Knowledge@wharton

It’s always been assumed that when employees leave their companies to join other ones that all their knowledge and experience leave with them. But new research suggests that at least in the high-tech field firms can wind up gaining access to the knowledge being generated at their former colleague’s new place. The results of this research are presented in a paper titled ”Learning from Those Who Left: The Reverse Transfer of Knowledge through Mobility Ties ” by Wharton management professor Lori Rosenkopf and Wharton doctoral student Rafael A. Corredoira. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It’s not work/life balance and it’s not career burnout. Instead some employees are starting to set career paths based on their own needs values and definitions of success. They are otherwise talented and energetic workers who are ”plateauing” -- setting boundaries around their ambitions rather than striving to climb the next step up the corporate ladder. Some companies are beginning to take notice providing new options and opportunities in the ongoing war for talent. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the five years since the attacks on September 11 2001 Howard Kunreuther Wharton professor of operations and information management has collaborated with members of the private and public sectors to determine how individuals and firms can be motivated to enhance security in our interconnected world. In a new book titled Seeds of Disaster Roots of Response: How Private Action Can Reduce Public Vulnerability Kunreuther and other contributors argue that the United States will continue to be at risk for low-probability high-consequence events like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina until the private sector and public leadership develop strategies to persuade individuals and firms to invest in cost-effective protective measures. The book is edited by Erwann Michel-Kerjan managing director of Wharton’s Center for Risk Management and Decision Processes and three others. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Alex Gorsky was named head of Pharma North America and CEO of Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. the U.S. affiliate of Swiss drug giant Novartis in the fall of 2005. Since joining the company in 2004 as chief operating officer and head of general medicines Gorsky has overseen the continued growth of Novartis’s industry-leading cardiovascular franchise notably the blockbuster drugs Diovan and Lotrel. The company sells a variety of products including those that treat endocrine and respiratory disease gastrointestinal illnesses cancer and blood disorders and bone and joint conditions among others. Prior to joining Novartis Gorsky was company group chairman for Johnson & Johnson’s pharmaceutical business in Europe the Middle East and Africa. Before that he spent 15 years in sales marketing and management at Janssen Pharmaceutica. Gorsky was recently on campus to take part in a Wharton business roundtable on leadership and agreed to talk with Knowledge at Wharton about trends in the pharmaceutical indu

Optimism seems to be everywhere just as the Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee gets ready once again to pass judgment on where interest rates are headed. The consensus is that Fed chairman Ben Bernanke will keep the federal funds rate unchanged. Part of the reason is that oil prices are down and inflation seems to be under control. Still the bursting of the commodities bubble has not been a universal blessing -- as investors in the Connecticut-based hedge fund Amaranth Advisors discovered after it lost $5 billion in value. The coup in Thailand also raises questions about international business risks. In an interview with Knowledge at Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel spoke about these issues and more. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It’s been an exciting couple weeks for fans of digital downloads of music and movies with Microsoft’s official announcement of its Zune portable music player along with the Zune Marketplace download service; Apple’s announcement of several new models of its iPod music player and the new availability of movie downloads from iTunes; and Amazon.com’s introduction of its ”Unbox” service offering rent-or-own movie downloads. Knowledge at Wharton spoke with Wharton marketing professor Peter Fader and legal studies and business ethics professor Kevin Werbach to find out which of these approaches will deliver the best entertainment options to consumers and the most value for their companies’ shareholders. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Shiv Nadar is chairman and CEO of HCL Technologies a subsidiary of Hindustan Computers Limited (HCL) a firm he co-founded in August 1976 and which includes HCL Infosystems. While most Indian IT firms have made their mark in software HCL has been a pioneer in hardware (although it is also the fifth-largest Indian software maker). In the first of a two-part interview with Knowledge at Wharton and Ravi Aron a senior fellow at Wharton’s Mack Center for Technological Innovation Nadar discusses issues ranging from HCL’s origins to future challenges. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Three years ago mutual funds were accused of allowing favored customers to engage in late trading and market timing that hurt ordinary investors. The scandal has subsided but questions remain: Is short-term trading encouraged by the use of out-of-date or ”stale ” stock prices in valuing fund shares? And what remedies will work without penalizing ordinary investors? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Facebook a social networking site known as an online meeting place for college and high school students is opening its doors to more people in an effort to grow beyond its current nine million registered users. Could such a move end up blurring the company’s focus and diluting its brand? Are there better ways to expand? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On August 21 2006 Time Warner’s America Online revealed that it had released three months of search queries from 658 000 subscribers which contained enough data to possibly identify some of the users. The privacy breach underscored the perils of supposedly ”anonymous” Internet profiling. Yet a different type of anonymous Internet profiling is highlighted in a new research paper by Wharton professor Balaji Padmanabhan and Catherine Yang. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As Wharton marketing professors George Day and Paul Schoemaker see it the recent and well-publicized travails of Ford Motor Coca-Cola and Pepsi offer clear examples of the distinction between vigilant leadership and operational management. To explain that distinction Day and Schoemaker have identified four leadership traits: external focus conceptual ability organizational role and time horizon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

