- 25 Jul 2006
- Working Paper Summaries
A Gentler Capitalism: Black Business Leadership in the New South Africa
What role should business play in ameliorating poverty and addressing inequality? Linda A. Hill and Maria Farkas, a doctoral student, examine this question against the backdrop of post-apartheid South Africa. Focusing on the efforts of one successful black executive to recruit and develop other minority managers and integrate blacks into the mainstream economy, Hill and Farkas explore fundamental ethical and business issues affecting companies and society at large. Key concepts include: In assessing the economic or ethical soundness of a leader's decisions, the impact of his or her actions over time must be considered. All business people around the world need to think about the appropriate role of business in addressing inequality. This example of efforts in South Africa may offer valuable insights for addressing inequality elsewhere in the globe. Issues of inequality are more likely to be raised in transitional economies—as opposed to stable economies—because new institutions are being designed and new policies and practices are being established. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 12 Sep 2005
- Research & Ideas
The Broadband Explosion: Thinking About a Truly Interactive World
When true broadband arrives, everything will change—work, play, and society—say professors Robert Austin and Stephen Bradley. What a truly interactive world will look like is the subject of their new book The Broadband Explosion. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 12 May 2003
- Research & Ideas
How Hot is the “Hot Spot” Business?
Wi-Fi hot spots and the future of broadband were on the minds of attendees at the Bandwidth Explosion colloquium at Harvard Business School. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 18 Feb 2002
- Research & Ideas
Wrap-up: Software, Telecom, and Recovery
How is the VC industry doing on its own and in partnership with software and telecoms? These were just three topics discussed in special panel sessions at the recent conference. Here, a few highlights from those conversations. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 26 Jun 2000
- Research & Ideas
Presentation Round-Up
This round-up of other panels and presentations at the IS2K conference includes a look at the emerging "e-service" model, the future of the U.S. telecommunications infrastructure, and a discussion of "Genes on the Web." Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
Competition in Modular Clusters
The last 20 years have witnessed the rise of disaggregated "clusters," "networks," or "ecosystems" of firms in a number of industries, including computers, telecommunications, and pharmaceuticals. In these clusters, different firms design and produce the various components of a complex artifact (such as the processor, peripherals, and software of a computer system), and different firms specialize in the various stages of a complex production process. This paper considers the pricing behavior and profitability of these so-called modular clusters. Baldwin and Woodard isolate the offsetting price effects in a model, and show how they might operate in large as well as in small clusters. Key concepts include: Clusters operating under open, public standards may have higher prices and profits than those operating under closed, proprietary standards. Cluster forms of industrial organization may not be conducive to all kinds of innovation. In particular, innovations that add new layers of functionality to the system, and thus increase total demand, will not be adequately rewarded relative to the value they create. It is important to learn how cluster configurations affect incentives to supply different forms of innovation, and how firms respond to these cross-layer dependencies in formulating their long-term strategies. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.