Publications

September 1996 (Revised April 1998)
Case

Mobil USM&R (B): New England Sales and Distribution

By: Robert S. Kaplan

The general manager of a local gasoline/distillate sales and distribution business unit must communicate a new strategy to the unit's 300 employees. An initial strategic planning exercise identified a high-priority list of opportunities that blended the parent... View Details

Keywords: Balanced Scorecard; Adoption; Strategic Planning; Customization and Personalization; Management Practices and Processes; Growth and Development Strategy; Measurement and Metrics; Motivation and Incentives; Performance Evaluation; Energy Industry; Mining Industry; United States

30 Aug 2011
First Look

First Look: August 30

311-118 Worldwide, and in the U.S. marketplace in particular, the French cachet of L'Oréal was one of its most powerful marketing tools. However, with the opening up of emerging markets, L'Oréal had to cater to a diverse customer base: an... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

November 2020 (Revised February 2022)
Case

CommonSpirit Health: Integrating a Merger of Equals

By: Robert S. Huckman, Hise Gibson and Nicole Gilmore

Soon after closing the 2019 merger of Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI) and Dignity Health to create CommonSpirit Health, Lloyd Dean and Kevin Lofton-–jointly appointed to the role of CEO—must make several operational and strategic decisions related to the integration... View Details

Keywords: Health Care Delivery; Hospital; Merger; Merger Integration; Hospital Mergers; Health Information Technology; CEOs; Health Care and Treatment; Mergers and Acquisitions; Integration; Leadership; Customer Value and Value Chain; Decision Choices and Conditions; Governance; Information Technology; Health Industry; United States

23 May 2017
First Look

First Look at New Ideas and Research: May 23, 2017

difficult to understand and implement. We introduce the 4 Minds framework as a practical tool for understanding and applying the science of decision-making in the marketplace. We synthesize previous research on decision-making into four broad approaches View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

24 Jul 2006
Research & Ideas

How Kayak Users Built a New Industry

a force, the cost of creating a new design must be within the reach of a single user. User innovations occur when customers of a product improve on that product with their own designs. In rodeo kayaking, the early participants built... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Entertainment & Recreation

31 Oct 2023
Research & Ideas

Beyond the 'Business Case' in DEI: 6 Steps Toward Meaningful Change

disconnect between a company’s stated argument for diversity and the psychological reality of decision-making. “Your employees, future employees, customers and investors are watching.” As some CEOs weigh the future of their company’s DEI... View Details

Keywords: by Katherine Hutt Scott and Barbara DeLollis

21 Nov 2006
First Look

First Look: November 21, 2006

meanness level that a penal system based on "retribution" tries to detect when deciding the severity of the punishment. We find that when initial beliefs differ, two equilibria can emerge out of identical fundamentals. In the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

16 Oct 2023
HBS Case

Advancing Black Talent: From the Flight Ramp to 'Family-Sustaining' Careers at Delta

Keyra Lynn Johnson. “The frontline perspective can give management important insight into the employee experience and what customers really want from the airline.” Delta has reclassified most jobs that had previously required a degree and... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Air Transportation

March 2017 (Revised July 2019)
Case

Interline Brands: Don't Stop Believing

By: Nori Gerardo Lietz and Ricardo Andrade

Interline Brands, a leading distributor of residential housing maintenance and repair parts and equipment in the U.S., had just held its November 2014 board meeting. The meeting had been productive but not without some soul searching for both the company’s management... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity Exit; Consumer Goods; IPO; Private Equity; Initial Public Offering; Decision Choices and Conditions