract Socialization theory has focused on enculturating new... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

January–February 2023
Article

Rethink Your Employee Value Proposition: Offer Your People More Than Just Flexibility

By: Mark Mortensen and Amy C. Edmondson

A lot of leaders believe that the formula for attracting and keeping talent is simple: Just ask people what they want and give it to them. The problem is, that approach tends to address only the material aspects of jobs that are top of employees’ minds at the moment,... View Details

Keywords: Compensation and Benefits; Retention; Recruitment; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Culture; Satisfaction

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October 2023 (Revised May 2024)
Case

Governance and Growth at GenUnity

By: Brian Trelstad, Paul Healy and Annelena Lobb

Jerren Chang, CEO and co-founder of GenUnity, had to choose a strategy to scale his civic engagement-focused nonprofit. Based in Boston, Chang could grow the organization there or begin to expand to other cities. He also had to select candidates for a board of... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Nonprofit Organizations; Expansion; Governing and Advisory Boards; Boston

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21 May 2018
Blog Post

Harnessing The Power of Collaboration to Create Opportunity in Chicago

Editor’s Note: The below post is part of our Alumni for Impact series, which features alumni who are making a difference in the social sector, specifically in K-12 education, View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit / Government

02 Jul 2012
Research & Ideas

Why Good Deeds Invite Bad Publicity

Do companies with reputations for acting in socially responsible ways receive public goodwill when unpleasant news hits? The question of how much (or even if) corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Energy

Article

Investors as Stewards of the Commons?

By: George Serafeim

Over the past few years, there has been a significant increase in the number of initiatives seeking to mobilize investor voice towards positive social impact. In this paper, I provide a framework outlining the role of investors as stewards of the commons. While... View Details

Keywords: Collaboration; Industry Self-regulation; Sustainability; ESG; Capital Markets; Investor Behavior; Investment Activism; Social Issues; Environmental Sustainability; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Cooperation

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Video

María Michelena

María Michelena, Executive Director of InGenia Uruguay and Chairwoman of OMEU, describes the growth of impact investing in Uruguay and Latin America more broadly, citing opportunities for innovative solutions to socioeconomic gaps. View Details

July 2007
Article

Cooperation between Corporations and Environmental Groups: A Transaction Cost Perspective

Theory suggests that when transaction costs are low, corporations and stakeholders can minimize social costs by transacting to their mutual advantage, but when transaction costs are high, reducing social costs requires the intervention of a centralized institution.... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Cost; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Environmental Sustainability; Competitive Advantage; Cooperation

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February 2022 (Revised May 2022)
Case

Buddy Valastro: Cake Boss

By: Boris Groysberg, Evan M.S. Hecht and Katherine Connolly Baden

Buddy Valastro, celebrity baker and business owner, inherited his father’s bakery—Carlo’s Bake Shop of Hoboken, New Jersey—at the age of seventeen. He had willed the shop to survive and gone on to fame through his television show, “Cake Boss”—the name most people now... View Details

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Career Coach

Kesha Kanakiya

without a traditional finance background; and 4) pivoting to Big Tech from consulting, especially for a StratOps / BizOps role. Finally, Kesha loves to work with students to develop a hypothesis-based approach to exploring potential career paths and can share how she... View Details

26 Jun 2007
First Look

First Look: June 26, 2007

Harvard Business School Supplement 207-025 Supplements the (A) case. Purchase this supplement: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=207025 PublicationsFrom Higher Aims to Hired Hands: The Social Transformation... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

February 2022 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Resident 2020

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport and Thomas O. Jones

Launched in 2016, Resident was a leading player in the direct-to-consumer bed-in-a-box mattress market, where it was one of at least 175 venture-backed companies competing in the space. By late 2020, it had realized over $500 million in revenue, profitability in the... View Details