Chapter 1: The Flame, Ignited You see before you an old man, burdened and weathered by the myriad small hardships and crises of life. Such is the destiny of those who toil with their hands to harvest the Earth’s bounty. But I have not always been this way. I want to tell you a story…
Students protest after Administration permits the United States government to flag all countries as Level 4 risk. The United States of America issued a rare Global Level 4 health advisory, asking citizens to “come home immediately.” The Government advised, “Have a travel plan that does not rely on the U.S. Government for assistance,” which is…
Faculty says decision aligns with new all-virtual strategy. As HBS students have watched most of what they know and love about the HBS experience—such as classes, section events, Shad workout classes, and graduation—move from the physical world to the virtual world, ECs recently learned that, in lieu of distributing paper diplomas, the administration will simply…
“10/10. Big fan. I’ve been going to this place since it opened. Great for a quick snack, sit-down meal, or even special occasions. The curtains make it seem fancy, but it’s really more of a neighborhood gem. Case in point: seems like I run into someone I know every time I go!” -Jantastic4@hotmail.com Sept 2019…
Management consultants are enraged by generic comment blackout. In a blow to the advance of technology and data science, HBS has pulled back the machine learning pilot it was conducting on Zoom in collaboration with the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The move serves as a triumph for students, who had been horrified to…
Faculty and staff claim one bad case does not merit a tuition reimbursement. In a tense meeting with Jan Rivkin and Rob Huckman, RC Presidents and Ed Reps demanded to understand why the Disney case, successfully used with literally every HBS class since the beginning of time, resulted in a 9.3/10 rating in their WhatsApp…
ISDL coaches will be repurposed to make memes. In a bold move that dazzled his admirers and detractors alike, Dean Nohria announced that he would be invoking the Defensive Humor Production Act of 2020. As an ever increasing number of bored students exhaust the finite supply of #coronamemes on the internet, the Dean is looking…
Introducing Nitin Nohria. After an exhaustive six-month search, the HBS Dean Search Advisory Committee announced Friday the successor to Dean Nitin Nohria: Nitin Nohria. “Honestly, his resume just stood out,” said search committee member Professor Matt Weinzierl. “We used blind resumes, of course, to remove any bias we may have had, so we didn’t realize…
POTUS orders Harvard Business Publishing to manufacture toilet paper. Chafing under pressure from a desperate public, President Donald J. Trump invoked the Defense Production Act on Tuesday, giving himself sweeping new authority to direct the production of American firms during times of national emergency. In his very first order, he commanded Harvard Business Publishing (HBP)…
In his monthly column for the Harbus, Professor Kevin W. Sharer shares his thoughts on the issues facing HBS students. A very successful CEO of a respected and large global brand shared four ideas with the top 500 executives at their annual leadership gathering. This meeting is the key leadership leverage opportunity for the CEO,…
Reggie Smith (MBA ’20) tells us what to expect this month. March is one of the craziest months of the year. It can be cold and snowy, or warm and spring-like, or a mix of both. Typically, the first half of March is a continuation of winter, with the second half showing signs of spring….
It’s better to gird for the fight against socialism now than to put it off to another day. The 2020 election is underway, and America’s attention has shifted to the Democratic primaries. After winning the popular vote in Iowa, winning New Hampshire, and dramatically sweeping the field in Nevada, Bernie Sanders appears unstoppable. Like the…
Umang Sota (MBA ’21) reports on the lessons in cybersecurity and entrepreneurship through the story of cybersecurity startup Zscaler. The enterprise technology landscape has seen dramatic shifts over the last five years, including increasing permeation of the Cloud, an expanding IoT network, adoption of BYOD (Bring your own device), flexibility around remote work and burgeoning…
A nonprofit co-founded by Bastian Purrer (MBA ’20) is giving real humans real digital IDs; Shuyao Kong (MBA ’20) reports. We have all been there. Upon downloading a new app, we are prompted with two registration options: “Sign up with Facebook” or “Sign up with Google.” Most people would choose either one of them because,…
Umang Sota (MBA ’21) talks with Khaled Kteily (HKS MPP ’16) about his male fertility start-up Legacy. There are few things in life that are more precious than having a family and having children. Of course, having children is important for the continuation of the human race. But on a personal level, for people who…
Adam Parker (RC partner) shares the story of frustrating visa applications to his love for soccer. Adam Parker is originally from a small town outside London, called Berkhamsted. As Berkhamsted is not known to people outside (or even inside!) the U.K., he likes to explain it based on the nearest Premier League soccer team: “It…
Held across two days, and jointly hosted by the students of the Kennedy School and the Business School, India Conference saw the participation from 800 guests and over 100 speakers. At a time when India is facing many burning questions on its social and economic future, leading experts from business, politics, media and social sectors…
The Student Association is focused on increasing campus activation through new events and programming. SA Chief Events Officer, Rachel Brown (MBA ’20), gives insight into the makings of ‘SNL’. The night before students returned to class for Spring 2020, multiple calendar requests hit their inbox with the titles “SNL presents…”. Flash forward one week and…
Upoma Dutta (MBA ’21) talks with Jeff Shell (MBA ’91) about his next chapter at NBCUniversal. For the past three years, HBS has managed to get a sizable portion of the RC and EC cohorts to sacrifice four days from their much-needed winter breaks to take the optional Short Intensive Programs (SIPs)—for no credit. “The…
Singapore, by Deborah Tan (MBA ’21) I miss Singapore most during Lunar New Year (LNY). Old Chinese songs warble from loudspeakers in wet markets, homes are alive with people visiting kin, and the color is red everywhere—fresh outfits, red packets, calligraphy signs adorning doorways. It feels like Thanksgiving and Christmas combined but better, because you…
To the Women Who Aim for Progress Rather Than Perfection As we celebrate International Women’s Day this month, I’m once again struck by how lucky we are to be surrounded by such a high density of remarkable women around us—women who inspire us to push through and be better versions of ourselves. I’ve been lucky…
Members of the HBS’ Latter-day Saint Student Association share how the beloved HBS professor inspired them and others to build more principled, integrated, and outwardly focused lives. Note: After careful consideration and in accordance with the new Harvard University guidelines for events and meetings on campus due to COVID-19, the memorial service for Professor Clayton Christensen…
A pocket-sized run-down of some of the best in Arts and Culture happening at HBS, at Harvard, and around town this month. 1) From the Student Association (SA): The SA teamed up with ArtRoom to host the Sheila Del Bosque Trio on March 2 for a night of jazz, refreshments, and conversation in…
Over 250 students insist that the incoming Dean of HBS commits to examining capitalism’s blindspots: climate change, inequality and the erosion of democratic institutions. There are many factors that should go into the appointment of a new Dean. Chief among them are virtues such as honesty, empathy, a respect for diversity, and an ability to…
Students engage with business leaders from Asia at the Annual Asia Business Conference. As the sun rose in Boston on March 1, the annual Asia Business Conference kicked off at Klarman Hall. A collaboration among Harvard Business School, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Law School, and Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, the conference brings speakers and…
This month, Tess Michaels (MBA ’20) introduces us to Stride Funding, a mission-oriented business that offers income-share agreement as a more flexible, affordable option to private student loans. Tell us more about your background and what inspired you to be an entrepreneur. I’ve always thrived at learning by doing. I pursued my first venture during…
Co-founders recall painful early days when only income was $300K from their parents. “It was a really humbling experience.” We are sitting in their office in downtown Brooklyn in a WeWork, which, somehow, still exists. John Silva, CEO of LoveJuice, nods gravely as co-founder Alex Roberts continues. “I checked the bank account and the balance…
A look into how students really felt over winter break. Continuing a yearslong tradition at HBS, RCs and ECs handed in their travel diaries upon re-entering Spangler for the first time in seven weeks (only five short weeks for RCs). Disoriented, many thought the SAS team members collecting journals were simply there to take their…
Reggie Smith (MBA ’20) tells us what to expect this month. February is my favorite month. It’s the most blizzardly month of the year! Roughly half of the most historic blizzards in Boston have occured in February. I expect weekly threats of snow to be the norm this month and, yes, I am predicting at…
Umang Sota (MBA ’21) talks with co-founder of London-based startup Trouva that is using online to spread the beauty of offline and not steal it. Undoubtedly, technology advancements—not only in the e-commerce space but also across the whole ecosystem—including mobile penetration, payment systems, and logistics are increasingly attracting customers towards digital stores. The rhetoric on…