Business

Rahul Kapoor of the Wharton School writes about how Tesla can retain its transformative role in the automotive industry. “Tesla can extend its lead by continuing to push the envelope as a technology leader. While its advantage in battery technology is likely to be constrained by laws of chemistry, its efforts toward fully autonomous cars may help sustain its technology leadership,” he wrote.

Sandi Hunt of the Wharton School spoke about her research on the increase in investments in “gender-lens-related” funds on Wall Street, a category that includes private equity and venture funds with female portfolio managers, companies with women in executive positions, workplaces that are known to treat women well, and products or services that benefit women. “Using capital to get an impact return is on the rise, and we’ve seen significant movement around women’s empowerment,” she said.

Judd B. Kessler and Corinne Low of the Wharton School wrote about their research on what prevents large companies from progressing on racial diversity. “Bias in résumé screening is just one part of the problem. Eliminating bias in employment will require rethinking every aspect of the hiring and promotion process,” they wrote.

Erika James of the Wharton School was interviewed about the obstacles women and people of color face in the workplace. “I think if we can create social media platforms, if we can put people on the moon, and if we can have self-driving cars, there's very little that we can't do,” she said. “So, the fact that we have not yet created a more diverse work environment means that we simply haven't prioritized it.”

Mori Taheripour of the Wharton School spoke about the Washington NFL team’s plan to change its name. "A typical rebranding process includes lots of focus groups, fan engagement and community involvement. If the process is sped up too much, even the largest organizations can miss the kind of nuances that are really important, particularly in this case," she said.

Megan Ryerson of the Stuart Weitzman School of Design wrote about the pandemic’s effect on the airline industry and how to make the sector more equitable and sustainable. “The most persistent argument for preserving the existing aviation system is that all airports, large and small, fuel economic development,” she wrote. “But, economic development for whom, and at what environmental cost?”