2011 Spring Reunion Presentations
HBS faculty members, industry leaders and non-HBS scholars presented their recent research on a wide range of topics on Friday, June 3 and Saturday, June 4 during a number of engaging presentations. On Saturday afternoon we hosted cross-class alumni industry panels featuring industry leaders from across the returning reunion classes.
Many reunion presentations were filmed and captured through a written summary. These videos and summaries will be available in late June at which time we will notify you by e-mail. Some presenters have additionally allowed us to post their handouts or slide deck online. All information will be posted below as it becomes available to us.
Here is the list of presentations that were captured by video or summary.
Dean's Address
- Dean's Address Video Dean Nitin Nohria
Education
- Becoming a Harvard MBA: Lessons from the Class of 2006
Senior Lecturer Scott A. Snook
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.We advertise Harvard Business School as a "transformational leader development experience," with a mission "to educate leaders who make a difference in the world." I was curious: Is it indeed transformational? If so, how so? From what into what? What are the mechanisms of change? Aside from learning how to do a discounted cash flow, how are we different in a deeper sense as a result of our two years here? In this seminar, I will share what I learned from my longitudinal study of approximately 50 students from the HBS Class of 2006. By listening closely to what they told me, I gained some insight into what it truly means to "Become a Harvard MBA."
- Transforming the Education Sector through Leadership
Dean Kathleen McCartney, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
At the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE), we believe that the single most promising strategy for transforming American education is to recruit, develop, and place talented and skilled leaders in school systems, non-profit organizations, mission-based for-profit organizations, philanthropic organizations, and government agencies—what some have called the "Fortune 300" jobs in education. HGSE's new Doctorate in Education Leadership (Ed.L.D.) is a full-time, practice-based program for PK-12 system-level leaders. Faculty from HGSE, the Harvard Business School, and the Harvard Kennedy School designed and teach in the program, which features a new customized curriculum of classes, modules, and practice-based experiences. The three-year program began in August 2010 and is a game-changer in the education sector.
Entrepreneurship
- The Lean Startup
Professor Thomas R. Eisenmann
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Entrepreneurs who follow the "lean startup" approach strive to avoid wasting time and money. As quickly as possible, they launch a "minimum viable product" (MVP) with the smallest feature set necessary to rigorously test hypotheses about their opportunity, based on feedback from early adopters. They rapidly iterate this MVP based on a succession of tests, and pivot to a new product design, market segment, or business model when hypotheses are disproved. Eisenmann will describe his new MBA elective that explores lean startup management practices, "Launching Technology Ventures." He also will discuss the MVP Fund, through which HBS recently granted a total of $50,000 to nine student teams launching businesses that follow lean startup principles.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf)Related HBS Programs:
Building New Businesses in Established Organizations
Key Executives Program
Launching New Ventures
Owner/President Management Program -
The Unique Challenges of Leading a Science Based Business
Adjunct Professor Raymond V. Gilmartin
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.If you are the CEO of a science based business, you invest on behalf of your successor in high risk discovery projects that have ten to fifteen year time horizons. Most of these projects will fail because of the uncertainty of the science. These investments are made in a stock market environment where shareholders do not seem to look beyond the next quarter. What are the implications for the role, responsibilities, and attributes of the CEO?
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)Related HBS Programs:
Leadership and Strategy in Pharmaceuticals and Biotech - Turnaround Manager: An Entrepreneur
Professor Paul W. Marshall
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.If you think of a life cycle for a company, the beginning is often viewed as needing an entrepreneur. What about the period of decline? If an entrepreneur takes over the management of a company in decline will the management skills needed in a startup be useful? Professor Marshall offers an EC course entitled Entrepreneurial Management in the Turnaround Environment that addresses this question.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf)Related HBS Programs:
Key Executives Program
Launching New Ventures
Owner/President Management Program
Turnaround Management Strategies - Founders' Dilemmas
Associate Professor Noam T. Wasserman
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Noam Wasserman's "Founders' Dilemmas" MBA elective examines the difficult early decisions founders face that have long-term implications for them and their ventures. The core dilemmas include career dilemmas ("when to found?"), founding-team dilemmas, and investor and successor dilemmas. These decisions have long-term implications for venture growth, for splintering of the founding team, for maintaining control of the venture, and for financial gains. The course integrates new cases with academic research based on data collected over the last decade from 4,000 private ventures, and is the basis for an upcoming book (Founding Dilemmas). The course was awarded both the HBS Teaching Award and the Academy of Management's Innovation in Entrepreneurial Pedagogy Award, and was recently named by Inc. magazine as one of the top ten entrepreneurship courses in the country.
Related HBS Program:
Key Executives Program
Launching New Ventures
Owner/President Management Program
Turnaround Management Strategies
Finance & Investing
- Catalysts and Impediments of Economic Growth
Professor Joshua D. Coval
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.As debates about government spending and unionization make headlines across the nation, this talk will address how and why different U.S. regions experience different levels of economic growth and development. The discussion will center on two factors that have been the subject of recent policy debates: government spending and private sector unionization. By reviewing firm-level evidence, we'll see the impact that these two factors have had on job creation, entrepreneurship, and business investment over the past 30 years.
- Risks of Financial Crisis and Money Market Funds: Where Do We Go From Here?
Professor Kenneth A. Froot
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.No Abstract Provided.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf) - Private Equity at a Crossroads: What's Next?
