Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(3,377)
- Faculty Publications (678)
- September 2011
- Article
How to Solve the Cost Crisis in Health Care
By: Robert S. Kaplan and Michael E. Porter
Existing health care costing systems have serious flaws that make it impossible to measure costs accurately at the individual patient and medical condition level. This gap has severely limited meaningful cost reduction throughout the system. The paper describes a new... View Details
- Article
Product Positioning in a Two-Dimensional Vertical Differentiation Model: The Role of Quality Costs
By: Dominique Lauga and Elie Ofek
We study a duopoly model where consumers are heterogeneous with respect to their willingness to pay for two product characteristics and marginal costs are increasing with the quality level chosen on each attribute. We show that while firms seek to manage competition... View Details
Keywords: Duopoly and Oligopoly; Customers; Quality; Product Positioning; Competition; Management; Cost; Product
- August 2011 (Revised October 2014)
- Case
High Wire Act: Credit Suisse and Contingent Capital (A)
By: Clayton S. Rose and Aldo Sesia
Late in 2010, Credit Suisse CEO Brady Dougan and his team closed in on the decision of whether or not to issue contingent capital, which Swiss regulators would require by 2019. There were a number of substantial issues facing Dougan and his team, including whether... View Details
- July 2011 (Revised September 2012)
- Case
Industrial Metrology: Getting In-Line? (A)
By: Willy Shih
Metrology plays a key role in the manufacture of mechanical components. Traditionally it is used extensively in a pre-process stage where a manufacturer does process planning, design, and ramp-up, and in post-process off-line inspection to establish proof of quality.... View Details
- July 2011
- Article
Mixed Source
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Gaston Llanes
We study competitive interaction between a profit-maximizing firm that sells software and complementary services and a free open source competitor. We examine the firm's choice of business model between the proprietary model (where all software modules are... View Details
- 2011
- Working Paper
Non-Audit Services and Financial Reporting Quality: Evidence from 1978-1980
By: Kevin Koh, Shiva Rajgopal and Suraj Srinivasan
We provide evidence for the long-standing concern on auditor conflicts of interest from providing non-audit services (NAS) to audit clients by using rarely explored NAS fee data from 1978 to 1980. Using this earlier setting, we find cross-sectional evidence of improved... View Details
- July – August 2011
- Article
What Factors Drive Analyst Forecasts?
A firm's competitive environment, its strategic choices, and its internal capabilities are considered important determinants of its future performance. Yet there is little evidence on whether analysts' forecasts of firm performance actually reflect any of these factors... View Details
- June 2011
- Case
Reed Supermarkets: A New Wave of Competitors
By: John A. Quelch and Carole Carlson
Reed Supermarkets is a high-end supermarket chain with operations in several Midwestern states. Meredith Collins, vice president of marketing, visits stores located in Columbus, Ohio, an important region with the largest market and the greatest impact on revenue... View Details
- May 2011
- Case
Baria Planning Solutions, Inc.: Fixing the Sales Process
By: Steven C. Wheelwright and William Schmidt
Baria Planning Solutions (BPS) is a consulting firm that specializes in using spend analysis to help companies identify savings through reduced procurement costs and improved supplier performance. Management is concerned about the disappointing performance of the sales... View Details
Keywords: Quantitative Analysis; Technology; Operations Management; Product Lines; Manufacturing; Capacity Planning; Production Planning; Production; Management Practices and Processes; Service Operations; Supply Chain Management; Salesforce Management; Planning; Consulting Industry; North and Central America
- April 2011 (Revised September 2011)
- Case
BlackRock Solutions
By: Kenneth A. Froot and Scott Waggoner
The BlackRock Solutions case examines the different functions and economics of a global asset manager's value chain, with particular emphasis on the "money management" and the "investment systems platform" businesses. Students analyze why BlackRock decided to unbundle... View Details
Keywords: Investment Management; Strategic Vision; Organizational Behavior; Economies Of Scale And Scope; Unbundling Of Services; Strategic Planning; Risk Management; Financial Management; Asset Management; Competitive Advantage; Value; Corporate Strategy; Organizational Culture; Investment; Financial Strategy
- April 2011
- Case
Porcini's Pronto: "Great Italian cuisine without the wait!"
By: James L. Heskett and Richard Luecke
Porcini's Inc. operates a chain of 23 full-service restaurants located near shopping malls and downtown areas in the northeastern United States. Known for providing excellent service, Porcini's serves high-quality Italian cuisine made from fresh ingredients. Looking... View Details
Keywords: Franchising; Syndication; Quantitative Analysis; Performance Measurement; Human Resource Management; Incentives; Motivation; Consumer Behavior; Measurement and Metrics; Quality; Customer Value and Value Chain; Selection and Staffing; Expansion; Business Growth and Maturation; Service Delivery; Franchise Ownership; Customer Focus and Relationships; Product Marketing; Service Industry; Service Industry; Northeastern United States
- March 2011 (Revised November 2013)
- Case
The Dutch Flower Cluster
By: Michael E. Porter, Jorge Ramirez-Vallejo and Fred van Eenennaam
Describes the Dutch Flower cluster, or the group of interconnected growers, suppliers, service providers, and flower-related institutions located in The Netherlands. Examines the role of the FloraHolland auction in the value chain. Also describes the flower clusters in... View Details
- March 2011
- Teaching Note
InnoCentive.com (A) (TN)
By: Karim R. Lakhani
Teaching Note for 608170. View Details
- March 2011
- Teaching Note
TopCoder (A): Developing Software through Crowdsourcing (TN)
By: Karim R. Lakhani and Eric Lonstein
Teaching Note for 610032. View Details
- March 2011 (Revised August 2012)
- Case
Groupon
By: Sunil Gupta, Ray Weaver and Dharmishta Rood
On November 4, 2011, Groupon, a marketing services company that promoted local businesses by selling deeply discounted vouchers for their products and services, completed its initial public offering that valued the company at $17 billion. Within a year Groupon's share... View Details
- March 2011
- Case
Insight Communications
By: Rajiv Lal and Natalie Kindred
After undertaking a multi-year, metrics-driven operational and cultural overhaul, in April 2010 Insight Communications was planning the next phase of its development. Insight was a New York-based provider of cable, landline phone, and high-speed Internet service to... View Details
- March 2011 (Revised June 2013)
- Case
Next Street, LLC
By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff
Next Street Financial, LLC was a modern merchant bank that provided high quality advisory services and capital to small- and mid-sized inner city businesses. Next Street was a for-profit business that aimed to increase the growth, profitability and success of its... View Details
- March 2011
- Case
Calveta Dining Services, Inc.: A Recipe for Growth?
By: James L. Heskett and Patricia Girardi
Calveta Dining Services contracts with senior living facilities (SLFs) for the management of food service to residents. Created by Antonio Calveta and built on his passion for food and traditional family values, the firm had enjoyed three decades of strong growth when... View Details
- March 1, 2011
- Article
Technology Will Make Collaboration Your Next Competitive Advantage
- March 2011
- Case
Valuation of AirThread Connections
By: Erik Stafford and Joel L. Heilprin
This case can be used as a capstone valuation exercise for first-year MBA students in an introductory finance course. A senior associate in the business development group at American Cable Communications, one of the largest cable companies in the U.S., must prepare a... View Details