airlines - Publications - Faculty & Research

30 Jan 2019
What Do You Think?

Who Will Measure up to These Two Remarkable Leaders?

Summing Up: Which Schools Will Produce the Next Generation of Transformative Leaders? This month’s column featured two leaders who were able to build organizations that literally transformed the mutual fund and airline industries. In the... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Air Transportation; Financial Services

01 May 2020
In Practice

COVID-19’s Hard Lessons Might Prepare Business for Climate Change

Uncertain Times (Harvard Business Review) Read COVID-19 coverage from Working Knowledge John D. Macomber: Safety will become a competitive advantage Companies who serve patrons in person—whether it’s restaurants or airlines or ballparks... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

20 Jul 2009
Research & Ideas

Markets or Communities? The Best Ways to Manage Outside Innovation

Thanks to technology and instant global communication, it has never been easier for companies to seek solutions to problems or find new ideas from sources outside their own corporate walls. But the art of managing these external innovation models is far from... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Technology

10 Feb 2003
Research & Ideas

Women at Work

former Bain associate Persistency Pays Kelly Cook had wanted to work at Continental Airlines for as long as she could remember. As a young, recently divorced mother of one, she began temping in the Houston area while applying for every... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild

06 Apr 2015
Research & Ideas

After Germanwings, More Attention Needed on Employee Mental Health

people? One possible answer came this past week when the airline revealed that the pilot, Andreas Lubitz, had previously suffered from deep depression. Debates began about how Lubitz's mental health played into the tragedy, what treatment... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Health; Air Transportation

06 Oct 2011
What Do You Think?

How Will the ‘Moneyball Generation’ Influence Management?

dashboard, "indirect goals" that help predict and explain financial performance beyond the "direct goal" of profit. These might include the speed of aircraft turnaround in the airline industry, the conversion rate of... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

14 Oct 2014
First Look

First Look: October 14

Business School Case 615-009 American Airlines in 2011 (A) The "American Airlines in 2011" case set was developed to provide a setting for the comparative analysis of two very different business... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

13 Dec 2004
Research & Ideas

How Leaders Create Winning Streaks

Continental Airlines. Prior to 1994, Continental had been on a ten-year losing streak, having been through ten CEOs during this time. The culture was dysfunctional with secrecy and infighting. When Gordon Bethune became CEO, he set a goal of becoming one of the top... View Details

Keywords: by Rosabeth Moss Kanter & Walter Kiechel

18 Jun 2013
First Look

First Look: June 18

http://hbr.org/search/913041-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 913-034 Distribution at American Airlines (C) Presents 2011-2012 updates to American's distribution strategy including new challenges and disputes. Purchase this case:... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

12 Oct 2006
First Look

First Look: October 12, 2006

Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage Harvard Business School Case 807-011 Examines Boeing's new strategy of offering services to regain market dominance and help its struggling airline customers improve efficiency and profitability. Purchase this... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Jun 2016
Op-Ed

Can Brand Trump Win a Presidency?

many brands have hits and misses when they extend beyond their core franchise. Richard Branson, for example, has done very well with Virgin airlines but other Virgin ventures, such as Virgin Money and Virgin trains, have performed poorly.... View Details

Keywords: by John A. Quelch; Advertising; Media & Broadcasting

21 Jan 2009
First Look

First Look: January 21, 2009

airline's need to slow its growth rate in the response to increasing fuel costs and the effects of major operational crisis for the airline in February 2007. In 2005, JetBlue—typically viewed as a low-cost carrier (LCC)—made a move that... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

27 Jul 2011
Research & Ideas

Customer Loyalty Programs That Work

19th century, took the idea a step further, rewarding customers with stamps that could be traded in for a variety of items. American Airlines introduced the next evolution of the customer loyalty program in 1981: the frequent-flier mile... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Retail

10 Apr 2006
Research & Ideas

Lessons from the Browser Wars

support these browsers, they will not hit the mainstream in any major fashion. Why won't an IT manager support these versions? The biggest headache with these browsers is that the majority of Web sites are optimized on IE. Try going to some of the major commercial... View Details

Keywords: by Sara Grant; Computer; Consumer Products; Technology

13 Jan 2009
First Look

First Look: January 13, 2009

Harvard Business School Case 309-029 HNA Group, the parent company of Hainan Airlines, was positioning itself to go global and make a mark for itself as the largest private airline in China. Positioned squarely behind the "Big... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

12 Nov 2021
Op-Ed

Can Our Parenting Struggles Make Us Better Leaders?

they have an obligation to work proactively to further the company’s mission. Alaska Airlines, likewise, has become one of the most successful and well-regarded airlines by giving its frontline workers much more control over customer... View Details

Keywords: by Ranjay Gulati; Air Transportation

08 Mar 2016
Research & Ideas

Solving an Economic Mystery Surrounding Argentina and Chile

country is home to a range of internationally competitive firms, from Falabella, the largest department store chain in Latin America, to LATAM, the largest airline group and a member of the One World Alliance. Q: Do you foresee any better... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

25 Aug 2003
Research & Ideas

Should You Sell Your Digital Privacy?

identity/privacy in terms of being an asset? A: I want Amazon to know my identity, in particular my taste in books and music. I know that they respect the value of that knowledge so that the issue of sharing the data won't ever come up. I want American View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls & Sean Silverthorne; Advertising

17 Jun 2013
Research & Ideas

Advertising Symbiosis: The Key to Viral Videos

ad wouldn't air on TV for another week, the customers learned. The airline was giving them the privilege of a sneak peek at the ad—and the privilege of being among the first to share it. CONCEPT: Give the viewer the opportunity to... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Advertising

26 Mar 2012
Research & Ideas

What Neuroscience Tells Us About Consumer Desire

with an ad campaign called "The Orange Underground," featuring a series of 30-second TV spots in which the Cheetos mascot, Chester Cheetah, encourages consumers to commit subversive acts with Cheetos. (In one commercial, an View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Consumer Products

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