Publications

19 Feb 2013
First Look

First Look: Feb. 19

markets, such as the one for patents, generally create profit opportunities for intermediaries. We begin with an overview of the problems that arise in patent markets, and how traditional institutions like patent brokers, patent pools,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Jun 2016
First Look

June 28, 2016

sector-specific skills. The resulting scale economies generate occupational stratification along ethnic lines, consistent with the reoccurring phenomenon of small, socially isolated groups achieving considerable economic success via... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

02 Sep 2014
First Look

First Look: September 2

http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Publication%20Files/SSRN%20-%20Org%20Sci%20Rewrite%20for%20ssrn_b75b2c22-40f6-430f-be8f-9797e71fe2ea.pdf September 2014 Journal of Economic Perspectives Management Practices, Relational Contracts and the Decline of View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Dec 2017
First Look

New Research and Ideas, December 12, 2017

energizing, and that this energy is manifested in employees’ behaviors at work. Our theorizing draws on a review of the work engagement literature, in which we identify three core characteristics of work engagement: (a) a positive... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 2010 (Revised October 2011)
Case

Ken Langone: Member, GE Compensation Committee

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Lizzie Gomez

On September 2003, Richard Grasso stepped down as chairman and CEO of the New York Stock Exchange, following weeks of intense public criticism over the size of his $190 million compensation package. As chairman of the committee that oversaw Grasso's payout, Ken Langone... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Executive Compensation; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Labor and Management Relations; Wages; Change Management; Energy Industry; New York (city, NY)

30 Jun 2022
HBS Case

Peloton Changed the Exercise Game. Can the Company Push Through the Pain?

going through the roof’ John Foley founded Peloton in 2012 partly to solve a challenge in his own life. He and his wife fed on the energy of high-end boutique fitness classes, but they had demanding jobs and young children, so fitting in... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Media & Broadcasting; Health; Bicycle

19 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

15 Podcast Episodes That Grabbed Listeners in 2023

Bühler Group, Stefan Scheiber is mapping a courageous plan to combat food waste and climate change. Ranjay Gulati hears from Scheiber about how he challenges his own company, its customers, and himself to face sustainability problems head-on. Climate Rising... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

25 Jan 2021
Book

In a Nutshell, Why American Capitalism Succeeded

many US firms in the 20th century and was then exported to corporations in other countries. Its owners helped form General Motors and placed Alfred Sloan at the helm of that firm—which for many years was the nation’s largest enterprise.... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Manufacturing

May 2025
Case

'Net Zero in Action': Impact Investing at the McKnight Foundation

By: Lauren Cohen, Christina R. Wing and Sophia Pan

Elizabeth McGeveran, Vice President of Investments at the McKnight Foundation, reflected on how to effectively advance the organization’s net-zero strategy. The foundation had committed 10% of its endowment to building a portfolio of impact investments and was among... View Details

October 2023 (Revised November 2023)
Case

Recycle & Re-Match: The Future of Soccer Turfs

By: George Serafeim, Lena Duchene and Carlota Moniz

By August 2023, Re-Match, an artificial turf waste-to-value company, had operations in Denmark and the Netherlands and had recycled over 160,000 tons of waste and plastic fiber. With recent capital injection from the VC firm Verdane and a dual revenue business model,... View Details

Fall 2013
Article

In Strange Company: The Puzzle of Private Investment in State-Controlled Firms

By: Mariana Pargendler, Aldo Musacchio and Sergio G. Lazzarini

A large legal and economic literature describes how state-owned enterprises (SOEs) suffer from a variety of agency and political problems. Less theory and evidence, however, have been generated about the reasons why state-owned enterprises listed in stock markets... View Details

Keywords: State-owned Enterprises; Oil Companies; Corporate Governance; Business and Shareholder Relations; Energy Industry; Brazil; Mexico; Norway

SSRN

Read Now

22 Aug 2007
Research & Ideas

The Hedge Fund as Activist

recent academic papers have found that hedge funds generate returns of over 5 percent on announcement of their involvement, suggesting that investors believe these funds will increase the value of the firms they target. In a new paper... View Details

Keywords: by Robin Greenwood; Financial Services

April 2011 (Revised April 2011)
Supplement

Fleet Oil Company: An Exercise

The exercise, which adapts a famous experiment by experimental psychologist Thomas Gilovich, is designed to show both the ubiquity of analogy or associative thinking more generally and its potential perils. Students are presented with a scenario in which an oil company... View Details

Keywords: Business Headquarters; Crime and Corruption; Decisions; Non-Renewable Energy; Cost; Production; Performance Productivity; Research and Development; Energy Industry; Atlanta; Houston

Find at Harvard

February 2017 (Revised June 2017)
Case

ExxonMobil: Business as Usual? (A)

By: George Serafeim, Shiva Rajgopal and David Freiberg

Climate change was becoming an important societal and business issue as more governments were introducing climate change related regulations and investors became increasibly worried about stranded assets within oil and gas firms. In September 2016, the U.S. Securities... View Details

Keywords: Oil ＆ Gas; Oil Prices; Oil Companies; Asset Impairment; Predictive Analytics; Sustainability; Environmental Impact; Innovation; Disclosure; Accounting; Valuation; Climate Change; Renewable Energy; Environmental Sustainability; Financial Reporting; Energy Industry

16 Oct 2023
HBS Case

Advancing Black Talent: From the Flight Ramp to 'Family-Sustaining' Careers at Delta

airline that would develop the next generation of pilots. He also began widening Delta’s ties with Atlanta’s historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 2019 Delta added a new Talent Connections network, and Bastian put $1... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Air Transportation

September 2006 (Revised May 2007)
Case

GE's Jeff Immelt: The Voyage from MBA to CEO

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Andrew N. McLean

GE believes its ability to develop management talent is a core competency that represents a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Traces the development of a 25-year-old MBA named Jeff Immelt, who 18 years later is named as CEO of GE, arguably the biggest and... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Human Resources; Leadership Development; Leading Change; Business or Company Management; Energy Industry; Energy Industry