October 2020
Careers
There Are 168 Hours in the Week. Are You Spending Them on What Matters?
A former CEO on how to budget time for what you value most.
Economics
Does Requiring Food-Stamp Recipients to Work Actually Increase Economic Self-Sufficiency?
The answer is increasingly urgent as politicians debate whether to reinstate the requirement, which was paused during the COVID-19 recession.
Social Impact
Researchers Designed an Algorithm to Save Schools Money and Improve Equity. The District Loved it. Then Things Got Messy.
A tale of bus routes in Boston shows the promises and pitfalls of using new technology to change entrenched systems.
September 2020
Careers
How to Sell in a Virtual World
From a “pre-flight checklist” to handwritten thank-you notes, here’s how to sell both your products and your ideas via video.

Entrepreneurship
Family Businesses Are Experiencing the COVID-19 Crisis in Unique Ways
Lower debt, diversified portfolios, and longer-term horizons may be shielding family firms from the existential threats facing many other businesses.

Innovation
Could a Small City Become the Next Silicon Valley? It’s Unlikely.
New research suggests that there’s a population tipping point for supporting a booming tech industry.
Healthcare
Pharma Companies Argue That Lower Drug Prices Would Mean Fewer Breakthrough Drugs. Is That True?
Probably not, a new study suggests—as long as the price decreases are modest.
Finance & Accounting
How Credit Ratings Are Shaping Governments’ Responses to Covid-19
To fund pandemic-related spending, governments around the world will need to take on more debt. If they can.
Economics
White Americans Overestimate Racial Progress. But Certain Attempts to Remedy That Could Backfire.
Researchers hoped that having white participants read about racism would help them grasp the true extent of racial gaps in wealth and income. They were wrong.
Policy
How Did School Desegregation Shape the Political Ideology of White Students Later in Life?
A new study suggests that, more than four decades later, the impact of these policies on political leanings is apparent.
Marketing
How Anticipation Warps Our Sense of Time
Here’s why that trip to Disneyland—or to the dentist—seems to take ages, but the return trip feels much faster.
August 2020
Economics
We’re Several Months into the COVID Economy. What Have We Learned?
From household spending to the strength of the dollar, an economist sees some clear trends—and signs of what’s to come.
Careers
3 Tips for Conquering Self-Doubt at Work
High achievers often worry they aren’t qualified to weigh in. Here’s how to get past those self-sabotaging thoughts.
Leadership
Podcast: Thinking about Adopting a Contact-Tracing App for Your Company? Here’s What to Keep in Mind.
The technology can help reopen workplaces—but only if your employees trust it. On this special episode of The Insightful Leader, three experts discuss how to earn that trust.
Social Impact
Why Well-Meaning NGOs Sometimes Do More Harm than Good
Studies of aid groups in Ghana and Uganda show why it’s so important to coordinate with local governments and institutions.
Operations
From PPE to Denim and Beer, Here’s What the Pandemic Is Teaching Us about Supply Chains
Five lessons from Kellogg Professor Marty Lariviere.
Innovation
3 Steps for Reimagining Your Business for a Post-COVID World
The crisis presents an opportunity to dream up new ideas, learn from others, and take bold action.
Careers
Stop Hiring for “Cultural Fit”
When you prioritize candidates you “click with,” you run the risk of discriminating against candidates from different backgrounds. Here’s how to change course.

Strategy
To Find the Best Incentives for Employees, Start with a Simple A/B Test
Keeping people motivated can be tough. New research shows that a simple experiment can lead to big productivity gains.

Data Analytics
How AI Can Help Weed Out Faulty Scientific Research
Solid science is more important than ever, yet experts often struggle to predict which studies will replicate. Artificial intelligence could do the job better.
Innovation
Recessions Can Stifle Product Innovation for Years
To keep companies innovating through a recession, they will need greater access to credit.
Organizations
Here’s the Best Way to Rotate Workers (or Students) into Buildings to Curb the Spread of Covid-19
Should groups be staggered daily? Weekly? Monthly? A new model helps organizations decide.

