Crime and Corruption
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- 13 May 2022
- Research & Ideas
Company Reviews on Glassdoor: Petty Complaints or Signs of Potential Misconduct?
Online reviews by employees can signal internal factors that raise the risk of scandal. Research by Dennis Campbell, who analyzed reviews of 4,000 companies, offers insights for managers trying to prevent misdeeds long before they happen.
- 19 Apr 2022
- Cold Call Podcast
What Role Do Individual Leaders Play in Corporate Governance?
From 1997 to 2012, Scott Tucker built a nationwide network of payday lending businesses, becoming a pioneer in online lending along the way. Many of his borrowers could not access credit from commercial banks and depended on payday loans as a financial lifeline to cope with emergency expenses. But in 2012 federal prosecutors indicted Tucker on several criminal charges that he violated disclosure requirements. He was later convicted on 14 charges, including racketeering, misleading disclosures, and fraud. Associate Professor Aiyesha Dey discusses how the case, “Scott Tucker: Race to the Top,” examines the role of individual leaders in the corporate governance system, as well as their responsibility for creating a positive corporate culture that embodies ethics, self-restraint, and a commitment to serve. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 23 Aug 2021
- Research & Ideas
Why White-Collar Crime Spiked in America After 9/11
The FBI shifted agents and other budget resources toward fighting terrorism in certain parts of the country, and financial fraud and insider trading ran rampant, according to research by Trung Nguyen. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 Apr 2021
- Research & Ideas
Why Anger Makes a Wrongly Accused Person Look Guilty
Too often, people rely on biases and hunches to judge complex situations. Research by Leslie John shows how easy it is to make the wrong call. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 10 Feb 2021
- Research & Ideas
Has #MeToo Changed How Hollywood Hires?
Sexual abuse allegations against Harvey Weinstein united women in the film industry. But has the message of the #MeToo movement reached men? Research by Hong Luo and colleague. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Feb 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
Hate Crime Increases with Minoritized Group Rank
Attitudes and behaviors toward social categories are not fixed but vary depending on perceived group size and rank. In the United States, an increase in a group’s size-based rank relative to those of other minority groups is associated with greater likelihood of being targeted with hate crimes.
- 14 Nov 2019
- Book
Lifting the Lid on Turkey's Hidden Business History
The business history of modern Turkey has been largely hidden from view, but a new book edited by Geoffrey Jones and Asli M. Colpan pulls back the covers. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 27 Jul 2019
- Op-Ed
Does Facebook's Business Model Threaten Our Elections?
America's 2016 presidential election was the target of voter manipulation via social media, particularly on Facebook. George Riedel thinks history is about to repeat itself. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 14 May 2019
- Research & Ideas
Ethics Bots and Other Ways to Move Your Code of Business Conduct Beyond Puffery
Digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics allow companies to create more effective codes of business conduct, says Eugene Soltes. But technology isn't the only solution. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 09 Apr 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
Formal Employment and Organized Crime: Regression Discontinuity Evidence from Colombia
Using data from Colombia’s second-largest city, Medellín, this study tests the relationship between formal employment and participation in crime at the individual level. Among the findings, subsidies for health care had the unintended consequence of amplifying gang activity. Results shed light on deterring criminality through improving access to formal sector employment.
- 03 Mar 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
Strict ID Laws Don’t Stop Voters: Evidence from a U.S. Nationwide Panel, 2008–2016
Evidence on the consequences of strict ID laws adopted between 2008 and 2016 shows no significant negative effect on registration or turnout overall or for any subgroup defined by age, gender, race, or party affiliation. ID requirements had no significant effect on actual or perceived fraud, either.
- 21 Feb 2019
- Research & Ideas
Voter ID Laws Don't Work (But They Don't Hurt Anything, Either)
Voter ID laws are often proposed as an antidote to election fraud. There's just one problem, according to Vincent Pons. They don't work. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 08 Nov 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
When Harry Fired Sally: The Double Standard in Punishing Misconduct
Despite committing misconduct less often and less severely than men, female advisers in the financial adviser industry face more severe punishment in the labor market, a finding strongly correlated with the gender composition of the managerial team. A similar punishment gap and mitigating factors affect ethnic minority men.
- 04 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Corruption, Government Subsidies, and Innovation: Evidence from China
Governments subsidize a growing number of innovation efforts, many of which may face the challenge of corruption. Using Chinese data, this study finds corruption-related distortions in government R&D subsidies, which diminished after the 2012 anti-corruption campaign and rotation of provincial officials. It provide insights for designing effective R&D subsidy programs.
- 09 Aug 2018
- Cold Call Podcast
Two Million Fake Accounts: Sales Misconduct at Wells Fargo
Coming out of the financial crisis, Wells Fargo was one of the world’s most successful banks. But then its sales culture went wild, opening more than 2 million fake accounts. Suraj Srinivasan discusses what went wrong. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 Jul 2018
- Research & Ideas
Why Ethical People Become Unethical Negotiators
You may think you are an ethical person, but self-interest can cloud your judgment when you sit down at the bargaining table, says Max Bazerman. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 10 Jan 2018
- Research & Ideas
Working for a Shamed Company Can Hurt Your Future Compensation
People who work for a company guilty of malfeasance may see their future compensation curtailed, even if they are guilty of nothing, according to research by Boris Groysberg, Eric Lin, and George Serafeim. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 08 Jan 2018
- Research & Ideas
The Startling Percentage of Financial Advisors with Misconduct Records
One in twelve financial advisors have been disciplined for serious misconduct, according to a recent study by finance professor Mark Egan and colleagues. The bad apples are rarely punished. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Dec 2017
- Working Paper Summaries
Does Financial Misconduct Affect the Future Compensation of Alumni Managers?
Analyzing data from an executive search firm, this paper explains how former employees who are free from wrongdoing still pay a price in stigma after incidents of corporate financial misconduct. The finding is potentially disquieting for all managers, because it suggests that one’s human capital can be impaired even long after one moves on and suggests the need for developing a human capital strategy for reacting to misconduct of past employers.
Corruption: New Insights for Fighting an Age-Old Business Problem
Corruption is as old as humanity, with cases documented as far back as the Egyptian dynasties. While the World Bank estimates that international bribery exceeds $1.5 trillion annually, the larger and more subtle effects of corruption on economies and populations is incalculable. Harvard Business School professors Geoff Jones and Tarun Khanna explore how corruption uniquely affects business in emerging markets, and why it should be addressed by the public and private sectors in their case, “Corruption and Business in Emerging Markets,” and companion video interviews with more than 100 iconic entrepreneurs in emerging markets.