Professor Josh Lerner
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Both the buyout and venture capital industries face unprecedented challenges today. After an orgy of investments in the mid-2000s, private equity funds suffered a hangover of epic proportions. In recent quarters, however, the rate and pace of deal-making has recovered in a manner that has surprised even the most optimistic observers. Meanwhile, venture capital—after a prolonged drought—shows signs of a surge in transactions, driven by social media firms. But all is not rosy: many of the investors on which these funds have traditionally depended, such as endowments and pensions, have deep problems, which is affecting the flow of capital to the sector. This talk will explore this unsettled and often mysterious territory, and offer some surprising predictions about the future of these sectors.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation VideoRelated HBS Programs:
Private Equity and Venture Capital - Harvard Management Company Update
Ms. Jane Mendillo
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.The Harvard Management Company (HMC) is solely dedicated to the management of Harvard University's endowment and related assets. With approximately 35% of the University's annual budget dependent on endowment income, HMC's goal is to generate strong, sustainable investment returns to support the needs and goals of the University. Over the last twenty years HMC's average annual return of 11.9% is substantially better than the 7.8% earned by a 60/40 stock/bond portfolio and the 9.3% annual return for the endowment's Policy Portfolio benchmark. HMC benefits by a employing a unique model of investment management, using both internal portfolio managers and traders as well as a select set of external investment management firms across a range of asset classes and geographies. This hybrid approach gives Harvard several advantages as an investor, from significant cost savings associated with internal management, to greater degrees of market insight and increased nimbleness in moving among investments.
- Treasury Bonds: Inflation Bets or Deflation Hedges? The Treasury Bond Market "Bubble."
Professor Luis M. Viceira
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.There is considerable debate today as to whether the U.S. Treasury bond market is moving into bubble territory. This talk examines these claims in light of what factors move bond yields, and the history of the Treasury bond market in the U.S. postwar period.
Financial Crisis
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The Economic Crisis and Its Aftermath
Professor Robert Steven Kaplan
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Professor Kaplan will discuss the current economic crisis and its implications.
Related Resources:
Presentation VideoRelated HBS Programs:
The Global Economy
The Corporate Leader - Putting the Financial Crisis in Perspective: What History Tells Us About Financial Turmoil and How to Prevent It
Professor David A. Moss
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.In his talk, Professor Moss will briefly examine the history of financial crises and financial regulation in the United States and suggest what this history tells us about the recent crisis and how best to ensure a healthy and stable financial system going forward.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation VideoRelated HBS Programs:
The Global Economy
Global Growth Opportunities
- Yahoo! in China (Case Discussion)
Select Faculty
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Case WebsiteRelated HBS Programs:
Building Businesses in Emerging Markets
Global Strategic Management
Risk Management for Corporate Leaders - Innovating at the World's Crossroads: How Multiculturalism Promotes Creativity
Assistant Professor Roy Y.J. Chua
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.In the age of globalization, people cross cultural lines every day. To stay competitive, organizations and individuals increasingly must innovate in a multicultural space. Conventional wisdom suggests that cultural diversity promotes cross-fertilization of ideas and perspectives, enhancing creativity—yet the creative potential of multiculturalism is not always realized. When does exposure to diverse cultures facilitate creativity? Or could a multicultural environment potentially suppress new ideas? In this presentation, Professor Roy Chua will discuss current research that investigates how the confluence of diverse cultures impacts people's ability to think creatively.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (available upon request)Related HBS Program:
Driving Performance Through Talent Management - Beauty Imagined
Professor Geoffrey G. Jones
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.This talk will discuss highlights from my recently published book on the global beauty industry from the nineteenth century to the present day. I explore how successive generations of entrepreneurs built brands which shaped perceptions of beauty worldwide. They democratized access to beauty products, once the privilege of elites, but they also defined the gender and ethnic borders of beauty, and its association with a handful of cities, notably Paris and later New York. Today globalization is changing the beauty industry again. I show how global brands have swept into China, Russia, and India, but at the same time, these brands are responding to a far greater diversity of cultures and lifestyles as new markets are opened up worldwide.
- Entrepreneurs and Entrepreneurship in China: Continuity and Transformation
Associate Professor Elisabeth Koll
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.The nature of entrepreneurship in China, in particular the relationship between Chinese entrepreneurs and the government, is a much debated topic. In the context of ongoing market-oriented reforms and stunning economic development, the impact of private entrepreneurship on economic growth and the emerging business environment is significant. What role do entrepreneurs play in "Chinese capitalism with socialist characteristics"? We will explore the historical legacies of China's new entrepreneurial class, the transformation of entrepreneurs and their companies under changing political frameworks, and what this means for our assessment of private companies, state-owned enterprises, and hybrid models in China's economy today. My presentation will address the opportunities and challenges for entrepreneurial activities as well as the resulting implications for foreign companies with business interests in China.
Related HBS Programs:
Key Executives Program
Launching New Ventures
Owner/President Management Program - Winning in Emerging Markets
Professor Krishna G. Palepu
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.This presentation is based on a new book published by Tarun Khanna and Krishna Palepu, Winning in Emerging Markets: A Road Map for Strategy and Execution. The presentation will discuss: Unique opportunities and challenges in operating in fast rising emerging markets of the world. Using case examples, the presentation discusses strategic and execution ideas for success in emerging markets for western multinationals, international investors, and new multinationals being created from emerging markets.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation VideoRelated HBS Programs:
Building Businesses in Emerging Markets - Jump Start Your Revenue Growth
Emeritus Professor Benson P. Shapiro
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Your company has already cut costs and survived what, for most firms, has been a brutal economic time. Performance is improving, but not as quickly as you would like. Now to increase profits and enterprise value, and to insure a strong market position, it is imperative that you grow your top-line revenue quickly and efficiently. You need to increase unit sales and/or prices on a tight budget and a fast schedule.
