David Baron

The David S. and Ann M. Barlow Professor of Political Economy and Strategy, Emeritus at Stanford Graduate School of Business

Schools

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Expertise

Biography

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Research Statement

David Baron has published in the fields of industrial organization, economic theory, political science, business strategy, operations research, statistics, and finance. He has authored over 100 articles and 3 books, one of which is in its 5th edition. His principal research interests have been the theory of the firm, the economics of regulation, mechanism design and its applications, political economics, and nonmarket strategy. His current research focuses on political economics and strategy in the business environment.

Bio

David Baron began his academic career at Northwestern University where he taught for thirteen years in the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He joined the Graduate School of Business of Stanford University in 1981. He has also been a visiting professor at the Université d’Aix-en-Provence in France, the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, Harvard University, and the California Institute of Technology. At Stanford he is the David S. and Ann M. Barlow Professor of Political Economy and Strategy (Emeritus) in the Graduate School of Business, and Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science (by courtesy) in the School of Humanities and Sciences. He received a BS from the University of Michigan, an MBA from Harvard University, and a Doctorate in Business Administration from Indiana University. In 2005 he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium.

Professor Baron has taught in the MBA, PhD, and Executive Education programs, receiving the MBA teaching award at Kellogg and the PhD teaching award at Stanford. He has been an innovator in the field of business and its social, political, and legal environment, and is the author of the leading textbook in the field. In 2007 he received the lifetime achievement award from the Aspen Institute.

His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, Bureau of Health Services Research, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the Citicorp Behavioral Sciences Research Council. He is a Fellow of the Econometric Society and has served on the Board of Editors of the American Economic Review, the Quarterly Journal of Economics, the Journal of Economics and Management Strategy, Business and Politics, and Decision Sciences.

Academic Degrees

Doctor Honoris Causa, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, 2005
DBA in Quantitative Business Analysis (Major), Managerial Economics (Minor) & Finance (Minor), Indiana University, 1968
MBA, Harvard University, 1964
BS, University of Michigan, 1962

Academic Appointments

Donald P. Jacobs Visiting Professor of Research, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2007-present
Visiting Professor, Department of Government, Harvard University, 1990-91
Morrison Professor Decision Sciences, J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, 1978-1981
Visiting Professor, Department of Applied Economics, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, 1977-1978
Visiting Professor, Universite D'Aix-Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, France, 1973-1974
Visiting Professor, California Institute of Technology, 2012

Professional Experience

Corporate Analyst, Standard Oil Company (Indiana), 1964-1966.

Awards and Honors

Economics, Politics and Business Environment category, The Case Centre Awards and Competitions, 2015
Lifetime Achievement Award, Business and Society Program, The Aspen Institute, 2008
Andersen Consulting Award for Best Article, California Management Review, 1995
Nancy L. Schwartz Lecture, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, 2001
Teacher of the Year, J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, 1980-1
Distinguished Service Award, Doctoral Program, Graduate School of Business, Stanford, 1999

In the Media

Category Winner: Goldman Sachs and Its Reputation

The Case Centre, 2015

Ethical Soul-Searching at Business School

Financial Times, August 2002

Lobbyists Tied to Microsoft Wrote Citizens' Letters

Los Angeles Times, September 23, 2001

Insights by Stanford Business

writtenSocial Pressures Affect Corporate Strategy and Performance

December 1, 2009

A scholar says social pressure plays a major role in determining corporate strategy and performance.

