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Harvard Business Review (HBR) has named NYU Stern Dean Bharat N. Anand’s co-authored article, “The Gen AI Playbook for Organizations,” the winner of the 2025 HBR Prize, awarded each year to the best article published in the magazine.

Leaders Need a Clear Plan For Leveraging Generative AI for Competitive Advantage

In the article, Dean Anand and co-author Andy Wu argue that leaders can’t afford a “wait and see” approach to generative AI—they need a clear plan for using it in ways that set them apart. Drawing on their research and experience leading gen AI initiatives, Anand and Wu introduce a framework for choosing where and how to use the technology across tasks, including which can be handled by AI and which require human oversight. They also outline steps organizations can take to differentiate how they create value with gen AI.

“‘The Gen AI Playbook for Organizations’ tackles one of the most pressing management questions right now: how to apply AI more strategically,” said Amy Bernstein, Editor in Chief of Harvard Business Review, in a press release announcing the award. “Judges praised the article’s clear, coherent framework and the practical guidance that leaders can use right away.”

About the HBR Prize

The HBR Prize, judged by an independent panel of business and academic leaders with input from members of HBR’s Advisory Board, spotlights the most outstanding article published each year in Harvard Business Review. The award was established in 1959 to recognize groundbreaking management thinking. This year’s announcement appears in the May-June issue of the magazine.

About Dean Bharat N. Anand

Bharat N. Anand is the Richard R. West Dean and a professor of business administration at New York University’s Stern School of Business. He began his tenure as Dean on August 1, 2025. He joined NYU Stern from Harvard University, where he was the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning and the Henry R. Byers Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, and served on the faculty for 27 years.

Dean Anand is an expert in digital strategy, media and entertainment strategy, corporate strategy, and organizational change. His book The Content Trap: A Strategist's Guide to Digital Change has received acclaim for its perspective on strategy and digital transformation. In 2014, Dean Anand helped create and launch Harvard Business School Online, serving as its first faculty chair and Senior Associate Dean. As Vice Provost, he also chaired Harvard’s Generative AI Working Group for Teaching and Learning in 2023-25.