Publications

Web

Strategy - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

HBS ISC Strategy Strategy Strategy Explained Business Strategy Creating a Successful Strategy Corporate Strategy The Role of Leaders Related Topics Strategy Some companies perform better than others, View Details

01 Dec 2004
News

A Case of Achievement

hired to jump-start a moribund division of the investment bank. Parson’s success at generating business was offset by performance reviews from supervisors and subordinates that... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools

October 2004 (Revised July 2013)
Case

Making China Beautiful: Shiseido and the China Market

By: Geoffrey G. Jones, Akiko Kanno and Masako Egawa

Describes the multinational growth of Shiseido, the world's fourth-largest cosmetics company, with a focus on its strategy in China since 1981. Explores the challenges facing firms in the globalization of a culturally specific industry such as cosmetics. The Japanese... View Details

Keywords: Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Firms and Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Competition; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; China; Japan

23 Jul 2016
News

The Art of Persuasion

bit of consensus building and (if you want) self-motivation and drive from people, you have to get them excited about the idea. I learnt the art View Details

21 Apr 2003
Research & Ideas

Will American Brands Be a Casualty of War?

upper Amazon, they brought people a taste of America, along with the promise of freedom and prosperity. The end of the Cold War signaled victory... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

15 Sep 2015
News

Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Andy Grove All Shared This Timeless Trait

05 May 2003
Research & Ideas

Greed, Fear, and The System Hinder Corporate Reform

Enforcers of regulatory laws are making some headway, particularly since the passage last summer of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, but their work as a whole needs more teeth, according to panelists at the session... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

01 Sep 2020
News

Road Work

That leap was necessary because Camino’s members—whose businesses include restaurants, construction companies, beauty salons, and small manufacturers, among many others—don’t fit the traditional categories... View Details

Keywords: banking; LatinX; small businesses; COVID-19; Finance

23 Jul 2020
News

The Paradox Of Layoffs: Engagement Drops When You Need It Most

March 1991 (Revised December 1994)
Case

Marks and Spencer Ltd. (B)

By: Cynthia A. Montgomery

Describes the firm's 1988 expansion into the United States through the acquisition of Brooks Brothers, a specialty up-market men's clothing chain and Kings Super Markets, a high quality New Jersey grocer. View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Expansion; Business Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Globalization; Retail Industry; United States

07 Jun 2004
Research & Ideas

The Competition of Countries

Countries, like companies, need development strategies to succeed in a world of growing globalization. Professor Richard H. K. Vietor is an expert on business regulation and... View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia Churchwell

May 2011
Article

Race at the Top: How Companies Shape the Inclusion of African Americans on Their Boards in Response to Institutional Pressures

By: Clayton S. Rose and William T. Bielby

Drawing on institutionalist theory, we conceptualize the racial composition of the boards of directors of large American companies as shaped in response to social and political norms. We use new longitudinal and cross-sectional data to test hypotheses about factors... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Governing and Advisory Boards; Race; Mathematical Methods; Government and Politics; Public Ownership; United States

June 1991 (Revised June 1993)
Background Note

The Decline of the British Cotton Industry (Abridged)

Supplements the general argument concerning the decline of the British economy by showing how vertical specialization, horizontal competition, and entrenched job control combined to create incentives for management to adapt to changing international conditions by... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Business Cycles; Organizational Structure; Consumer Products Industry; Great Britain

January 2009 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Cisco Systems (2001): Building and Sustaining a Customer-Centric Culture

By: Ranjay Gulati

Customer centricity has been an important part of the culture at Cisco Systems since its inception. While part of this is attributable to values put in place by the founders and retained by subsequent management, it is also closely interwoven with its organizational... View Details

Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Change Management; Organizational Culture; Research and Development; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Employees; Brands and Branding; Customer Relationship Management; Business Units

August 1983 (Revised March 1995)
Case

Railroad Problem and the Solution

By: Richard S. Tedlow

A vehicle for a discussion of the causes and consequences of the Interstate Commerce Act. View Details

Keywords: Transportation; Rail Transportation; Fluctuation; Outcome or Result; Public Sector; Government and Politics; Business History; Complexity; Problems and Challenges; Rail Industry

16 Mar 2023
Blog Post

HySynergy and Crossbridge Energy

Energy and HySynergy are angling to play a significant role lowering emissions in a hard-to-abate sector. The management team must balance the “clean” and “dirty” sides View Details

October 2022 (Revised December 2022)
Case

SMART: AI and Machine Learning for Wildlife Conservation

By: Brian Trelstad and Bonnie Yining Cao

Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART), a set of software and analytical tools designed for the purpose of wildlife conservation, had demonstrated significant improvements in patrol coverage, with some observed reductions in poaching and contributing to wildlife... View Details

Keywords: Business and Government Relations; Emerging Markets; Technology Adoption; Strategy; Management; Ethics; Social Enterprise; AI and Machine Learning; Analytics and Data Science; Natural Environment; Technology Industry; Cambodia; United States; Africa

July 1996 (Revised January 1997)
Case

Northwest Airlines: Strategic Alliance and Strategic Position--May 1996

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and Davis Dyer

Describes the strategic position of Northwest Airlines in 1996 and discusses its financial rebound and changes and improvements since the 1993 restructuring agreement. Describes the company's new strategy and its management of principal strategic assets, focusing at... View Details

Keywords: Air Transportation; Restructuring; Alliances; Competitive Strategy; Government Administration; Cooperation; Business Strategy; Air Transportation Industry; United States; Netherlands

December 2006 (Revised February 2007)
Case

Opportunity International: Measurement and Mission

By: Herman B. Leonard, Marc J. Epstein and Melissa Tritter

After a "first career" in business, HBS graduate Christopher Crane becomes CEO of a worldwide microfinance network. The organization's twin challenges are: 1) developing metrics to give it an accurate picture of its situation and impacts, and 2) generating rapid... View Details

Keywords: Microfinance; Measurement and Metrics; Problems and Challenges; Growth and Development Strategy; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Business Model; Nonprofit Organizations; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Financial Services Industry