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- All HBS Web (209)
- Faculty Publications (114)
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- October 2001 (Revised April 2002)
- Case
America Online, Inc.: Disclosure Strategy
By: Amy P. Hutton and David Lane
Since going public, AOL had disclosed on a quarterly basis supplemental metrics meant to give analysts and investors a way of tracking growth in its subscriber base and the value created through its marketing efforts. These metrics gave management's conversations with...
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Keywords:
Business Model;
Internet and the Web;
Change Management;
Internet and the Web;
Corporate Disclosure;
Media;
Digital Marketing;
Information Technology Industry;
Media and Broadcasting Industry
Hutton, Amy P., and David Lane. "America Online, Inc.: Disclosure Strategy." Harvard Business School Case 102-004, October 2001. (Revised April 2002.)
- 2021
- Article
Decarbonizing Everything
By: Alex Cheema-Fox, Bridget LaPerla, George Serafeim, David Turkington and Hui (Stacie) Wang
We analyze how the use of different climate risk measures leads to different portfolio carbon outcomes and risk-adjusted returns. Our findings are synthesized in a rules-based investment framework, which selects a different type of climate metric across industries and...
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Keywords:
Climate Risk;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
ESG Disclosure;
ESG Disclosure Metrics;
ESG Ratings;
Investing;
Investing For Impact;
Investment Strategy;
Environment;
Decarbonization;
Climate Change;
Environmental Sustainability;
Environmental Management;
Environmental Accounting;
Investment;
Strategy;
Investment Portfolio;
Investment Return
Cheema-Fox, Alex, Bridget LaPerla, George Serafeim, David Turkington, and Hui (Stacie) Wang. "Decarbonizing Everything." Financial Analysts Journal 77, no. 3 (2021): 93–108.
- September–October 2020
- Article
Social-Impact Efforts That Create Real Value
By: George Serafeim
Until the mid-2010s few investors paid attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data—information about companies’ carbon footprints, labor policies, board makeup, and so forth. Today the data is widely used by investors. How can organizations create...
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Keywords:
Sustainability;
Sustainability Management;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
ESG Disclosure;
ESG Disclosure Metrics;
ESG Ratings;
ESG Reporting;
Social Impact;
Impact Measurement;
Social Innovation;
Purpose;
Corporate Purpose;
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Strategy;
Social Enterprise;
Society;
Accounting;
Investment;
Environmental Sustainability;
Climate Change;
Corporate Strategy;
Mission and Purpose;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Financial Services Industry;
Chemical Industry;
Technology Industry;
Consumer Products Industry;
Pharmaceutical Industry;
North America;
Europe;
Japan;
Australia
Serafeim, George. "Social-Impact Efforts That Create Real Value." Harvard Business Review 98, no. 5 (September–October 2020): 38–48.
- June 2011 (Revised February 2013)
- Case
Mandatory Environmental, Social, and Governance Disclosure in the European Union
By: George Serafeim
In 2011, the European Commission was deciding on how to best modify the existing European Union policy on corporate disclosure of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. Previous directives had recommended that European companies report ESG...
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Keywords:
Integrated Corporate Reporting;
Corporate Strategy;
Corporate Disclosure;
Environmental Accounting;
Competitive Strategy;
International Accounting;
Financial Reporting;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Debates;
Europe
Eccles, Robert G., George Serafeim, and Phillip Andrews. "Mandatory Environmental, Social, and Governance Disclosure in the European Union." Harvard Business School Case 111-120, June 2011. (Revised February 2013.)
- May 2004
- Article
Disclosure Practices of Foreign Companies Interacting with U.S. Markets
We analyze the disclosure practices of companies as a function of their interaction with the U.S. markets for a group of 794 firms from 24 countries in Asia-Pacific and Europe. Our analysis uses the Transparency and Disclosure scores developed recently by Standard &...
