BREAKTHROUGHS

Activist short sellers are controversial hedge funders that some are calling the modern day Robin Hoods of the business world, others are denouncing as unethical profiteers. Most economists, however, recognize their short selling as a vital part of an efficient and liquid market. HEC academics Hervé Stolowy and Luc Paugam, with their coauthor Yves Gendron, from Université Laval in Quebec, spent th...

Dr. Shaheena Janjuha-Jivraj has spent decades analyzing women for leadership roles. Shortly after joining HEC Qatar as Associate Professor in Gender Diversity and Entrepreneurial Leadership, she published her third book “Futureproof Your Career”. We caught up with the prolific academic at the 2021 Women’s Forum in Paris to discuss cognitive diversity, her research on Asian communities and leadersh...

Just days after the conclusion of the 2021 Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) in Barcelona, HEC Paris Professor Bertrand Quélin and HEC Paris graduate Isaac Smadja publish a key study of six award-winning smart cities across the globe. The 238-page eBook is the result of a partnership between Bouygues & HEC in the context of the school’s Smart City & the Common Good Chair . We exchange...

The upswing in inflation figures on both sides of the Atlantic, called “reflation”, continues to worry governments and the general public. But what is behind these inflationary pressures? What are the consequences of this 13-year-high in the euro zone (4.1% in October); and 30-year record surge in prices in the United States? To find out what caused these increases and to analyze what could happen...

For the second time ever, HEC’s first year students began their school career with the off-campus “Purpose & Sustainability” seminar. 370 freshmen converged on the Alpine village of Chamonix for a physically and intellectually intense three-day seminar devoted to the major environmental and social challenges the world faces. This podcast reflects the intensity of the experience and the lessons...

The September 26 federal elections in Germany have been earmarked as one of its most important in the past two decades. For a start, it signals the end of Angela Merkel’s tenure as Chancellor, after 16 years at the helm of Europe’s largest economy. To comment on this landmark vote, its uncertain outcome, and economic outlook, we turn to Armin Steinbach , HEC professor in law. Steinbach is ideally...

HEC Professor of Strategy (Education Track) Olivier Sibony joins forces with Nobel-laureate Daniel Kahneman and legal scholar Cass Sunstein to publish Noise, a monumental study on a little-known – yet pervasive - flaw in human error. The trio thus reinvent a term for a variability of judgment pervading decision-making at all levels and in all fields. In an exclusive interview, Olivier shares insig...

On  September 7, El Salvador became the world’s first nation to make the  cryptocurrency bitcoin legal tender across the country. This bold  initiative from the tiny Central American state is dissected by HEC  Professor in Finance Bruno Biais, who has written several top research  papers on cryptocurrency. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jean-Noël Barrot , professeur associé à HEC Paris et député des Yvelines à l’Assemblée nationale, allie son engagement politique avec ses recherches dans le domaine de la finance. Il a remis un rapport au gouvernement le 29 juin dernier, où il développe des propositions pour aider la France à sortir de la crise sanitaire. Dans cet entretien, Jean-Noël Barrot nous explique comment il parvient à com...

HEC Paris associate professor of marketing, Anne-Sophie Chaxel , describes her recent study on truth distortion in the COVID-19 era. Using marketing techniques like the Stepwise Evolution of Preferences Chaxel and fellow academic Sandra Laporte, used such tools to see how people respond to controversial statements linked to the virus – when they’re delivered by popular personalities. They enrolled...

For the 32nd Olympic Games, one of South Africa’s modern icons, 800-meter champion Caster Semenya, will not be making the trip northwards. She has been barred from the Tokyo Olympics where she had hoped to defend a crown she won in 2012 and 2016. We discuss with Associate Professor Matteo Winkler the legal, sociological and ethical implications of this legal decision by the Court of Arbitration fo...

  A year after the EU’s Court of Justice ruled that none of its member states can outlaw the sale of the non-psychotic compound cannabidiol (CBD), France’s highest appeals court overturned a decision banning its sale on French territory. Associate Professor Daniel Martinez analyses the June 26 decision in the light of his long research on cannabis-related questions in Colorado.   Hosted...

Il y a un mois, Amazon fait un coup d'éclat spectaculaire, en annonçant l’achat du studio hollywoodien MGM pour plus de sept milliards d’euros. Quelles conséquences pour le monde du cinéma et son économie ? Directeur du MS Médias, Arts et Création à HEC Paris, Thomas Paris analyse la portée de cet événement. Il a récemment cosigné avec Philippe Chantepie « L’économie du cinéma » , publié par La Dé...

