Publications

March 1998 (Revised May 1998)
Case

Argentina's YPF Sociedad Anonima (Abridged)

By: Michael Y. Yoshino, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Cate Reavis

Describes the privatization of YPF Sociedad Anonima and the company's dilemma of whether to acquire a troubled U.S. oil company as a way of becoming a global oil company. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Globalization; Privatization

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August 2007 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Ken Durham and Unilever as a 'Multi-Local Multinational'

By: Geoffrey Jones and Stephanie Decker

Explores the opportunities and threats to Unilever's global business in 1978 based on the commercial and political challenges faced by three of its subsidiaries, Lever Brothers in the United States, Hindustan Lever in India, and United Africa Company in West Africa.... View Details

Keywords: Business Divisions; Local Range; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Management Style; Competitive Strategy; Africa; India; United States

Marco Iansiti, David Sarnoff Professor of Business Administration,is a codirector of the Laboratory for Information Science at Harvard and of the Digital Initiative at HBS.

Prof. Iansiti's research examines the digital transformation of companies and... View Details

Keywords: venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry; venture capital industry

November 1995 (Revised October 1997)
Case

Francisco de Narvaez at Tia (A)

By: Linda A. Hill and Stacy Palestrant

Describes Francisco de Narvaez's leadership efforts to transform his family-owned business into a market-driven, professionally run global company. Covers the events from 1989 to 1992. View Details

Keywords: Leading Change; Family Business; Family Ownership; Global Strategy; Problems and Challenges

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30 Nov 2018
What Do You Think?

What’s the Best Administrative Approach to Climate Change?

Summing Up: Should a 'Montreal Protocol' for Administering Global Warming Be Pursued? Climate change and how to manage it is a daunting subject. Nevertheless, several readers of this month’s column were willing to venture a model or two for administering a system... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Energy

January 2009 (Revised July 2010)
Case

iZumi

By: Robert F. Higgins, Jacob Ian Broder-Fingert, Eliot Sherman and Sidhartha Palani

Presents the issues faced while building an innovative company in an emerging space with new intellectual property from the perspective of a venture capitalist. Beth Seidenberg, a partner at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), had helped... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Globalized Markets and Industries; Innovation and Management; Intellectual Property; Rights; Genetics; Financial Services Industry; Health Industry

September 2020 (Revised December 2020)
Supplement

Hitachi Rail Limited (B)

By: David J. Collis, Akiko Kanno and Nobuo Sato

This supplement describes the strategy and organisation changes made by British executive, Alistair Dormer, after he is made head of Hitachi Rail's global business. The company acquires an Italian company, continues to win contracts in the UK, but struggles to bring... View Details

Keywords: Organization Structure; Leader Selection; Mergers ＆ Acquisitions; Strategy; Global Strategy; Organizational Structure; Leadership; Mergers and Acquisitions; Integration; Values and Beliefs; Rail Industry; Japan

June 2010
Case

Managing the Client Portfolio

By: Nitin Nohria and Ashish Nanda

The German country managing partner of a global law firm must decide how to respond to a corporate mandate to restructure its client portfolio. The case enables a discussion of different types of clients in a global professional service firm in terms of relative... View Details

Keywords: Attorney and Client Relationships; Management Style; Corporate Governance; Business Subsidiaries; Business Headquarters; Conflict and Resolution

December 2019 (Revised February 2024)
Teaching Note

Ripple: The Business of Crypto and Ripple 2023

By: David B. Yoffie

The case explores Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse’s mission to disrupt the global payments industry by leveraging the cryptocurrency XRP. Students will learn about Bitcoin and the blockchain industry, as well as Ripple’s unique crypto business model. The case provides an... View Details

Keywords: Payment Systems; Cryptocurrency; Bitcoin; Blockchain; Fintech; Business Startups; Business Model; Disruption; Strategy

Profile

Michael Schrader

great adversity to succeed. Second, the school provided deep knowledge into areas like fundraising, strategy, finance, and human resources. Finally, HBS opened up a world of resources to me, including the I-Lab, amazing mentors, and financial support through the New... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Health Care; Social Enterprise; Nonprofit; Nonprofit / Government

20 Oct 2009
First Look

First Look: October 20

School Case 310-011 Acumen Fund is a global venture capital firm with a dual purpose: it looks for a return on its investments, and it also seeks entrepreneurial solutions to View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

April 2018 (Revised May 2018)
Case

Goldman Sachs: Making an Imprint in Impact Investing

By: Shawn Cole, Vikram S. Gandhi, Caitlin Reimers Brumme and Lynn Schenk

Goldman Sachs acquired Imprint Capital Advisors, a small firm that specialized in advising clients on environmental/social/governance (ESG) and impact investments. The founders sold Imprint with the belief that joining a global financial firm would help to scale impact... View Details

Keywords: Impact Investing; ESG; Investment; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Growth and Development Strategy; Acquisition; Integration

18 Jan 2012
Research & Ideas

Beyond Heroic Entrepreneurs

In recent years, business schools and investors alike have been paying more attention to social entrepreneurs, those who create ventures with the primary goal of achieving positive social change. But most people encounter the field only... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

October 2023
Case

Leading Transformation at IHCL

By: Krishna G. Palepu, V.G. Narayanan and Malini Sen

In November 2017, Puneet Chhatwal, took charge as MD and CEO of IHCL, popularly referred to as the Taj Hotels. Despite being India’s largest hospitality company by market capitalization and respected for its values and service, IHCL had made losses for the last seven... View Details

Keywords: Turn Around Management; Hospitality Industry; Brand Management; Financial Strategy; Business Model; Restructuring; Asset Management; Leadership Style; Crisis Management; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Segmentation; Asia; India

March 2008 (Revised July 2011)
Supplement

Cadbury Schweppes: Capturing Confectionery (D)

By: David Collis, Toby Stuart and Troy Smith

In late 2002, global confectionery and beverage maker Cadbury Schweppes needed to decide whether or not to make an acquisition bid for Adams, an underperforming gum company which had been put up for sale by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. Examining the decision from a... View Details

Keywords: Food; Mergers and Acquisitions; Corporate Strategy

March 2008 (Revised January 2023)
Supplement

Cadbury Schweppes: Capturing Confectionery (B)

By: David Collis, Toby Stuart and Troy Smith

In late 2002, global confectionery and beverage maker Cadbury Schweppes needed to decide whether or not to make an acquisition bid for Adams, an underperforming gum company which had been put up for sale by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. Examining the decision from a... View Details

Keywords: Food; Mergers and Acquisitions; Corporate Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry

December 2016
Case

thredUP: Think Secondhand First

By: Thomas Eisenmann, Allison Ciechanover and Jeff Huizinga

In the fall of 2016, the management team at thredUP, the largest U.S. online retailer of second hand clothing, is deciding whether to expand into international markets. Over the past 12 months the 7-year-old startup, which had raised over $130 million in venture... View Details

Keywords: Scaling Start-ups; International Expansion; Online Consignment; Apparel; Internet and the Web; Expansion; Entrepreneurship; Global Strategy; Business Startups; E-commerce; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Retail Industry; San Francisco