Read about executive education

Cases

Goldman Sachs and Its Reputation | P77 David Baron2011

Google Out of China | P76 David Baron2010

Carried Interest Taxation | P56 David Baron2008

Compulsory Licensing, Thailand, and Abbott Laboratories | P66 David Baron2008

Consumer Awareness or Disease Mongering? GlaxoSmithKline and the Restless Legs Syndrome | P69 David Baron2008

Fuel Economy Standards 2007 | P58 David Baron2008

Mattel Crisis Management or Management Crisis | P59 David Baron2008

Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals Integrated Strategy for a Development Stage Molecular Medicine Company | P51 David Baron, Aneesha Capur2008

MTN Group Limited | P65 David Baron2008

Responsible Lobbying? | P57 David Baron2008

Siemens Anatomy of Bribery | P68 David Baron2008

Social Entrepreneurship Banco Compartamos | P71 David Baron2008

Social Entrepreneurship Kiva | P70 David Baron2008

Tesco PLC in India? | P62 David Baron2008

The Nonmarket Environment of Google | P55 David Baron2008

Gilead Sciences (A) The Gilead Access Program for HIV Drugs | P53A David Baron, Keith Krehbiel, Brian Tayan2007

Gilead Sciences (B) Implementing the Gilead Access Program for HIV Drugs | P53B David Baron, Keith Krehbiel, Brian Tayan2007

Google in China | P54 David Baron2006

Wal-Mart Nonmarket Pressure and Reputation Risk (A) | P52A David Baron2006

Wal-Mart: Nonmarket Pressure and Reputation Risk (B) A New Nonmarket Strategy | P52B David Baron2006

Obesity and McLawsuits | P49 David Baron2005

Anatomy of a Corporate Campaign Rainforest Action Network and Citigroup (A) | P42A David Baron, Erin Yurday2004

Anatomy of a Corporate Campaign Rainforest Action Network and Citigroup (C) | P42C David Baron, Erin Yurday2004

Anatomy of a Corporate Campaing Rainforest Action Network and Citigroup (B) | P42B David Baron, Erin Yurday2004

Exclusive Resorts Entrepreneurial Positioning and Nonmarket Defense | P48 David Baron2004

Strategic Activism The Rainforest Action Network | P44 David Baron, Erin Yurday2004

The Nonmarket Environment of McDonald's | P46 David Baron2004

GlaxoSmithKline and AIDS Drugs Policy | P39 David Baron, Soon Jin Lim, Deborah Liu2003

Note on AIDS and the Pharmaceutical Industry | P41 David Baron, Soon Jin Lim, Deborah Liu2003

The FCC and Broadband Regulation | P45 David Baron2003

CAFE Standards 2002 | P43 David Baron2002

DoubleClick and Internet Privacy | P32 David Baron2002

eBay: Private Ordering for an Online Community | P37 David Baron, D. Hoyt2001

Internet Taxation | P36 David Baron, Alan Wiseman2001

Pharmaceutical Switching | P38 David Baron2001

eBay and Database Protection | P33 David Baron2000

Sophis Networks and Encryption Export Controls (A) | P34A David Baron, Victoria Chang2000

Sophis Networks and Encryption Export Controls (B) | P34B David Baron, Victoria Chang2000

The Microsoft Antitrust Case | P50 David Baron, Chen Lichtenstein1998

Echelon in Europe | P22 David Baron, Michael Ting1997

Proposition 211: Securities Litigation Referendum (A) | P23A David Baron, Chris Watts1997

Proposition 211: Securities Litigation Referendum (B) | P23B David Baron, Chris Watts1997

Echelon and the Home Automation Standard (A) | P20A David Baron, Michael Ting, Erik Johnson1996

Echelon and the Home Automation Standard (B) | P20B David Baron, Michael Ting, Keith Krehbiel, Erik Johnson, Daniel P. Kessler1996

Kodak-Fujifilm Trade Dispute | P17 David P. Baron1996

Cemex and Antidupming | P4 David Baron, Justin Adams1994

Levi Strauss & Co. Global Sourcing Guidelines | P12 David Baron, J. Adams1994

Levi Strauss & Co. in China* | P13 David Baron, J. Wu1994

Levi Strauss & Co. Terms of Engagement Audits | P14 David Baron1994

Section 936 Tax Credit | P5 David Baron, A. Wu1994