• 2024
• Working Paper

We study how a representative sample of the U.S. population evaluates a broad range of corporate actions from a nonpecuniary perspective. Our core findings, based on large-scale online surveys, are that (i) self-reported nonpecuniary concerns are large, both for stock market investors and non-investors; (ii) concerns about the treatment of workers and CEO pay rank highest, higher than concerns about workforce diversity and fossil energy usage; (iii) moral universalism (Enke (2024)) emerges as a key driver of nonpecuniary preferences, explaining substantial variation both across participants as well as across corporate actions. Combined, our findings provide new evidence on the importance of moral concerns as a driver of nonpecuniary preferences in the context of corporate actions.

• April 2025
• Case

In February 2024, Fresenius CEO Michael Sen reflected on the company’s transformation journey from his office in Bad Homburg, Germany. With revenues of 22 billion and a mission to advance patient care, Fresenius had built a strong reputation through decades of acquisitions and dividend growth. However, between 2017 and 2022, the company’s share price dropped over 70% as financial and operational performance sharply declined. When Sen became CEO in October 2022, he recognized the need for a fundamental reset. In response, Sen and the leadership team launched #FutureFresenius, a bold transformation plan that began with changes to the company’s structure, portfolio, and financial framework. By early 2024, key structural changes were in motion, and momentum was building. Looking ahead, the turnaround required deeper cultural shifts and further development of the company’s target operating models. Sen believed in the progress made but faced a critical question: Was Fresenius executing the transformation in the right sequence, at the right speed, and with the right priorities to ensure long-term success? This case study examines the challenges of corporate transformation, the role of leadership in driving change, and the importance of aligning stakeholders in a high-stakes turnaround.

• April 2025
• Case

Will Vickers, a seventh-generation (G7) member of the Vickers Family, grappled with a pressing challenge: how to re-integrate family members into the firm to recover lost talent. His father, Peter Vickers, was the lone leader of the Vickers Oils – despite having stepped down from his role as Managing Director. While there were active shareholders, none felt inclined to involve themselves in the operational front of the company. Further, family conflict in G5 had resulted in a family branch that was thereby excluded from participating in the firm, creating lasting divisions amongst the Vickers. Could family members who had drifted away find a way back into the company? How much effort would it entail to make them feel welcome and interested again? Or, as families grew in size, was some degree of “floating away” necessary? Was there an optimal number of involved and uninvolved members, and how might this interplay with shareholding dynamics?