Publications

18 Oct 2010
Lessons from the Classroom

Venture Capital’s Disconnect with Clean Tech

MBA students often fall into one of two categories—those hungry to rush into careers as venture capitalists, and those eager to found a venture-funded start-up. For all of them, Harvard Business School professor Joseph Lassiter has some intriguing advice: Spend a few... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Energy; Utilities; Financial Services

27 Oct 2020
Blog Post

Creating the Minority Renaissance for Venture Capital: Interview with Henri Pierre-Jacques and Jarrid Tingle, Managing Partners at Harlem Capital

minorities are able to get on and stay on the path to senior leadership, Tingle and Pierre-Jacques connected with friends who shared their passion for investing. Their group of six, including co-founder and current Harlem Capital View Details

23 Apr 2019
Video

AlmaPact Final Pitch New Venture Competition 2019 Business Track

15 Oct 2024
Cold Call Podcast

What Sequoia Capital Can Teach Leaders About Sustaining Long-Term Growth

Keywords: Re: Jo Tango & Christina M. Wallace; Financial Services

August 2000 (Revised July 2002)
Background Note

Fundamental Enterprise Valuation: Capital Expenditures (CAPEX)

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

A technical note that defines capital expenditures (CAPEX). View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Business Ventures; Capital; Spending

September 2009 (Revised September 2010)
Case

Avid Radiopharmaceuticals and Lighthouse Capital Partners

By: Matthew Rhodes-Kropf and Ann Leamon

In fall 2008, a venture lender must decide whether to make a loan to Avid, a small but promising venture-backed life sciences firm. In reviewing her proposal, Cristy Barnes considers the company's characteristics and how they differ from a typical investment. At the... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Decision Choices and Conditions; Financial Crisis; Venture Capital; Private Equity; Financing and Loans; Investment; Financial Services Industry; Health Industry

Web

4.2 Student/Faculty Ventures - MBA

taught by an HBS faculty member. [4] A student venture is any entity that is, or is expected to be, substantially controlled, owned, or managed by a currently enrolled student. These entities include all for-profit and nonprofit... View Details

01 Jun 2017
News

The Exchange: Venture Forth

illustration by Peter Arkle When Professor Paul Gompers began studying the venture capital industry in the late 1980s, colleagues often wondered why. “They’d say that it’s such a backwater and unimportant... View Details

Keywords: April White

December 2009
Case

Milliway Capital & Martin Smith: November 2008

By: G. Felda Hardymon, Matthew Rhodes-Kropf and Ann Leamon

Martin Smith, a recent MBA graduate, has just joined a top-tier venture capital firm in the difficult environment of late 2008. One of his first assignments is to review three companies in a partner's portfolio and recommend strategies for managing them. In addition,... View Details

Keywords: Investment Portfolio; Financial Management; Private Equity; Business Strategy; Partners and Partnerships; Venture Capital; Business or Company Management

January 2023
Case

Clay Ridge Capital

By: Martin A. Sinozich and William R. Kerr

Kel Jackson, with the support of his young family, has been searching for a manufacturing business to purchase. After a long process, Kel had submitted a written offer to buy Sheetfab that matched his original conversation with the owner, but a broker Kel had never met... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Small Business; Entrepreneurship; Manufacturing Industry

March 2003 (Revised January 2004)
Case

CDC Capital Partners: December 2002

By: G. Felda Hardymon, Josh Lerner and Ann Leamon

Paul Fletcher, CEO of CDC Capital Partners, a private equity group investing in the world's poorest countries, is wrestling with questions raised by the imminent reorganization of the firm. Previously an arm of the United Kingdom's international aid agency, CDC is... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Investment Portfolio; Privatization; Venture Capital; Business and Government Relations; Emerging Markets; Infrastructure; Financial Services Industry; Banking Industry; United Kingdom

2006
Working Paper

Skill vs. Luck in Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital: Evidence from Serial Entrepreneurs

By: Paul A. Gompers, Anna Kovner, Josh Lerner and David S. Scharfstein

This paper argues that a large component of success in entrepreneurship and venture capital can be attributed to skill. We show that entrepreneurs with a track record of success are more likely to succeed than first time entrepreneurs and those who have previously... View Details

Keywords: Return On Investment; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Success; Experience and Expertise

Read Now

February 2004
Case

Succession Capital Corporation

In 2003, a small buyout company in Canada was deciding which company to purchase next. This case explores the challenges facing a young entrepreneur in the process of selecting a new acquisition when financial and human resources are constrained. View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Entrepreneurship; Corporate Finance; Canada

January 2022
Technical Note

Introduction to Capital Structure Analytics

By: Samuel Antill and Ted Berk

This technical note provides an overview of key analytical approaches that are useful in assessing the appropriateness of a firm’s capital structure and funding plan. This note introduces basic quantitative tools and metrics that are commonly used as inputs to this... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Business Plan; Forecasting and Prediction; Borrowing and Debt; Corporate Finance; Capital Structure; Cash Flow; Financial Liquidity; Financial Management; Financing and Loans

November 2000 (Revised January 2001)
Case

Commercial Capital SA (A)

By: Ray A. Goldberg, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Laure Mougeot Stroock

Keywords: Agribusiness; Privatization; Venture Capital; Financial Services Industry; Greece; Romania

January 1995
Background Note

A Note on Distribution of Venture Investments

By: Josh Lerner

Venture capitalists typically exit investments by distributing shares to investors. These transfers pose challenges for these investors. Predictions and evidence about the behavior of stock prices of firms around the time of these distributions are presented. View Details

Keywords: Forecasting and Prediction; Venture Capital; Stocks; Investment; Price

05 Mar 2015
Video

EiR Rudina Seseri, partner, Fairhaven Capital

October 1998
Case

Farallon Capital Management: Risk Arbitrage (C)

By: Andre F. Perold and Robert Howard

Farallon Capital Management, an investment firm that specializes in risk arbitrage, has taken significant long and short positions in MCI Communications and British Telecommunications, respectively, in the belief that the proposed merger of these firms will be... View Details

Keywords: Capital Markets; Equity; Mergers and Acquisitions; Financial Institutions; Risk Management; Investment Funds; Financial Services Industry