Publications

May 2011 (Revised June 2011)
Case

The Crisis at Tyco - A Director's Perspective

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Aldo Sesia

In 2002, Wendy Lane had been a member of the board of directors at Tyco International a little more than a year when the company's CEO Dennis Kozlowski and other top executives were accused of fraud, which ultimately led to resignations, imprisonments, lawsuits, and... View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Reputation; Governing and Advisory Boards; Crisis Management; Accounting Audits; Problems and Challenges; Risk Management; Finance; Managerial Roles; Lawsuits and Litigation; Service Industry; United States

March 2005 (Revised August 2006)
Case

Siebel Systems: The Role of the CFO

By: Malcolm P. Baker and Lauren Barley

Mike Lawrie, the newly appointed CEO of Siebel Systems, considers a combination of growth and spending cuts to turn around the struggling software company. Focuses on the role of the chief financial officer, Ken Goldman, in corporate governance and compliance under... View Details

Keywords: Financial Management; Leading Change; Entrepreneurship; Job Design and Levels; Corporate Governance; Financial Strategy; Management Teams; Corporate Finance; Business and Shareholder Relations; Information Technology Industry

November 2000
Background Note

Note on Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and Phantom Stock Plans

By: Dwight B. Crane and Indra Reinbergs

Provides a brief overview of employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and phantom stock plans for owners of closely held companies. ESOPs can be used as a tool of corporate financing, and can provide employees with ownership interests. Phantom stock plans can reward... View Details

Keywords: Financing and Loans; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Motivation and Incentives; Management Teams; Corporate Governance; Ownership Stake; Taxation

16 Feb 2016
First Look

February 16, 2016

fitting the company's values. On the other hand, centralization can neglect the potential informational advantage a unit manager may have to determine the candidates' fit with the unit team and local environment where s/he will work. We... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

09 Feb 2004
Research & Ideas

Got a New Strategy? Now Make it Happen

Technologies' Systems Generation and Delivery Unit (SGDU), was charged with creating a single global company from a set of fragmented businesses in Asia, Europe, and the United States. To gain control over product decisions being made by the regional View Details

Keywords: by Michael Beer & Russell A. Eisenstat

October 1996 (Revised April 1998)
Case

Mobil USM&R (D): Gasoline Marketing

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Mobil US Marketing & Refining has shifted from a centralized staff-driven organization to decentralized business-units. Staff functions now must negotiate service agreements with a buyer's committee consisting of representatives from the profit-center business units.... View Details

Keywords: Balanced Scorecard; Management Teams; Human Resources; Agreements and Arrangements; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Customers; Situation or Environment; Business Units; Energy Industry; Mining Industry; United States

July 1993 (Revised December 2003)
Case

Sears Auto Centers (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Michael Santoro

The CEO of Sears must decide how to respond to allegations that the company's auto repair division has been misleading consumers and charging them for unnecessary repairs. View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Corporate Accountability; Ethics; Organizational Culture; Compensation and Benefits; Management Teams; Employees; Behavior; Motivation and Incentives; Performance Improvement; Auto Industry

14 Nov 2007
First Look

First Look: November 14, 2007

sectors beyond the original bath soap category. The development causes the brand team to take a fresh look at the clichés of the beauty industry. The result is the controversial Real Beauty campaign. As the campaign unfolds, Unilever... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

12 Jun 2006
Research & Ideas

The Promise of Channel Stewardship

provider, an intermediary, or any other participant in the value chain to the customer. Within a company the stewardship function might reside with the CEO, a top manager, or a team of senior managers. Despite much talk of... View Details

Keywords: by V. Kasturi Rangan & Marie Bell; Consumer Products

02 Jan 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, January 3, 2018

December 4, 2017 Harvard Business Review How a Fast-Growing Startup Built Its Sales Team for Long-Term Success By: Cespedes, Frank V., and David Mattson Abstract—It’s common for leaders of sales teams to... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 Jan 2008
First Look

First Look: January 29, 2008

Working PapersProduct Development and Learning in Project Teams: The Challenges Are the Benefits Authors:Amy C. Edmondson and Ingrid M. Nembhard Abstract The value of teams in new product development (NPD) is undeniable. Both the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 Dec 2020
Research & Ideas

The Unspoken Messages of COVID-19 Restrictions

interpret that to mean that it’s safe.” Luca and Glaeser teamed with University of Maryland Professor Ginger Zhe Jin and Benjamin T. Leyden, an assistant professor at Cornell University. They detailed their findings in Learning from... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Food & Beverage

29 Jan 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, January 29, 2019

misreported due to a series of failures to check manual accounting processes. The situation has been escalated to Vodafone’s audit committee, which expects Colao and his team to act drastically. In the second case, 7 million have been... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

04 Jan 2012
First Look

First Look: January 4

leadership team create an action plan that makes sense for the company's strategy? This case is designed to be used with the "Balanced Scorecard Simulation Game." Purchase this... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

21 May 2013
First Look

First Look: May 21

Bonuses Increase Employee Satisfaction and Team Performance By: Anik, Lalin, Lara B. Aknin, Michael I. Norton, Elizabeth W. Dunn, and Jordi Quoidbach Abstract—In two field studies, we explore the impact of providing employees and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 2001 (Revised September 2005)
Case

USA TODAY: Pursuing the Network Strategy (A)

By: Michael L. Tushman, Michael J. Roberts and David Kiron

Describes the evolution of USA TODAY Online, the electronic version of the newspaper, within the organizational structure of the newspaper. Describes the tensions and issues that develop and the pressure from the Online division to be spun off. At the same time, CEO... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Integration; Internet and the Web; Organizational Design; Groups and Teams; Newspapers; Innovation and Invention; Journalism and News Industry

November 2000 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Bush Boake Allen

By: Stefan H. Thomke and Ashok Nimgade

Bush Boake Allen, a flavor and fragrance firm, is considering strategic options that would integrate customers into its innovation process via a potentially disruptive Internet-based technology. As this approach could result in dramatic changes to the firm's business... View Details

Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Disruptive Innovation; Technological Innovation; Management Teams; Product Design; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Conflict Management; Internet; Chemical Industry