Research By Topic

A British Entrepreneur Builds a Music Business in Nigeria [21]

Michael Ugwu explains the challenges, and opportunities, of building a company in Lagos.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Corporate Social Responsibility [31], Human Rights [17]

Increasing Companies' Safety & Gender Equity [32]

A study of oil rigs shows that a different approach to male-dominated environments can change corporate culture.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Economic Development [14], Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Jessica Jackley Discusses Stories of Poverty and Entrepreneurship [16]

The cofounder of a microlending outfit says entrepreneurs need to "wake up each day and say, 'Now what?'"

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Economic Development [14], Human Rights [17], Leadership [18]

Why Do Women Not Always Realize Their Workforce Potential? [19]

A researcher says at least part of the answer is that people are more than their potential.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Students Practicing Entrepreneurship During IDEAcorps Help Ed Tech Winner Earn $50K at The Big Idea [20]

Education Everytime, a venture that uses music to direct students through class transitions, got a huge boost last month when 6 students helped the company win $50,000 in funding at The Idea Village’s New Orleans Entrepreneur Week.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

A British Entrepreneur Builds a Music Business in Nigeria [21]

Michael Ugwu explains the challenges, and opportunities, of building a company in Lagos.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Global Issues [34], Education [35]

What’s Next: Student Retention App [36]

[37]

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

A new Facebook app helps incoming freshmen connect—but within the closed community of their college.

-Subscription Required [38]

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Global Issues [34], Education [35]

Rapid Response for Education [39]

[37]

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

The National Math and Science Initiative aims to avert the crisis in secondary school education by replicating proven programs.

-Subscription Required [40]

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Nonprofits [41], Nonprofit Management [42]

Research: Improving Teamwork [43]

[37]

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

Collectivist, group-oriented teams do better work.

-Subscription Required [44]

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Global Issues [34], Government Programs [45], Government [46]

Government 2.0 [47]

[37]

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

Thanks to Todd Park, a federal agency has discovered that health care organizations can think more like nimble startups than like lumbering giants.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Nonprofit Management [42], Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Research: Cadaver Commerce [48]

[37]

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

The moral legitimacy of a new market can come as much from how you sell something as from exactly what you’re selling.

-Subscription Required [49]

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Giving-sector Should Raise its Advocacy Voice [52]

Your Fundraising Needs to Change Now [51]

State, corporate and foundation giving has decreased during the economic recession. Individual giving has increased every year despite recessions. For nonprofits to garner donations from individuals, a whole new set of capacities is required to reach potential individual donors.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Government [46], Nonprofit Management [42]

The giving sector can be much stronger advocates to address the symptoms and the causes of the social and global problems the economic crisis only is making worse. Fear of offending giving-sector powerbrokers, and a lack of resources, are muzzling nonprofits. But supporting nonprofit advocacy, policy and community-organizing work can yield big returns. Those are the conclusions of two new reports that underscore the need for greater investment in helping nonprofits to be stronger advocates.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

We Are the Possible: Meet Samuel Isaac Richard [54]

Rosetta Thurman, author of Perspectives from the Pipeline blog, interviews Samuel Isaac Richard, an emerging, young, nonprofit leader based in Phoenix. She shares his insights on the next generation's ability to implement social change.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Three Museums in One [55]

The author interviews board chair, Frank-Paul King, about the decision to merge the three museums that now make up the Museum of Nature & Science in Dallas, Texas. King says it worked because "after it had been talked about on and off for a decade ... we created a vision for the Museum of Nature & Science for the next century."

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Technology’s Positive Impact on Human Rights [56]

The author details a Web that tells stories and exposes human injustice and trauma rather than gossip. She proposes this exposure will help drive the change that is needed.

Resource: Blog Post

Video/Audio : All [58] | Audio [59] | Video [60]

Topic:

Entrepreneurship in Service to Economic Growth [61]

Sustainable economic growth -- be it in the United States or beyond -- doesn't come through status quo thinking, it comes through connectivity, flux, and a "collision" of people and ideas. So says Paul Kedrosky of the Kauffman Foundation in this university podcast. Addressing an audience of international ministers from developing countries, and technology and NGO professionals at the USRio+2.0 Conference at Stanford, he argues for entrepreneurism as the path to innovation and growth.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Mobile Technology for Healthcare [62]

In a world in which there may not be enough capacity to take care of an increasingly older and sicker population, how may mobile and home-based technologies will be used to facilitate healthcare? That's the question explored by Eric Dishman, director of health innovation at Intel, in this university podcast. He looks at how technologies such as broadband can inexpensively support non-acute healthcare services. Dishman spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference, hosted by Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Info Technology and Sustainable Development [63]

