Publications
Publications
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(5,729)
- Faculty Publications (682)
- March 2018
- Article
Making the Numbers? 'Short Termism' and the Puzzle of Only Occasional Disaster
By: Hazhir Rahmandad, Rebecca Henderson and Nelson P. Repenning
Much recent work in strategy and popular discussion suggests that an excessive focus on "managing the numbers"—delivering quarterly earnings at the expense of longer-term investments—makes it difficult for firms to make the investments necessary to build competitive... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised October 2018)
- Case
Wellington Global Impact
By: Shawn Cole and Lynn Schenk
Wellington Global Impact is one of the first public equities impact investing strategies in the market. The case explores how the strategy was developed at Wellington, including an analysis of the culture that supported its development. It also explores the difficulty... View Details
- February 2018
- Case
Infrastructure in Nigeria: Unlocking Pension Fund Investments
By: John Macomber and Pippa Tubman Armerding
The so-called “infrastructure finance gap” was a problem in Nigeria as in many parts of the world. Infrastructure projects like power plants and dams were very large capital investments that could generate long-term consistent cash flows, but their financing and... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised October 2019)
- Technical Note
The Art and Science of Brand Valuation
By: Jill Avery
Brand valuation, the art and science of calculating the economic value accruing to a firm from its use of an intangible brand asset, yields frustratingly inconsistent, discrepant, and, therefore, controversial results. While it is widely accepted that brands are... View Details
Keywords: Brand Valuation; Brand Value; Brand; Brand Management; Marketing ROI; Brand Equity; Analytics; Return On Investment; Brands and Branding; Valuation; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Investment Return; Consumer Behavior; Advertising Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Auto Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Electronics Industry; Fashion Industry; Food and Beverage Industry
- February 2018 (Revised June 2019)
- Case
Jaguar Capital S.A.S., Take the Money and Run?
By: Nori Gerardo Lietz and Sayiddah Fatima McCree
In January 2014, Tomas Uribe and Rodrigo Sanchez-Rios of Jaguar Capital S.A.S. (Jaguar or Jaguar Capital), were considering an offer from White Stone, the world’s largest private equity real estate investor. Jaguar Capital needed capital to fund its investment thesis,... View Details
Keywords: Real Estate; Investing; Private Equity Financing; Deal Structuring; Emerging Market; Emerging Economies; Emerging Market Finance; International Entrepreneurship; Finance; Entrepreneurship; Agreements and Arrangements; Emerging Markets; Real Estate Industry; Retail Industry; Financial Services Industry; Colombia; Latin America; United States
- February 2018 (Revised December 2019)
- Case
The Tax Man: Taxes in Private Equity Real Estate
By: Nori Gerardo Lietz, Timothy J. Becker, Ricardo Andrade and Sayiddah F. McCree
In January 2018, Caelan Langan, an associate at KSW Partners LLC (“KSW”), was asked by Katherine Scott, the partner for whom he worked, to recommend a proposed structure to acquire a prominent office building in San Francisco for their most recent fund. Caelan was... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised March 2019)
- Case
Sandlands Vineyards
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Gregory Saldutte
Approximately 80% of the wineries in the U.S. break even or lose money. An even greater percentage lose money on an economic basis (i.e., after a charge for the cost of equity). Tegan Passalacqua is a successful, young, Californian winemaker who specializes in making... View Details
Keywords: Wine; Winery; Vineyard; Market Attractiveness; Porter's 5 Forces; Capital Investment; Industry Attractiveness; Performance Analysis; Agriculture; Entrepreneurship; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Food; Supply Chain; Industry Structures; Five Forces Framework; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; California; Napa Valley
- February 2018 (Revised February 2018)
- Supplement
HNA Group: Global Excellence with Chinese Characteristics (B)
By: William C. Kirby and Yuanzhuo Wang
This case provides a brief overview of the success and challenges of the HNA Group between 2015 and late 2017 when it grew rapidly through global acquisitions to become 170 on the 2017 Fortune 500 list. A firm that had begun as a provincial airline in China was now a... View Details
Keywords: Internationalization; Scrutiny; Growth; China; Philanthropy; One Belt One Road; Globalized Markets and Industries; Growth and Development; Acquisition; Corporate Governance; Air Transportation Industry; Financial Services Industry; Tourism Industry; China; United States; Europe; Asia; South America; Southeast Asia
- February 2018 (Revised January 2020)
- Case
SoulCycle: The Road Ahead
By: Ashish Nanda, Eric Van den Steen and Jeffrey Boyar
Julie Rice and Elizabeth Cutler founded SoulCycle, an indoor cycling studio chain, in 2006 as more than a health club; they wanted it to become a lifestyle brand that would “empower riders in an immersive fitness experience.” By early 2015, SoulCycle had grown to 38... View Details
- February 2018
- Case
Health Savings Accounts: Enabling Consumer Participation
By: Regina E. Herzlinger and James Wallace
Health savings accounts (HSAs), a creation of the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act, had become an integral part of the drive toward consumer-driven health care. Coupled with high-deductible health plans, HSAs allowed consumers to directly control a significant part of... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised August 2018)
- Case
Blue Haven Initiative: The PEGAfrica Investment
By: Vikram S. Gandhi, Caitlin Reimers Brumme and Amram Migdal
This case examines Blue Haven Initiative (BHI), an impact investing fund and family office, and one of its investments, PEGAfrica (PEG). BHI founder Liesel Pritzker Simmons’ motivations for using her family wealth to start a family office focused on impact investing,... View Details