Organizations
Why Are Social Media Platforms Still So Bad at Combating Misinformation?
Facebook, Twitter, and users themselves have few incentives to distinguish fact from fiction.
July 2020
Leadership
Podcast: How a Century-Old Family Business Is Adapting to the Pandemic
On this special episode of The Insightful Leader: a conversation with the chairman and the CEO of Griffith Foods about leading with purpose during the crisis.
Organizations
What Astronauts Can Teach Us about Working Remotely
Space: the final frontier—for learning how to keep your team motivated during extended periods of isolation and confinement.
Policy
A Look Inside Chicago’s Economic Recovery Plan
Attracting HQ2s. Expanding mental-health care. A member of the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force explains how the city can emerge both stronger and more equitable.

Social Impact
Black-Owned Businesses Often Struggle to Access Capital. Here’s How Financial Institutions Can Change That.
Banks and investors need to redefine creditworthiness, diversify their boards, and think more about social returns.
Leadership
Looking for “5 Quick Tips” to Build an Inclusive Organization? You’re on the Wrong Track.
Two experts discuss why corporate diversity initiatives so often fall short, and what it will take to produce real change.

Innovation
The Pandemic Has Slashed Scientists’ Productivity
The extent varies a good deal by field, but the single biggest factor is whether a scientist is caring for young children.
Strategy
How to Negotiate via Email
This excerpt from Negotiating the Sweet Spot: The Art of Leaving Nothing on the Table offers three tips for writing emails that engage and persuade.
Social Impact
Does Social-Media Use Increase Xenophobia?
A recent study investigates, using data from a popular Russian social-media platform and information on regional hate crimes.
Politics & Elections
Why We Know So Little about Disparities within the Federal Court System—and How That’s Finally Changing
Millions of hard-to-obtain public court records shed new light on the fairness of the U.S. judiciary.
Careers
What’s the Secret Ingredient to Great Mentorship?
It’s not just subject-matter expertise, according to a new study.
Leadership
How to Build Resilient Habits into Your Daily Life
Life today is complicated. Here are some simple ways to stay energized and motivated.
Leadership
You’ve Worked Hard to Earn Your Team’s Trust. What Happens If Layoffs Are Necessary?
Layoffs are brutal. But the news is easier to accept from leaders who consistently display honesty, competency, and concern for their employees.
Marketing
Is Now the Time to Transition to Personalized Marketing?
Budgets are strapped. There are a million other things to do. But the risk of ignoring AI-powered modern marketing is dire.
Entrepreneurship
Podcast: “This Is a Time for Management Teams to Earn Their Stripes.”
On this special episode of The Insightful Leader, veteran venture capitalist Woody Marshall discusses the investment landscape and the importance of leadership through the pandemic.
Organizations
How to Do Design Thinking Better
Experts from Kellogg and IDEO explain the psychology behind this creative approach to problem solving.
June 2020
Entrepreneurship
Amid the Pandemic, Entrepreneurs Can Still Find Opportunity
The crisis provides fertile ground for startups in spaces like telehealth and touchless payment. Other startups will need to get creative.
Strategy
Podcast: Wayfair Has Seen a Spike in New Customers. Here’s How It Plans to Keep Them.
On this special episode of The Insightful Leader, a conversation with the company’s chief merchandising officer about adapting for an unprecedented future.
Finance & Accounting
How to Secure Credit During a Financial Crisis
The key? Don’t tap your best collateral in good times.

Economics
Why the Next Round of COVID-19 Aid Should Target Industries That Can’t Work from Home
A new study pinpoints which sectors—and which workers in those sectors—suffered the most. Congress should take note.
As the Crisis Drags On, Here’s How Leaders Can Maintain Momentum
The adrenaline has faded. All-nighters are not sustainable. A retired Navy admiral explains what needs to happen now.
Policy
How Is the Pandemic Affecting Antitrust Enforcement?
Deals will be ramping up again soon. Companies shouldn’t expect a free pass from regulators.
Social Impact
“This Is What It Means to Be Black in America and Black in Corporate America”
As the nation reckons with structural racism, a Kellogg professor and a Google diversity recruiter discuss what credible leadership looks like for business leaders.
Social Impact
Podcast: “I’m Looking for Systemic, Permanent Change Right Now”
Anti-Black racism is deeply embedded in corporate culture. On this special episode of The Insightful Leader, Professor Nicholas Pearce and Google’s Ginny Clarke discuss the moral responsibility of leaders to finally address that.
Marketing
How Have Top Marketers Responded to the Pandemic? With Rapid Innovation.
Leaders in industries from healthcare to casual dining are fast-tracking changes to the customer experience. Here are four of their stories.

