History has played a vital role at Harvard Business School since the school’s founding. The school’s first dean, Edwin F. Gay, was an economic historian. In “The Rhythm of History” (1923), Gay wrote, “The self-centered, active individual is a disruptive force, and there are periods in the rhythm of history when the cake of custom must be broke, when that disruptive, innovating energy is socially advantageous and must be given freer opportunity.” The impact of historical perspective—innovative, disruptive, secular—continues to shape teaching, research, and multi-faculty projects at HBS today.