Technology is increasingly being used to support sustainable development, and Google is on the leading edge of that trend. In this university podcast, Google's chief technology advocate, Michael Jones, addresses an audience of international government ministers from developing countries as well as technology and NGO professionals convened by the US State Department and the Stanford Graduate School of Business on the topic. He spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference, hosted by Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Environmental Sustainability, Economic Realities [64]

Climate change, over-consumption of natural resources, and pollution are all contributing to the failing health of our planet, but what can we do to more effectively promote environmental sustainability? In this university podcast, Fabien Cousteau, the third generation to carry on the tradition of deep-ocean adventure and exploration originally pioneered by his grandfather more than half a century ago, offers some solutions. He spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference at Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Technology and Environmental Sustainability [65]

Collective intelligence, man-machine symbiosis, real time feedback loops from sensors… Such concepts are harbingers of a new cooperation between humans and machines. In this university podcast, media expert Tim O'Reilly discusses how lessons from technology can apply to sustainable global development. He spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference hosted at Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Arts, Culture, and Religion [53], Health Care [67], Nonprofit Management [42]

Using People's Irrationality To Do Good [68]

Identifying effective obesity treatment is both a clinical challenge and a public health priority. Can monetary incentives stimulate weight loss? Leslie John presents a study that examines different economic incentives for weight loss during a 16 week intervention.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Bill Gates Says Foreign Aid is Threatened, but Big Ideas Can Turn the Tide [69]

Just off a plane from Africa, Bill Gates visits Stanford to talk about innovation, but not the software kind. Scientists and engineers, he said, need to focus on products that help improve the lives of the world's poor even though the market directs people to help the wealthiest.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Education [35]

Rethinking Learning with Salman Khan [70]

The Mastery in Communication Initiative and the Stanford GSB Education Club hosted Salman Khan, who spoke about the history and evolution of the Khan Academy and how it is reshaping the way people learn today.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Gloria Steinem: Ms. at 40 and the Future of Feminism [71]

Stanford welcomes Gloria Steinem, co-founder and first editor of Ms. Magazine, in celebration of Ms.'s 40th anniversary. Steinem reflected on Ms. Magazine's role over forty years and looked ahead to what feminism may mean for future generations.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Gloria Steinem at Stanford: The Feminist Struggle Continues [72]

Author and activist Gloria Steinem challenged a Stanford audience to fight social injustice with outrageous acts, and offered several targets in the struggle for equal rights.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Entrepreneurship in Service to Economic Growth [61]

Network Mindsets in Nonprofit Management [74]

Nonprofit management is shifting to develop a networking mindset. In this audio lecture, Beth Kanter, author and leader in social media for nonprofits, discusses how nonprofits can utilize their professional networks and develop a “network mindset.” During her presentation at the Stanford Social Innovation Review's Nonprofit Management Institute, she evaluates various tools and experiences in nonprofit management that can develop the relationships needed to create a successful network.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Education [35]

Education for Everyone [75]

Co-founder Andrew Ng, also the Director of the Artificial Intelligence Lab and an associate professor in computer science at Stanford, presented at the Leading Education By Advancing Digital (LEAD) Symposium held at the Stanford Graduate School of Business in September 2012.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Connection Technology to Save Lives [76]

In Indonesia, warning technology exists to alert people to coming weather catastrophes like tsunamis, but too few people have access to the information. So says Ridwan Djamaluddin, Indonesia's deputy chairman for Natural Resources Development, in this university podcast. He discusses the important role of connection technology in increasing the efficiency of tools and enhancing partnerships between governments and their people. Djamaluddin spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference, hosted by Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Using Social Media for Social Good [77]

When a group of friends went to work using social media to help pair their colleague diagnosed with leukemia with a bone marrow donor, a project they named the Dragonfly Effect was born. In this university podcast, Stanford business professor Jennifer Aaker talks about how the lessons emerging from this simple and heartfelt enterprise can apply to any group that wants to use the Internet to promote a good cause. She spoke at the USRio+2.0 Conference, hosted by Stanford.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Sustainable economic growth -- be it in the United States or beyond -- doesn't come through status quo thinking, it comes through connectivity, flux, and a "collision" of people and ideas. So says Paul Kedrosky of the Kauffman Foundation in this university podcast. Addressing an audience of international ministers from developing countries, and technology and NGO professionals at the USRio+2.0 Conference at Stanford, he argues for entrepreneurism as the path to innovation and growth.

