Publications

November 1998 (Revised July 1999)
Case

Merrill Lynch's Acquisition of Mercury Asset Management

By: Andre F. Perold, Imran Ahmed and Randolph B Altschuler

In the Spring of 1998, Merrill Lynch faced an array of challenges and opportunities related to its global asset management business. The firm had recently completed its $5.3 billion cash acquisition of U.K.-based Mercury Asset Management, a transaction that made it one... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Asset Management; Currency; Financial Strategy; Global Strategy; Brands and Branding; Distribution; Production; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Retirement; Japan; Europe; United Kingdom

Find at Harvard

23 Feb 2011
First Look

First Look: Feb. 23

(forthcoming) Abstract We here bring forward strong evidence that political instability impedes financial development, with its variation a primary determinant of differences in financial development around the world. As such, it needs to... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

24 Oct 2024
Research & Ideas

With Millions of Workers Juggling Caregiving, Employers Need to Rethink Support

tracking system. It asks an employer: If someone has a gap in their work history, how should I treat that? If there’s a gap of more than six months, 50 percent of employers will drop a person from the candidate pool. Gazette: How does the... View Details

Keywords: by Christine Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette

August 1997 (Revised September 1997)
Case

GMIMCo Venture Capital: September 1996

By: Josh Lerner, Peter Wendell and Catherine M. Conneely

Kathryn Stokel must choose between three venture capital groups (if any) in which to invest the pension fund of General Motors Corp. Each has distinct strengths and weaknesses. View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Asset Management; Retirement; Investment Funds; Venture Capital; Financial Services Industry

April 1993
Case

Sumiko Ito

By: David A. Thomas

Describes the life and career of the first Japanese female investment banker at Nomura Securities, Sumiko Ito, who later became a partner at Alex Brown, a U.S. investment bank. Organized around the major life events and career transitions Ms. Ito experienced. Set in... View Details

Keywords: Investment Banking; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Diversity; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Japan; England; United States

January 2021 (Revised July 2022)
Case

Dwight D. Eisenhower: Changing the World

By: Robert Simons and Shirley Sun

This case describes the rise of Dwight (Ike) Eisenhower from a small town in Kansas to the pinnacle of power on the world stage. During his life, Eisenhower was leader of the Allied Forces in World War II, president of Columbia University, head of NATO, and president... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Development; Leadership; Values and Beliefs; Personal Characteristics; Leadership Style; Success; Work-Life Balance; Power and Influence

24 Jul 2000
Research & Ideas

Linking the Globe: The Role of Media and Communications

editor has made the choices. The consumer is left to see what someone else has seen fit to print. "In the new world, it starts with the consumer. What is he or she interested in? The challenge for publishers is to develop the model... View Details

Keywords: by Kenneth Liss; Information; Publishing; Journalism & News; Media & Broadcasting

01 Nov 1999
Research & Ideas

Companies, Cultures and the Transformation to the Transnational

structure, social history, and educational system, companies developed under a system of family management that emphasized personal relationships more than formal structures, and relied more on broad-gauged... View Details

Keywords: by Christopher A. Bartlett & Sumantra Ghoshal

17 Mar 2020
Working Paper Summaries

From Sweetheart to Scapegoat: Brand Selfie-Taking Shapes Consumer Behavior

Keywords: by Reto Hofstetter, Gabriela Kunath, and Leslie K. John

02 Dec 2015
What Do You Think?

What Will It Take to Achieve Gender Equality in Leadership?

Are Investors the Ultimate Antidote to Gender Inequality in Leadership? Once respondents came to terms with my use of “gender equality” in the title of this month’s column they described several ways in which it might be achieved in our discussion of gender inequality... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

1979
Chapter

A Comparison of Rates of Return to Social Security Retirees under Wage and Price Indexing

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Keywords: Retirement; Investment Return; Wages; Price; United States

April 2017 (Revised February 2023)
Case

Helena Rubinstein: Making Up the Modern Woman

By: Geoffrey Jones and Kathy Choi

This case examines the entrepreneurial career of Helena Rubinstein before 1938. Rubinstein is widely considered the single most important female entrepreneur in the United States in the 20th century. She was born in Poland but immigrated to Australia where she started... View Details

Keywords: Female Entrepreneur; Brands and Branding; Luxury; Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

Article

The Effect of Providing Peer Information on Retirement Savings Decisions

By: John Beshears, James J. Choi, David Laibson, Brigitte C. Madrian and Katherine L. Milkman

Using a field experiment in a 401(k) plan, we measure the effect of disseminating information about peer behavior on savings. Low-saving employees received simplified plan enrollment or contribution increase forms. A randomized subset of forms stated the fraction of... View Details

Keywords: Saving; Decision Choices and Conditions; Retirement

Find at Harvard

Read Now

November 2003 (Revised March 2004)
Teaching Note

General Motors Corporation: Retiree Benefit Risk Management (TN)

By: David F. Hawkins and Jacob Cohen

Teaching Note to (104-041). View Details

Keywords: Retirement; Risk Management; Compensation and Benefits; Auto Industry