- 15 Apr 2024
- Book
Struggling With a Big Management Decision? Start by Asking What Really Matters
Leaders must face hard choices, from cutting a budget to adopting a strategy to grow. To make the right call, they should start by following their own “true moral compass,” says Joseph Badaracco.
- 11 Apr 2024
- Managing the Future of Work
Guest Appearance: Joe Fuller on CSU's Spur of the Moment
Managing the Future of Work co-chair Joe Fuller joins Colorado State University's Jocelyn Hittle to discuss his work on the Managing the Future of Work project and the Harvard Project on Workforce and to consider broader workforce trends.
- 11 Apr 2024
- In Practice
Why Progress on Immigration Might Soften Labor Pains
Long-term labor shortages continue to stoke debates about immigration policy in the United States. We asked Harvard Business School faculty members to discuss what's at stake for companies facing talent needs, and the potential scenarios on the horizon.
- 10 Apr 2024
- Climate Rising
How Insurance Companies are Addressing Climate Risks
This episode in our adaptation series focuses climate change’s implications on the insurance industry. Claudine Blamey, Group Director of Sustainability at Aviva, describes how climate change evokes both transition risks and physical risks for insurance companies, and affects how insurance companies are assessing and pricing risk in their underwriting process, and influences their investment strategy. Claudine also describes innovative insurance products such as parametric and catastrophe insurance that are emerging to address natural disasters that are exacerbated by climate change. For resources and other episodes visit climaterising.org
- 09 Apr 2024
- Research & Ideas
When Climate Goals, Housing Policy, and Corporate R&D Collide, Social Good Can Emerge
Grants designed to improve housing can make homes more energy efficient and save money for low-income families, providing a powerful way to confront climate change, says research by Omar Asensio. What do the findings mean for companies trying to scale innovation?
- 09 Apr 2024
- Cold Call Podcast
Sustaining a Legacy of Giving in Turkey
Özyeğin Social Investments was founded by Hüsnü Özyeğin, one of Turkey's most successful entrepreneurs, with a focus on education, health, gender equality, rural development, and disaster relief in Turkey. The company and the Özyeğin family have spent decades serving and improving communities in need. Their efforts led to the creation of one of Turkey’s top universities, the establishment of schools and rehabilitation centers, post 2023 earthquake humanitarian shelter and facilities, nationwide campaigns, and an internationally recognized educational training initiative for young children, among other achievements. Harvard Business School senior lecturer Christina Wing and Murat Özyeğin discuss how the company is a model for making a significant impact across multiple sectors of society through giving and how that legacy can be sustained in the future, in the case, “Özyeğin Social Investments: A Legacy of Giving."
- 09 Apr 2024
- Book
Why Work Rituals Bring Teams Together and Create More Meaning
From weekly lunch dates with colleagues to bedtime stories with children, we often rely on rituals to relax and bond with others. While it may feel awkward to introduce teambuilding rituals in the workplace, the truth is, the practices improve performance, says Michael Norton in his book The Ritual Effect.
- 03 Apr 2024
- Managing the Future of Work
IBM CHRO Nickle LaMoreaux on AI and the culture of skills building
As the digital economy pushes companies to prioritize continuous learning, HR strategies need to emphasize customization, flexibility, and support for diverse work-life needs.
- 02 Apr 2024
- What Do You Think?
What's Enough to Make Us Happy?
Experts say happiness is often derived by a combination of good health, financial wellbeing, and solid relationships with family and friends. But are we forgetting to take stock of whether we have enough of these things? asks James Heskett. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Apr 2024
- Research & Ideas
Employees Out Sick? Inside One Company's Creative Approach to Staying Productive
Regular absenteeism can hobble output and even bring down a business. But fostering a collaborative culture that brings managers together can help companies weather surges of sick days and no-shows. Research by Jorge Tamayo shows how.
- 01 Apr 2024
- In Practice
Navigating the Mood of Customers Weary of Price Hikes
Price increases might be tempering after historic surges, but companies continue to wrestle with pinched consumers. Alexander MacKay, Chiara Farronato, and Emily Williams make sense of the economic whiplash of inflation and offer insights for business leaders trying to find equilibrium.
