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Word-of-mouth is a powerful, organic form of marketing. But what about word-of-machine? Research from Professor Luca Cian shows that customers trust artificial-intelligence recommendations when a product or service is practical but resist when they’re pursuing a product or service for pleasure. What can companies do with this information?

Hype vs. discipline. Charisma vs. responsibility. The buzz around Adam Neumann’s WeWork went from enthusiasm for a unicorn with billions in venture capital to backlash for a company with a plummeted valuation and scrapped IPO. Yet with new leadership and governance structures, long-term profit may be in sight. What might we learn from WeWork?

Storytelling is a crucial skill that leaders use for many purposes: improving interpersonal relationships, strategy communication, culture building, engaging external stakeholders, raising capital and communicating with the media, for example. So how does one create an engaging story? Here are tips from a Darden expert.

Social mobility in the U.S. is increasingly rare. How does that play out in the workplace? Contrary to the arguments past studies posed about workers coming from lower social class positions, the upwardly mobile are just as likely as their high-class counterparts to speak up and share ideas at work. So what could be the barriers to advancement?

Sexism and rudeness: not mutually exclusive. New research shows that rudeness can hide sexism, as observers may dismiss perpetrators as “equal-opportunity jerks.” Darden professors explain how the phenomenon not only turns bad behavior into plausible deniability, it can also serve as a barrier to addressing sexism in the workplace.

One of the key challenges facing fledgling ventures is recruiting talent. Darden Professor Ting Xu shares findings from his recent study on how investors’ reputations can attract in-demand employees to their portfolio companies.

The WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic two years ago. In one of the largest health psychologies studies ever, a Darden professor researched factors related to adherence to public health measures, including: national identity — different from nationalism — political affiliation, and consistent messaging from leaders across the political spectrum.

What if a product is marketed to you based on one part of your identity? What if you consider that identity marginalized or the marketing is based on a stereotype, whether good or bad? In new research, a Darden expert examines when identity-based appeals are effective — and the importance of really knowing your customer.

The U.N.’s report on climate change reflects a more dire situation than the world may have anticipated in the 2015 Paris Agreement. We need multistakeholder action — across industries — including government policies and the private sector’s commercialization of clean technologies. Here, Darden experts delve into practical action companies can take.

As we celebrate Women’s History Month throughout March, Allison Elias, assistant professor of business administration and author of the book The Rise of Corporate Feminism: Women in the American Office 1960–1990, asks whether all women benefit from efforts to advance gender equity in the workplace, as well as where we've been and where we're going.