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Keywords:
Management Practices and Processes;
Markets;
Investment;
Size;
Performance;
Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues;
Corporate Governance;
Corporate Disclosure;
Trade;
United States;
Asia;
Europe
Khanna, Tarun, Krishna G. Palepu, and Suraj Srinivasan. "Disclosure Practices of Foreign Companies Interacting with U.S. Markets." Journal of Accounting Research 42, no. 2 (May 2004).
- 2022
- Working Paper
ESG: Hyperboles and Reality
By: George Serafeim
ESG has rapidly become a household name leading to both confusion about what it means and creating unrealistic expectations about its effects. In this paper, I draw on more than a decade of research to dispel several myths about ESG and provide answers to important...
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Keywords:
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
ESG Disclosure;
ESG Reporting;
ESG Ratings;
Sustainability;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Environmental Sustainability;
Performance;
Corporate Disclosure;
Reports
Serafeim, George. "ESG: Hyperboles and Reality." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 22-031, November 2021.
- 2015
- Working Paper
Implied Materiality and Material Disclosures of Credit Ratings
By: Robert G. Eccles and Tim Youmans
This first of three papers in our series on materiality in credit ratings will examine the materiality of credit ratings from an "implied materiality" and governance disclosure perspective. In the second paper, we will explore the materiality of environmental, social,...
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Eccles, Robert G., and Tim Youmans. "Implied Materiality and Material Disclosures of Credit Ratings." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 15-079, April 2015.
- October 2021
- Article
Shareholder Activism and Firms' Voluntary Disclosure of Climate Change Risks
By: Caroline Flammer, Michael W. Toffel and Kala Viswanathan
This paper examines whether—in the absence of mandated disclosure requirements—shareholder activism can elicit greater disclosure of firms’ exposure to climate change risks. We find that environmental shareholder activism increases the voluntary disclosure of climate...
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Keywords:
Transparency;
Reporting;
Shareholder Engagement;
Shareholder Activism;
Climate Change;
Risk and Uncertainty;
Environmental Management;
Investment Activism;
Corporate Disclosure;
Communication Strategy;
Information Publishing;
Measurement and Metrics;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Problems and Challenges;
United States
Flammer, Caroline, Michael W. Toffel, and Kala Viswanathan. "Shareholder Activism and Firms' Voluntary Disclosure of Climate Change Risks." Strategic Management Journal 42, no. 10 (October 2021): 1850–1879. (Featured in Harvard Business Review.)
- January 2020 (Revised July 2020)
- Case
BlackRock: Linking Purpose to Profit
The case revolves around the actions that Barbara Novick, co-founder and Vice-Chair of Blackrock, and Michelle Edkins, Global Head of Investment Stewardship, would need to take in response to the controversial CEO letters from Laurence (Larry) Fink, Chairman and CEO of...
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Keywords:
Boards Of Directors;
Institutional Investors;
Disclosure;
Transparency;
Corporate Purpose;
Corporate Profits;
ESG;
ESG Disclosure Metrics;
Corporate Sustainability;
Engagement Strategy Of Institutions;
Stewardship Role Of Institutions;
BlackRock;
Corporate Governance;
Governing and Advisory Boards;
Institutional Investing;
Accounting;
Corporate Disclosure;
Mission and Purpose;
Profit;
Environmental Sustainability;
Climate Change;
Diversity;
Corporate Accountability;
Financial Services Industry;
United States
Deshpandé, Rohit, Aiyesha Dey, and George Serafeim. "BlackRock: Linking Purpose to Profit." Harvard Business School Case 120-042, January 2020. (Revised July 2020.)
- October 2018
- Supplement
JetBlue: Relevant Sustainability Leadership (B)
By: George Serafeim and David Freiberg
The case outlines JetBlue's decision to disclose according to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) standards and the ESG metrics they began reporting. Data on resulting changes in institutional ownership are also provided.
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Keywords:
Sustainability;
Metrics;
Leadership And Change Management;
Airlines;
Innovation;
Purpose;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Sustainability Reporting;
Change Management;
Leadership;
Mission and Purpose;
Financial Reporting
Serafeim, George, and David Freiberg. "JetBlue: Relevant Sustainability Leadership (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 119-044, October 2018.