In this practical reunion session, Professor Ben Shapiro will help you:
- identify the best targets of opportunity
- avoid brutal head-to-head price competition
- price effectively to improve profitability without sacrificing unit volume
- improve the focus, effectiveness and efficiency of your total go-to-market activities including e-commerce and traditional approaches
- sell better and faster
The material is based on a continuing research program on high profit, high performance, "lean" marketing and sales.
Green Business & the Environment
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Leadership in the Age of Climate Change
Professor Rebecca M. Henderson
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Is the risk of significant climate change an opportunity or a threat for business? This talk will take a close look at those firms who are developing new business models—at scale—in response to the threat of climate change. We'll explore whether and when such an approach makes sense—and its potential limitations.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video - Power Shift? Atomic Energy and the Environment following the Japanese Earthquake Crises?
Associate Professor Noel Maurer
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Professor Noel Maurer will discuss the safety and economics of nuclear power, and provide a brief prognostication about the industry's future in light of the unfolding disaster in Japan.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation Video - Winning in Emerging Markets
Mr. Scott C. Smith (MBA '91)
view alumnus profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.HBS 1991 Grad, Scott C. Smith—C.E.O. of OPFLEX SOLUTIONS and CELLECT TECHNOLOGIES—will be presenting the tumultuous story of his unique, proprietary, and patent-pending absorbent foam, OPFLEXTM, from its 'birth' to the unprecedented low-carbon-impact efficiency Opflex exhibited in the oil disasters in The Gulf of Mexico and Dalian, China, and in waste water discharge in the United States. A live demonstration of the extremely effective nature of OPFLEX will be performed with the help of some very special guests.
Healthcare
- Changing Health Practices Globally
Associate Professor Nava Ashraf
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.No abstract provided.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation VideoRelated HBS Programs:
Healthcare Delivery Programs
Performance Measurement for Effective Management of Nonprofit Organizations - Designing Care
Professor Richard M.J. Bohmer
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.In spite of years of reform of healthcare financing and the structure of the delivery system, academic research reveals a troubling picture of rising costs, fatal errors, and the simultaneous under- and over-provision of care. Moreover, the aging of the baby boomers, an avalanche of new science and technology, and an expected manpower shortage may make things even worse. In response, delivery organization managers have increasingly looked to production industries for models of organization and process design to improve the efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery, with only mixed success. This session will discuss the nature of medical care, the ways in which evolving medical science has and has not changed the practice of medicine, and the implications for patients, doctors, and managers.
- Health Care, What's Next?
Professor Regina E. Herzlinger
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Professor Herzlinger will discuss the impact of the health care reform legislation on the U.S. health care system and economy.
- Health Care Reform: Without a Correct Diagnosis, There Is No Cure
Jeffrey S. Flier, M.D.
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.
A persistent headache is a symptom, but the underlying cause can be anything from a migraine to a brain tumor. Good medicine means identifying and treating the cause as well as the symptom. The same is true in health care reform.
Though most Americans are satisfied with their own health care, they also see the need for substantial reform. Unfortunately, the well-meaning plan passed last year by Congress was the wrong therapy because it mistook the symptoms for the underlying disease. Nearly everyone agrees on the symptoms: rapidly growing health expenditures, diminished access to affordable insurance causing many to be uninsured, and inadequate quality and outcomes for the dollars spent. But what are the root causes? I will discuss my view of these causes, how they are not addressed by current legislation, and what might conceivably be done about it.
Innovation
- The Harvard Innovation Lab — An Update
Professors Joseph B. Lassiter and Peter Tufano
Lassiter faculty profile, Tufano faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.The University is launching the Harvard innovation lab to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation throughout the University. The i-lab will seek initially to bring together interested parties at the Business School (HBS), the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS), the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS), the Kennedy School of Government (KSG), the Law School (HLS) and hopefully extending to the other schools in the future. Located on Western Avenue in the old WBGH studio next to HBS, the innovation lab will provide physical space and extensive IT support to foster team-based entrepreneurial activities, classroom space for project-oriented courses, lectures, and direct access to entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, lawyers, product development experts, and other friends of Harvard who have volunteered to provide their expertise to our community.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation Video
Management, Governance & Leadership
- The Power of Small Wins
Professor Teresa M. Amabile
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15p.m. - 3:30 p.m.What really makes people happy, motivated, productive, and creative at work? Our new research, based on analyzing nearly 12,000 daily diaries of team members working on collaborative creative projects, reveals some surprising answers. Inner work life—a person's day-by-day emotions, perceptions and motivation—has a profound effect on the person's creative productivity. And, of all the good things that can boost inner work life, the single most important is simply making progress on meaningful work—even if that progress is a small step forward. This is the Progress Principle. Its implication? Sustained creative productivity and employee well-being depend less on elaborate incentive systems or performance-management processes than on techniques for facilitating the small wins that constitute daily work progress.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (available upon request)
Presentation Video
The Power of Small Wins (HBR Article) -
Principles of management that we teach that are not always true
Professor Clayton M. Christensen
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Historically, innovation has seemed to be expensive and risky. Our research has shown, however, that the root cause of the spotty results are often principles of "good management" that are taught at HBS and elsewhere. In this session, we'll describe which of the principles we teach are the greatest culprits in causing innovations to fail.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video -
First, Do No Harm: HBS Alumni, the MBA Oath, and Leading in the Era of Deepwater Drilling, Climate Change and Corporations that are Too Big to Fail
Ms. Elizabeth A. Doty (MBA '91)
view alumna profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.The global financial crisis of 2008 involved so many professionals in so many industries and caused such massive disruption that it forces us to question our basic assumptions about ethics and integrity. Why do the scandals continue to escalate despite our best efforts to educate, inspire and enforce higher standards?
