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    First Look: July 21, 2015

    First Look

    21 Jul 2015

    Who Has Control In The Sharing Economy?

    In research that reflects the emergence of the so-called sharing economy, Andrei Hagiu and Julian Wright study industries such as car sharing where companies must decide how much control to give professionals for the provision of those services. "We study the tradeoffs that arise in choosing between a traditional mode (where the firm takes control of service provision) and a platform mode (where professionals retain control over service provision)," the authors write in the paper, Enabling Versus Controlling.

    The Transformation Of Ncr

    The new case "The Transformation at NCR" looks from CEO Bill Nuti's view as the company considers transforming from a maker of standalone, electromechanical cash registers and ATMs into an "omni-channel, omni-commerce, software-driven company." The case was written by David Collis, Raffaella Sadun, and Matthew Shaffer.

    The Swiss Watch Industry Keeps On Ticking

    Ryan Raffaelli extends his prior research on the re-emergence of institutions to look at the Swiss watch industry from 1970 to 2008, a period of decline and recovery. "I find that re-emergence requires components that, paradoxically, facilitate both field transformation and field preservation," reports Raffaelli in his working paper.

    —Sean Silverthorne
    LinkedIn
    Email
     

    Publications

    • In press
    • Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes

    When Doing Good Is Bad in Gift-giving: Mis-predicting Appreciation of Socially-responsible Gifts

    By: Cavanaugh, A., F. Gino, and G.J. Fitzsimons

    Abstract—Gifts that support a worthy cause (i.e., "gifts that give twice"), such as a charitable donation in the recipient's name, have become increasingly popular. Recipients generally enjoy these gifts, which not only benefit others in need but also make recipients feel good about themselves. But do givers accurately predict appreciation of these types of gifts? Across three studies, we show that gift givers mis-predict appreciation for socially responsible gifts and that their mis-predictions depend on the nature of their relationship to the recipient. Drawing on research on affective forecasting and perspective taking, we propose and find that givers overestimate how much distant others appreciate socially responsible gifts because they focus more than recipients on the symbolic meaning of the gift. Critically, givers have the most to gain from distant others, in terms of strengthened relationship quality, by making better gift choices.

    Publisher's link: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49386

     

    Working Papers

    Networks and the Macroeconomy: An Empirical Exploration

    By: Acemoglu, Daron, Ufuk Akcigit, and William Kerr

    Abstract—The propagation of macroeconomic shocks through input-output and geographic networks can be a powerful driver of macroeconomic fluctuations. We first exposit that in the presence of Cobb-Douglas production functions and consumer preferences there is a specific pattern of economic transmission whereby demand-side shocks propagate upstream (to input-supplying industries) and supply-side shocks propagate downstream (to customer industries) and that there is a tight relationship between the direct impact of a shock and the magnitudes of the downstream and the upstream indirect effects. We then investigate the short-run propagation of four different types of industry-level shocks: two demand-side ones (the exogenous component of the variation in industry imports from China and changes in federal spending) and two supply-side ones (TFP shocks and variation in knowledge/ideas coming from foreign patenting). In each case, we find substantial propagation of these shocks through the input-output network, with a pattern broadly consistent with theory. Quantitatively, the network-based propagation is larger than the direct effects of the shocks. We also show quantitatively large effects from the geographic network, capturing the fact that the local propagation of a shock to an industry will fall more heavily on other industries that tend to collocate with it across local markets. Our results suggest that the transmission of various different types of shocks through economic networks and industry interlinkages could have first-order implications for the macroeconomy.

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49388

    Enabling Versus Controlling

    By: Hagiu, Andrei, and Julian Wright

    Abstract—In an increasing number of industries, firms choose how much control to give professionals over the provision of their services to clients. We study the tradeoffs that arise in choosing between a traditional mode (where the firm takes control of service provision) and a platform mode (where professionals retain control over service provision). The choice of mode is determined by the need to balance two-sided moral hazard problems arising from investments that only professionals can make and investments that only the firm can make, while at the same time minimizing distortions in decisions that either party could make (e.g., promotion and marketing of professionals' services, price setting, choice of service offering, etc.).

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49375

    Enabling Versus Controlling-Online Appendix

    By: Hagiu, Andrei, and Julian Wright

    Abstract—No abstract available.

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49378

    Mobile Money Services-Design and Development for Financial Inclusion

    By: Lal, Rajiv, and Ishan Sachdev

    Abstract—Mobile money services are being deployed rapidly across emerging markets as a key tool to further the goal of financial inclusion. Financial inclusion, the development of novel methods to enable individuals at the base of the pyramid to access formal financial services and become part of the formal financial system, is considered a key prerequisite for lifting these populations out of poverty and for driving economic growth.

