Publications

March 2020 (Revised August 2022)
Case

Racial Discrimination on Airbnb (A)

By: Michael Luca, Scott Stern, Devin Cook and Hyunjin Kim

Facing mounting criticism and evidence of widespread racial discrimination on the platform, apartment rental platform Airbnb needed to decide a path forward. For years, Airbnb had given hosts extensive discretion about whether to reject a guest after seeing little more... View Details

Keywords: Platform Design; Digital Platforms; Design; Prejudice and Bias; Trust; Problems and Challenges

June 2022 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Netflix's Culture: Binge or Cringe?

By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger, James Barnett and Stacy Straaberg

In May 2022, streaming entertainment company Netflix lost customers for the first time in more than 10 years. Once a first mover in the streaming landscape, Netflix was facing competition from Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max, and others. A key component of... View Details

09 May 2017
What Do You Think?

Should Management Be Primarily Responsible to Shareholders?

Summing Up How Do We Encourage CEOs to Manage for Sustainability? Important forces encourage short-term perspectives among managers as well as investors today. These include governance biases, tax policies, faster turnover among leaders, View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

June 2009 (Revised February 2010)
Case

Cirque du Soleil -- The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Maxime Aucoin

The case describes the history and business model of Cirque du Soleil (CdS). The case allows for a rich discussion and analysis of Cirque du Soleil's business model with an emphasis on how it interacts with that of MGM Mirage. Le Cirque and MGM's business models... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Investment; Profit; Globalized Markets and Industries; Growth and Development Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Partners and Partnerships; Trust; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

06 Oct 2010
Research & Ideas

John Kotter: Four Ways to Kill a Good Idea

Someone is out to shoot down your best ideas. Do you know how to defend yourself? In their new book, Buy-IN: Saving Your Good Idea from Getting Shot Down, HBS professor emeritus John P. Kotter and University of British Columbia professor... View Details

Keywords: by John Kotter & Lorne A. Whitehead

May 2011 (Revised March 2013)
Case

Marshall & Gordon: Designing an Effective Compensation System (A)

By: Heidi K. Gardner and Kerry Herman

CEO Kelly Browne wrestles with the design of a new compensation system to promote the collaboration and cross-selling necessary for supporting her firm's new strategy. Marshall Gordon International, a global public relations (PR) firm, has recently expanded its service... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Customer Relationship Management; Compensation and Benefits; Retention; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Organizational Culture; Partners and Partnerships; Motivation and Incentives; Alignment; Public Relations Industry

Web

Student Research - Doctoral

September 2024 Article Social Psychological & Personality Science A Potential Pitfall of Passion: Passion Is Associated with Performance Overconfidence By: Erica R. Bailey, Kai Krautter , Wen Wu, Adam D. Galinsky View Details

May 2009
Exercise

Mapping Your Network

By: David A. Thomas

This exercise is designed to help students and professionals map their professional networks and identify areas of strength and weakness in their networks. "Network" refers to the set of relationships that is critical to someone's ability to learn new skills and... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Strength and Weakness; Personal Development and Career; Groups and Teams; Social and Collaborative Networks

25 Nov 2019
Research & Ideas

When Your Passion Works Against You

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 after a 12-year absence, the company he co-founded was dispirited, rudderless, and near bankruptcy. In a staff meeting, Jobs shared his plan for revitalizing the struggling brand, touching on one... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

February 1992 (Revised March 1995)
Case

Amelia Rogers at Tassani Communications (A)

By: Linda A. Hill

Describes a conflict that has arisen between an account manager and a creative director at Tassani Communications, a Chicago-based advertising agency which is making the transition from entrepreneurial to professional management. The client, the marketing director of a... View Details

Keywords: Rank and Position; Conflict Management; Change Management; Entrepreneurship; Practice; Behavior; Creativity; Problems and Challenges; Advertising Industry; Chicago

September 2011 (Revised February 2013)
Case

Cleveland Clinic: Improving the Patient Experience

By: Ananth Raman and Anita L. Tucker

Healthcare has traditionally focused on medical outcomes and financial performance. The big question is always, "How much is it going to cost?" What would happen, though, if healthcare also considered the question of "How does the patient feel?" This case looks at the... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Customer Satisfaction; Performance Improvement; Service Delivery; Value Creation; Personal Characteristics; Human Needs

Web

Academics - Health Care

Public Health , Harvard Law School , and Harvard Kennedy School are popular. Short Intensive Programs (SIPs) SIPs allow students to sample electives they might not otherwise be able to take, provide some... View Details

13 Sep 2013
HBS Seminar

Nirupama Rao, NYC Wagner School of Public Service

13 Sep 2013
HBS Seminar

Nirupama Rao, NYU Wagner School of Public Service

January 2005 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Zipcar: Influencing Customer Behavior

By: Frances X. Frei and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar

At Zipcar, customers share the use of cars and, as a result, rely on each other for their service experience. Customers are required to keep the car clean and the gas tank full and to return the car on time. Told from the perspective of two customers: Sal Fishman, who... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Governance Controls; Behavior; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Consumer Behavior; Leasing; Transportation Industry; Service Industry; United States