Keywords: Impact Investing; Family Office; Development; International Development; International Development Investing; Development Fund; Sustainability; Solar Energy; Solar; Pay As You Go; PAYG; MFI; Social Venture; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Startups; Economics; Development Economics; Energy; Energy Conservation; Energy Sources; Renewable Energy; Social Entrepreneurship; Finance; Assets; Asset Pricing; Capital; Capital Budgeting; Capital Structure; Venture Capital; Cash; Cash Flow; Currency; Currency Exchange Rate; Equity; Private Equity; Financial Instruments; Debt Securities; Stock Shares; Financing and Loans; Microfinance; International Finance; Investment; Investment Return; Investment Activism; Investment Funds; Investment Portfolio; Price; Geography; Geographic Location; Emerging Markets; Ownership; Ownership Stake; Private Ownership; Social Enterprise; Value; Valuation; Value Creation; Energy Industry; Financial Services Industry; Green Technology Industry; Africa; United States
- January 2018
- Case
Scaling Swagbucks (A)
By: Jeffrey F. Rayport and Matthew G. Preble
In early 2014, Chuck Davis (HBS '86) has joined Swagbucks as its first professional CEO to scale a successful and profitable brand promotion and consumer research business. Davis came into the job while serving as a venture partner at TCV, a growth stage VC firm,... View Details
Keywords: Loyalty Management; Scaling; Scale; Entrepreneurship; Human Resources; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Design; Leading Change; Growth Management; Religion; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Transition; Leadership; Web Services Industry; Technology Industry
- January 2018 (Revised April 2021)
- Case
Capital Allocation at HCA
By: W. Carl Kester and Emily R. McComb
In early 2017, HCA Holdings, an investor-owned hospital management company, faced a strategically important capital allocation decision. After the exit of its private equity sponsors in 2016, HCA had to determine how best to allocate its substantial annual free cash... View Details
Keywords: Capital Allocation; Cash Distribution Policy; Dividends; Share Repurchases; Growth Strategy And Execution; Growth Investing; Capital Expenditures; Debt Management; Debt Reduction; Debt Policy; Hospital Management; Investor-owned Hospital Chains; Capital Budgeting; Capital Structure; Cash Flow; Corporate Finance; Decision Choices and Conditions; Health Industry; United States
- January 2018
- Case
Trian Partners' Proxy Contest at Procter & Gamble
By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher
In July 2017, activist hedge fund Trian Partners announced that it was launching a proxy fight at U.S. consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble. P&G would be the largest company ever subjected to a proxy fight, as Trian sought to have its CEO, Nelson Peltz, elected to the... View Details
- January–February 2018
- Article
Inclusive Growth: Profitable Strategies for Tackling Poverty and Inequality
By: Robert S. Kaplan, George Serafeim and Eduardo Tugendhat
More than a billion people in the developing world remain in extreme poverty and outside the formal economy. Traditional CSR programs have done little to alleviate the situation and rarely produce transformative change.
Instead of trying to fix local problems,... View Details
Instead of trying to fix local problems,... View Details
Keywords: Inclusive Growth; Sustainability; Social Impact; Business Strategy; Shared Value; Impact Investing; Inequality; Corporate Governance; Balanced Scorecard; Strategy Execution; Economic Growth; Developing Countries and Economies; Poverty; Equality and Inequality; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Strategy; Investment
- November 2017 (Revised February 2019)
- Case
Kurt Summers: Investing in Our Chicago (Abridged)
By: Joshua Margolis and Michael Norris
In 2016, Kurt Summers, the Chicago City Treasurer, considered his future in Chicago politics. With an unpopular governor and mayor soon up for reelection, should Summers consider running for higher office? Summers reflects on his time growing up in gang-controlled... View Details
- September 2017
- Case
Blackstone's Julia Kahr at the Summit
By: Paul A. Gompers, John D. Dionne and Amram Migdal
In 2009, Blackstone, the New York-based alternative asset and financial services firm, committed to invest up to $750 million into Summit Materials, a new company in the aggregates sector (i.e., construction materials, such as crushed stone, sand, gravel, cement,... View Details
Keywords: Roll Up; Private Equity Roll Up; Aggregates; Aggregates Materials; Construction Materials; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Leveraged Buyouts; Business Growth and Maturation; Engineering; Construction; Finance; Capital; Equity; Private Equity; Financial Instruments; Investment; Housing; Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Personal Development and Career; Management Teams; Planning; Problems and Challenges; Value; Valuation; Value Creation; Construction Industry; Financial Services Industry; United States
- September 2017 (Revised February 2023)
- Case
Intermountain Healthcare: Pursuing Precision Medicine
By: Richard G. Hamermesh, Kathy E. Giusti, Robert S. Huckman and Julia Kelley
Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Intermountain Healthcare operates 23 hospitals and hundreds of clinics in Utah and Idaho and provides insurance to approximately 850,000 patients through its insurance arm, SelectHealth. In 2013, Intermountain, known for its commitment... View Details
- September 2017
- Supplement
Actera Group: Investing in Mars Cinema Group (A)
By: Victoria Ivashina and Eren Kuzucu
In summer of 2010, Murat Çavuşoğlu (HBS MBA 1994) led private equity firm Actera Group’s investment in Mars Cinema Group (Mars), the leading movie exhibitor in Turkey. Immediately after acquiring Mars and merging it with the second larger player in the market, AFM,... View Details
- September 2017
- Supplement
Actera Group: Investing in Mars Cinema Group (B)
By: Victoria Ivashina and Eren Kuzucu
In summer of 2010, Murat Çavuşoğlu (HBS MBA 1994) led private equity firm Actera Group’s investment in Mars Cinema Group (Mars), the leading movie exhibitor in Turkey. Immediately after acquiring Mars and merging it with the second larger player in the market, AFM,... View Details