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49129

    The Re-Emergence of an Institutional Field: Swiss Watchmaking

    By: Raffaelli, Ryan

    Abstract—In this qualitative study, I examine the factors that influence the re-emergence of market demand for a legacy technology in a mature institutional field. I extend previous work related to field emergence and institutions, offering support for a theoretical model of field re-emergence. In addition, I offer data and analysis to illustrate that re-emergence is a viable empirical phenomenon. Focusing on Swiss watchmaking from 1970 to 2008, I present various institutionalization processes, inflection points, and focal constructs associated with the field's emergence, decline, and eventual re-emergence. I find that re-emergence requires components that, paradoxically, facilitate both field transformation and field preservation. Although these processes appear to be at odds with one another, during a period of re-emergence they serve as necessary counterweights, encouraging the preservation of some valued elements of the old institutional order alongside new elements that allow for change and survival.

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49377

    Innovation under Regulatory Uncertainty: Evidence from Medical Technology

    By: Stern, Ariel Dora

    Abstract—This paper explores how the regulatory approval process affects innovation incentives in medical technologies. Prior studies have found early mover regulatory advantages for drugs. I find the opposite for medical devices, where pioneer entrants spend 34% (7.2 months) longer than follow-on entrants in regulatory approval. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the cost of this delay is upwards of 7% of the cost of bringing a new high-risk device to market. Considering potential explanations, I find that approval times are largely unrelated to technological novelty but are meaningfully reduced by the publication of objective regulatory guidelines. Finally, I consider how the regulatory process affects small firms' market entry strategies and find that small firms are less likely to be pioneers in new device markets, a phenomenon that is not observed in new drug markets.

    Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=49384

     

    Cases & Course Materials

    • Harvard Business School Case 715-438

    The Transformation of NCR

    During his tenure as CEO since 2005, Bill Nuti had moved NCR Corporation (originally National Cash Register) from its historical competence in hardware to become a provider of hardware and software for managing transactions across a range of industries and payments methods. Nuti envisioned a world in which consumers would use NCR hardware or applications whether transacting at a bank or ATM, purchasing clothes at a retailer, or checking into a flight at an airport-and in which NCR software would register the transactions, securely store and process the data, and use the transaction information to help NCR customers efficiently manage their operations. In 2011 and early 2013, NCR had made two major acquisitions of companies that were important providers of transaction software in the retail and hospitality industries. Now, in late November 2013, Nuti and his team were considering a third potential major acquisition: Digital Insight, a market leader in online and mobile banking solutions. Nuti saw Digital Insight as key to complementing NCR's offerings in the financial services industry, transforming it from a maker of standalone, electromechanical cash registers and ATMs into an "omni-channel, omni-commerce, software-driven company." Would this acquisition be the next right strategic move for NCR's transformation?

    Purchase this case:
    https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/715438-PDF-ENG

    • Harvard Business School Case 415-019

    Delhaize Group: Developing Leaders

    Delhaize Group, the Belgian-based global food retailer, was focused on competing in the food retailing industry by developing leading positions in key markets via localized retailing strategies. Delhaize was committed to offering its customers superior value while maintaining high social, environmental, and ethical standards. For Frans Muller, Delhaize's president and CEO, the key to executing on this strategy was ensuring that Delhaize Group was developing leaders with the requisite skills and competencies. In light of this, Muller felt it was important to assess the Delhaize Group's leadership development practices. Were the current training and development programs effective? What were the leadership skills that would be needed to execute on Delhaize Group's strategic plan, both today and in the future?

    Purchase this case:
    https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/415019-PDF-ENG

    • Harvard Business School Case 715-457

    Comcast Corporation

    No abstract available

    Purchase this case:
    https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/715457-PDF-ENG

    • Harvard Business School Case 415-052

    Abby Falik at Global Citizen Year

    Abby Falik, founder and CEO of Global Citizen Year (GCY), quickly read through the most recent news updates regarding the Ebola crisis in West Africa as she prepared for her board call on July 31, 2014. Based in Oakland, California, GCY was a five-year-old not-for-profit with a fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget of $3.5 million. Its mission was to make it much more the norm for graduating high school students in the U.S. to choose a "bridge year." GCY believed this experience after high school, but before college, would help students build self-awareness, learn about the world, and develop grit. In turn, GCY felt these attributes laid the foundation for success in college and beyond.

    Purchase this case:
    https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/415052-PDF-ENG

    • Harvard Business School Case 515-033

    Sustainability at IKEA Group

    By 2014, IKEA Group was the largest home furnishing company, with EUR28.5 billion of sales and a plan to reach EUR50 billion by 2020, mainly from emerging markets. At the same time, IKEA Group had adopted in 2012 a new sustainability strategy that focused the company's efforts on its entire value chain from its raw materials sourcing to the lifestyle of its end consumers. The plan especially centered on wood, which represented 60% of IKEA Group's total procurement in volume and constituted a key lever for the company to increase its positive impact on sustainability. IKEA Group management therefore had to decide how to manage its portfolio of wood sustainability initiatives, especially in the context of the company's aggressive growth plan.

    Purchase this case:
    https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/515033-PDF-ENG

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