10 Years of Smith Business Insight

Do self-managing teams actually work? How do robots put a twist into financial-market bidding? And what can Netflix teach us about fighting pandemics?

These aren’t questions that come up in everyday conversation. But they are on the minds of business researchers—who then go out and uncover the evidence to find the answers. Since 2013, Smith Business Insight has dug into their work to offer our readers the practical takeaways of business research.

In our first decade, we’ve created more than 800 articles, webinars, podcasts and papers. All are available for free on this site. We encourage you to browse and search for stories that may interest you. But first, here are 10 timeless stories from our first 10 years. 

Robot Auction Bidders Are Such Buzzkills

Competing against automated agents induces auction bidders to skip risky behaviour
(from October 2015)

The Marital Lives of High-Status Women 

Women who hold higher status than their partners have a greater chance of experiencing divorce. Having a helpful husband is one antidote to the Oscar love curse
(from April 2017)

In Search of Advertising’s Multimedia Sweet Spot

Low-budget media channels have a surprising way of boosting the effectiveness of big-ticket TV placements
(from July 2018)

Why The Stain of Segregation Was So Hard to Remove

Not even the profit motive could counter the segregation of American theatres
(from August 2018)

Accounting Finds its Soul

Taking a page from ethnographers, accounting researchers embed themselves in communities to learn the stories behind the numbers
(from June 2019)

The Trouble with Self-Managing Teams

Teams that run themselves are popular, but they don’t always work. Sometimes you just need a leader
(from January 2020)

To Fight Pandemics, Take the Netflix Approach

Want a better way to deal with future pandemics? Treat the virus as an information problem
(from August 2020)

When a Nudge Can Hurt the Disadvantaged

What New York City parking ticket scofflaws reveal about the limits of behavioural economics
(from April 2021)

Drawing From the Well of Painful Pasts

What a boat ride in the Grand Canyon can teach companies about engaging with histories they would rather avoid
(from October 2021)

Does Anyone Want to Talk About Social Class?

Socioeconomic status—and how it shapes our working lives—is an underappreciated dynamic in organizations
(from April 2022)