Category: Theory and Research

Lifeguarding provides early lessons in decision-making under pressure, leadership, risk assessment, adaptability, and crisis management. This paper presents the results of a pilot study that explores Read more

The Making of Successful Female Family-Enterprise Leaders

Based on interviews with 46 female family firm successors from 13 countries around the globe, we distill patterns of how the female successors were raised, how their career paths looked like, what Read more

Surprising reasons owners exit family businesses

Only about a third of family businesses make it to a second generation beyond the founder. Conventional wisdom says that these firms falter because the owners didn’t have a succession plan, or the Read more

It is well-known that only a small fraction of startups achieve long-lasting success. They often fail not because their idea is poor but because of problems executing on their idea. One area that is Read more

What would you like to see in the future? Some common answers to this question might include a cure for cancer or other chronic diseases, or technologies that can help feed the world in ways that are Read more

In 2003 Noam Wasserman introduced the term “Paradox of Success” to describe how software company founders were more likely to be replaced as their startups attracted more capital or went public. Read more

Being Female Affects Business Loans from Family and Friends

It’s been said (ruefully) that Ginger Rogers had to perform the same dance moves as Fred Astaire, only backwards and in high heels. Unfortunately, this also holds true for women seeking financing Read more

“Every age has a theory about the past and the present, of what was and what is, a notion of time: a theory of history…Our era has disruption… [1] ” – Jill Lepore, David Woods Kemper ’41 Read more

"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool about it." - W.C. Fields In the fall of 2010, Dejen Tesfiagiorgis sat in his tiny incubator office on Read more

In 2000, the New England Patriots football team chose University of Michigan quarterback Tom Brady in the sixth round of the draft. He became the starting quarterback barely two years later, and on Read more