- 25 Jul 2023
- Research & Ideas
Could a Business Model Help Big Pharma Save Lives and Profit?
Gilead Sciences used a novel approach to help Egypt address a public health crisis while sustaining profits from a key product. V. Kasturi Rangan and participants at a recent seminar hosted by the Institute for the Study of Business in Global Society discussed what it would take to apply the model more widely.
- 24 Mar 2022
- Research & Ideas
Why Cutting Jobless Aid Isn't the Answer to Worker Shortages
Many policymakers thought that halting COVID-related unemployment insurance would be a "silver bullet" to addressing worker shortages. In reality, cutting aid undermined consumer spending, says research by Raymond Kluender. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 14 Mar 2022
- Research & Ideas
Lessons from COVID-19: The Business Skills Doctors Need
The pandemic forced many physicians to become supply chain experts and strategic planners. Robert Huckman and colleagues offer a roadmap for teaching doctors the management and leadership skills they need—before the next public health crisis. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 24 Feb 2022
- Op-Ed
Want to Prevent the Next Hospital Bed Crisis? Enlist the SEC
After two years of COVID-19, many hospitals still haven't figured out how to manage the overwhelming wave of patients that flood ICUs during each surge. Regina Herzlinger and Richard Boxer offer a novel solution. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Nov 2021
- Research & Ideas
Why COVID-19 Probably Killed More People Than We Realize
Millions of people around the world have died from COVID-19, according to government records, but research by Ethan Rouen, George Serafeim, and Botir Kobilov suggests that the actual number could be much higher. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Oct 2020
- Research & Ideas
The COVID Gender Gap: Why Fewer Women Are Dying
To promote the greatest safety, public health officials should target their pandemic messaging to men differently than to women. Research by Vincent Pons and colleagues. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 22 Sep 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Older People Are Less Pessimistic about the Health Risks of COVID-19
The pandemic presents a unique opportunity to investigate formation of beliefs about an unprecedented, widespread, and life-threatening event. One finding: COVID-19 makes the prospect of disease and death particularly salient for the young.
- 18 Aug 2020
- Cold Call Podcast
Is a Pandemic the Best Time To Try Out a New Idea?
Singapore's new nationwide, Bluetooth-based contact tracing program TraceTogether must overcome privacy issues to be effective. Would Singaporeans adopt TraceTogether? Professor Mitch Weiss discusses his new case study. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 12 Jul 2020
- Research & Ideas
Solving COVID'S Mental Health Crisis
COVID-19 affects more than physical health. Howard Stevenson and Shirley Spence describe how the pandemic is causing psychological trauma across a broad swath of society—and innovative methods to treat it. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 07 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
COVID-19 and the Workplace: Implications, Issues, and Insights for Future Research and Action
Assembling a large, diverse team of researchers to make sense of COVID-19’s impact on issues of work and organizational psychology, this project explores changes that are unfolding for practitioners and human resources professionals.
- 01 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Social Interactions in Pandemics: Fear, Altruism, and Reciprocity
An analysis of 89 cities worldwide shows that mobility responds to infection risk, altruism, and reciprocity. Correcting the SIR model to account for this behavior shows that a balanced approach involving stringency measures, in respect of human dignity, and responsible social preferences mitigates the pandemic health and economic costs.
- 23 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Dignity, Inequality, and the Populist Backlash: Lessons from America and Europe for a Sustainable Globalization
COVID-19 has enhanced already existing fissures undermining some societies’ commitments to globalization. Governments and firms need to act decisively to make the models of capitalism in the United States and Europe more friendly to small- and medium-sized firms, more equal in opportunity, and more meritocratic.
- 09 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Aggregate and Firm-Level Stock Returns During Pandemics, in Real Time
This paper explains the seemingly conflicting narratives from the stock and labor market about the underlying state of the economy. We show that day-to-day changes in the predictions of standard models of infectious disease forecast changes in aggregate stock returns in pandemics.
- 09 Jun 2020
- Cold Call Podcast
In a Pandemic, What’s the Best Strategy for the Global Vaccine Alliance?
How should the vaccine alliance Gavi respond to the worldwide need for a cure for the COVID-19 pandemic? Tarun Khanna discusses his case study. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Jun 2020
- Research & Ideas
Who Guarantees Your Workplace Is Safe for Return?
Building health is today a top priority for owners and tenants, but how do we know our offices are safe to re-enter? John Macomber and Joseph Allen offer best practices. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Jun 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
HBS COVID-19 Global Policy Tracker
The Harvard Business School Covid-19 Global Policy Tracker monitors new developments and changes in government policies throughout this crisis to analyze trends and correlations in countries' responses and economic impact.
- 02 Jun 2020
- Research & Ideas
Coronavirus Careers: Cloud Kitchens Are Now Serving
Cloud kitchens are restaurants built around food delivery rather than sit-down service, and they are increasing in popularity as COVID-19 disrupts the industry, write Lena Ye and Geoffrey Jones. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 31 May 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Demystifying the Math of the Coronavirus
This paper provides a conceptual model for the progression of COVID-19 that is somewhat imprecise but that’s very simple and easy to understand. By relying on this description, one can obtain a rough estimate of the impact of various social distancing measures on the rate of growth of new infections.
- 29 May 2020
- Op-Ed
How Leaders Are Fighting Food Insecurity on Three Continents
The pandemic could almost double the number of people facing food crises in lower-income populations by the end of 2020. Howard Stevenson and Shirley Spence show how organizations are responding. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
The Importance of Trust for Managing through a Crisis
In March 2020, Twiddy & Company, a family-owned vacation rental company known for hospitality rooted in personal interactions, needed to adjust to contactless, remote customer service. With the upcoming vacation season thrown into chaos, President Clark Twiddy had a responsibility to the company’s network of homeowners who rented their homes through the company, to guests who had booked vacations, and to employees who had been recruited by Twiddy’s reputation for treating staff well. Who, if anyone, could he afford to make whole and keep happy? Harvard Business School professor Sandra Sucher, author of the book The Power of Trust: How Companies Build It, Lose It, Regain It, discusses how Twiddy leaned into trust to weather the COVID-19 pandemic in her case, “Twiddy & Company: Trust in a Chaotic Environment.”