The pattern is doubly mystifying because so many leaders want to create real value. Thousands have signed the MBA Oath. Most of us know the challenges of the 21st century demand a longer term view toward true economic, social and environmental sustainability. What does it take to live up to these values under pressure? Can we at least "do no harm"?
Please join us for a provocative and timely conversation.
Related Resources
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
Teaming: How the Learning Organization Works
Professor Amy C. Edmondson
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.This talk reviews research on interpersonal dynamics that affect organizational learning. Teaming—the dynamic interactions through which interdependent work is carried out—emphasizes the action rather than the structures of teamwork. This perspective on organizational learning emerged through field research in settings ranging from the front lines of health care delivery to the Space Shuttle program at NASA to the management conference room. It emphasizes the debilitating effects of interpersonal fear and examines the role of leadership in counteracting these effects.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
Drilling in the Gulf: Safety and the Culture of Masculinity
Professor Robin J. Ely
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.What can managers in white-collar firms learn from roughnecks and roustabouts on an offshore oil rig? How might gender have contributed to the recent incident in which a deep-water oil platform exploded, taking 11 lives and causing the worst oil spill in history? This presentation of findings from ethnographic research conducted on two, deep-water oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico will address these questions. The bottom line: Extinguishing macho behavior is vital to achieving top performance. Our findings suggest how a macho, hard-driving culture can compromise decisions and increase mistakes and how leaders—whether in the dirty, dangerous setting of an off-shore oil platform or in the posh, protected surroundings of the executive suite—can jettison such cultures in service of increasing effectiveness.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
Authentic Leadership Development
Professor William W. George
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Professor Bill George will lead a discussion on ways leadership is changing in the 21st century, and how leaders are adapting to demands on leaders in the environment and from their workforce. The discussion will be built on authentic leadership through which leaders align their organization around mission and values, empower people at all levels to step up and lead, focus on service to all their stakeholders, and creative highly collaborative environments in order to sustain superior performance.
Then the session will examine the essence of leadership by following your True North and understanding your life stories and crucibles in order to become a more effective leader. It will address six aspects of leadership development: gaining self-awareness, practicing your values, finding the "sweet spot" of your motivated capabilities, building support teams, leading an integrated life, and understanding the purpose of your leadership.
Finally, the discussion will focus on how HBS is changing to develop "leaders that make a difference in the world" in the MBA and executive education programs, including the use of six-person leadership development groups to provide confidential, intimate support groups.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
Chasing Talent
Associate Professor Boris Groysberg
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Companies need talent to drive their strategies forward—to innovate, to adapt, and to execute flawlessly. But whether you are seeking a key executive or a thousand engineers, how can you find the talent you need? In this session, we will discuss best practices for hiring, growing top-performing employees, and how leaders who take a more balanced approach to human capital management and nurture talent from within can create more resilient, successful organizations.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf) -
Are You a Good Boss — or a Great One?
Professor Linda A. Hill
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Private moments of doubt and fear come even to managers who have spent years on the job. Any number of events can trigger them: an initiative going poorly, a lukewarm performance review, a daunting new assignment. HBS professor Hill and executive Lineback have long studied the question of how managers grow and advance. Their experience brings them to a simple but troubling observation: Most bosses reach a certain level of proficiency and stay there—short of what they could and should be. Why? Because they stop working on themselves. In the presentation, Professor Hill will discuss the three imperatives to becoming a great leader in today's world: managing yourself, managing your network, and managing your team.
Related Resources:
Website: Being the Boss -
Mastering the Strategy Execution System
Professor Robert S. Kaplan
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.The Balanced Scorecard (BSC), developed by Professor Kaplan and management consultant David Norton, has evolved into the leading management system for implementing strategy. The system has been used by leading companies and nonprofit and public-sector organizations around the world to achieve dramatic performance breakthroughs by focusing and aligning organizational resources, people, and processes on strategy. The talk will feature two recent case studies, VW do Brasil and the FBI, that illustrate how two new CEOs used the strategy map and strategy execution system to transform their organizations.
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Powerful Politicians: Earmarks, Social Connections, and Insider Trading
Associate Professor Christopher J. Malloy
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.This session will investigate links between U.S. politicians and corporate America. We will discuss the process by which powerful politicians use their power to obtain earmarks and increased government spending for their home states. We will show that this type of government spending has distortionary effects on private sector economic activity, in the form of reduced investment and R&D by corporations. We will demonstrate that social connections amongst politicians, and between politicians and firms, have a significant impact on the voting behavior of legislators. Lastly we will investigate recent claims that politicians may be trading on illegal insider information in their personal stock portfolios.
