Publications

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12 Nov 2021
Op-Ed

Can Our Parenting Struggles Make Us Better Leaders?

winning formula. This article originally appeared on LinkedIn. Follow Ranjay Gulati to read more of his posts. About the Author Ranjay Gulati is the Paul R. Lawrence MBA Class of 1942 Professor of Business Administration. [Image: AP Photo/Ted S. Warren] How do you... View Details

Keywords: by Ranjay Gulati; Air Transportation

22 Jul 2014
First Look

First Look: July 22

most effectively stabilizes fluctuations under real external shocks. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/download.aspx?name=13-074.pdf Patent Trolls By: Cohen, Lauren, Umit G. Gurun, and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Apr 2015
First Look

First Look: April 28

Management: Can a Balanced Scorecard Change a Culture? By: Gibbons, Robert, and Robert S. Kaplan Abstract—Agency theorists, historically, have analyzed what kinds of performance measures should be used in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

11 Jan 2000
Research & Ideas

Calling All Managers: How to Build a Better Call Center

call centers, with their attendant voice response units (VRUs—also known as automated voice response systems), need not be so inefficient. When a company manages its call center well, effectively linking a triad of service, information technology View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Service; Financial Services

April 1993
Background Note

Note on High-Commitment Work Systems

By: David A. Garvin and Norman Klein

Describes the history, theory, and practice of high-commitment work systems. The history reviews classical approaches (i.e. Frederick Taylor), the human relations movement, the human resources approach, quality of work life, and empowerment. The theory examines the... View Details

Keywords: Design; Human Resources; Innovation and Invention; Managerial Roles; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Strategy

March 2020
Article

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-family Narrative as a Social Defense Against 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict between women’s family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is incomplete: men also experience it and nevertheless... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems-psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

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May 2003 (Revised March 2006)
Case

Carol Fishman Cohen: Professional Career Reentry (A)

By: Myra M. Hart, Robin J. Ely and Susan Wojewoda

Explores the career challenges facing highly successful women who leave the full-time workforce for several years to manage family commitments. Carol Cohen is a 1985 Harvard MBA who has professional line experience in a manufacturing environment, followed by a... View Details

Keywords: Work-Life Balance; Family and Family Relationships

June 2024
Teaching Note

Dirk Nowitzki: Changing the Game

By: Boris Groysberg, Katherine Connolly Baden and Robin Abrahams

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 420-031. NBA Superstar Dirk Nowitzki was unsure whether the 2018-19 season would be his last as an NBA player. He had not faced such uncertainty since 1998, when he had navigated a difficult decision regarding the timing of his move to... View Details

Keywords: Problems and Challenges; Practice; Retirement; Work-Life Balance; Success; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Growth and Development; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Performance; Sports Industry; United States

Article

From Wealth to Well-Being? Money Matters, but Less than People Think

By: Lara B. Aknin, Michael I. Norton and Elizabeth W. Dunn

While numerous studies have documented the modest (though reliable) link between household income and well-being, we examined the accuracy of laypeople's intuitions about this relationship by asking people from across the income spectrum to report their own... View Details

Keywords: Happiness; Work-Life Balance; Satisfaction; Income; Household

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08 Mar 2004
Research & Ideas

Secret to Success: Go for “Just Enough”

"Success has always been an American preoccupation, but the definition of success takes on a new urgency today, when every conventional measure of success seems to have a faster burn rate than ever before," say Laura Nash and... View Details

Keywords: by Laura Nash & Howard Stevenson

02 Dec 2015
What Do You Think?

What Will It Take to Achieve Gender Equality in Leadership?

he said, “The very act of trying to attain gender equality portends to assume that is a positive goal. My concern is not equality but quality. Man or woman, we as individuals and organizations need to rip away all the barriers that lie... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

08 Oct 2021
Research & Ideas

How Newspaper Closures Open the Door to Corporate Crime

reputational costs. Saving local newspapers isn’t Heese’s specialty, but he points to a recent trend of hedge funds buying up distressed local media outlets as having the potential to stabilize the market View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

March 2015
Case

Tim Keller at Katzenbach Partners LLC (A) (Abridged)

By: Boris Groysberg and James Weber

Tracks the first six months of a recent MBA grad, Tim Keller, at Katzenbach Partners, a boutique consulting firm focused on organizational change and strategy. Covers how Keller initially struggles with his assignment and ends with a question of whether or not he... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Relations; Organization Behavior; Superior ＆ Subordinate; Managing Projects; Informal Organization; Consulting; Professional Services; Leadership; Work-Life Balance; Decision Choices and Conditions; Organizations; Rank and Position; Product Development; Service Industry; Consulting Industry

April 2022
Case

Gender Equality in Business: 100 Years of Progress?

By: Boris Groysberg and Colleen Ammerman

"Gender Equality in Business: 100 Years of Progress?" traces the history of women in management from the early 20th to early 21st century through analysis of Harvard Business Review's coverage of women and gender. The case identifies six distinct phases in the... View Details

Keywords: History; Business History; Gender; Management; Employees; Leadership; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Work-Life Balance; Prejudice and Bias; Social Issues; Diversity; Equity; United States

August 2008
Case

Sloan & Harrison: Non-Equity Partner Discontent

By: Boris Groysberg and Eliot Sherman

The law firm, Sloan & Harrison, was dealing with some discontent among its junior non-equity partners. These partners were concerned with the transparency of the advancement process, their ability to position themselves as both leaders within the firm and rainmakers,... View Details

Keywords: Employees; Human Resources; Leadership Development; Management Style; Performance; Work-Life Balance; Legal Services Industry

17 May 2016
First Look

May 17, 2016

behavior. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=51072 forthcoming Games and Economic Behavior Contract Design and Stability in Many-to-Many Matching... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

10 Aug 2020
Research & Ideas

COVID's Surprising Toll on Careers of Women Scientists

COVID-19 is claiming an unexpected career toll among scientific researchers, and particularly on women, new research shows. If you are female, have young children, or work in a lab, you are more likely to feel the career-crunching effects... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Pharmaceutical; Biotechnology; Health

August 2008
Case

Sloan & Harrison: The Associate Challenge

By: Boris Groysberg and Eliot Sherman

The law firm, Sloan & Harrison, was confronting issues pertaining to morale and turnover among its associate ranks. Annual surveys of associates revealed increasing dissatisfaction, particularly with respect to partner communication, work-life balance, and mentorship.... View Details

Keywords: Problems and Challenges; Employees; Human Resources; Leadership Development; Management Style; Performance; Work-Life Balance; Conflict Management; Legal Services Industry