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New research on social issues from Harvard Business School faculty on issues including when CEOs become activists, how children benefit from having a working mother, and harnessing employees' intrinsic goodwill.
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White Airbnb Hosts Earn More. Can AI Shrink the Racial Gap?

by Lane Lambert

Research by Shunyuan Zhang shows how Airbnb's pricing algorithm reduces the impact of bias, and offers lessons for other technology companies trying to root out racial inequity. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Where Does CEO Activism Go From Here?

by James Heskett

More than 200 CEOs, including Warren Buffett, recently spoke out in support of voting rights. But whom do these CEOs represent? asks James Heskett. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Fairness or Control: What Determines Elected Local Leaders’ Support for Hosting Refugees in Their Community?

by Kristin Fabbe, Eleni Kyrkopoulou, Konstantinos Matakos, and Asli Unan

Local politicians are not adamantly opposed to setting up host sites for refugees in their municipalities. However, they want a fair process to ensure that interaction between refugees and residents is limited, gradual, and mediated. Most importantly, local politicians want to control those interactions.

The Tulsa Massacre: Is Racial Justice Possible 100 Years Later?

by Michael Blanding

A new Harvard Business School case by Mihir Desai examines the Tulsa Massacre of 1921, and asks difficult questions about what reparations America owes to its Black citizens. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

COVID-19 Shines New Light on Working Conditions in Supply Chains

by Danielle Kost

Michael Toffel discusses how the coronavirus pandemic has renewed concerns about how suppliers treat employees, and how a new online resource can help. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Examining Race and Mass Incarceration in the United States

The late 20th century saw dramatic growth in incarceration rates in the United States. Of the more than 2.3 million people in US prisons, jails, and detention centers in 2020, 60 percent were Black or Latinx. Harvard Business School assistant professor Reshmaan Hussam probes the assumptions underlying the current prison system, with its huge racial disparities, and considers what could be done to address the crisis of the American criminal justice system in her case, “Race and Mass Incarceration in the United States.” Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Bollywood, Skin Color, and Sexism: The Role of the Film Industry in Emboldening and Contesting Stereotypes in India after Independence

by Sudev Sheth, Geoffrey Jones, and Morgan Spencer

Analysis of interviews with Bollywood producers and actors shows the extent of biases in the film industry during the decades after India’s independence in 1947. Gender stereotyping has remained a noteworthy feature of films, and bias towards light skin has only intensified.

How to Make the World Better, Not Perfect

by Michael Blanding

If we want to do more good for the world, we must first change how we think about our behavior, says Max Bazerman in his book Better, Not Perfect. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Engaging Community to Create Proactive, Equitable Public Safety

Saint Paul, Minnesota Mayor Melvin Carter swept into office in 2018 promising equity. He wanted a new public safety framework that would be rooted in community. Then, with the COVID-19 pandemic wiping out much of the city’s budget and the May 2020 killing of George Floyd by a police officer in neighboring Minneapolis sparking calls to defund the police, how would Mayor Carter make these changes happen? Professor Mitch Weiss discusses the challenges and rewards of “possibility government” in his case, Community-First Public Safety. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

How Thinking Like a Startup Helps Governments Solve More Problems

by Martha Lagace

Public entrepreneurship can bring agile thinking and new ideas to governments. Mitchell Weiss explains how in his new book, We the Possibility. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Social Interactions in Pandemics: Fear, Altruism, and Reciprocity

by Laura Alfaro, Ester Faia, Nora Lamersdorf, and Farzad Saidi

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.

Capitalism Is More at Risk Than Ever

by Martha Lagace

Almost a decade after writing Capitalism at Risk, Joseph Bower, Herman Leonard, and Lynn Paine argue that not enough companies are stepping up to fix big global problems. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

What Is an "Essential" Purchase for a Low-Income Family?

by Rachel Layne

Phone or flour? People with lower incomes are judged more harshly for what they choose to buy, say Serena F. Hagerty and Kate Barasz. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Food Security and Human Mobility During the Covid-19 Lockdown

by Prithwiraj Choudhury, Wesley W. Koo, Xina Li, Nishant Kishore, Satchit Balsari, and Tarun Khanna

COVID-19 represents not only a health crisis but a crisis of food insecurity and starvation for migrants. Central governments should ensure that food security policies are implemented effectively and engage with local governments and local stakeholders to distribute food to migrants in the immediate term.

Corporate Environmental Impact: Measurement, Data and Information

by George Serafeim, DG Park, David Freiberg, and T. Robert Zochowski

This paper proposes a methodology for investors, companies, or regulators to use established environmental resources, reasonably accessible in the public domain, to measure an organization’s environmental impact from operations. These measurements contain information that is different from environmental ratings widely used by investors and other stakeholders.

A Preliminary Framework for Product Impact-Weighted Accounts

by George Serafeim, Katie Trinh, and Robert Zochowski

Although there is growing interest in environmental, social, and governance measurement, the impact of company operations is emphasized over product use. A framework like this one that captures a product’s reach, accessibility, quality, optionality, environmental use emissions, and end of life recyclability allows for a systematic methodology that can be applied to companies across many industries.

What Grade Would You Give Walmart CEO Doug McMillon?

by James Heskett

SUMMING UP: James Heskett's readers gave Walmart high marks for its response to gun violence but suggested the company could have been even more proactive. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

What Can the World’s Largest Refugee Camp Teach Us About the Meaning of Work?

by Danielle Kost

Almost 1 million Rohingya refugees are sinking deeper into despair while sitting idle in a camp they can’t easily leave. But the opportunity to work might provide a resource more scarce than cash: hope. Research by Reshmaan N. Hussam.

Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening

by Michael Blanding

Are product sales affected by the CEO's stance on political and social issues? Michael Toffel and Aaron Chatterji study how consumers react to vocal chief executives. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

What Should the Leadership of YouTube Do?

by James Heskett

SUMMING UP Readers comment on how YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki should solve its “sustainability” versus "respectability" problem. What should YouTube do? asks James Heskett. Open for comment; 0 Comments.