- June 2023
- Article
Do Job Seekers Value Diversity Information? Evidence from a Field Experiment and Human Capital Disclosures
By: Jung Ho Choi, Joseph Pacelli, Kristina M. Rennekamp and Sorabh Tomar
We examine how information about the diversity of a potential employer's workforce affects individuals’ job-seeking behavior. We embed a field experiment in job recommendation emails from a leading career advice agency in the U.S. The experimental treatment involves...
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Choi, Jung Ho, Joseph Pacelli, Kristina M. Rennekamp, and Sorabh Tomar. "Do Job Seekers Value Diversity Information? Evidence from a Field Experiment and Human Capital Disclosures." Journal of Accounting Research 61, no. 3 (June 2023): 695–735.
- October 2017 (Revised October 2022)
- Case
JetBlue: Relevant Sustainability Leadership
By: George Serafeim and David Freiberg
In 2017, JetBlue, the airline founded on the mission to “bring humanity back to air travel,” was considering becoming one of the first companies to report its sustainability performance according to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) standards. SASB...
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Keywords:
Sustainability;
Metrics;
Leadership And Change Management;
Airlines;
Innovation;
Purpose;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Sustainability Reporting;
Change Management;
Leadership;
Financial Reporting;
Environmental Sustainability;
Mission and Purpose;
Reports;
Competitive Strategy;
Measurement and Metrics;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Air Transportation Industry;
United States
Serafeim, George, and David Freiberg. "JetBlue: Relevant Sustainability Leadership (A)." Harvard Business School Case 118-030, October 2017. (Revised October 2022.)
- 21 Jul 2021
- Research & Ideas
What Does an ESG Score Really Say About a Company?
Receiving more information can clarify the complex, but not when it comes to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) scores. A recent study shows that the more information a company discloses about its ESG practices, the more rating agencies disagree on how well...
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Keywords:
by Kristen Senz
- 2020
- Working Paper
A Preliminary Framework for Product Impact-Weighted Accounts
By: George Serafeim and Katie Trinh
While there has been significant progress in the measurement of an organization’s environmental and social impacts from its operations, metrics to evaluate the impact of products once they come to market lag far behind. In this paper, we provide a framework for...
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Keywords:
Social Impact;
Product Life Cycle;
Environment;
Sustainability;
Measurement;
Metrics;
Impact Investing;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
ESG Reporting;
Product;
Environmental Sustainability;
Measurement and Metrics;
Framework;
Financial Statements
Serafeim, George, and Katie Trinh. "A Framework for Product Impact-Weighted Accounts." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-076, January 2020. (Revised October 2020.)
- October 2022
- Case
Sustainable Finance at Itau BBA
By: George Serafeim, Maria Loumioti and Benjamin Maletta
As of August 2022, the Itau BBA had structured dozens of sustainability linked bonds, which made future interest payments a function of the borrower meeting a target for a sustainability metric, and had solidified its reputation as a pioneer of sustainable finance in...
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Keywords:
Sustainable Finance;
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Environmental Sustainability;
Growth Strategy;
Debt Contracting;
Performance Metrics;
Risk Assessment;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Financial Instruments;
Risk Management;
Debt Securities;
Measurement and Metrics;
Banking Industry;
Pulp and Paper Industry;
Latin America
Serafeim, George, Maria Loumioti, and Benjamin Maletta. "Sustainable Finance at Itau BBA." Harvard Business School Case 123-036, October 2022.
- September – October 2011
- Article
The Rise and Consequences of Corporate Sustainability Reporting
By: Ioannis Ioannou and George Serafeim
For many decades the cornerstone of corporate reporting has been financial information that is presented in a company's annual, semi-annual, and quarterly reports. These comprehensive financial reports—required by law for public companies in most countries...
