Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(718)
- Faculty Publications (49)
- December 2017
- Supplement
CEO Succession at Cisco: Video Supplement
By: Boris Groysberg and J. Yo-Jud Cheng
Excerpts of videotaped class visits and an interview with former Cisco CEO John Chambers about Cisco’s CEO succession planning process. Topics include Chambers’ reflections on the process; the roles of the incumbent CEO, board of directors, executive search, and the... View Details
- 2017
- Book
Entering StartUpLand: An Essential Guide to Finding the Right Job
Many professionals aspire to work for startups. Executives from large companies view them as models to help them adapt to today's dynamic innovation economy, while freshly minted MBAs see magic in founding something new. Yes, startups look magical, but they can also be... View Details
- 2017
- Book
HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business: Think Big, Buy Small, Own Your Own Company
By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff
Find, acquire, and run your own business. Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own start-up seem too risky? There is a radical third path open to you: you can buy a small business and run it as CEO. Purchasing a small... View Details
Keywords: Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurs; Small Companies; Small Business Finance; Negotiation; Due Diligence; Sourcing; Search Funds; Search; Deal Sourcing; Deal Structuring; Funnel; Debt Financing; Small And Medium Enterprises; Small Business; Internet and the Web; Entrepreneurship; Negotiation Deal; Ownership; Equity; Borrowing and Debt
- December 2016 (Revised May 2018)
- Module Note
Strategy Execution Module 15: Using the Levers of Control to Implement Strategy
By: Robert Simons
This module reading pulls together key concepts and techniques from the Strategy Execution series into an integrated model—the levers of control. The four levers are: (1) belief systems, (2) boundary systems, (3) diagnostic control systems, and (4) interactive control... View Details
Keywords: Management Control Systems; Implementing Strategy; Execution; Levers Of Control; Balancing Innovation And Control; Managing Growing Businesses; Turn Around Management; Human Behavior; Organizational Life Cycle; Strategy; Management Systems; Performance; Measurement and Metrics; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Behavior
- Article
The Scandal Effect
By: Boris Groysberg, Eric Lin, George Serafeim and Robin Abrahams
Executives with scandal-tainted companies on their résumés pay a penalty on the job market, even if they clearly had nothing to do with the trouble. Because the scandal effect is lasting, a company you left long ago could have an impact on your current and future job... View Details
- August 2016
- Case
CEO Succession at Cisco (A): From John Chambers to Chuck Robbins
By: Boris Groysberg, J. Yo-Jud Cheng and Annelena Lobb
A smooth transition from former CEO John Chambers to new CEO Chuck Robbins had put Cisco in a position of strength. Looking back, the board reflected on what they had done well and what they might have done differently, and pondered whether another company might be... View Details
- May 2016
- Case
Should I Stay or Should I Go? (A)
By: Boris Groysberg, George Serafeim, Eric Lin and Robin Abrahams
Financial executive Alexi is considering a job change. Will his long-ago association with a company currently embroiled in a scandal hurt his chances in the job market? In the (A) case, Alexi and executive search consultant Marguerite strategize about career... View Details
- 2016
- Article
Do External Labor Market Job Switches Affect the Gender Compensation Gap?
By: Boris Groysberg, Paul M. Healy and Eric Lin
This paper investigates how external mobility influences the gender compensation gap for job switching executives. Using proprietary data for 2,034 executive placements from a global search firm, we find job switching narrows the gender gap by 45%, from 11% to 6%. We... View Details
- June 11, 2014
- Article
Keep Learning Once You Hit the C-Suite
By: Boris Groysberg
What skills do companies prize in C-level executives? To answer these questions, we surveyed 32 senior search consultants at a top global executive-placement firm. Experienced search consultants typically interview hundreds and even thousands of senior executives; they... View Details
- March 18, 2014
- Article
The Seven Skills You Need to Thrive in the C-Suite
By: Boris Groysberg
What executive skills are most prized by companies today? How has that array of skills changed in the last decade, and how is it likely to change in the next ten years? To find out, I surveyed senior consultants in 2010 at a top-five global executive-search firm.... View Details
- 2014
- Article
Executive Compensation and Human Capital Investments Through Industry Selection
By: Boris Groysberg and Eric Lin
We use proprietary data capturing compensation levels of executives placed by a global search firm to investigate how executives evaluate rewards and risks of human capital investment choices. Our findings suggest that more isolated industries with lower opportunity to... View Details
- 2013
- Book
Blockbusters: Hit-making, Risk-taking, and the Big Business of Entertainment
By: Anita Elberse
What's behind the phenomenal success of entertainment businesses such as Warner Bros., Marvel Enterprises, and the NFL—along with such stars as Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, and LeBron James? Which strategies give leaders in film, television, music, publishing, and sports an edge... View Details
Keywords: Entertainment; Business; Strategy; Media; Digital Technology; Blockbuster; Superstar; Film; Television; Music; Publishing; Performing Arts; Nightlife; Risk and Uncertainty; Information Technology; Marketing Strategy; Music Entertainment; Success; Sports; Business Strategy; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Music Industry; Fine Arts Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Publishing Industry
- 2013
- Chapter
Who Chooses Board Members?
By: Ali Akyol and Lauren Cohen
We exploit a recent regulation passed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to explore the nomination of board members to US publicly traded firms. In particular, we focus on firms’ use of executive search firms versus allowing internal members (often... View Details
- September 2011 (Revised March 2014)
- Case
Brightcove, Inc. in 2007
By: Andrei Hagiu and David B. Yoffie
Brightcove, a technology and services provider to content owners in the Internet television field, aimed to become a media distribution company in its own right. On October 30, 2006, it relaunched its Website—and, in effect, its business. With its new, consumer-facing... View Details
- March 2011 (Revised December 2012)
- Case
Demand Media
By: John Deighton and Leora Kornfeld
Google search had helped Demand Media grow to be a $1.9 billion online publisher. Then, social media and smartphone apps began to change the way people navigated the Internet. How should Demand Media respond? The business ran on a radically new model in which a stable... View Details
- Article
Five Ways to Bungle a Job Change
By: Boris Groysberg and Robin Abrahams
The article focuses on career development and job change. The challenges, transaction costs, and risks associated with job moves are discussed. The authors' research with executives is noted. The mistakes in career development that job hunters make are not doing enough... View Details
- January 2009
- Case
Microsoft's Search
By: Jan W. Rivkin and Eric J. Van den Steen
In 2008, executives at Microsoft must decide how to compete against Google in the market for Internet search and advertising. The case describes how Microsoft has responded to a set of competitive threats in the past, how Google has gained a dominant position in... View Details
- April 2005 (Revised July 2005)
- Case
Ilene Lang and the Catalyst Search (A)
By: Myra M. Hart and Laura L. Nash
Catalyst, the nonprofit organization dedicated to championing women in professional ranks, is searching for a new president--only the third in its 42-year history. Ilene Lang, a corporate executive and entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience in high-tech... View Details
Keywords: Strategy; Nonprofit Organizations; Work-Life Balance; Job Search; Gender; Service Industry
- March 2004 (Revised August 2004)
- Case
Strategic Review at Egon Zehnder International (A)
By: Ashish Nanda
The case describes the history of the executive search firm Egon Zehnder International (EZI) from its inception through 2000. Internal and environmental changes lead EZI leaders to question whether the firm might be at an inflection point in its history. The EZI... View Details