China →
- 23 Jul 2024
- In Practice
The New Rules of Trade with China: Navigating Tariffs, Turmoil, and Opportunities
Trade tensions between the US and China have continued well beyond the Trump Administration's tariffs. Harvard Business School faculty offer insights for leaders managing the complexities of doing business with the world's second-largest economy.
- 18 Jun 2024
- Research & Ideas
Industrial Decarbonization: Confronting the Hard Challenges of Cement
CEOs in construction and heavy industries must prioritize innovative abatement strategies to meet rising global demand for cement while reducing emissions. Research by Gunther Glenk offers an economic framework for identifying emission reduction options.
- 22 May 2024
- HBS Case
Banned or Not, TikTok Is a Force Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore
It may be tempting to write off TikTok, the highly scrutinized social media app whose cat clips and dance videos propelled it to the mainstream. However, business leaders could learn valuable lessons about engaging consumers from the world's most-used platform, says Shikhar Ghosh in a case study.
- 21 May 2024
- Research & Ideas
What the Rise of Far-Right Politics Says About the Economy in an Election Year
With voters taking to the polls in dozens of countries this year, could election outcomes lean conservative? Paula Rettl says a lack of social mobility and a sense of economic insecurity are some of the factors fueling far-right movements around the world.
- 13 May 2024
- Research & Ideas
Picture This: Why Online Image Searches Drive Purchases
Smaller sellers' products often get lost on large online marketplaces. However, harnessing images in search can help consumers find these products faster, increasing sales and customer satisfaction, finds research by Chiara Farronato and colleagues.
- 28 Nov 2023
- Book
Economic Growth Draws Companies to Asia. Can They Handle Its Authoritarian Regimes?
The efficiency of one-party governments might seem appealing, but leaders need a deep understanding of a country's power structure and "moral economy," says Meg Rithmire. Her book Precarious Ties: Business and the State in Authoritarian Asia explores the delicate relationship between capitalists and autocrats in the region.
- 21 Nov 2023
- Op-Ed
The Beauty Industry: Products for a Healthy Glow or a Compact for Harm?
Many cosmetics and skincare companies present an image of social consciousness and transformative potential, while profiting from insecurity and excluding broad swaths of people. Geoffrey Jones examines the unsightly reality of the beauty industry.
- 18 Jul 2023
- Research & Ideas
Will Global Demand for Oil Peak This Decade?
The International Energy Agency expects the world's oil demand to start to ebb in the coming years. However, Joseph Lassiter and Lauren Cohen say the outlook will likely be more complex, especially as poor and fast-growing regions seek energy sources for their economies.
- 23 May 2023
- Cold Call Podcast
The Entrepreneurial Journey of China’s First Private Mental Health Hospital
The city of Wenzhou in southeastern China is home to the country’s largest privately owned mental health hospital group, the Wenzhou Kangning Hospital Co, Ltd. It’s an example of the extraordinary entrepreneurship happening in China’s healthcare space. But after its successful initial public offering (IPO), how will the hospital grow in the future? Harvard Professor of China Studies William C. Kirby highlights the challenges of China’s mental health sector and the means company founder Guan Weili employed to address them in his case, Wenzhou Kangning Hospital: Changing Mental Healthcare in China.
- 28 Apr 2023
- Cold Call Podcast
Sweden’s Northvolt Electric Battery Maker: A Startup with a Mission
In Stockholm, Sweden an upstart battery maker, Northvolt, is trying to recreate the value chain for European car manufacturers making the switch to EVs. With two founders from Tesla and two experienced financiers at the helm, the company seems bound for success. But can they partner with government, scale fast enough, and truly be part of the climate solution? Harvard Business School professor George Serafeim discusses what it takes to scale a business—the right people, in the right place, at the right time—with the aim of providing a climate solution in the case, “Northvolt, Building Batteries to Fight Climate Change.” As part of a new first-year MBA course at Harvard Business School, this case examines the central question: what is the social purpose of the firm?
- 25 Apr 2023
- Op-Ed
How SHEIN and Temu Conquered Fast Fashion—and Forged a New Business Model
The platforms SHEIN and Temu match consumer demand and factory output, bringing Chinese production to the rest of the world. The companies have remade fast fashion, but their pioneering approach has the potential to go far beyond retail, says John Deighton.
- 28 Mar 2023
- Cold Call Podcast
BMW’s Decarbonization Strategy: Sustainable for the Environment and the Bottom Line
In mid-2022, automakers, consumers, regulators, and investors were focusing on the transition from internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to electric vehicles (EV). While this would reduce tail-pipe emissions, it ignored the fact that the production of EVs—and especially their batteries—increases emissions in the supply chain. Many automakers were announcing deadlines by which they would stop selling ICE vehicles altogether, buoyed by investment analysts and favorable press. But BMW decided to focus on lifecycle emissions and pursued a flexible powertrain strategy by offering vehicles with several options: gasoline and diesel-fueled ICE, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and battery electric vehicles. That approach received a frostier reception in the stock market. Assistant Professor Shirley Lu discusses how BMW plans to convince stakeholders that its strategy is good for both the environment and the company’s financial performance in the case, “Driving Decarbonization at BMW.”
- 15 Aug 2022
- Book
University of the Future: Finding the Next World Leaders in Higher Ed
Which universities will step into the void as American colleges decline? In the book Empires of Ideas, William Kirby explores how the history of higher education in the US, China, and Germany might shape its future.
- 20 Apr 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
The Emergence of Mafia-like Business Systems in China
This study sheds light on the political pathology of fraudulent, illegal, and corrupt business practices. Features of the Chinese system—including regulatory gaps, a lack of formal means of property protection, and pervasive uncertainty—seem to facilitate the rise of mafia systems.
- 08 Dec 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Party-State Capitalism in China
China’s political economy has evolved from “state capitalism” to a distinctly party-driven incarnation. Party-state capitalism, via enhanced party monitoring and industrial policy, deepens ambiguity between the state and private sectors, and increases pressure on foreign capital, prioritizing the regime’s political survival above all.
- 14 Jul 2020
- Research & Ideas
Restarting Under Uncertainty: Managerial Experiences from Around the World
A survey of 50 companies across countries and industries reveals business leaders are hard at work adapting to the COVID threat. Research by Raffaella Sadun and colleagues. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 18 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
The Rise of the Investor State: State Capital in the Chinese Economy
Researchers document and explain the rise of a novel form of intervention on the part of the Chinese state: the expansion of state capital beyond ownership of state firms.
- 07 May 2020
- Research & Ideas
The One Good Thing Caused by COVID-19: Innovation
Hong Luo and Alberto Galasso see risk-mitigating innovation everywhere the virus spreads. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 May 2020
- Research & Ideas
China Tariffs and Coronavirus a Double Hit to American Retailers
American retailers have yet to pass along higher prices caused by Chinese tariffs, but shrinking product demand caused by the coronavirus could change that, warns Alberto Cavallo. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
What the World Could Learn from America's Immigration Backlash—100 Years Ago
Immigration concerns are shaping elections around the world, but these fears have been around for centuries. Mining data from US history, Marco Tabellini explores how immigration has actually changed communities, and offers advice for policymakers trying to move forward.