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Keywords:
Sustainability;
ESG Reporting;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Annual Reports;
Operations;
Strategy;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Business and Stakeholder Relations;
Performance;
Business Model;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Corporate Disclosure
Ioannou, Ioannis, and George Serafeim. "The Rise and Consequences of Corporate Sustainability Reporting." European Business Review (September–October 2011).
- December 2011 (Revised May 2015)
- Case
Aviva Investors
By: George Serafeim
The Aviva Investors case describes the challenge of integrating sustainability considerations into the strategy and business practices of companies and into the decision making process of the investment community. Steve Waygood, Chief Responsible Investment Officer at...
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Keywords:
Investing;
Investment Management;
Shareholder Activism;
Disclosure;
Stock Exchanges;
Sustainability;
Sustainable Development;
Sustainability Reporting;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Social Impact;
Activism;
Investment;
Management;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Environmental Sustainability;
United Kingdom
Serafeim, George, Robert G. Eccles, and Kyle Armbrester. "Aviva Investors." Harvard Business School Case 112-047, December 2011. (Revised May 2015.)
- 2019
- Chapter
The Consequences of Mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting
By: Ioannis Ioannou and George Serafeim
A key aspect of the governance process inside organizations and markets is the measurement and disclosure of important metrics and information. In this chapter, we examine the effect of sustainability disclosure regulations on firms’ disclosure practices and...
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Keywords:
Mandatory Disclosure;
Mandatory Reporting;
Sustainability;
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Social Impact;
Valuation;
China;
South Africa;
Europe;
Asia;
Regulation;
Corporate Disclosure;
Integrated Corporate Reporting;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Corporate Governance;
China;
Denmark;
Malaysia;
South Africa
Ioannou, Ioannis, and George Serafeim. "The Consequences of Mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting." In The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Social Responsibility: Psychological and Organizational Perspectives, edited by Abagail McWilliams, Deborah E. Rupp, Donald S. Siegel, Günter K. Stahl, and David A. Waldman, 452–489. Oxford University Press, 2019.
- Article
Corporate Social Responsibility and Access to Finance
By: Beiting Cheng, Ioannis Ioannou and George Serafeim
In this paper, we investigate whether superior performance on corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies leads to better access to finance. We hypothesize that better access to finance can be attributed to a) reduced agency costs due to enhanced stakeholder...
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Keywords:
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Sustainability;
Capital Constraints;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Stakeholder Engagement;
Disclosure;
Corporate Disclosure;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Environmental Sustainability;
Capital
Cheng, Beiting, Ioannis Ioannou, and George Serafeim. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Access to Finance." Strategic Management Journal 35, no. 1 (January 2014): 1–23.
- June 2022 (Revised August 2022)
- Case
Sustainability Reporting at Dollar Tree, Inc.
By: Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan Ni
The cases discusses the ESG strategy of Dollar Tree Inc., a U.S. Fortune 500 company in the deep discount retail industry and the and shareholder pressure faced by the company. In 2022, the company faced a shareholder resolution from a renowned shareholder advocacy...
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Keywords:
ESG;
Sustainability;
Shareholder Activism;
Dollar Tree;
Sustainability Reporting;
ESG Reporting;
Board Of Directors;
Shareholder Engagement;
GHG;
Environmental Accounting;
Integrated Corporate Reporting;
Trends;
Communication;
Announcements;
Voting;
Environmental Management;
Climate Change;
Environmental Sustainability;
Values and Beliefs;
Corporate Accountability;
Corporate Disclosure;
Corporate Governance;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Policy;
Reports;
Business or Company Management;
Risk Management;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Outcome or Result;
Strategic Planning;
Business and Stakeholder Relations;
Situation or Environment;
Opportunities;
Civil Society or Community;
Social Issues;
Public Opinion;
Strategy;
Adaptation;
Alignment;
Business Strategy;
Corporate Strategy;
Value Creation;
Retail Industry;
United States;
Virginia
Srinivasan, Suraj, and Li-Kuan Ni. "Sustainability Reporting at Dollar Tree, Inc." Harvard Business School Case 122-044, June 2022. (Revised August 2022.)