First it was textiles and consumer electronics. Next may be cars. China is once again looking to target a key consumer market in the U.S. Can China become a powerhouse in the global automotive industry and if so when? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The struggle to raise pay for low-income workers once fought in agricultural fields and on factory floors is moving to the aisles of big retailers in Chicago where large national chains like Wal-Mart and Target may be forced to offer higher wages along with every-day low prices. While retailers complain the legislation may lead them to stall plans for new downtown stores Wharton faculty say Chicago’s proposed living wage law is largely symbolic and would have little real impact on large retail chains or their employees. Some argue that it also won’t have much impact on poverty. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Floyd Landis’s potential as a product endorser dropped faster than a cyclist speeding down a mountain road when he tested positive for synthetic testosterone after winning this summer’s Tour de France. Sports columnists denounced him even as the companies that had invested tens of millions in him and his team dropped their sponsorships. Landis of course isn’t the only celebrity or athlete who managed to misbehave this summer. Consider sprinter Justin Gatlin French soccer player Zinedine Zidane actor Mel Gibson and Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Brett Myers. Yet as marketing experts and others note celebrity wrongdoing is more than just fuel for gossip columns. Athletes and celebrities push all manner of products and services and their downfalls can tarnish the brands and companies they endorse. ”The perils of these endorsements are consistently underestimated ” says one expert. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Two Wharton researchers have developed a mathematical model that they say will allow companies for the first time to predict at what pace new products will gain acceptance in markets where purchasing decisions by knowledgeable influential customers sway the buying habits of others. Wharton marketing professor Christophe Van den Bulte and doctoral student Yogesh V. Joshi say their model can be put to use in industries as diverse as movies music pharmaceuticals and high-technology. Their findings are presented in a paper titled ”New Product Diffusion with Influentials and Imitators.” See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

When making a purchase a consumer has a choice between using frequent-flier miles cash or some combination thereof. Which will he or she choose? Another consumer has an opportunity to participate in a special program to get a free car wash after paying for a certain number of washes. What’s the best way for the car-wash owner to motivate the customer to participate? Such questions are serious business for airlines hotel chains credit-card companies and other corporations that offer loyalty programs to customers. Wharton marketing professor Xavier Drèze and Joseph C. Nunes of the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business have spent several years studying how these programs can be structured to generate the most revenue for companies offering them. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Roberto Civita is chairman and CEO of The Abril Group one of Latin America’s largest and most influential communications companies. Based in Sao Paulo Abril publishes nearly 100 magazines including its flagship Veja launched by Civita in 1968 and now the world’s fourth largest news weekly. The publication well-known for exposing political corruption in Brazil has been instrumental during the past year in bringing about the resignation of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s inner circle. At the recent Wharton Global Alumni Forum in Rio Civita spoke on ”The Role of the Press in an Emerging Economy.” In an interview last week with Knowledge at Wharton he talked about corruption in Brazil old media vs. new media the U.S.’s obsession with quarterly earnings the importance of education and the coming tide of investors among other topics. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The day after Michael Dell’s visit to Wharton on August 29 2006 the Wall Street Journal published a front-page article entitled ”Consumer Demand and Growth in Laptops Leave Dell Behind.” The article replayed the drumbeat of bad news that has recently hit the $56 billion PC maker -- a 51% decline in second quarter earnings from the same period a year ago a stock price that is down 60% from its high in 2000 the exodus of key executives to rival manufacturers -- and suggested that the company’s strategy of ignoring the consumer market plus its failure to maintain an efficient customer service operation have hurt its competitive position especially with respect to rival Hewlett Packard. But Dell himself in an interview with Knowledge at Wharton brushed aside the numbers and focused on the upside. He highlighted the company’s success in emerging markets its record market share new tools and training to beef up customer service and his confidence that the preference of consumers to buy online will contin

Given Microsoft’s efforts to create a music player and service dubbed ”Zune ” and its offer of design assistance to PC makers in preparation for the company’s new Vista operating system it appears that the software giant is increasingly dabbling in hardware and playing a bigger role in product design. The big question is: Why? While some analysts dismiss Microsoft’s efforts as Apple envy experts at Wharton say there is a bigger picture. Microsoft wants more control over integrating its software with the gadgets that could open new markets. Its real mission: Find new vertical markets to dominate so it can continue to grow even if its Windows monopoly erodes. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

After 17 consecutive interest rate hikes during the past two years the Federal Reserve’s open market committee decided on August 8 to leave the federal funds rate unchanged at 5.25%. While stocks immediately rallied in response they fell back as it became clear that inflationary pressures persist and they could prompt more rate hikes in the future. What does this mean for markets and investors? Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel told Knowledge at Wharton that Fed chairman Ben Bernanke met expectations and ”meeting expectations is very positive for stocks.” See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.