Online Technology
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- 15 Sep 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Time and the Value of Data
This paper studies the impact of time-dependency and data perishability on a dataset's effectiveness in creating value for a business, and shows the value of data in the search engine and advertisement businesses perishes quickly.
- 01 Jul 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Scaling Up Behavioral Science Interventions in Online Education
Online courses can lack support structures that are often bundled with traditional higher education. Short pre-course interventions can have short-term benefits, but more innovation throughout the course is needed to have sustained impact on student success.
- 01 May 2020
- What Do You Think?
Does Remote Work Mix with Organizational Culture?
SUMMING UP: Readers who themselves work from home think differently about how organizations should respond to remote work initiatives. James Heskett sums up the dicussion. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 09 Mar 2020
- Research & Ideas
Warring Algorithms Could Be Driving Up Consumer Prices
Companies increasingly use software to conduct rapid price changes. Alexander MacKay explains why firms might benefit but consumers should be worried. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 20 Nov 2019
- Research & Ideas
It's No Joke: AI Beats Humans at Making You Laugh
New research shows people don’t trust recommendations from algorithms—and that’s a problem for companies that increasingly rely on AI-based technology to persuade consumers. Michael H. Yeomans explains how businesses can overcome that bias. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 27 Jun 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
The Effect of Payment Choices on Online Retail: Evidence from the 2016 Indian Demonetization
Online sellers in many emerging markets are in the early stages of a shift from cash-based payments to digital payments. Findings from this study of a leading Indian online retailer show that firms may enjoy gains from consumer demand on top of operational gains resulting from payment digitization.
- 05 Mar 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
The Impacts of Increasing Search Frictions on Online Shopping Behavior: Evidence from a Field Experiment
This paper challenges the logic that making it easier for consumers to search across a wide assortment of products is the best strategy for online retailers. Experiments show that adding extra search costs to find discounted items can improve gross margins and sales by increasing the number of items inspected and serving as a self-selecting price discrimination mechanism among customers.
- 28 Nov 2018
- HBS Case
On Target: Rethinking the Retail Website
Target is one big-brand retailer that seems to have survived and even thrived in the apocalyptic retail landscape. What's its secret? Srikant Datar discusses the company's relentless focus on online data. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 07 May 2018
- Research & Ideas
Why Online Retailers Should Hide Their Best Discounts
Online retailers should take a tip from brick-and-mortar shops: Shove your best deals to the back of the store. Research by Thales Teixeira and Donald Ngwe. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 20 Apr 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Executive Education in the Digital Vortex: The Disruption of the Supply Landscape
The competitive landscape of executive education is feeling a tectonic shift even as demand grows for managerial skills. This study maps and analyzes the major providers of executive education programs, including business schools, consultancies, and corporate universities, to better understand and explain the industry’s present and future dynamics.
- 05 Mar 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Nowcasting Gentrification: Using Yelp Data to Quantify Neighborhood Change
This study finds that data from digital platforms (in this case, Yelp) can help forecast which neighborhoods are gentrifying and provide new ways to measure business landscape changes that accompany demographic changes.
- 26 Oct 2017
- Research Event
In an Era of 'Fake News,' What is the Future of Advertising and Publishing?
A recent panel discussion at Harvard Business School considered how traditional institutions of democracy such as publishing and advertising are being undermined by the use of internet technologies. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 17 Jun 2017
- Research & Ideas
Amazon, Whole Foods Deal a Big Win for Consumers
What does Amazon's $13.4 billion deal for Whole Foods say about the future of retail? Harvard Business School professors Jose Alvarez and Len Schlesinger see good times ahead for consumers as well as both companies. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 03 Nov 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Ideological Segregation among Online Collaborators: Evidence from Wikipedians
This study analyzes the dynamics supporting or undermining segregated conversations. Among the findings: In spite of their great differences, contributors on Wikipedia tend to move toward less segregated conversations. Contributors’ positions become more neutral over time, not more extreme. In addition, the conflict resolution mechanisms and the mix of informal and formal norms at Wikipedia play an important role in encouraging a community that works toward a neutral point of view.
- 19 Oct 2016
- Book
Three Critical Mistakes Digital Businesses Make With Content
Do companies really understand the nature of today's digital transformation? Bharat Anand's book The Content Trap offers a new view of digital strategy that shifts the focus from "produce the best content" to "create the best connections." Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 17 Aug 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
The Empirical Economics of Online Attention
This study uses extensive data on user online activity between 2008 and 2013 to examine the links between user allocation of attention and characteristics of user. Findings show remarkable stability in how households allocated their scarce attention over the five years. Results imply that suppliers are competing for a finite supply of user time while generally lacking the ability to use price discounts to attract user attention.
- 25 Jan 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Racial Discrimination in the Sharing Economy: Evidence from a Field Experiment
Online platforms such as Airbnb create new markets by eliminating search frictions, building trust, and facilitating transactions. With the rise of the sharing economy, however, comes the prospect of racial discrimination that is unheard of in established platforms. The authors suggest changes to Airbnb’s site design to reduce or prevent discrimination.
- 14 Dec 2015
- Research & Ideas
Airbnb Hosts Discriminate Against African-American Guests
Experimental research by Ben Edelman, Michael Luca, and Daniel Svirsky revealed widespread discrimination against African-American guests on Airbnb. Now the researchers have created an online tool to mitigate it. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 17 Mar 2015
- Research & Ideas
Where Did My Shopping Mall Go?
The growing popularity of online shopping is remaking the world of offline shopping—stores are getting smaller, malls are getting scarcer. Rajiv Lal and José Alvarez look ahead five years at our radically transforming shopping experience. Plus: Book excerpt. Open for comment; 13 Comment(s) posted.
The Value of Descriptive Analytics: Evidence from Online Retailers
Analytics are descriptive when they describe what happened. Descriptive-analytics solutions are popular among marketers and retailers. This paper provides a benchmark for the benefits of using a descriptive dashboard and illustrates how to potentially extract these benefits.