Labor →
- 05 May 2022
- HBS Case
College Degrees: The Job Requirement Companies Seek, but Don't Really Need
Hiring platforms routinely screen out experienced candidates simply because they aren't college graduates. With millions of openings going unfilled, Boris Groysberg says that companies should look for skills instead of degrees.
- 03 May 2022
- Research & Ideas
Desperate for Talent? Consider Advancing Your Own Employees First
What would it take to build the skills your company needs in your current workforce? Joseph Fuller and Manjari Raman offer a new playbook for a historic talent crunch with no end in sight.
- 22 Apr 2022
- Research & Ideas
Companies Can Expand Their Talent Pool by Giving Ex-Convicts a Second Chance
People with criminal convictions often have trouble finding work and face double-digit unemployment rates. Yet employers would be more willing to hire them under certain conditions, says research by Zoë Cullen. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 14 Apr 2022
- Op-Ed
Let’s Move Forward from COVID—Without Forgetting What We’ve Learned
As the post-pandemic world starts to take shape, many leaders will long to return to life before COVID-19. Instead, they should let go of the past and forge a new, better workplace, say Hise Gibson and MaShon Wilson. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 24 Mar 2022
- Research & Ideas
Why Cutting Jobless Aid Isn't the Answer to Worker Shortages
Many policymakers thought that halting COVID-related unemployment insurance would be a "silver bullet" to addressing worker shortages. In reality, cutting aid undermined consumer spending, says research by Raymond Kluender. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 16 Nov 2021
- HBS Case
How a Company Made Employees So Miserable, They Killed Themselves
Aggressive downsizing at France Télécom culminated in 19 employee suicides. Case studies by Cynthia Montgomery and Ashley Whillans show how mistreating workers can have deadly consequences. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 20 Sep 2021
- Research & Ideas
How Much Is Freedom Worth? For Gig Workers, a Lot.
In the booming gig economy, does the ability to set your schedule outweigh having sick leave and overtime? Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Laura Katsnelson turn to DoorDash drivers to find out. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 May 2021
- Cold Call Podcast
Reversing Brain Drain: Moving Talent to Middle America
After decades of brain drain in rural America, Tulsa Remote is working to attract a diverse group of remote workers to live in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The program offers a $10,000 grant to remote workers and entrepreneurs living outside Oklahoma, who relocate to the state’s second largest city for one year, with the goal that they stay longer and truly engage in the community. Professor Prithwiraj “Raj” Choudhury discusses how the Tulsa Remote model provides workers the flexibility to move out of congested cities and explores the challenges in scaling this model throughout rural America and beyond, in his case, “Tulsa Remote: Moving Talent to Middle America.” Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 28 Feb 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
Measuring Employment Impact: Applications and Cases
Employment impact-weighted accounting statements quantify the positive and negative effects of firm practices for employees and the broader labor community. This analysis of companies in different sectors shows how these statements are beneficial both at an aggregate and more specific level.
- 22 Feb 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
Auditor Independence and Outsourcing: Aligning Incentives to Mitigate Shilling and Shirking
Firms use external auditors to monitor the quality of difficult-to-observe aspects of their business partners’ performance, including the working conditions of their suppliers. Firms can improve monitoring accuracy by having their own employees conduct some audits, and by rotating across third-party auditing firms.
- 01 Feb 2021
- What Do You Think?
Has the New Economy Finally Arrived?
Economists have long tied low unemployment to inflation. James Heskett considers whether the US economic policy of the past four years has shaken those assumptions. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 11 Jan 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
The Political Effects of Immigration: Culture or Economics?
This paper reviews and explains the growing literature focused on the political effects of immigration, and highlights fruitful avenues for future research. When compared to potential labor market competition and other economic forces, broadly defined cultural factors have a stronger political and social impact.
- 11 Dec 2020
- Research & Ideas
Economic Jitters Push Pandemic Job Seekers to Big Companies, Not Startups
Small companies are receiving fewer applications, particularly from experienced professionals, according to research by Shai Bernstein and colleagues. How can startups overcome pandemic fears and compete for talent? Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Dec 2020
- Research & Ideas
Cut Payroll Costs with Transparency, Fairness, and Compassion
As cost-cutting continues across the turbulent economy, companies are challenged to be creative when managing their human capital, say Boris Groysberg and Sarah Abbott. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Dec 2020
- What Do You Think?
How Can We Get Companies to Invest More in Low-Wage Workers?
Does income inequality hold back economic growth? James Heskett ponders what underlying factors keep low-wage workers down. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Nov 2020
- Research & Ideas
Why a Blended Workforce May Be Key to Lasting Competitive Advantage
Companies are increasingly blending full-time staff with skilled on-demand talent. The problem: Few companies have developed cultures that accommodate gig workers, says Joseph B. Fuller. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Nov 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
An Executive Order Worth $100 Billion: The Impact of an Immigration Ban’s Announcement on Fortune 500 Firms’ Valuation
President Trump’s executive order restricting entry of temporary foreign workers to the United States negatively affected the valuation of 471 publicly traded Fortune 500 firms by an estimated $100 billion. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Nov 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
The Stock Market Value of Human Capital Creation
Measuring human capital creation is complex but increasingly important to managers for understanding the relationship between employee expenditures and firm performance. This paper develops a strategy to examine aspects of the intangible human capital investment embedded in a firm’s personnel expense. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 20 Oct 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Flight to Safety: How Economic Downturns Affect Talent Flows to Startups
The COVID-19 crisis makes it more difficult for small, young firms to attract talent as higher-quality candidates turn to more mature firms. Such “flight to safety” leads to a deterioration in the quality of human capital available for startups.
In a Work-from-Anywhere World, How Remote Will Workers Go?
Will professionals still choose cities if they have the option to work from the beach? Research by Prithwiraj Choudhury considers the radical ripple effects of remote work.