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New research on management from Harvard Business School faculty on issues including management strategy, accountability, design and succession planning.
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Make Your Employees Feel Psychologically Safe

by Martha Lagace

To do their best work, people need to feel secure and safe in their workplace. In a new book, Amy C. Edmondson details how companies can develop psychological safety. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Pioneer (Dis-)advantages in Markets for Technology

by Moritz Fischer, Joachim Henkel, and Ariel Dora Stern

When and how to enter a new market is central to firms’ innovation strategies, including in the medical device industry. The authors show how to evaluate early-mover advantage vs. disadvantage when the primary option to monetize an innovation lies in selling it in an intermediate “market for technology” rather than in a final product market.

The Value Structure of Technologies, Part 2: Technical and Strategic Bottlenecks as Guides for Action

by Carliss Y. Baldwin

This paper presents analytic tools to formulate strategy in large, evolving technical systems. It explains how value-enhancing technical change comes from the effective management of technical and strategic bottlenecks in conjunction with module boundaries and property rights. The analytic tools are used to explain the evolution of three historic technologies: early aircraft, machine tools, and container shipping.

Quantile Forecasts of Product Life Cycles Using Exponential Smoothing

by Xiaojia Guo, Kenneth C. Lichtendahl Jr., and Yael Grushka-Cockayne

Many important business decisions rely on a manager’s forecast of a product or service’s life cycle. One of the most widely used forecasting techniques is exponential smoothing models. This paper introduces a model suitable for large-scale forecasting environments where key operational decisions depend on quantile forecasts.

Baseball’s Billy Beane Shows Companies the Power of Data

Re: Srikant M. Datar

With a relatively small payroll, the Oakland A's baseball team remains competitive by being smarter about data. Srikant Datar discusses the "Moneyball" strategy and how it can be applied in business. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Developing Theory Using Machine Learning Methods

by Prithwiraj Choudhury, Ryan Allen, and Michael G. Endres

This paper provides a step-by-step roadmap for using machine learning (ML) techniques to explore novel and robust patterns in data. It introduces management researchers to a new use case for ML tools: building new theory from quantitative observational data. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

What Should Harley-Davidson’s Management Do?

by James Heskett

SUMMING UP Stuck between a rock and a critical POTUS, Harley-Davidson should ignore the politics and operate where best business practices lead it, most of James Heskett's readers advise. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

The Creative Consulting Company

by Robert S. Kaplan, Richard Nolan, and David P. Norton

Management theories cannot be tested in laboratories; they must be applied, tested, and extended in real organizations. For this reason the most creative consulting companies balance conflicting demands between short‐term business development and long‐term knowledge creation.

The Transformation of Microsoft

Re: C. Fritz Foley

In early 2015, Microsoft CFO Amy Hood and the rest of senior leadership faced a fundamental choice. Was the company ready to invest in long-term growth at the expense of some short-term profit? Professor Fritz Foley discusses how executives thought through the tradeoffs. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

A Measure of Risk Appetite for the Macroeconomy

by Carolin E. Pflueger, Emil Siriwardane, and Adi Sunderam

This paper sheds new light on connections between financial markets and the macroeconomy. It shows that investors’ appetite for risk—revealed by common movements in the pricing of volatile securities—helps determine economic outcomes and real interest rates.

Cut Salaries or Cut People? The Best Way to Survive a Downturn

by Rachel Layne

When times are tight, companies usually respond with employee layoffs. But what if they held on to workers and cut their salaries instead? New research by Christopher Stanton and colleagues has the answer. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Careem: Riding the First Unicorn in the Middle East

Re: Shikhar Ghosh

Doubling in size every two-and-a-half months, ride-hailing service Careem was experiencing growing pains operationally and culturally. Shikhar Ghosh discusses how the founders struggled to keep its 4 million customers satisfied. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

How Companies Managed Risk (and Even Benefitted) in World War Internment Camps

by Julia Hanna

Foreign businesses located in at-war countries are often victims of expropriation. Historian Valeria Giacomin explores how German businesses in the United Kingdom and India mitigated risk and even benefitted when their employees were placed in internment camps during the World Wars. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

'Candy Crush' Was a Blockbuster; Can King Digital Capitalize?

Re: Jeffrey F. Rayport

The mobile game "Candy Crush Saga" was a megahit for Riccardo Zacconi and his studio, King Digital Entertainment. But can he scale up the business to include several hundred titles? A Cold Call podcast with Jeffrey Rayport. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Op-Ed: What Mark Zuckerberg Can Learn About Crisis Leadership from Starbucks

by Bill George

Starbucks and Facebook present a contrast in crisis leadership, says Bill George. While Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson stepped up to take responsibility and met with victims, Mark Zuckerberg delayed action and side-stepped responsibility. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Amazoned: Is Any Industry Safe?

by Sean Silverthorne

Like the Amazon River itself, Jeff Bezos's company cuts a powerful, meandering channel through the business landscape, changing every industry it touches. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

In Search of Organizational Alignment Using a 360° Assessment System: Evidence from a Retail Chain

by Carolyn Deller, Susanna Gallani, and Tatiana Sandino

This study assesses a values-based 360° performance measurement system implemented at an Indian retail chain that led to improvements on financial performance, but not on desired non-financial dimensions.

How 'Teaming' Saved 33 Lives in the Chilean Mining Disaster

by Amy C. Edmondson

Teams composed of people from across expertise areas can create solutions beyond what any one agency can deliver, says Amy Edmondson. Just ask several dozen Chilean workers rescued from a mine collapse. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

Personality Traits of Entrepreneurs: A Review of Recent Literature

by Sari Pekkala Kerr, William R. Kerr, and Tina Xu

This paper brings together recent findings in the academic literature on the prevalence of various personality traits among entrepreneurs and their impact on venture performance. It focuses on three themes: (1) personality traits of entrepreneurs and how they compare to other groups; (2) attitudes towards risk that entrepreneurs display; and (3) overall goals and aspirations that entrepreneurs bring to their pursuits.

The Use and Misuse of Patent Data: Issues for Corporate Finance and Beyond

by Josh Lerner and Amit Seru

Corporate finance researchers who analyze patent data are at risk of making highly predictable errors. The problem arises from dramatic changes in the direction and location of technological innovation (and patenting practice) over recent decades. This paper explains the pitfalls and suggests practical steps for avoiding them.