Social Impact
What Will It Take to Alleviate Global Poverty?
We asked Kellogg experts what they wish NGOs and policymakers knew about poverty reduction. Their answers touched on everything from climate change to local bankruptcy laws.

Social Impact
Some Companies Actually Do See Financial Returns on Their Social Investments. Here’s What They Have in Common.
A new study finds that ESG investments—when paired with high employee satisfaction—boost stock performance.
Careers
Exhausted by Working from Home? Anxious about Going Back?
Tips from a clinical health psychologist on managing the work-related stressors that may be affecting your mental health.
Careers
How to Coach Your Sales Team through the Pandemic (and Beyond)
The founder of the Kellogg Sales Institute offers tips for adapting to this high-stakes moment.
Innovation
Want Your Employees to Innovate? Trust Them.
R&D teams take more risks—and do better work—when their CEOs have faith in them.
Strategy
Tired of People Invading Your Six-Foot Bubble? Game Theory Has a Solution.
Well, not exactly. But it does offer a new way of thinking about the problem.
Careers
Your Professional Development Doesn’t Need to Be Put on Hold
You can still seek out ways to stretch yourself or test out a new career path—even during a pandemic.
Careers
Younger Workers Lose Out When Their Coworkers Delay Retirement
But at fast-growing companies, the outlook is more promising.
Marketing
A New System for Getting Your Kids to Eat Healthier Foods
They tend to prefer variety. Here’s how to use that instinct to get more fruits and veggies on their plates.
May 2020
Policy
The Wrong Way to Ramp Up COVID-19 Testing
Robust testing is key to safely reopening the economy. But a new model shows that if testing is not paired with “smart containment,” it could backfire.
Leadership
Podcast: Now’s the Time to Hone Your Moral Decision-Making Skills
Dilemmas are rarely black-and-white. On this episode of The Insightful Leader, we hear what fictional characters can teach us about today’s real-world quandaries.
Leadership
Easy Hacks to Improve Your Virtual Meetings
From “speed-storming” to building a team charter, these ideas boost creativity and comfort on video calls.
Operations
Having a Far-Flung Supply Chain May Lead to More Product Defects
When firms have to collaborate over long distances, the final product suffers.
Innovation
3 Strategies to Transform Your Business for the Pandemic Economy
You know you need to adapt. But how?

Organizations
Too Much Cross Talk. Too Little Creativity. How to Fix the Worst Parts of a Virtual Meeting.
Six tools from an unlikely place—improv comedy—to use on your next Zoom call.
Economics
The Treasury’s Former Chief Economist Takes Stock of the Pandemic’s Economic Impact
Kellogg’s Janice Eberly zeroes in on a few data points that demonstrate the massive challenge policymakers face.
Innovation
The U.S. Is Full of Innovative Thinkers. The Government Needs to Marshal All of Them to Fight Covid-19.
Here’s how we can accelerate efforts to reduce the spread, develop treatments, and find a vaccine.
Policy
What Can the Federal Government Do to Get the Economy Back on Track?
A former White House economist weighs the pros and cons of job-retraining programs, aid for states, and universal basic income.
Finance & Accounting
Taking on Debt Can Help a Company Grow—Until a Crisis Hits
A new study shows how highly leveraged companies have less flexibility to innovate in a downturn.
Economics
Here’s How Americans Are Spending Their Stimulus Checks
Real-time data pinpoints what we’re buying, and who’s spending the fastest.
Organizations
This Isn’t Their First Crisis: Many Family Businesses Are Uniquely Prepared for the Looming Recession
Even so, one of their core strengths could become a liability.
Healthcare
How to Craft Public-Health Messages That Work
The key? Understanding how fear and confidence shape healthy choices.
April 2020
Finance & Accounting
What Happens When Private-Equity Firms Start Making Deals Again?
There will be more buyout opportunities, but fewer on-site visits will make due diligence more difficult.
Leadership
Podcast: You Can Lead through a Crisis. But Can You Coach through One?
On this episode of The Insightful Leader: three ways to help your employees arrive at their own answers to difficult questions.
Careers
Under Quarantine, It’s Not Marriage-as-Usual
A relationship researcher offers advice for cooped-up couples. Plus, how to preserve your work friendships.
Finance & Accounting
What the Current Crisis Means for Private Equity
Access to capital will likely buoy some PE firms and the companies they back. Others will be less lucky.
Leadership
A Pastor (and Management Professor) on Taking Care of Your Team during the COVID-19 Crisis
Share in their sacrifice. Don’t preach. And ask these three questions.
Social Impact
Uncertainty. Loss of Control. Why COVID-19 Is a Perfect Storm for Conspiracy Theories.
And how policymakers can help make them less appealing.
Finance & Accounting
The COVID-19 Crisis Reveals How Short-Term, Shareholder-First Thinking Still Rules the Day
From questionable buybacks to overly restrictive M&A clauses, a recent pledge to consider other stakeholders is ringing hollow.
Leadership
Podcast: Sure, Take That Zoom Call in Your Sweatpants. It Might Make You a Better Person.
When we stop compartmentalizing our home and work selves, we tend to act more ethically. Find out why on this episode of The Insightful Leader.
Economics
Companies Need to Prepare Today to Survive the Next 18 Months
An economist explains how leaders can try to lower fixed costs, retain workers, and mind their brands.