- 27 Mar 2024
- Climate Rising
Building Climate - Resilient Cities and Infrastructure
This episode in our climate adaptation series features HBS Professor John Macomber. John discusses how companies and governments need to incorporate climate resilience as they develop and finance real estate and infrastructure to address the risks of flooding, wildfire, extreme heat, drought, and sea level rise. John describes “five R” options to address these risks—to reinforce, rebound, retreat, restrict, and rebuild—and highlights best practices from insurance companies and the governments of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Singapore. He also identifies entrepreneurial opportunities to foster adaptation and resilience. Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative Guest: John Macomber, Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School. For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org
- 26 Mar 2024
- Cold Call Podcast
How Do Great Leaders Overcome Adversity?
In the spring of 2021, Raymond Jefferson (MBA 2000) applied for a job in President Joseph Biden’s administration. Ten years earlier, false allegations were used to force him to resign from his prior US government position as assistant secretary of labor for veterans’ employment and training in the Department of Labor. Two employees had accused him of ethical violations in hiring and procurement decisions, including pressuring subordinates into extending contracts to his alleged personal associates. The Deputy Secretary of Labor gave Jefferson four hours to resign or be terminated. Jefferson filed a federal lawsuit against the US government to clear his name, which he pursued for eight years at the expense of his entire life savings. Why, after such a traumatic and debilitating experience, would Jefferson want to pursue a career in government again? Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer Anthony Mayo explores Jefferson’s personal and professional journey from upstate New York to West Point to the Obama administration, how he faced adversity at several junctures in his life, and how resilience and vulnerability shaped his leadership style in the case, "Raymond Jefferson: Trial by Fire."
- 26 Mar 2024
- Research & Ideas
How Humans Outshine AI in Adapting to Change
Could artificial intelligence systems eventually perform surgeries or fly planes? First, AI will have to learn to navigate shifting conditions as well as people do. Julian De Freitas and colleagues pit humans against machines in a video game to study AI's current limits and mine insights for the real world.
- 22 Mar 2024
- Managing the Future of Work
Morningstar CEO Kunal Kapoor: How AI can raise the investment IQ
AI's potential is tempered by the need for reliability and consistency in financial intelligence. How is Morningstar adopting the technology, upskilling its 10,000-strong global workforce, and competing for talent? Also, factoring sustainability and workforce strategy in ratings and risk analysis.
- 22 Mar 2024
- Research & Ideas
Open Source Software: The $9 Trillion Resource Companies Take for Granted
Many companies build their businesses on open source software, code that would cost firms $8.8 trillion to create from scratch if it weren't freely available. Research by Frank Nagle and colleagues puts a value on an economic necessity that will require investment to meet demand.
- 18 Mar 2024
- Deep Purpose
Helena Foulkes: The Power of Asking “What Could Go Right?”
Research has repeatedly shown that we are hard-wired to worry. Whether we worry about our own survival, our family and friends, or our future, it can seem like we spend much of our lives fixated on what could go wrong. In this episode, Helena Foulkes discusses how taking courage can be as simple as asking what could go right – a philosophy that has taken her from the helm of CVS Pharmacy and Hudson’s Bay Company to the campaign trail for governorship of Rhode Island.
- 18 Mar 2024
- Research & Ideas
When It Comes to Climate Regulation, Energy Companies Take a More Nuanced View
Many assume that major oil and gas companies adamantly oppose climate-friendly regulation, but that's not true. A study of 30 years of corporate advocacy by Jonas Meckling finds that energy companies have backed clean-energy efforts when it aligns with their business interests.
- 15 Mar 2024
- HBS Case
Let's Talk: Why It's Time to Stop Avoiding Taboo Topics at Work
Few people enjoy talking about succession plans, performance problems, and pay, but sometimes you must. Christina Wing offers five rules for navigating thorny conversations in the workplace, and makes the case for tackling even sensitive topics, like age, health, and politics.
Western Governors University: Pursuing the network effects of competency based education
WGU President Scott Pulsipher returns to the podcast for an update on the online institution’s mission to extend the reach of skill-oriented instruction. The HBS alum argues that the focus on competency rather than credit hours democratizes college access and economic opportunity.