About Me
About Me
Natalia Rigol is the Buchanan Associate Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School in the Entrepreneurial Management unit. Her work sits at the intersection of entrepreneurship, financial innovation, and impact investing in low- and middle-income countries. Her research examines why small firms rarely grow despite high returns to capital, showing how flexible and personalized financial contracts, improved targeting, and better-aligned institutional incentives can unlock sustained business growth. She works closely with banks, fintechs, and governments to design and bring innovative financial products to market. A core strand of her work examines how gender norms and household dynamics constrain women’s economic participation and how increasing women’s financial control can drive both productivity and social change. She is a cofounder of a microfinance startup in South India focused on translating impact-first ideas from academic research into practice. She holds a BA from Harvard College and a PhD in economics from MIT.
Email: nrigol at hbs.edu
Office: Rock Center for Entrepreneurship
60 North Harvard Street
Allston, MA 02163