Leadership
How to Lead Your (Suddenly Virtual) Team through a Crisis
It’s going to require a shift in management style—and a healthy dose of overcommunication.
Economics
A Closer Look at Consumer Stockpiling During the Coronavirus Crisis
Researchers examined how households responded to shelter-in-place orders. They uncovered some surprises.

Marketing
Four Steps Marketers Can Take to Navigate the Pandemic
Step one: Press pause. Step two: Rethink everything.
Organizations
How Infectious-Disease Testing Can Improve Employee Performance
A new study on malaria prevention shows that employees who know their health status become more productive at work.
Leadership
Your Organization Needs a Coronavirus “War Room”
And other advice on making tough choices during a pandemic.

Marketing
When Building Your Brand, First Find Your Purpose
A conversation with the CMO of online bank Ally about staying committed to your company’s purpose as the organization grows.
Leadership
What Strong Crisis Leadership Looks Like during the Pandemic
COVID-19 is providing a crash course in crisis management. Leaders who display empathy, transparency, and aspiration will stand out.
The Latest: Our Faculty on the Coronavirus, Business, and the Economy
Finding a job during a pandemic. Plus, the fate of the 1918 “flu babies.”
Innovation
A New Product Release Often Sets Off a Customer Frenzy. But How Long Does It Last?
When consumers replace the old with the new, surprising trends emerge. A new mathematical model can better predict long-term sales.
Economics
The Unprecedented Stock-Market Reaction to COVID-19
A new analysis explains why this pandemic really is different.
March 2020
Social Impact
Podcast: Designing Social Impact Programs That (Really) Work
On this episode of The Insightful Leader: if a business is to survive in the long run, it’s no longer enough to make small changes to address inequality and climate change.
Policy
Containing COVID-19 Will Devastate the Economy. Here’s the Economic Case for Why It’s Still Our Best Option.
The death toll from failing to contain the virus will be far more costly to society.
Policy
How to Shore Up State and Local Budgets during a Coronavirus Recession
State governments are responsible for implementing much of the social safety net. They’ll be looking to the federal government for extra help.
Economics
Take 5: What Previous Recessions Can Teach Us about the Coronavirus Crisis
From stimulus strategies to how businesses will fare, research on past downturns can help inform our outlook today.

Operations
The Coronavirus Has Upended Supply Chains. Here’s How Companies Can Prepare for the Next Disruption.
There are strategies that both large and small companies can implement to make their manufacturing more agile.

Social Impact
What Your Business Can Do to Help the Community during the Coronavirus Crisis
Want to take action but don’t know how? Answering these three questions can get you started.

Leadership
Two Principles for Leading Your Organization Through the COVID-19 Crisis
A former Fortune 500 CEO offers a way forward during this time of unprecedented uncertainty.
Finance & Accounting
Many Funds Have Committed to Socially Responsible Investing—But Few Are Following Through
As money flows into ESG funds, new evidence shows that most asset managers aren’t actually changing their investment behaviors.
Leadership
Podcast: Is Management Training Worth It?
And which managers stand to benefit most? Find out on this episode of The Insightful Leader.
Social Impact
How a “Hypocrisy Intervention” Could Reduce Hostility toward Muslims
People are often hypocritical in how they assign blame for terrorist attacks. Highlighting this could help change attitudes.
Policy
When Do Open Borders Make Economic Sense?
A new study provides a window into the logic behind various immigration policies.
Marketing
When Do We Identify with the Bad Guy?
What started as research into consumer psychology led to deeper questions about human nature.