History shows that as societies rise to greatness, the scales eventually tip back and those societies fall. But what leads to that fall and are we heading toward one? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen speak with historian Victor Davis Hanson, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution who specializes in classics and military history.  

The conversation explores the complexities and fragilities of successful societies like the Mycenaeans, Romans, and Byzantines, how specialization can lead to higher living standards but also increased vulnerability, and our existential worries about the future.  

Find All Else Equal on the web:  
https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

As we ring in the new year, we’re bringing back one of our favorite episodes! Handpicked by Jules and Jonathan, this previous conversation is perfect for starting your year with thought-provoking insights.

Are CEOs overpaid? It’s easy to see million-dollar (or even billion-dollar) salaries and jump to conclusions. But those figures might not capture the full picture. So, what really goes into deciding CEO compensation? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen welcome back Dirk Jenter, Professor of Finance at the London School of Economics. Together, they debunk some common myths about how CEO compensation is set, explore the value that CEOs add to firms, and make the case for why CEOs could actually be paid more. 

Find All Else Equal on the web: 

https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

During the 2024 U.S. presidential election, inflation was one of the most talked about issues, and there was one policy idea to get inflation under control that kept coming up: price caps. But history has shown time and time again that price caps do anything but reduce inflation. So why do policymakers still want to try it?

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen speak with guest Veronica Rappoport, associate professor at London School of Economics and former 2nd Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Argentina. Veronica served as the deputy governor during a key period of high inflation for Argentina. 

She chats with Jonathan and Jules about the circumstances that can lead to inflation rates as high as the ones Argentina has seen in the last 50 years, how band-aids like price caps can in fact make inflation significantly worse in the long run, and what lessons countries like the U.S. can take from Argentina’s case.  

Find All Else Equal on the web:  
https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

Should legacy admissions at colleges and universities be banned? What are the benefits and tradeoffs of admitting students based on their legacy status? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen speak with guest Patrick Awuah, president of Ashesi University, about the Ghanaian university’s unique economic engine and the place for legacy admissions in the higher ed world.  

The conversation delves into how Ashesi University balances economic sustainability with educational inclusivity, the ethical and financial implications of legacy admissions, and tackles the controversial question, does admitting legacy students from wealthy families benefit the greater good of an institution? 

Find All Else Equal on the web:  
https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

The All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions podcast has officially done 50 episodes! To commemorate the milestone, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen look back on some of the major all else equal mistakes they’ve covered on the show. 

With highlights from past guests like Google CFO Ruth Porat and former SEC chair Jay Clayton, Jonathan and Jules provide insight on the pitfalls of oversimplified decision-making, regulatory challenges, correlation vs. causation, and what organizations can do to avoid making the same all else equal mistakes. 

Links to past episodes referenced in the show:

"Secrets of a Stockpicking Star" with Cliff Asness

"Turning ‘Bad’ Investments into Good Profits" with Pete Briger

"Why Has Private Equity Grown So Much?" with Eric Zinterhofer

"Why the Private Debt Markets Have Exploded" with Laurence Gottlieb

“Making Regulation Work” with Jay Clayton

“Investigating Implausible Theories” with John Ioannidis

“Institutional Neutrality: Open Debate and Moral Stands” with John Etchemendy

“Making a Business Decision” with Ruth Porat

“The Future of Higher Education Part 2” with Niall Ferguson

“Disentangling Causation and Correlation” with Guido Imbens

“Fair or Unfair: Do Competitive Markets Give Everyone a Chance?” with John Cochrane

“May Contain Lies” with Alex Edmans

“Understanding the SEC's New Climate Disclosure Rules” with Lawrence Cunningham

“Finance Professors on Why Leaders Can’t ‘Agree to Disagree’”  with Robert Aumann

Find All Else Equal on the web: 

https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

If the purpose of a proxy advisory firm is to gather information and advise shareholders on how to vote, then how do the firms handle the many different goals and incentives each shareholder brings to the table? Where do the proxy advisory firms’ interests truly lie? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen speak with guest Chester Spatt, finance professor at Carnegie Mellon University and former Chief Economist at U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, about the function and purpose of proxy advisory firms, such as Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis. 

The conversation delves into the differing objectives and incentives among shareholders and how that complicates the work of a proxy advisory firm. They also discuss how and why proxy advisory firms may purposely foster close votes, and what could serve as better voting benchmarks. 

Find All Else Equal on the web:  
https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

Regulation is meant to fix problems in the market, but as more and more regulation is introduced, those issues have a tendency to evolve into new ones. So is all this regulation even accomplishing what it set out to do? And how do you even measure the success of regulation to begin with? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen sit down with Jay Clayton, former chairperson of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. They chat with Jay about the unintended consequences of regulation, the increasing challenges facing regulatory bodies in today’s political landscape, and debate whether more regulation helps or hurts the overall market.

Find All Else Equal on the web: 

https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

Are CEOs overpaid? It’s easy to see million-dollar (or even billion-dollar) salaries and jump to conclusions. But those figures might not capture the full picture. So, what really goes into deciding CEO compensation? 

In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen welcome back Dirk Jenter, Professor of Finance at the London School of Economics. Together, they debunk some common myths about how CEO compensation is set, explore the value that CEOs add to firms, and make the case for why CEOs could actually be paid more. 

Find All Else Equal on the web: 

https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

What is the best way to measure National Debt Sustainability, and how does the US do on those metrics compared to other countries? In the first episode of the new season, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen speak with guest Mohamed El-Erian about the intricacies of the national debt, different measures of sustainability, and the implications of rising debt for national and global economies. Mohamed, Jonathan, and Jules also explore the broader macroeconomic and geopolitical factors at play. They discuss the importance of demographic shifts as well as recent technological advancements (AI) for economic growth and our fiscal future.

El-Erian is the former chair of President Obama's Global Development Council and former CEO of PIMCO. He is a Senior Fellow at the Lauder Institute.

Find All Else Equal on the web: 
https://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu/allelse/

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of the UPenn Wharton Lauder Institute through University FM.

This summer break, we'll be taking a pause from uploading new episodes. However, Jules and Jonathan have handpicked some favorite past episodes for new listeners to enjoy and subscribers to revisit!

Corporations are often characterized as evil entities that exploit workers. But in fact they enable firms to provide job security and thus serve the important role of minimizing risk for individual employees.

In this episode of All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen explore how corporations set employees’ wages based on their job performance while still providing job security by comparing it to an insurance contract. “I think, in fact, you could think of corporations as entities that insure workers,” says Jonathan Berk.

Also in this episode, Jonathan and Jules talk about bankruptcy, house fires, and why your supervisor hasn’t fired that one annoying coworker who doesn’t do anything.

Submit your questions to the show here: https://bit.ly/AllElseEqual

Find All Else Equal on the web: https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/all-else-equal-making-better-decisions

All Else Equal: Making Better Decisions Podcast is a production of Stanford Graduate School of Business and is produced by University FM.