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Zoe B. Cullen

Zoe B. Cullen

Assistant Professor of Business Administration

Assistant Professor of Business Administration

Read more

Zoe Cullen graduated with a PhD from Stanford in Economics in 2016.  She worked from 2016-2018 as the Chief Economist for an Asian bank on the roll out of a digital transaction platform.  In 2018 she joined HBS as an Assistant Professor in the Entrepreneurial Management Unit.   Her interests are in the design of labor markets and the choices of employers and labor platforms that affect matters of public interest, such as pay transparency, pay inequality and criminal background screening.  She’s an NBER Affiliate in Labor Studies, and Associate Editor at the Journal of Political Economy.

 

 

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Entrepreneurial Management
+1 (617) 495-1867
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Zoe B. Cullen
Unit
Entrepreneurial Management
Contact Information
(617) 495-1867
Send Email
Publications

Journal Articles
Journal Articles

  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Bobak Pakzad-Hurson. "Equilibrium Effects of Pay Transparency." Econometrica 91, no. 3 (May 2023): 765–802. (Lead Article.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "The Old Boys' Club: Schmoozing and the Gender Gap." American Economic Review (forthcoming). View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë, Will Dobbie, and Mitchell Hoffman. "Increasing the Demand for Workers with a Criminal Record." Quarterly Journal of Economics 138, no. 1 (February 2023): 103–150. View Details
  • Balla-Elliott, Dylan, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "Determinants of Small Business Reopening Decisions After COVID Restrictions Were Lifted." Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 41, no. 1 (Winter 2022): 278–317. View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "How Much Does Your Boss Make? The Effects of Salary Comparisons." Journal of Political Economy 130, no. 3 (March 2022): 766–822. View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Marianne Bertrand, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Small Business Outcomes and Expectations." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 117, no. 30 (July 28, 2020): 17656–66. View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë, and Chiara Farronato. "Outsourcing Tasks Online: Matching Supply and Demand on Peer-to-Peer Internet Platforms." Management Science 67, no. 7 (July 2021). View Details

Working Papers
Working Papers

  • Cullen, Zoë. "Is Pay Transparency Good?" Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 23-039, January 2023. (Revised March 2023.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., Shengwu Li, and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "What's My Employee Worth? The Effects of Salary Benchmarking." NBER Working Paper Series, No. 30570, October 2022. (Revised January 2023.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "The Salary Taboo: Privacy Norms and the Diffusion of Information." NBER Working Paper Series, No. 25145, October 2018. (Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-057, November 2019.) View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, Christopher Stanton, and Adi Sunderam. "The Targeting and Impact of Paycheck Protection Program Loans to Small Businesses." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 21-021, August 2020. View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Zoë Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "What Jobs Are Being Done at Home During the COVID-19 Crisis? Evidence from Firm-Level Surveys." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-138, June 2020. View Details

Cases and Teaching Materials
Cases and Teaching Materials

  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Alexander J. MacKay. "The Spreadsheet." Harvard Business School Case 723-366, August 2022. View Details
  • Bussgang, Jeffrey J., Zoë B. Cullen, William R. Kerr, Benjamin N. Roth, and Michael Norris. "A Close Shave at Squire." Harvard Business School Case 821-073, July 2021. View Details
All Publications

Zoe Cullen graduated with a PhD from Stanford in Economics in 2016.  She worked from 2016-2018 as the Chief Economist for an Asian bank on the roll out of a digital transaction platform.  In 2018 she joined HBS as an Assistant Professor in the Entrepreneurial Management Unit.   Her interests are in the design of labor markets and the choices of employers and labor platforms that affect matters of public interest, such as pay transparency, pay inequality and criminal background screening.  She’s an NBER Affiliate in Labor Studies, and Associate Editor at the Journal of Political Economy.

 

 