A large body of empirical evidence points to bias in access to credit. This is stigmatizing women, ethnic minorities and consumers from certain geographical zones. Nowadays, algorithms and machine-learning techniques could be unintentionally exacerbating this bias. HEC Associate Dean for Research, Christophe Pérignon, describes these challenges - and new techniques he has developed to reduce bias...

An unknown advertising agency calling itself Fazze last month offered thousands of US dollars to social media influencers last month to smear the Pfizer vaccine. Two prominent influencers in Germany and France, respectively, refused to share its allegations with their hundreds of thousands of followers.  HEC Assistant Professor, Andreas Lanz, analyzes this new online affair in the light of hi...

 The forced landing of a Ryanair airplane and the subsequent arrest of two Belarusians on May 23 has sparked a major diplomatic crisis between EU and US authorities and the Minsk government, as well as sanctions. But just how effective are these measures? HEC Professor Alberto Alemanno shares his analysis of the stand-off and its reflections on EU foreign policy.  Recorded on June 1, 202...

 Why do non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have the potential to disrupt the art market? This new investment phenomenon came to light when an animated GIF of Nyan Cat, which is a meme of a flying pop-tart cat, sold for more than $500,000 US Dollars. Shortly after, musician Grimes sold her digital art for more than $6 million US Dollars. HEC Paris Associate professor of finance Christophe Spaenjers, e...

On March 31, 2021, French president Emmanuel Macron announced a four-week national lockdown, throwing the country into a similar situation slightly over a year ago. This time though, not all businesses are affected in the same way. HEC Paris Associate Professor of Economics Tomasz Michalski analyzes the possible microeconomic impact of the different lockdown strategies, and its eventual long-term...

Cinq ans après la signature de l'Accord de Paris sur le climat et alors qu'en France, un projet de loi Climat très contesté arrive en débat à l’Assemblée nationale, la communauté internationale ne semble toujours pas être à la hauteur du défi climatique. Pour dresser un état des lieux des solutions aujourd'hui sur la table pour réduire les émissions mondiales de gaz à effet de serre et contenir l’...

Is the GameStop Affair a collective action revolting against major hedge funds, or is it just another form of speculation by amateur investors also aiming to become rich? In the course of one week, GameStop’s stock value had catapulted to an impressive 1600% rise from its previous value. This sudden steep climb up raises questions on stock market behavior, the actions of hedge fund investors, and...

Are the efforts of transparency by the pharmaceutical industry sufficient to regain the trust of the world population? The COVID-19 pandemic has taken the world hostage since March 2020, yet there is hope that this health crisis may be vanquished this year, thanks to the approved vaccines by pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer/BioNtech, Moderna and AstraZeneca. While there are ongoing vaccinat...

Le Prix Nobel d’Economie 2020 a récompensé Paul Milgrom et Robert Wilson de l’université de Stanford pour leurs recherches sur les enchères. Dans cet entretien, Jean-Edouard Colliard, professeur de finance à HEC Paris et auteur de  "Les Prix Nobel d'Economie" aux Editions Repères, nous explique les recherches récompensées, ainsi que le protocole de sélection des Prix Nobel, et leur rôle dans...

Is trust the key to a more inclusive world? In this two-part podcast, HEC Paris professor Hélène Löning first defines trust as the foundation that touches different aspects of our lives and clarifies why this quality is so essential for a positive recovery in the post-pandemic era. She then describes the three pillars of trust that drive diversity and inclusion in our society. Professor Löning wil...

Poland and Hungary continue to oppose the rule of law mechanism linked to the European Union’s seven-year budget, which includes the 750-billion euro recovery fund to tackle the economic recession caused by the COVID-19 health crisis. As the EU stands at a deadlock, HEC Paris professor and expert on EU law, Alberto Alemanno, explains the rule of law mechanism and its importance in the governance o...

On November 5, 2020, as the U.S. presidential election comes to a close, HEC Paris professors Jeremy Ghez and Chantal Carleton, and HEC Paris MBA candidate Megan Scullion, analyze the balance of power in American politics, the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the elections and the future of economic and foreign policy in the United States of America. This discussion was moderated by Daniel Brown,...