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Fred Foulkes

Director, Human Resources Policy Institute; Professor of Management & Organizations at Boston University

Schools

  • Boston University

Expertise

Links

Biography

Boston University

Professor Foulkes is the founder and director of the Human Resources Policy Institute, a partnership between Questrom School of Business faculty and over 50 chief HR officers of many of the largest companies in the US. Prior to joining the faculty at Boston University, he taught at Harvard Business School.

Foulkes’ research and teaching interests include employee and labor relations, benefits and executive compensation, and the strategic role of HR in creating and sustaining competitive advantage. Foulkes works with companies to develop and teach executive education programs for HR Professionals.

His principal publications include: Creating More Meaningful Work (AMA); Personnel Policies in Large Nonunion Companies (Prentice-Hall); Executive Compensation: A Strategic Guide for the 1990s (HBS Press). Professor Foulkes has also written numerous articles, including five published in the Harvard Business Review, two published in Directors and Boards, and has developed over 160 case studies.

Foulkes is a director of Operation Able, the NAHR Foundation and the New England HR Association. He is a former director of Bright Horizons, Cambridge Medical, Panera Bread, and Wheelock College.

Education

  • DBA, Harvard Business School, 1968
  • MBA, Harvard Business School, 1965
  • AB, Princeton University, 1963

Expert In

  • Employee and labor relations
  • Employee benefits
  • Employment security programs
  • Executive compensation
  • Executive staffing
  • Human resource policy
  • Human resource strategies
  • Quality of working life

Selected Publications

  • Foulkes, F. (2020). "Consistency will ease return to workplace decisions", Human Resource Executive Magazine
  • Tsusaka, M., Smith, M., Foulkes, F., Hornig, G. (1999). "What went wrong at Captiva, and what should happen next?", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 77 (6), 42-+
  • FOULKES, F. (1992). "A PAY PLAN THAT WORKS", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 70 (2), 168-168
  • FOULKES, F., WHITMAN, A. (1985). "MARKETING STRATEGIES TO MAINTAIN FULL-EMPLOYMENT", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 63 (4), 30-&
  • FOULKES, F. (1985). "WHY BONUS PLANS ARE GOOD FOR BUSINESS", PERSONNEL, 62 (8), 72-73
  • FOULKES, F., HIRSCH, J. (1984). "PEOPLE MAKE ROBOTS WORK", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 62 (1), 94-102
  • FOULKES, F. (1983). "DUE PROCESS", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 61 (2), 214-214
  • FOULKES, F. (1981). "HOW TOP NON-UNION COMPANIES MANAGE EMPLOYEES", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 59 (5), 90-96
  • FOULKES, F., MORGAN, H. (1977). "ORGANIZING AND STAFFING PERSONNEL FUNCTION", HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, 55 (3), 142-154

Videos

Read about executive education

Cases

Ryan Poised to Earn Millions Even If He Sheds ‘Weekend Dad’ Role

April 12, 2018

Bloomberg Politics Fred Foulkes Paul Ryan will easily add to his already considerable net worth if he opts to stray from his native Wisconsin to join a corporate board or dabble in Washington power struggles when he retires next year as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives… Expert quote: “The kind of board that […]

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Navigating the Pay-Ratio Quagmire

April 10, 2018

Human Resource Executive Fred Foulkes At a time of growing concern about income inequality, CEO pay ratios will be appearing in the proxies of companies whose fiscal year ended in December… Expert quote: “At the end of the day, while the pay-ratio calculation is burdensome and costly to employers—and thereby to shareholders—there is little information […]

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Sexual harassment and assault reports prompt reflection

December 3, 2017

The MetroWest Daily News Fred Foulkes As the names of alleged perpetrators of sexual harassment and assault pour out in the news each week, some human resources and education experts say there comes an opportunity to look within… Expert quote: “I think given the publicity, there’s no company that’s not sort of reviewing their own […]

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Staples purchase could mean store closings, employee cuts, experts say

June 29, 2017

Wicked Local Framingham quoting Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business “Upon news this week that Staples will be purchased for $6.9 billion by a private firm, local officials and business experts said it’s possible the company will slash expenses through store closings and potential employee layoffs…” Expert quote: “They can really do things that they […]

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6 ways to prevent burnout in your IT staff

June 28, 2017

Computerworld quoting Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business “IT pros everywhere feel stressed, and no wonder: Some 81% of CIOs believe that the amount of pressure on technology professionals is higher now than it was just five years ago, according to a 2016 survey of more than 2,500 CIOs conducted by IT staffing firm Robert Half Technology […]

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Billerica Fire sex scandal mirrors problem cultures in other departments

May 2, 2017

Lowell Sun Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business “It’s been the talk of the town for weeks: Three firefighters and a dispatcher in hot water for their alleged ‘sexual misconduct’ in the fire station.” Expert quote: “Some departments are all volunteer, but full-time firefighters can have long periods of free time and things can happen.” […]

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A Better Way to Retrain Displaced Workers?

April 26, 2017

Inside Source Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business Federal programs designed to help displaced workers might need to be reformed to address rapid changes in the current labor market… Expert quote: ““The worst thing is to have people fund the programs, and then at the end of the day, what they’re being trained for, there’s […]

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At Fire Protection Association, nonprofit doesn’t mean low pay

March 15, 2017

Boston Globe Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business Charity work pays well at the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association in Quincy… Expert quote: ““It seems very, very high,” said Fred K. Foulkes , a professor and director of the Human Resources Policy Institute at Boston University.” View full article

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There’s more to diversity

June 4, 2016

Boston Globe (subscription required) Fred Foulkes, Questrom School of Business The Internet erupted in December when Twitter Inc., under fire for hiring a lot of white guys, said it had hired Jeffrey Siminoff as its new vice president of diversity and inclusion… Expert quote: “In the companies that make a difference, it’s clear that the […]

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Test results can define young careers

September 25, 2014

Financial Times (subscription required) Fred Foulkes, School of Management As the graduate recruitment season gets under way, it is time to buff up your CV, line up your referees and dredge up some of those results from school tests you took years ago… Expert quote: “The supply of people looking for jobs is greater than […]

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