Publications

03 Mar 2003
Research & Ideas

Top Ten Legal Mistakes Made by Entrepreneurs

Bagley # 6: Negotiating venture capital financing based solely on the valuation. Valuation is not the only thing one should consider when selecting a venture capitalist or when... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

30 Sep 2019
Book

6 Steps to Building a Better Workplace for Black Employees

Gerdeman is senior writer at Harvard Business School Working Knowledge. [Image: PeopleImages] Related Reading Pro Basketball Coaches Display Racial Bias When Selecting Lineups Diversity Boosts Profits in Venture View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

May 2013 (Revised September 2013)
Case

The Kashagan Production Sharing Agreement (PSA)

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Florian Bitsch

When discovered in the 1990s, the Kashagan oil field was the second largest oil field in the world. The project sponsors (equity investors) signed a 40-year production sharing agreement (PSA) with the Kazakh government in 1997, with the expectation the field would... View Details

21 Oct 2015
Research & Ideas

How to Predict if a New Business Idea is Any Good

entrepreneurship herself, even applying to the MIT Venture Mentoring Service (MIT VMS)—a program that connects budding entrepreneurs to successful businesspeople to develop their ideas. Whenever an entrepreneur applies to the program, a... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Accommodations; Financial Services

February 2007
Case

IBM Culture in Its Architecture

By: A. Eugene Kohn and Kerry Herman

In 1992, Lou Gerstner was the CEO of IBM during a period where the firm was losing money and a turnaround was desperately needed. In a bold decision, Gerstner chose to build a new headquarters in Armonk, NY that had strict limits on expandability. His idea was to use... View Details

Keywords: Design; Leadership; Job Design and Levels; Organizational Structure; Buildings and Facilities; Business Headquarters; Decisions; Organizational Culture; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Information Technology Industry; New York (state, US)

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Web

HBS Alumni Conference: Accelerating Climate Solutions - Alumni

Gradient Ventures Lauren Taylor Wolfe , Cofounder & Managing Partner, Impactive Capital This panel will highlight how we can effectively build the governance mechanisms for climate action. Thousands of... View Details

2008
Working Paper

Cost of External Finance and Selection into Entrepreneurship

By: Ramana Nanda

This paper examines the extent to which the positive relationship between personal wealth and entry into entrepreneurship is due to financing constraints. I exploit a tax reform and use unique micro-data from Denmark to study how exogenous changes in the cost of... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Cost; Financing and Loans; Personal Finance; Human Capital; Wealth; Denmark

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March 2022
Article

Revealing Corruption: Firm and Worker Level Evidence from Brazil

By: Emanuele Colonnelli, Spyridon Lagaras, Jacopo Ponticelli, Mounu Prem and Margarita Tsoutsoura

We study how the disclosure of corrupt practices affects the growth of firms involved in illegal interactions with the government using randomized audits of public procurement in Brazil. On average, firms exposed by the anti-corruption program grow larger after the... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Corporate Disclosure; Business Growth and Maturation; Brazil

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November 2016 (Revised February 2017)
Case

Square, Inc. IPO

By: Ramana Nanda, Robert White and Lauren G. Pickle

In November 2015, Square, Inc. launched its initial public offering (IPO). The IPO had an offering price of $9 per share, lower than the $11 to $13 estimate that had been outlined in the preliminary prospectus and 42% below the $15.50 share price in its most recent... View Details

Keywords: Business Finance; Initial Public Offering; Equity; Capital Markets; Public Equity; Stocks; Venture Capital; Financial Services Industry; United States

January 2016 (Revised January 2019)
Case

The Allergan Board Under Fire (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Suraj Srinivasan, John C. Coates and David Lane

In 2014, the Allergan Inc. board of directors received a surprise takeover offer from Valeant Pharmaceuticals in alliance with hedge fund activist Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management. In the unprecedented arrangement between an acquirer and a hedge fund... View Details

June 2004 (Revised June 2004)
Case

Utah Symphony and Utah Opera: A Merger Proposal

By: Thomas J. DeLong and David L. Ager

Anne Ewers, general director of Utah Opera, is awaiting the decision of the members of the board of the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera about whether to merge Utah's top two arts organizations. If the vote favors the merger, Ewers will be asked to assume the helm of the... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Change Management; Organizational Culture; Human Resources; Management; Fine Arts Industry; Music Industry; Utah

19 Apr 2010
Research & Ideas

The History of Beauty

comprised the majority in most schools until quite recently, regarded this industry as a feminine domain and rather frivolous, and felt more comfortable writing about software or venture capital than... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Beauty & Cosmetics

Web

Hiring at HBS: How Summer Interns Make an Impact at Emerson Collective - Recruiting

recruiting process, and why HBS interns are an important part of their team. Emerson Collective and HBS For the past five years, Emerson Collective has welcomed HBS interns to their Palo Alto and San Francisco offices to join their View Details

01 Jun 2024
News

Quantum Leap

“This is the first new kind of computer in 75 years,” says John Levy (MBA 1979), CEO of the quantum computing startup SEEQC. “And we’re building it on a chip!” Strolling through his company’s design and testing facility in Elmsford, New York, Levy looks less like a... View Details

Keywords: Alexander Gelfand; photographed by Chris Sorensen; quantum computing; innovation; leadership; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing; Manufacturing

September 2005 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Spyder Active Sports - 2004

By: Belen Villalonga, Dwight B. Crane and James Quinn

David Jacobs founded a high-end ski apparel company in 1978. He successfully built and grew the company, establishing a major international brand that appealed to ski racers and other active skiers. In 1995, he sought external financing to support further growth of the... View Details

Keywords: Private Ownership; Private Equity; Financial Liquidity; Business Exit or Shutdown; Valuation; Brands and Branding; Wealth; Family Business; Financing and Loans; Globalization; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry; Colorado

January 2025
Case

Creating Value by Splitting Aster: Can One Minus One Equal Two?

By: V.G. Narayanan and Kairavi Dey

Aster DM Healthcare (Aster), founded by Dr. Azad Moopen in 1987, is a prominent healthcare conglomerate with operations spanning hospitals, clinics, retail pharmacies, and diagnostic centers across India and the GCC. After its 2018 listing on India’s National Stock... View Details

Keywords: Governance; Corporate Governance; Corporate Accountability; Leadership; Change Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Health Industry; Asia; India; Middle East; United Arab Emirates