Journal Articles
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Bobak Pakzad-Hurson. "Equilibrium Effects of Pay Transparency." Econometrica 91, no. 3 (May 2023): 765–802. (Lead Article.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "The Old Boys' Club: Schmoozing and the Gender Gap." American Economic Review (forthcoming). View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë, Will Dobbie, and Mitchell Hoffman. "Increasing the Demand for Workers with a Criminal Record." Quarterly Journal of Economics 138, no. 1 (February 2023): 103–150. View Details
  • Balla-Elliott, Dylan, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "Determinants of Small Business Reopening Decisions After COVID Restrictions Were Lifted." Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 41, no. 1 (Winter 2022): 278–317. View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "How Much Does Your Boss Make? The Effects of Salary Comparisons." Journal of Political Economy 130, no. 3 (March 2022): 766–822. View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Marianne Bertrand, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Small Business Outcomes and Expectations." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 117, no. 30 (July 28, 2020): 17656–66. View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë, and Chiara Farronato. "Outsourcing Tasks Online: Matching Supply and Demand on Peer-to-Peer Internet Platforms." Management Science 67, no. 7 (July 2021). View Details
Working Papers
  • Cullen, Zoë. "Is Pay Transparency Good?" Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 23-039, January 2023. (Revised March 2023.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., Shengwu Li, and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "What's My Employee Worth? The Effects of Salary Benchmarking." NBER Working Paper Series, No. 30570, October 2022. (Revised January 2023.) View Details
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Ricardo Perez-Truglia. "The Salary Taboo: Privacy Norms and the Diffusion of Information." NBER Working Paper Series, No. 25145, October 2018. (Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-057, November 2019.) View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Zoë B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, Christopher Stanton, and Adi Sunderam. "The Targeting and Impact of Paycheck Protection Program Loans to Small Businesses." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 21-021, August 2020. View Details
  • Bartik, Alexander, Zoë Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, and Christopher Stanton. "What Jobs Are Being Done at Home During the COVID-19 Crisis? Evidence from Firm-Level Surveys." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-138, June 2020. View Details
Cases and Teaching Materials
  • Cullen, Zoë B., and Alexander J. MacKay. "The Spreadsheet." Harvard Business School Case 723-366, August 2022. View Details
  • Bussgang, Jeffrey J., Zoë B. Cullen, William R. Kerr, Benjamin N. Roth, and Michael Norris. "A Close Shave at Squire." Harvard Business School Case 821-073, July 2021. View Details
Additional Information
  • Personal Website
  • CV
In The News

In The News

    • 30 Mar 2023
    • Fortune

    Think Salary Transparency Will Cause Outright War among Your Workers? If Done Well, It Actually Can Push Them to Work Harder, Studies Say

    • 14 Jan 2023
    • New York Times

    Who Benefits When Salary Info Is Public?

    • 05 Jan 2023
    • Economist

    Pay-Transparency Laws Do Not Work as Advertised

    • 03 Nov 2022
    • Skimm This Podcast

    Made You Look: Affirmative Action, Salary Transparency, Twitter Takeover

    • 01 Nov 2022
    • Marketplace Business

    Pay Transparency Is Now the Law of the Land in New York City

→More News for Zoe B. Cullen

Zoe B. Cullen In the News

The Salary Taboo

30 Mar 2023
Fortune
Think Salary Transparency Will Cause Outright War among Your Workers? If Done Well, It Actually Can Push Them to Work Harder, Studies Say

14 Jan 2023
New York Times
Who Benefits When Salary Info Is Public?

05 Jan 2023
Economist
Pay-Transparency Laws Do Not Work as Advertised

03 Nov 2022
Skimm This Podcast
Made You Look: Affirmative Action, Salary Transparency, Twitter Takeover

01 Nov 2022
Marketplace Business
Pay Transparency Is Now the Law of the Land in New York City

19 Oct 2022
Work Reconsidered
Pay Transparency

06 Oct 2022
Wisconsin Public Radio
Do You Want to See More Pay Transparency in Wisconsin?

22 Apr 2022
HBS Working Knowledge
Companies Can Expand Their Talent Pool by Giving Ex-Convicts a Second Chance

01 Oct 2021
MarketWatch
Here’s What Would Happen If Americans Could Easily Look Up Everyone’s Salary

31 Aug 2021
Top of Mind
Pay Transparency

02 Aug 2021
HBS Working Knowledge
What if Closing the Wage Gap Means Everyone Earns Less?

18 Jun 2021
Financial Post
William Watson: When not knowing pays

15 Jun 2021
MarketWatch
Do You Know How Much Your Coworkers Are Making? This Study Has Bad News for Workers Who Find Out

21 Apr 2021
Forbes
New Research Finds The ‘Old Boys Club’ At Work Is Real—And Contributing To The Gender Pay Gap

17 Sep 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
Many Small-Business Employees May Be Close to Losing Health Insurance

24 Aug 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
How Much Will Remote Work Continue After the Pandemic?

15 Apr 2020
New York Times
‘Pretty Catastrophic’ Month for Retailers, and Now a Race to Survive

13 Apr 2020
Harvard Business Review
A Way Forward for Small Businesses

04 Mar 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
How Schmoozing with the Boss Helps Men Get Promoted

19 Feb 2020
New York Times Magazine
Breaking the Salary Sharing Taboo

29 Jan 2020
Harvard Business Review
Study: How Schmoozing Helps Men Get Ahead

10 Dec 2019
Marketwatch
Here’s Exactly How Much Extra Money The ‘Old Boys’ Club’ Gives Men Over Their Career

09 Dec 2019
Bloomberg
Smoking With the Boys May Be Leaving Women Executives Behind

14 Oct 2019
Harvard Business Review
Let’s Talk About Money

30 May 2019
WHYY: Radio Times
How much do you make?

01 May 2019
UCLA Anderson Review
Many assume salary transparency will benefit employees, but research suggests downsides, too

02 Apr 2019
MIT Sloan Management Review
Do Men Know More About Salaries?

25 Oct 2018
Harvard Business Review
The Motivating (and Demotivating) Effects of Learning Others’ Salaries

16 Oct 2018
Atlantic
The Discomfort of Asking Coworkers About Their Salaries, Quantified

08 Oct 2018
HBS Working Knowledge
Knowing What Your Boss Earns Can Make You Work Harder

05 Aug 2018
Wall Street Journal
My Boss Makes What?!

How Much Does Your Boss Make?

