Publications

August 2003 (Revised September 2003)
Case

Tower Software

Tower Software (TS) is a publicly traded corporation engaged in multiple facets of the computer software business. Its flagship product, TS SERVE, is a successful proprietary network operating system. TS also develops and sells applications software for word... View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Product Launch; Web Services Industry; Information Technology Industry

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18 Mar 2009
Research & Ideas

Marketing After the Recession

product in the next period. Use common sense. If the Wal-Mart parking lot looks less crowded, some consumers are probably migrating back to Target and vice versa. Develop scenarios. How long the current... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch; Retail

April 2011 (Revised May 2011)
Case

EMC2: Delivering Customer Centricity

By: Thomas Steenburgh and Jill Avery

This case introduces the concept of customer centricity and traces its development at EMC, the world's leading data storage hardware and information management software company. EMC's customers had historically relied on EMC salespeople to guide them through the... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Interpersonal Communication; Customer Relationship Management; Knowledge Acquisition; Marketing Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Salesforce Management; Social and Collaborative Networks; Internet; Information Technology Industry

2014
Teaching Note

Microfinance Services in Rural Areas--Farmers' Self-reliance Branch of CFPA Microfinance in Shangyi County (TN)

By: F. Warren McFarlan, Yang Siqun and Shen Meihua

Microfinance is introduced into China in the 1990s. It had gone through 3 phases since the beginning, namely the pilot phase when all Microfinance practices are sponsored by charity funds based on projects, the promotion phase when the government subsidized some... View Details

Keywords: Microfinance; Rural Entrepreneurship; Value Added; China; China

March 2023
Teaching Note

Ransomware Attack at Colonial Pipeline Company

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan Ni

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 123-069. On the morning of May 7, 2021, Colonial Pipeline Company became aware that the company had been the victim of a malicious ransomware attack that had stolen and locked up company data. The extortionists demanded 75 bitcoins (worth... View Details

March 2002 (Revised October 2002)
Case

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Fleet Financial Group Sponsorship of Monet in the 20th Century

By: Stephen A. Greyser and David Crockett

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Fleet Financial Group's sponsored the Monet in the 20th Century exhibition, the world's largest, in 1998. The case chronicles the solicitation of a large corporate sponsor, as well as the growth and development of their... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Finance; Product Development; For-Profit Firms; Partners and Partnerships; Arts; Brands and Branding; Innovation and Invention; Fine Arts Industry; Financial Services Industry; Massachusetts

November 2024 (Revised December 2024)
Case

Moonfare and the Democratization of Private Equity

By: Victoria Ivashina and Srimayi Mylavarapu

Founded in 2016, Moonfare headquartered in Europe, was a pioneer in the “democratization” of private equity investments. Historically, private equity was accessible only to institutional investors like pension funds, endowments, sovereign wealth funds, and large family... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Customers; Wealth; Business Strategy; Segmentation; Technological Innovation; Product Launch; Financial Services Industry; Europe

November 2018
Case

The Bundesliga in the U.S.

By: Stephen A. Greyser, Sascha L. Schmidt and Florian Holzmayer

The Bundesliga, Germany’s premier football (soccer) league, is assessing its global broadcast and marketing strategy, with special focus on the very lucrative but highly competitive U.S. market. Its CEO Christian Seifert believed that a strong international position... View Details

Keywords: Media; Sports; Global Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Sports Industry; United States

July 2011 (Revised January 2013)
Case

Digital Microscopy Is Making Me Crazy!

By: Willy Shih

For Carl Zeiss Microimaging, modular hardware and software enabled customers to tailor Zeiss's broad range of microscopy systems hardware and software to meet a wide range of needs from basic scientific research in the biological and medical sciences to clinical... View Details

Keywords: Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Corporate Strategy; Disruptive Innovation; Science-Based Business; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Business Conglomerates; Digital Platforms; Opportunities; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Computer Industry

06 Oct 2003
What Do You Think?

Is “the Innovator’s Solution” to Sustained Corporate Growth an Unnatural Act?

Summing Up In the judgment of respondents to the October column, repeating the development of disruptive technologies is an admirable but elusive target. Respondents commonly asked whether it is a process disrupted by too many... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

Web

Organizational Behavior - Faculty & Research

Innovation ; Talent Development ; Competing To Win ; Competitive Dynamics ; AI and Machine Learning ; Talent and Talent Management ; Recruitment ; Compensation and Benefits ; Competency and Skills ; Competitive View Details

2012
Working Paper

Big BRICs, Weak Foundations: The Beginning of Public Elementary Education in Brazil, Russia, India, and China

By: Latika Chaudhary, Aldo Musacchio, Steven Nafziger and Se Yan

Our paper provides a comparative perspective on the development of public primary education in four of the largest developing economies circa 1910: Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC). These four countries encompassed more than 50% of the world's population in 1910,... View Details

Keywords: History; Middle School Education; Data and Data Sets; Residency; Integration; Perspective; Surveys; Geographic Location; Welfare or Wellbeing; Government and Politics; Developing Countries and Economies; Growth and Development; China; India; Brazil; Russia

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August 1996
Case

Howard, Shea & Chan Asset Management (B); The Partnership Meeting

By: Benson P. Shapiro

Continues the plot about growth and sales strategies, and adds interesting pricing and sales compensation elements. The partners' meeting sharpens the disagreements among the five partners, and forces Anne Howard, the managing partner, to develop a clear action plan. View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Price; Sales; Strategy; Asset Management; Partners and Partnerships; Service Industry

October 2021
Case

Yildiz Holding's Corporate Strategy: Managing Diversification for Growth

By: Juan Alcácer and Esel Çekin

The case opens in May 2018 with Nurtaç Ziyal Afridi, chief strategy and growth officer of Yıldız Holding, a Turkish conglomerate, reflecting on the group’s diversification journey. In ten years, the group had achieved a remarkable growth through diversification: seven... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Diversification; Growth Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Global Strategy; Restructuring; Food and Beverage Industry; North America; United Kingdom; Turkey; Asia

2017
Working Paper

The 4 Minds of the Customer: A Framework for Understanding and Applying the Science of Decision Making

By: Ryan Hamilton and Uma R. Karmarkar

Scientists have spent decades creating powerful and detailed descriptions of how people make decisions. Unfortunately, many of these theories make contradictory predictions and are difficult to understand and implement. We introduce the 4 Minds framework as a practical... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Choice; Market Research; Decision Making Process; Decision; Marketing Research; Consumer Behavior; Decision Choices and Conditions; Marketing; Decision Making; Segmentation; Research

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20 Jan 2015
First Look

First Look: January 20

They recommend a more coherent strategy that divides CSR efforts into three categories including those related to philanthropy, operational effectiveness, and shaping the firm's business model to better create shared value. Consideration... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 1994
Case

Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation (Abridged)

By: Steven C. Wheelwright

Describes a decision facing Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corp. in June 1985: whether to continue to compete in the silicon steel business in the face of stiff competition from imports. Includes a complete description of the company's productivity improvement systems and... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Business Strategy; Performance Improvement; Management Systems; Technology; Steel Industry