Christine Lagarde (A): A French Prime Minister Calls

Julie  Battilana; Carin-Isabel  Knoop

Case | HBS Case Collection | August 2018

Christine Lagarde (A): A French Prime Minister Calls

by Julie Battilana and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Abstract

This case covers formative events and influences in Christine Lagarde’s childhood and her trajectory from studying political science and law to heading the world’s largest law firm. As she prepares to transition back to practice in 2005, the new Prime Minister of France calls to offer her a ministerial position in the new Cabinet. She has to decide whether she wants to take on a role in the public sector. For coverage of her career from 2005 to 2011, see “Christine Lagarde (B): Being a Public Servant” (HBS No. 419-018). For coverage of her career from 2011 to 2018, see “Christine Lagarde (C): Managing the IMF” (HBS No. 419-019). For comprehensive coverage of her evolution and career, see “Christine Lagarde” (HBS No. 419-016).

Keywords: Personal Development and Career; Power and Influence; Decision Making;

Language: English

Format: Print

12 pages

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Citation:

Battilana, Julie, and Carin-Isabel Knoop. "Christine Lagarde (A): A French Prime Minister Calls." Harvard Business School Case 419-017, August 2018.

Each individual who enters an organization will, at some point, leave. And yet most future leaders spend significantly more effort learning about recruiting than departures, despite the sensitivity and challenges associated with the latter. This note is intended to help address that imbalance. This note provides a roadmap for managers and employees to follow when instituting or facing layoffs. It aims to help managers consider the broader implications that should be taken into account when conducting layoffs, including how to structure and execute them effectively; how to minimize the negative impact on laid-off employees, “surviving” employees, the firm’s reputation, and the community; and what alternatives any firm contemplating layoffs should consider.

Case | HBS Case Collection | August 2018 (Revised September 2018)

Facebook—Can Ethics Scale in the Digital Age?

George A. Riedel and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Since its founding in 2004, Facebook has built a phenomenally successful business at global scale to become the fifth most valuable public company in the world. The revelation of Cambridge Analytica events in March 2018, where 78 million users' information was leaked in a 2016 U.S. election cycle, exposed a breach of trust/privacy among its user community. In the past, growth at any costs appeared to be the de facto strategy. Now many voices such as regulators, advertisers, ethicists, shareholders and users argued for a more responsible approach to addressing their concerns. Mark Zuckerberg (CEO/Chair/Founder) and Sheryl Sandberg (COO) mapped out their six-point plan to address this existential threat. Could they continue to grow and rectify the breach of trust/privacy? Did other stakeholders have some greater responsibility too? In addition to issues of privacy and trust, there is a growing chorus of concern about “content moderation”—not for the easy topics like spam or copyright material—but for the hard things revolving around political points of view, hate speech, polarizing perspectives, etc. How will Facebook strike the balance between free speech and corrosive content across billions of users and dozens of languages? Are they the arbiters of truth/censorship in the digital world?

Keywords: Ethics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Trust; Business Model; Corporate Accountability;

Citation:

Riedel, George A., and Carin-Isabel Knoop. "Facebook—Can Ethics Scale in the Digital Age?" Harvard Business School Case 319-030, August 2018. (Revised September 2018.) View Details

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Christine Lagarde (A): A French Prime Minister Calls

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