25 Oct 2018
Harvard Business Review
The Motivating (and Demotivating) Effects of Learning Others’ Salaries

05 Aug 2018
Wall Street Journal
My Boss Makes What?!

Small Business Survey

Schmoozing

Additional Information
Personal Website
CV

In The News

    • 30 Mar 2023
    • Fortune

    Think Salary Transparency Will Cause Outright War among Your Workers? If Done Well, It Actually Can Push Them to Work Harder, Studies Say

    • 14 Jan 2023
    • New York Times

    Who Benefits When Salary Info Is Public?

    • 05 Jan 2023
    • Economist

    Pay-Transparency Laws Do Not Work as Advertised

    • 03 Nov 2022
    • Skimm This Podcast

    Made You Look: Affirmative Action, Salary Transparency, Twitter Takeover

    • 01 Nov 2022
    • Marketplace Business

    Pay Transparency Is Now the Law of the Land in New York City

→More News for Zoe B. Cullen

Zoe B. Cullen In the News

The Salary Taboo

30 Mar 2023
Fortune
Think Salary Transparency Will Cause Outright War among Your Workers? If Done Well, It Actually Can Push Them to Work Harder, Studies Say

14 Jan 2023
New York Times
Who Benefits When Salary Info Is Public?

05 Jan 2023
Economist
Pay-Transparency Laws Do Not Work as Advertised

03 Nov 2022
Skimm This Podcast
Made You Look: Affirmative Action, Salary Transparency, Twitter Takeover

01 Nov 2022
Marketplace Business
Pay Transparency Is Now the Law of the Land in New York City

19 Oct 2022
Work Reconsidered
Pay Transparency

06 Oct 2022
Wisconsin Public Radio
Do You Want to See More Pay Transparency in Wisconsin?

22 Apr 2022
HBS Working Knowledge
Companies Can Expand Their Talent Pool by Giving Ex-Convicts a Second Chance

01 Oct 2021
MarketWatch
Here’s What Would Happen If Americans Could Easily Look Up Everyone’s Salary

31 Aug 2021
Top of Mind
Pay Transparency

02 Aug 2021
HBS Working Knowledge
What if Closing the Wage Gap Means Everyone Earns Less?

18 Jun 2021
Financial Post
William Watson: When not knowing pays

15 Jun 2021
MarketWatch
Do You Know How Much Your Coworkers Are Making? This Study Has Bad News for Workers Who Find Out

21 Apr 2021
Forbes
New Research Finds The ‘Old Boys Club’ At Work Is Real—And Contributing To The Gender Pay Gap

17 Sep 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
Many Small-Business Employees May Be Close to Losing Health Insurance

24 Aug 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
How Much Will Remote Work Continue After the Pandemic?

15 Apr 2020
New York Times
‘Pretty Catastrophic’ Month for Retailers, and Now a Race to Survive

13 Apr 2020
Harvard Business Review
A Way Forward for Small Businesses

04 Mar 2020
HBS Working Knowledge
How Schmoozing with the Boss Helps Men Get Promoted

19 Feb 2020
New York Times Magazine
Breaking the Salary Sharing Taboo

29 Jan 2020
Harvard Business Review
Study: How Schmoozing Helps Men Get Ahead

10 Dec 2019
Marketwatch
Here’s Exactly How Much Extra Money The ‘Old Boys’ Club’ Gives Men Over Their Career

09 Dec 2019
Bloomberg
Smoking With the Boys May Be Leaving Women Executives Behind

14 Oct 2019
Harvard Business Review
Let’s Talk About Money

30 May 2019
WHYY: Radio Times
How much do you make?

01 May 2019
UCLA Anderson Review
Many assume salary transparency will benefit employees, but research suggests downsides, too

02 Apr 2019
MIT Sloan Management Review
Do Men Know More About Salaries?

25 Oct 2018
Harvard Business Review
The Motivating (and Demotivating) Effects of Learning Others’ Salaries

16 Oct 2018
Atlantic
The Discomfort of Asking Coworkers About Their Salaries, Quantified

08 Oct 2018
HBS Working Knowledge
Knowing What Your Boss Earns Can Make You Work Harder

05 Aug 2018
Wall Street Journal
My Boss Makes What?!

How Much Does Your Boss Make?

25 Oct 2018
Harvard Business Review
The Motivating (and Demotivating) Effects of Learning Others’ Salaries

05 Aug 2018
Wall Street Journal
My Boss Makes What?!

Small Business Survey

Schmoozing

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