Faculty & Research

Facilitating faculty research and case development on an international scale

Our unprecedented network of research centers and regional offices in key areas of the world enable faculty to work with leaders, industry, government, and academia worldwide, and to learn from business challenges and innovations wherever they occur. Through sustained work in the field, faculty are provided the opportunity to immerse themselves in the culture and values – as well as intricacies and nuances – that lead to truly meaningful and insightful global research.

Research Centers & Offices

More than half the faculty are actively involved in international research, developing high-impact cases and course materials on relevant global issues and innovations.

New Research

September 2025
Article
Journal of Development Economics

Using Satellites and Phones to Evaluate and Promote Agricultural Technology Adoption: Evidence from Smallholder Farms in India

By: Shawn Cole, Tomoko Harigaya, Grady Killeen and Aparna Krishna

This paper evaluates a low-cost, customized soil nutrient management advisory service in India. As a methodological contribution, we examine whether and in which settings satellite measurements may be effective at estimating both agricultural yields and treatment effects. The intervention improves self-reported fertilizer management practices, though not enough to measurably affect yields. Satellite measurements calibrated using OLS produce more precise point estimates than farmer-reported data, suggesting power gains. However, linear models, common in the literature, likely produce biased estimates. We propose an alternative procedure, using two-stage least squares. In settings without attrition, this approach obtains lower statistical power than self-reported yields; in settings with differential attrition, it may substantially increase power. We include a “cookbook'' and code that should allow other researchers to use remote sensing for yield estimation and program evaluation.

July 2025
Case

Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Akiko Saito

In 2025, Kenichi Hori, President and CEO of Mitsui & Co., Ltd.—one of Japan’s most prominent Sogo Shosha (investment and trading companies with sprawling global footprints)—reflected on the company’s record-breaking profits. Its operations spanned multiple industries—including energy, chemicals, healthcare, and infrastructure—and more than 80% of its profits were generated overseas. The company had evolved from a prewar industrial giant into a globally integrated investment and trading firm. Originally focused on commodity trading, Mitsui gradually shifted toward strategic investments across industries, owning or co-managing businesses across the value chain—from upstream production to downstream distribution. To support this transformation, it restructured its organization, encouraged cross-unit collaboration, and invested heavily in talent development. Since becoming CEO in 2021, Hori had overseen strong financial results and reaffirmed Mitsui’s standing as a global powerhouse. Yet he remained restless. Confronted with a sprawling and increasingly complex portfolio, he saw an urgent need to sharpen the firm’s strategic focus, deepen its presence in key markets, and position it for long-term growth. “Are we making the right choices to build the Mitsui of tomorrow,” Hori asked, “and what exactly should that Mitsui look like?”

July 2025
Case

Mother’s Home: Eradicating Social Orphancy in Kazakhstan

By: Boris Groysberg and Annelena Lobb

Mother’s Home International Foundation, a Kazakhstani foundation, had reduced the number of children living in orphanages in Kazakhstan from roughly 10,000 to 4,000 over 12 years, building crisis centers for new mothers to help them keep their babies and stabilize their lives, and working with adoptive parents for better outcomes. The foundation had begun to expand internationally, first to other countries that were part of the former USSR and then beyond. What was the best expansion strategy for them? Was every part of their model portable to other countries?

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Global Colloquium for participant-centered learning

For senior faculty at top business schools in emerging economies who want to be trained in interactive methods of teaching and learning. GloColl comprises a seven-day session held on the HBS campus, followed by a three-day session held in two cities in Asia, Europe, or Latin America each year.

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Faculty & Research

Facilitating faculty research and case development on an international scale

Research Centers & Offices

New Research

Using Satellites and Phones to Evaluate and Promote Agricultural Technology Adoption: Evidence from Smallholder Farms in India

Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

Mother’s Home: Eradicating Social Orphancy in Kazakhstan

Global Colloquium for participant-centered learning

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