Publications

June 1994 (Revised December 1997)
Case

Safeway, Inc.'s Leveraged Buyout (A)

After years of deteriorating financial performance and eroding market position, Safeway, Inc., the largest public grocery store chain in the United States, found itself the target of a hostile takeover offer. Management decided to take the company private in a $4.3... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Restructuring; Retail Industry; United States

02 Feb 2021
Blog Post

Finding My Focus in Health care Amidst a Global Pandemic

bridging public policy and private sector innovation. This jointee network even connected me with the founder of a health tech company that I now work for alongside school. (2) Flexibility to explore... View Details

Dante Roscini

Dante Roscini holds the Professor of Management Practice Chair endowed by the MBA Class of 1952 at Harvard Business School. He joined the faculty in 2008 after a two-decades-long career in finance. He currently teaches the course Business, Government, and the... View Details

January 2005 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Gobi Partners: October 2004

By: G. Felda Hardymon and Ann Leamon

The general partners of Gobi Partners, a venture fund located in Shanghai, are trying to decide the best way to raise money for their first fund. Their strategy of investing in early-stage digital media companies in China was well-received by strategic investors--IBM... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Venture Capital; Private Equity; Investment; Goals and Objectives; Emerging Markets; Problems and Challenges; Conflict Management; Shanghai

Program

Program for Leadership Development

Summary Innovative companies know that long-term success requires a pipeline of visionary leaders who can help build and secure a competitive edge. The Program for Leadership Development (PLD) prepares emerging executives to become more... View Details

James K. Sebenius

JAMES K. (“Jim”) SEBENIUS, is the Gordon Donaldson Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, where he founded the Negotiation unit and teaches advanced... View Details

21 Feb 2005
Research & Ideas

The VC Quandary: Too Much Money

"Capital overhang is a big issue that keeps coming up over and over again," said Fergal J. Mullen, a general partner at Highland Capital Partners who focuses on software and services companies. Mullen said he looks for companies... View Details

Keywords: by Julie Jette; Financial Services

August 2019
Case

Volkswagen and Suzuki (A): A Match Made in Heaven?

By: Ranjay Gulati and Saloni Chaturvedi

The alliance between Volkswagen and Suzuki in 2009 was expected to help Volkswagen become the world’s largest carmaker and Suzuki gain expertise in fuel-efficient technologies. In addition, each promised to help the other in the two largest emerging markets. While... View Details

Keywords: Alliances; Problems and Challenges; Auto Industry

May 2017 (Revised August 2021)
Case

Mavi: Fashioning a Path to Brand Growth

By: Jill Avery and Gamze Yucaoglu

This case examines the strategic choices and business model with regards to branding at Mavi, a leading Turkish apparel retailer. The case is presented from the perspective of the company CEO and its global brand director who is also part owner. In 2015, Mavi had sales... View Details

February 2020 (Revised June 2020)
Case

From Cradle to Heaven: Taikang Insurance Group

By: William C. Kirby, Shu Lin, John P. McHugh and Yuanzhuo Wang

Taikang Insurance Group was a leading Chinese insurance and financial services institution. It operated in the insurance, asset management, and health and senior care industries. Due to China’s underdeveloped social welfare state, Taikang saw an opportunity for the... View Details

Keywords: Health; Insurance; Strategy; Insurance Industry; China

2018
Working Paper

Trade Creditors' Information Advantage

By: Victoria Ivashina and Benjamin Iverson

Using information on the sales of debt claims for 132 U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, we show that large trade creditors’ decisions to sell receivables of a distressed company in bankruptcy are predictive of lower recovery rates, and that in such cases these... View Details

Keywords: Trade Credit; Distress; Bankruptcy; Credit; Information; Insolvency and Bankruptcy

October 2002 (Revised April 2005)
Case

Jinwoong: Financing an Entrepreneurial Firm in the Wake of the Korean Financial Crisis

Describes T.P. Lee, the founder and CEO of Jinwoong, a 19-year-old entrepreneurial company in Korea that has grown to become the world's largest manufacturer of camping tents. Labeled by Fortune as one of the most promising entrepreneurs in Asia in 1993, Lee faces some... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Markets; Entrepreneurship; Financing and Loans; Financial Crisis; Manufacturing Industry; Consumer Products Industry; South Korea

Researchers have long hypothesized that research outputs from government, university, and private company R&D contribute to economic growth, but these contributions may be difficult to measure when they take a non-pecuniary form. The growth of networking... View Details

15 Nov 2011
First Look

First Look: November 15

prevailing research norm. The Role of Finance and Private Investment in Developing Sustainable Cities Author:John D. Macomber Publication:Journal of Applied Corporate Finance 23, no. 3 (summer 2011) Abstract Three trends will drive urban... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Brian J. Hall

Brian J. Hall is the Albert H. Gordon Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He served as the Unit Head for the Negotiation, Organizations and Markets (NOM) Unit for 14 years. Previously, he was an assistant professor of economics in the... View Details

Keywords: private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds); private equity (LBO funds)

March 2023 (Revised September 2023)
Case

Patagonia: 'Earth Is Now Our Only Shareholder'

By: Brian Trelstad, Nien-hê Hsieh, Michael Norris and Susan Pinckney

In September 2022, Yvon Chouinard, the iconoclastic founder of outdoor apparel company Patagonia, announced a new ownership model for his company. Chouinard and his family had held complete control of the company's voting and non-voting stock since its founding 50... View Details