Resource: Audio

Case Studies : All [79] | Academic Cases [80]

Topics:

Breaking New Ground: Using the Internet to Scale [82]

Commissioned by KaBOOM! and authored by Katherine Fulton and alumna Heather McLeod Grant of the Monitor Institute, this case study looks at the challenges KaBOOM! faced and lessons the organization learned while pioneering an online strategy to scale its impact. This strategy involves giving away the nonprofit model online for free to empower others to act on KaBoom's behalf.

Resource: Practitioner Case

Topics:

Healthcare [12], Nonprofit Management [42]

Institute for Healthcare Improvement: The Campaign to Save 100,000 Lives [83]

In December 2004, the president of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement challenged U.S. hospitals to reduce unnecessary deaths by 100,000 in the next 18 months. The case describes a campaign that incorporated lessons from politics and social activism.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Creating an Online Information Marketplace for Giving [87]

Social Entrepreneurship: Kiva [84]

Inspired by Professor Muhammad Yunus, Jessica and Matt Flannery experimented with micro-lending connecting Ugandan entrepreneurs to friends and family through a pilot internet trial. Kiva, the first person-to- person microlending organization was born.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Economic Development [14], Nonprofit Management [42], Social Entrepreneurship [15]

As Green As It Gets [85]

As Green as It Gets was a nonprofit economic development organization supporting small, independent producers in disadvantaged Guatemalan communities. The founder pondered how to grow and sustain the organization.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Nonprofit Management [42], Philanthropy, Responsible Investing [86]

The best nonprofits don’t necessarily get the most money, observed William and Flora Hewlett Foundation's Philanthropy Program officer Jacob Harold and president Paul Brest in 2007. From there they started exploring how they could improve the marketplace and how donors give their money. To that effect they hired consulting firm McKinsey & Company to explore the online information marketplace for giving space at a macro level, looking at trends and opportunities. Armed with data they then tried to figure out what to do.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Corporate Social Responsibility [31], Environment [88]

Disclosure Dilemma: Financial Reporting of Contingent and Environmental Liabilities [89]

The case discusses U.S. and international accounting guidance regarding the disclosure of contingent and environmental liabilities.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Economic Development [14], Nonprofit Management [42]

Endeavor [90]

Endeavor selects promising entrepreneurs and helps them develop and grow their businesses through mentorship and guidance. In 2007, founder and CEO Linda Rottenberg looked at the organization's expansion strategy.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Environment [88]

Fuel Economy Standards 2007 [91]

In 2007, Congress was discussing a 40 percent increase in required fuel efficiency. The automobile industry had a choice to fight the ruling., but instead decided to focus on influencing the details of the legislation.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Kiva [92]

By 2007, Kiva had gone through a rapid growth phase. The case recounts the debut of the first online person-to-person microfinance organization and looks at the founders' plan for future development.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Monitoring Factories Around the Globe: The Fair Labor Association and the Worker Rights Consortium [93]

Two nonprofits, the Fair Labor Association (FLA) and the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC), were created in 1999 and 2000, respectively, to monitor factories around the world for sweatshop-related infractions. The two organizations had similar goals, but very different histories, strategies, and ways of operating. Their shared history has been controversial and tumultuous.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Environment [88]

Note on Energy [94]

Entrepreneurs and investors will find in this note a broad overview of the energy sector in 2008, highlighting trends and market dynamics.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Government [46]

Transparent Markets: Promoting Public Values Through Private Enterprise [96]

Luis Moreno Ocampo, an attorney who had fought human rights abuses in Argentina, views corruption in public procurement as the next major human rights issue. He established a company to collect and distribute information on public procurements to make the entire process more transparent.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Environment [88], Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Touring in the Galapagos Islands [97]

Various economic and environmental issues face the owners of a cruise business in the Galapagos Islands. The case gives special attention to the efforts of locals to preserve and enhance their own ecotourism business prospects.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Healthcare [12]

VaxGen Inc., Fighting the AIDS Epidemic [98]

VaxGen is working to obtain approvals for phase III clinical trials in Thailand for an experimental vaccine against HIV. The company must cope with a host of ethical questions.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Nonprofit Management [42], Philanthropy, Responsible Investing [86]

John Goldman: Creating the Next Generation of Philanthropists [99]

John Goldman established the South Peninsula Jewish Community Teen Foundation in 2003, an innovative program that teaches Bay Area Jewish teens to run their own charitable foundation by developing mission statements, raising money, and distributing funds. As of 2009, the program has scaled to four chapters and raised and distributed $178,321 in funds.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Environment [88]

Ma Jun and the IPE: Using Information to Improve China's Environment [100]

The Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs is Chinese environmental non-profit that has single-handedly revolutionized brought pollution standards and compliance to more than 47,000 sites and 22 multinational corporations in China. This case tells the story of the organization and its founder, environmental entrepreneur Ma Jun.

