First Look

Has globalization passed its peak? That's the provocative question posed by HBS professor Rawi Abdelal and colleague Adam Segal in the policy bible Foreign Affairs. Contradictory trends—technological revolution combined with anxiety about cross-border flows of capital, goods, and people, combined with energy again looming as "the object of intense resource nationalism"—are the shape of things to come, they write. "Much now depends on how national governments respond to these changing circumstances." Also this week, download a new working paper about how western investors in post-communist countries can better mitigate their risks. Pervading misconceptions about the realities of interacting with locals can unnecessarily short-circuit business success, say emeritus professor Paul R. Lawrence and Athens-based coauthor Charalambos Vlachoutsicos. Effective communication is key. Also new from HBS faculty this week: "Investor Sentiment in the Stock Market," a look at which stocks are likely to be disproportionately sensitive to broad waves of investor sentiment; the new edition of a well-regarded textbook on managerial accounting; and a baker's dozen of business cases including one on raising private equity in India. —Martha Lagace