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Defining Greatness — Lessons Learned from Business Legends
Lecturer Anthony Mayo
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Would Walt Disney be a success in today's hypermedia environment? Would Henry Ford's uncompromising focus on productivity through mass production resonate with today's automobile industry? Could Jack Welch lead today with the approach that gave him and his company such prominence just a few years ago? Business leaders—whether legends of the last century or trailblazers of the current one—do not operate in a vacuum. In any era, executives lead within environments that are constantly reconfigured by contextual factors-political, regulatory, social, and others—that breed both obstacles and opportunities. Which of the 20th century's many great leaders were most adept at exploiting the opportunities of their times? And what lessons do their legacies hold for the study and practice of leadership today?
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf) -
Looking Up and Looking Out: Effects of Workgroup Sex and Race Composition on Turnover Among Professionals
Professor Kathleen L. McGinn
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Increased diversity in the entry level ranks has not translated to similar diversity among organizations' leaders due to different promotion and turnover rates across demographic groups. This research investigates the role of workgroup sex and race composition on turnover among junior professionals. Studying lawyers at a large U.S. firm over five years, we examine the effects of a professional's demographic match with superiors and peers on the likelihood of voluntary and involuntary exit. We argue that social identification with same sex and race superiors will stimulate positive social comparisons, reducing the likelihood that a junior professional will leave the organization, but social identification with same sex and race peers may provoke negative social comparisons, mitigating potentially positive cohesion effects and increasing the chance of exit. Supporting predictions, junior attorneys working in groups with higher proportions of same sex senior attorneys are less likely to exit, while those working in groups with higher proportions of same sex and same race peers are more likely to exit. The effects hold across demographic groups, but vary by minority/majority status, disproportionately affecting women and underrepresented minorities.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
In Search of Common Sense, Competence and Character
Professor William A. Sahlman
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.This session will focus on some of the difficult fiscal and political challenges confronting the U.S. Among other topics, we will explore the roots of the recent financial crisis, healthcare reform, the rate of investment in new technologies, and some thoughts about the path forward for business leaders, politicians and citizens.
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Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach for Better Execution
Professor Robert L. Simons
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Executing strategy requires tough choices. Unfortunately, many managers avoid choosing in the mistaken belief that they can have it all. Instead of focusing on one primary customer, they try to serve many different types of customers. Instead of instilling values that prioritize the interests of shareholders, customers, and employees, they develop lists of aspirational attributes. Instead of focusing on what could cause their strategy to fail, they build complex scorecards with an overload of measures. The result: disappointing performance and declining market position. To guard against these risks, we will review the seven strategy questions that all executives (and directors) should ask to ensure that business leaders are making the tough choices that ensure successful strategy execution—and winning in highly-competitive, global markets.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation Video -
What's New at HBS in 2011: Knowledge-Based Strategy
Professor Hirotaka Takeuchi
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.A new second-year course, Knowledge-Based Strategy, kicked off within the Strategy Unit in 2011. It complements the required Strategy course in the first-year program by looking at strategy development from a more subjective, context-specific, and future-oriented perspective. The objective of the course/this session is to make students/you realize what it takes to become a well-rounded strategist. They/you have to be many things at the same time:
- A philosopher who grasps the essence of a problem and draws general conclusions from random observations
- A master craftsman who understands the key issues of the moment and acts on them immediately
- An idealist who will do what they believe is right and good for the company and society
- A politician who can spur people to action
- A novelist who uses metaphors, stories, and rhetoric
- A teacher with good values and strong principles, from whom others want to learn
Personal Growth
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Alumni Career Hub & Suite of Career Offerings
Ms. Christine Sullivan, Director of Alumni Career & Professional Development
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Whether you're currently engaged in a job search or just thinking about it, now you can put the power of a newly launched career tool to use. Alumni Career Hub encompasses the next generation job bank, provides new user tools and functionality and allows you to manage your career activities from a centralized dashboard. Come hear about the latest contribution to a robust suite of career offerings. Interested in starting a business? Thinking about a new career direction? Seeking a Board position? At every professional crossroads, Alumni Career & Professional Development offers the tools, resources and services to help you achieve your career goals.
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Believe It. Live It.
Mr. J. Vaughn Brock (MBA '85)
view alumnus profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.More than Words. A Way of Living. From the beaches of Normandy to the streets of Fallujah, in a downtown allerway and a country tree house, at a running track and on a stage... in these places and others in between, we join a crew of young men as they discover what it means to believe and live by the values of being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.
This video and study guide explore these values as we meet a Rwandan genocide survivor, an Iraq war hero, a U.S. Army rescue helicopter unit and other everyday people who personify these values in their daily life—those who truly "Believe It. Live It."
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The World of Business Information at Your Fingertips — Baker Library Isn't Just for Course Work Anymore!
Ms. Ann Cullen
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.
Researching a new trend? Exploring a new idea? Reevaluating your personal, career, or professional goals? Baker Library Services is here to help. Come to this program to learn about the wide variety of Baker Library services and resources available to you. A case scenario will be used to facilitate a discussion that will take you step by step in thinking through how to productively and effectively approach research. This session will extend the "Baker Library Alumni Service Overview" presentation offered earlier this morning.
Related Resources:
Alumni Services Overview (pdf)
Knowledge and Library Services Overview (pdf) -
Why Smart People Won't Change
Professor Thomas J. DeLong
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Many people with a high need for achievement find the process of individual change very difficult. Some professionals resign themselves to organizational, personal and life situations that are miserable or where they feel caught. Professor DeLong will discuss individual motivation and how to leverage the opportunities that confront us in our professional and private lives. The presentation is based on DeLong's forthcoming book, Flying Without A Net: Turn Fear of Failure Into Fuel for Success.
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The Challenge of the Changing Workforce
Ms. Tamara J. Erickson (MBA '78)
view alumna profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Seismic shifts are occurring in the workforce. Over the next several years, the number of jobs created could begin to outstrip the number of people who desire to participate in the workforce. And, values toward "work" are changing. Today four generations are working together—each bringing different experiences and assumptions to the job. These and other changes will affect the relationships we forge with employees, the opportunities ahead for us and our children, our approaches to education, our philosophies toward retirement, and the fundamental way we live out our lives.
In this provocative and fun session, Tammy offers a deep understanding of the composition of the future workforce, characteristics and expectations of the four generations in today's workforce, and actions to attract and retain great talent.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video -
Who's Got Your Back: Building Relationships for Success in Life
Mr. Keith E. Ferrazzi (MBA '92)
view alumnus profile
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Keith Ferrazzi presents Who's Got Your Back, a breakthrough program to build deep, trusting relationships that create success—and won't let you fail. In this interactive keynote, participants will learn:
- The Four Mindsets to building deeper, more trusting "lifeline relationships"
- Tips and tools for overcoming the careers — crippling habits that hold us back
- How to set goals in a dramatically more powerful way
- Why we should replace "yes men" in our lives with those who get it and care — and will hold us accountable to achieving our goals
- How to lower our guards and let others help
None of us can do it alone. We need the perspective and advice of a trusted team. In this presentation, Keith Ferrazzi shows us how to put our own "dream team" together.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf) -
Just Enough: Enduring Success
Howard H. Stevenson
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Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Harvard Business School graduates have achieved many different kinds of success as leaders of businesses, as entrepreneurs and in their public and private lives. After authoring or co-authoring 150 cases and serving on many corporate and non-profit boards, Howard Stevenson's most recent research has focused on observing the patterns in peoples' lives that create enduring success. The observations made by Stevenson and his co-author, Laura Nash, differ from those in the current rash of "how to" books that offer simple solutions to the problem of living "the good life." Their conclusion is that "it is not about balance" and it is not about maximization. It's about knowing how to define "enough" for today, tomorrow, and the rest of your life. Stevenson and Nash have identified the four essential categories around which people define success and have developed a model for knowing when life becomes too focused on a narrow set of success goals. Stevenson will discuss the model and how to calibrate your actions toward a more enduring success."
Related Resources:
Presentation Video
Philanthropy & Social Enterprise
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Private Sector & Public Responsibilities: The Role of Business in Social Issues
Senior Lecturer Michael Chu
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Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Some goods and services (such as water, education, healthcare, energy) are considered so basic that access by all citizens is often deemed the responsibility of the public sector, especially when low-income populations and developing countries are involved. But empirical research shows cases where business has stepped in to deliver these basic items to the base of the socioeconomic pyramid. Can commercial enterprises do it better? And what if they earn attractive returns while doing it? Is this process good or bad for society? These issues are at the center of Prof. Chu's work and he looks forward to a lively class discussion.
Related HBS Programs:
Building Businesses in Emerging Markets
Corporate Social Responsibility
Global Strategic Management -
Managing the Impact of Wealth on Families
Senior Lecturer John A. Davis
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Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Wealth and the motivation to create wealth is a predominate force in society, and yet there has been little formal study of the creation of wealth or its impact on the families that possess it. Professor Davis will discuss the major issues that wealth presents a family and how families successfully manage both the opportunities and challenges created by wealth.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf) -
Social Enterprise Governance — it is different
Emeritus Professor F. Warren McFarlan
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Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.This session will be built off my new book Joining a Nonprofit Board—What you need to know. These mission driven organizations are very different in character than for-profit organizations. The role of board members, the importance of mission identification, measurement of mission performance and the role of finances and philanthropy create a very different environment from the for-profit board. It is very easy for people from a for profit background to make false steps in this environment which are difficult to recover from.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation Video -
How Charitable Giving Improves Your Own Happiness — and Your Organization's Bottom Line
Associate Professor Michael I. Norton
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Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Can money make you happy? Our research suggests that it can—if you give it away. We show that encouraging people to spend on others —for example, by giving them $20 in the morning and asking them to give it away by the end of the day—makes people happier than spending on themselves. In addition, the positive impact of behaving charitably can improve organizational health and performance. When we gave employees in two organizations "prosocial incentives" (bonuses given to charity or spent on co-workers) rather than standard incentives (bonuses for themselves), both employee satisfaction and job performance improved dramatically. I will discuss how these findings change the way organizations should think about incentivizing employees—and how we should think about spending our own money.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Presentation Video -
Project Antares Brings High-Impact Interventions to Low-Income Populations: A collaboration between HBS and the Harvard School of Public Health
Professors Michael Chu and Howard Stevenson
Roslyn Braeman Payne (MBA '70)Chu faculty profile, Stevenson faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Can a $25 incubator change health prospects for newborns in Nepal—and earn back enough money for its manufacturer to turn a profit and hew to its humanitarian mission?
That's the kind of challenge that Project Antares, a unique collaboration between the Harvard School of Public Health and Harvard Business School, seeks to address. Project Antares aims to combat public health threats that disproportionately affect poor families, and build on those successes by developing curricula to train leaders in business, public health, and policy. Under the Project's auspices, students from HBS and HSPH have conducted 13 field studies in nine countries. These studies have included not only efforts to distribute $25 incubators in Nepal, but campaigns to fine-tune a primary health care model in rural India that empowers "village health champions"; and to leverage a microfinance effort to deliver health services to women in Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Peru through an organization called Pro Mujer.