Resource: Academic Case

Research Papers : All [110]

Topics:

Healthcare [12], Philanthropy, Responsible Investing [86]

Venture Capital Should Invest in Improving the Health Care Safety Net [111]

Young companies trying to enter parts of the health care industry by focusing on helping patients stay healthy and allowing safety net providers to use their resources have a hard time attracting venture capital funds that focus more on traditional profit. A recent article by two Stanford Graduate School of Business researchers argues that it's time to change this pattern.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Government [46]

TV Ads Do Influence Consumers — In Elections and Beyond [112]

By studying the outcome of the 2000 U.S. presidential election, Stanford professor Wesley Hartmann and his coauthor have proved that television advertising sells products. Along the way they also found that television advertising tipped the election in favor of George Bush over Al Gore.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Taking the Macho Out of Offshore Oil Rigs [113]

Crew members on an offshore oil rig toned down their bluster and macho behavior as an unexpected side effect of an initiative to cut down on-the-job injuries. The case study, coauthored by Debra Meyerson of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, could present a model for minimizing the effects of gender in other work settings.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

A Brief Social-Belonging Intervention Improves Academic and Health Outcomes of Minority Students [114]

A brief intervention aimed at buttressing college freshmen's sense of social belonging in school was tested in a randomized controlled trial, and its academic and health-related consequences over 3 years are reported. The intervention aimed to lessen psychological perceptions of threat on campus by framing social adversity as common and transient.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Government [46], Healthcare [12]

Evaluating the Medical Malpractice System and Options for Reform [115]

The U.S. medical malpractice liability system aims to compensate patients who are injured through the negligence of healthcare providers and to deter providers from practicing negligently. Though the system has failed to deliver on these goals, evidence from several studies suggests that wisely chosen reforms may reduce healthcare spending significantly with no adverse impact on patient health outcomes.

Resource: Research Paper

Courses : All [117]

Topic :

Economic Development [14], Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Design for Extreme Affordability: OIT 333/4 [118]

Students apply engineering and business skills to design product prototypes, distribution systems, and business plans for entrepreneurial ventures in developing countries. The aim is to address challenges faced by the world's poor.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

The Quest for Happiness Exploring the Psychology of Human Fulfillment: OB 552 [119]

In this seminar, we explore the nature of human happiness from psychological perspectives, and how such knowledge can be applied in personal and business contexts. To illustrate the ideas discussed, we examine in detail a number of fascinating individuals, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Oprah Winfrey, venture capitalist Tom Perkins, Steven Spielberg, Martha Stewart, and the Nobel physicist Richard Feynman.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Social Entrepreneurship [15]

Leadership in Diverse Organizations: OB 393 [120]

This course is designed to help students understand and manage human systems, exercise leadership, and work effectively with other people, specifically within the context of culturally diverse groups and organizations. The underlying premise is that diversity can present unique challenges and opportunities.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Women in Organizations: OB 387 [121]

This course focuses on women's working experiences in managerial and professional positions in business and some nonprofit organizations. Using business cases, small group work, videos, lectures, and class discussions, we examine a wide variety of career-related gender issues.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Lives of Consequence: How Individuals Discover Paths to Meaningful Engagement: OB 383 [122]

This course examines the lives of individuals who have contributed greatly to society, either through business, politics, arts and entertainment, or other pursuits. We take a close look, for example, at the "paths to prominence" of individuals such as Steve Jobs, Condi Rice, George Lucas, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King.

Resource: MBA Course

Innovators : All [123]

Topic :

Government [46]

Steve Westly (MBA '83) [124]

Steve Westly reflects on his years as a public servant, including State Controller and CFO for the State of California, and his candidacy for Governor in 2006.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Education [35]

Monte Rosen (MBA '85) [125]

Monte Rosen discusses founding The Essential Learning Group, a Shanghai-based, self-funded social venture that provides special education services to expats and Chinese children with autism.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Mark Conroe (MBA '85) [126]

Mark Conroe is leveraging his real estate experience and decades of volunteer work to help build the San Francisco House of Hope, a supportive housing project for the homeless.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :