V.G. Narayanan
Thomas D. Casserly, Jr. Professor of Business Administration
Unit Head, Accounting and Management
Research I research topics in management accounting. In particular, I am interested in performance evaluation and incentives. I am using field experiments to understand how firms can use financial incentives and performance feedback to improve performance. I am studying how financial incentives can be used as a catlyst to form desirable habits and to harness other motivators such as peer pressure. I use analytical modeling and field data to research this topic. I am also very interested in understanding how CEO compensation affects the risk levels at banks.
Education - Phd in Business, Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, June 1995
- MA in Economics, Economics Department Stanford University, June 1994
- MS in Statistics, Statistics Department Stanford University, June 1993
- MBA, IIMA, India, March 1990
- Chartered Accountancy, Madras, India, May 1988
- Bachelors in Commerce, University of Madras, May 1988
Work Experience
- September 1994 to present - Professor, Harvard Business School. I have taught Financial Reporting and Control (a first-year required course), Measuring and Driving Corporate Performance (a second-year elective), Management Control and Performance Measurement (a doctoral course), and several executive education courses.
- March 1985 to May 1988 - Audit Assistant with J. Gowrikanthan & Co., Chartered Accountants, Madras.
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Research Summary
Control in Inter-organizational Settings
by
V.G. Narayanan
Professor Narayanan is studying how franchise owners use measurement tools such as the Balanced Scorecard and mystery shopper survyes to mitigate incentive and information frictions that arise between franchisors and franchisees. He is also studying control issues that emerge in outsourcing/offshoring tasks that involve customer interaction and regulatory overview.
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Research Summary
Designing Incentives
by
V.G. Narayanan
Professor Narayanan is studying how to design effective incentive systems for executives and members of the Board of Directors.
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Research Summary
Using Cost Information In Pricing Decisions
by
V.G. Narayanan
Professor Narayanan studies the use of cost information in pricing decisions. In particular, he studies how customer profitability information affects the product pricing decisions of managers.
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Research Summary
Cost Management and Management Control Systems in Hospitals
by
V.G. Narayanan
Hospitals tend not to have very good cost accounting and control systems. More broadly, there is enormous opportunity for managing costs and aligning incentives in the health care industry. I am studying how cost accounting methods can be used to reduce the cost of health care delivery in hospitals. I am also studying how control systems can be designed to align incentives, improve efficiency, and rationalize capital expenditure in hospitals.