Launched four years ago with the guidance of HBS Professor Howard Stevenson and through a gift from primary donor Roslyn Braeman Payne, HBS '70, along with support from the Brinson Foundation, the Project focuses on commercial approaches to delivering high-impact health interventions to low-income populations. Now Payne has made an additional pledge to join with others to ensure that the Project can continue its quest for enlightened and cost-effective public health interventions that can be sustained as for-profit ventures, rather than relying on continual government support or uncertain grant funding.
"Countries with thoughtful public health policies and systems help create wealth for their people," says Payne. "Public health is one of the most successful forms of global leverage, and Project Antares is trying to accelerate this leverage through original research, teaching, and collaboration with various organizations. I am honored to be a part of a very special effort with a very special team."
The project is co-directed by David Bloom, Clarence James Gamble Professor of Economics and Demography at HSPH, and Michael Chu, Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School. Chu and Bloom have set several goals for the project for the next few years, including teaching a joint course at HSPH and HBS based on the findings from Project Antares.
Senior Lecturer Michael Chu, Professor Howard Stevenson, and Roslyn Payne will discuss Project Antares, the collaboration between the two schools at Harvard University, and the "lessons learned" for the future.
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Give Smart: Philanthropy That Gets Results
Mr. Thomas J. Tierney (MBA '80)
view alumnus profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Philanthropy represents an opportunity to make an unprecedented impact in our world; Americans donated approximately $300 billion in 2010, and in the first half of the twenty-first century giving to family and community foundations alone will be ten times in today's dollars what it was throughout the entire twentieth century. More than 50 billionaires have joined Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates' Giving Pledge to donate half their fortunes, commitments that are estimated to total over $600 billion. We are poised at the brink of a historic wealth transfer. And the giving is more than financial—service programs like Teach for America and City Year are rapidly becoming premier choices for America's top college graduates while more and more trailing boomers are opting for "encore careers," postponing retirement to pursue work that creates social impact.
But tremendous innovation in the social sector and the best of intentions are not enough—because of its very nature, philanthropy regularly underperforms. How do you ensure these generous gifts of time and money are as effective as they can be? Almost a decade ago, Thomas J. Tierney began tackling these and other tough questions on how to strengthen the social sector when he left Bain & Company to co-found the Bridgespan Group, a nonprofit focused on helping donors and nonprofits to maximize their impact. Over the past 10 years it has advised "both sides of the grant"—philanthropists, leading foundations and hundreds of nonprofits from Peter and Jennifer Buffett's NoVo foundation to the Harlem Children's Zone—on how to work together in achieving the changes they envision in the world. Now, in Give Smart, Tierney distills ten years of Bridgespan's experience, knowledge, and case studies with philanthropy expert Joel L. Fleishman's research and insights to create a much-needed primer for philanthropists and the nonprofit organizations they support.
Philanthropy is personal and situational and there is no magic formula for one's philanthropic work; the path to results is through wrestling with the right questions at the right time. Give Smart asks six challenging, thought-provoking questions to guide donors through the process of determining personally fulfilling philanthropic pursuits designed to achieve results—from the first moments of excitement and possibility to clarifying goals and the concrete steps needed to achieve them; and from finding and working with the right partner organizations to analyzing results.
A how-to-do-it Gospel of Wealth for 21st century philanthropists, Give Smart presents the definitive guide for engaged donors and nonprofit leaders to achieve real, lasting change in the world.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video
Real Estate
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Hard Assets in Age of Uncertainty
Professor Arthur I. Segel
view faculty profile
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Discussion of real estate, farmland and gold investing during uncertain economic times.
Related Resources:
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Regulation & Reform
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Risk, Precaution, and the New Regulatory Environment
Assistant Professor Arthur A. Daemmrich
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.In this interactive lecture, Professor Daemmrich will present findings from his research comparing regulation in the United States and European Union, with a focus on emerging chemical testing programs. Participants will learn why the United States and Europe are adopting different approaches to the identification and management of risks associated with chemicals, despite similar test methods, industry structures, and pro-regulatory pressures from non-governmental organizations. In the discussion, we can consider the implications of different regulatory approaches for multinational firms, debate the emergence of the "precautionary principle" as a regulatory framework, and discuss how firms, governments, and the lay public should respond to new knowledge about the presence of synthetic compounds in our bodies and in the environment.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
Science
- The Business of Stem Cells
Dr. George Q. Daley
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Dr. Daley will recount the scientific, ethical and public policy developments in the fast-paced field of stem cells and regenerative medicine and implications for current and future commercial opportunities.
- Your $1,000 Genome
Kevin Davies PhD, Founding editor of Bio-IT World and author of The $1,000 Genome
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
In 2007, James Watson, who co-discovered the double helix structure of DNA, received the first personal genome sequence for about $1 million. Today, the cost of reading a person's complete DNA sequence has dropped to less than $10,000, the result of an ongoing technological revolution that is outstripping Moore's Law. Today, anybody with a doctor's note can get their genome sequenced for $10-20,000. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people have enjoyed the information provided by personal genomics companies such as Google-backed 23andMe. Kevin Davies, the author of The $1,000 Genome and a regular guest at HBS alumni reunions, will share his experiences in decoding his own genome, spotlight the next generation of sequencing systems and their growing impact in the clinic, and discuss the medical impact and ethical implications of personal genomics.
- Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard: A New Model for Technology Innovation and Collaboration
Donald E. Ingber, MD, PhD, Founding Director, Wyss Institute; Judah Folkman Professor of Vascular Biology, Harvard Medical School; Professor of Bioengineering, Harvard School of Engineering & Applied Sciences
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University was launched on January 1, 2009 with the single largest philanthropic gift in Harvard's history—$125 million—from HBS alumnus Hansjorg Wyss. The mission of the Wyss Institute is to discover the engineering principles that Nature uses to build living things, and to harness these insights to create biologically inspired materials and devices to advance human health and create a more sustainable world. The Wyss Institute creates bioinspired materials and devices that will revolutionize medicine and enhance sustainability by emulating the way Nature builds. Working as an alliance among the schools of Harvard University, its affiliated hospitals and neighboring academic institutions, the Institute has developed a new model for technology innovation and collaboration that crosses institutional and disciplinary barriers. Institute faculty and staff engage in high-risk research that leads to transformative breakthroughs. The biological principles uncovered are harnessed to develop new engineering solutions for healthcare, energy, architecture, robotics and manufacturing. These technologies are translated into commercial products and therapies through collaborations with clinical investigators, corporate alliances and new start-ups.
The Institute is structured explicitly to enable science and technology development in an environment that supports commercialization and accelerates translation of discoveries into commercial products. It was launched by bringing together fourteen of Harvard's and Boston's most brilliant and adventurous scientists and engineers, most of whom already have a proven track-record in interdisciplinary collaboration and entrepreneurship, and we recruited administrative leaders who had extensive start-up experience. Rather than using investigator-driven grant funding mechanisms, Institute scientific operations were organized around six Enabling Technology Platforms that provide funds to support people, equipment, supplies and facilities that are designed to enable groups of faculty, Institute staff and collaborators to develop entirely new technological capabilities that will break open new fields of research and technology development which will benefit all. We weave in expert technical staff with past industrial experience in product development and team management who take on leadership positions in terms of self-organizing product development teams composed of students, fellows and staff from multiple faculty laboratories once a high value application is identified. To further facilitate multi-disciplinary collaboration and ensure synergy across Institute Platforms, we organized our laboratory facilities as "Collaboratories" rather than allocating space to individual faculty or principal investigators. Students and staff from one faculty member's group might be located at entirely different sites at the Institute (e.g., different ends of the same floor in Boston or at our Cambridge site) depending on the project and Platform on which they are participating. In addition, by formalizing a Collaboration Agreement with all of our consortium institutions, industrial partners can develop a single research partnership agreement with the Institute and have access to world-leading faculty from multiple independent institutions; this has been viewed a huge advantage in our collaborations with industry.
Social Media & the Internet
- Facebook and Privacy
Professors Sunil Gupta and Mikolaj Jan Piskorski
Gupta faculty profile, Piskorski faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Facebook was in the spotlight once again this year, but it had nothing to do with the movie about the company's founding. A Wall Street Journal story accused Facebook Inc. of violating the privacy of its millions of users, "transmitting identifying information" to advertising firms and Internet tracking companies. Was this business as usual for Mark Zuckerberg, a tempest in a teapot, a fact of life in a world where privacy has become a rare commodity, or something that Facebook needs to address sooner rather than later?
Three Harvard Business School faculty members who are experts in social media—Sunil Gupta and Mikolaj Jan Piskorski—offer their perspectives.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video - Digital Revolution
Professor Sunil Gupta
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.Digital media, and in particular social media like YouTube, Facebook, blogs, and Twitter, represent radically new tools for reaching and collaborating with customers. This presentation will discuss the trends in new media and a framework for formulating digital strategy.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Video - Blockbuster Strategies: Will Creative Industries Survive the Rise of Digital Technology?
Associate Professor Anita Elberse
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Friday, June 3, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.The emergence of digital technology is having a profound impact on the media and entertainment industries and is putting pressure on existing business models. Drawing on empirical research involving large data sets as well as in-depth case studies of companies in this space, professor Elberse will offer insights into consumer behavior in digital channels and the likely consequences for managers. The central question is whether popular "blockbuster strategies" remain viable in the digital age. The session will focus on issues such as the possibilities for monetizing the "long tail" of media content, the consequences of the unbundling of content, and the new rules of promoting content online.
- Building Healthy Children and a Successful Society in the Media Age
Michael O. Rich, MD, MPH
Saturday, June 4, 11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Revolutionary media technologies and their innovative applications have transformed our world in ways both exhilarating and unpredictable. Children and adolescents, the future of our society, are early adopters and enthusiastic users of rapidly evolving interactive screen media from televisions to the Internet to smartphones. Their childhood is dramatically different even from older siblings. Harvard pediatrician Michael Rich abandons the long-running values versus free expression stalemate to examine measurable influences and outcomes of media exposure on children's physical, mental, and social health. Rigorous medical and psychological science demonstrates how children learn from and are changed by their use of contemporary media and how we can guide their media use so they are not harmed, but become better connected, educated, and prepared for their accelerating, ever-shrinking world.
- The Digital Revolution: How Technology is Changing the World
Professor David B. Yoffie
view faculty profile
Friday, June 3, 2:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.Cloud computing, social networking, the explosion of smartphones and tablets, and the drive to connect all digital products together are having a profound impact on management, strategies, and the way we live our lives. This session will explore the underlying drivers of technological change, the critical trends in technology today, and the impact this revolution will have on tomorrow.
Related Resources:
Presentation Summary (pdf)
Presentation Slides (pdf)
