Knowledge at Wharton

As the crisis at Japan’s crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant continues to unfold every bit of news that trickles out deepens the debate about nuclear energy. Anti-nuclear activists point to smoldering reactors and radioactive drinking water; others say the fact that the aging plant survived the earthquake and tsunami without greater damage signals its ability to withstand major disruptions. At issue...

Each day workers in the health care field debate the most reliable course of action for treating a particular ailment. As part of U.S. health care reform new emphasis is being placed on comparative effectiveness research (CER) which pits remedies against one another to determine which is best. A new paper by Wharton professor Scott Harrington warns that the government should avoid developing a mon...

The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank played a central role in mounting a response to the financial crisis of 2008. Battling unprecedented disasters the Fed responded with what experts describe as creative even heroic measures. But in the wake of that crisis the Fed faces new challenges including an increasingly critical Congress at a time when the central bank’s responsibilities have expanded in signific...

It may be years before the costs -- human and economic -- of the devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11 in Japan are fully known but they will be enormous. With thousands feared dead throughout the northeastern part of the country and officials scrambling to contain a nuclear disaster there are now more questions than answers. Knowledge at Wharton asked four experts to share their thoughts...

The head of one of the world’s largest chemical manufacturers is calling for a new American revolution. Andrew Liveris chairman and CEO of Dow Chemical warns that the United States is heading for a dismal future if it does not wake up to global realities and rally to save manufacturing. During a recent speech at Wharton the Australian-born chemical engineer urged Americans to re-think their countr...

Oil prices swung wildly this week rising to near 30-month highs after Saudi Arabia sent troops to Bahrain then plummeting to less than $100 a barrel on expectations that an earthquake-ravaged Japan would demand less oil. The ride is not over yet experts say. There may be ups and downs but long term high oil prices are here to stay. On top of volatility caused by natural catastrophes and political...

The proposed merger between the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Deutsche Börse (DB) could mean big changes for the American icon which heralds the opening of the markets each day with the ring of a bell. Although experts say an NYSE listing is still the sign of a blue-chip company exchanges are struggling to remain relevant in a high-tech financial world. Similar pacts are proliferating between...

Over the past two weeks public sector unions in Wisconsin and other states have staged protests against some legislators’ attempts to restrict collective bargaining power -- in effect taking away a union’s right to negotiate over salary seniority pensions health care and other work-related issues. The clash has set off debates about budget shortfalls political posturing and most of all the role th...

American International Group (AIG) -- the insurance giant and poster child for the financial crisis -- will once again sell its stock to the public in a ”re-IPO” set for May. The firm which was shaken by soured bets on mortgage derivatives says it is recovering from its near collapse and looking forward to a bright future. Can it return to its former glory? Or should its disparate operations be br...

In three years as CEO of spice maker McCormick Alan D. Wilson has been charged with steering the company through difficult economic times and periods of extreme volatility in commodities prices. In a recent conversation with Knowledge at Wharton Wilson discussed McCormick’s efforts to expand internationally why the increased popularity of Food Network and celebrity chefs has been a boon and the co...

Corporate earnings have surged and stocks have soared but the housing market is still weak. Interest rates remain low but are rising. Many countries’ economies are perking up but a jump in commodities prices is producing inflation. Governments in the United States and Europe are wrestling with huge budget deficits and debt problems. For insight Knowledge at Wharton talks to Wharton professors Jere...

Making a living as an artist has never been easy -- whether in film music or publishing -- especially now that the digital revolution has transformed the business of content creation. One of the biggest shifts is in how filmmakers musicians and writers are compensated. The trend is toward greater risk sharing with artists’ marketers and publishers and toward pay being based to a greater degree on...

It would be difficult to find a CEO or manager who says creativity isn’t a valued attribute of a good leader. So why do so many once-innovative companies get bogged down over time with continuous original thinking the exception and not the norm? A new study co-authored by Wharton management professor Jennifer Mueller found that although creativity is often named as being important individuals who...

The protests in Egypt are likely to lead to long-term benefits for frustrated citizens accustomed to living under the thumb of a corrupt system that has left millions of young adults jobless and instilled a sense of hopelessness for the future say Wharton faculty and other observers. Yet much-needed reforms will take many years to unfold they add and their success will depend in part on how milita...

Wharton management professor Michael Useem joined heads of state politicians CEOs celebrities and others at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland where he says the mood seemed to be one of muted optimism. But as he points out there was also a recognition of how much still needs to be done to prevent the kinds of catastrophes -- both natural and created -- that changed the lives of...

Starbucks has emerged over the last 20 years as one of the premier consumer brands in the world. Now the company has decided to give that brand a facelift by revamping its ubiquitous logo. While logo overhauls can successfully communicate a company’s evolution and growth they can also trigger a backlash among loyal customers. In the case of Starbucks the new logo highlights a strategic shift for t...

Just six months after paying a record $550 million to settle a federal fraud case Goldman Sachs finds itself in a new controversy over an investment in Facebook the social networking site. Some critics say the deal was designed to skirt securities regulations and is marred by conflict of interest while others argue that this type of investment puts taxpayers at risk since Goldman can support its b...

The talk coming out of the 2011 North American International Auto Show in Detroit (which opened on January 10 and closes on Sunday) was full of optimism about a turnaround for an industry that suffered a significant beating during the recent recession. The worldwide auto business emerging from the upheaval of recent years is much altered with several brands changing hands and manufacturers like Ge...

Spain is struggling with the highest unemployment rate in Western Europe as well as soaring national debt and a pension shortfall that make many people wonder if the region’s fifth-largest economy will require a bailout similar to those granted to Greece and Ireland. Yet despite these challenges the solution to the country’s problems -- according to former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar w...

What exactly is the relationship between money and happiness? It’s a difficult question to pin down experts say. While more money may make us happier other considerations -- such as whether you live in an economically advanced country and how you think about your time -- also play into the equation. An increasing number of economists sociologists and psychologists are now working in the field and...

For more than 40 years Harold Evans has been a giant figure in the world of print on both sides of the Atlantic. Starting out as a 16-year-old cub reporter in the north of England Evans was still in his late 30s when he was named editor of The Sunday Times of London in 1967 for what turned out to be a 14-year reign. In 1984 he moved to the United States taking top jobs in magazines and book publis...

Freddie Mac the government-supported mortgage finance company taken over by the government 18 months ago along with Fannie Mae is waiting for the Obama administration to come up with a plan that will revamp the two agencies along with the whole area of housing finance. Waiting in the wings to implement that plan is Charles ”Ed” Haldeman Jr. who was appointed CEO of Freddie Mac last July and has al...

According to Wharton experts the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is a good start toward future financial stability but they warn that significant concerns remain unaddressed and stress that the details of implementation must be handled carefully to avoid creating new problems. ”I don’t think there’s a full appreciation of the major transformation of the financial structur...

Now a billion dollar company Under Armour began with a single product -- a form-fitting moisture-wicking shirt that founder and CEO Kevin Plank developed to remedy his own problems with perspiration after a long day on the football field. At a recent presentation co-sponsored by the Wharton Leadership Lectures and the Jay H. Baker Retailing Initiative Plank discussed the company’s growth trajector...

Technology is transforming the world of philanthropy in ways that should ultimately give a voice to those people whom the charities aim to help  according to Mari Kuraishi co-founder and president of GlobalGiving a nonprofit that connects donors with groups that manage charitable projects via the web. In a keynote speech at the recent Wharton Social Impact Conference Kuraishi outlined the ways in...