Publications

11 Aug 2003
Research & Ideas

Why Budgeting Kills Your Company

eleven regions compete like teams in a league, trying to beat one another's return on equity. Similarly, the 550 branches compete on two other key performance indicators: Cost to income and profit per employee. The relative standings are publicized throughout the... View Details

Keywords: by Loren Gary

January 2021 (Revised May 2021)
Case

'GEnron'? Markopolos versus General Electric (A)

By: Jonas Heese and David Lane

In August 2019, Harry Markopolos—the forensic accountant known for uncovering Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme—alleged that General Electric had committed accounting fraud totaling $38 billion, coining the term “GEnron” for perceived similarities with the 2001 accounting... View Details

Keywords: Financial Statements; Communication; Energy; Financial Condition; Insurance; Performance; Planning; Business and Shareholder Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Value; Insurance Industry; Financial Services Industry; Energy Industry

18 Jul 2022
Research & Ideas

After the 'Crypto Crash,' What's Next for Digital Currencies?

Kominers: For the past six months, we’ve been tilting into a state of overall financial uncertainty. Crypto assets are very volatile, in part because there’s so much uncertainty about which crypto technologies are likely to be the most... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Financial Services; Technology

2009
Book

Financial Economics

By: Zvi Bodie, Robert C. Merton and David L. Cleeton

This book seeks to explain finance through its functions rather than its institutions, concentrating on the three pillars of finance: optimization over time, asset valuation, and risk management. View Details

Keywords: Economics; Finance; Assets; Risk Management; Risk and Uncertainty; Valuation

Find at Harvard

Read Now

Web

HBS - Financials | Supplemental Financial Information

2022, compared with $46 million in the prior year Net Capital Expenses Given continued uncertainty about the pandemic heading into fiscal 2022, capital spending was limited to select projects. These included the renovations of Cash House... View Details

September 1998 (Revised July 1999)
Case

Costco Companies, Inc.

By: David E. Bell and Ann Leamon

Costco Companies, one of the major players in the wholesale club industry, has developed a new class of membership that offers discounted services--auto, health, and home insurance, business credit card processing, real estate services--in exchange for a higher annual... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Cost Management; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Supply and Industry; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Risk and Uncertainty; Retail Industry

Web

Case Studies - Social Impact Collaboratory

investors as well as trustees of leading nonprofits had expressed uncertainty about whether MRIs were compatible with a board’s fiduciary duties. Darren wondered if his board held the same view. This case will explore the process and... View Details

August 2004 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Fate of the Vasa, The

By: Alan D. MacCormack and Richard Mason

In 1628, the royal warship Vasa was launched. It was Sweden's most expensive naval vessel ever built, costing over 5% of GNP. On its maiden voyage, the ship sailed 1,400 yards in its own harbor, heeled over to the side, and then sank. One third of the 150 crew and... View Details

Keywords: History; Risk and Uncertainty; Technological Innovation; Ship Transportation; Product Design; Technology Adoption; Failure; Business and Government Relations; Product Development; Sweden

08 Oct 2008
Research & Ideas

Book Excerpt: A Sense of Urgency

The problem with using crises to reduce complacency and create urgency is that the tactic is a potential diamond sitting on a rock surrounded by quicksand and very nasty beasts. Any naiveté about the downside risks can cause disaster. Big Mistake Number 1: Assuming... View Details

Keywords: by John P. Kotter

June 2005 (Revised August 2013)
Case

Amazon.com's European Distribution Strategy

By: Janice Hammond and Claire Chiron

Describes how Amazon's distribution system evolved from the company's inception. In 2003, Amazon Europe must decide how to reconfigure its distribution network in light of expected growth, products proliferation, and geographical expansion in Europe. Examines how... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Decision Choices and Conditions; Growth and Development; Business or Company Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Supply and Industry; Distribution; Supply Chain; Risk and Uncertainty; Expansion; Web Services Industry

Web

Organizational Leadership Course | HBS Online

required for course completion. It will be available for participants as optional content at the end of the course. Show Hide Details Concepts Leading During Crisis Bethany Quam Johan Lundgren Mia Mends Leading Self Featured Exercises Reflect on your experiences facing... View Details

21 May 2019
Working Paper Summaries

rTSR: When Do Relative Performance Metrics Capture Relative Performance?

Keywords: by Paul Ma, Jee-Eun Shin, and Charles C. Y. Wang; Financial Services

August 2021 (Revised April 2022)
Case

Intenseye: Powering Workplace Health and Safety with AI

By: Michael W. Toffel and Youssef Abdel Aal

Intenseye was a Turkey-based technology startup that deployed machine learning algorithms to workplace camera feeds in order to identify unsafe worker actions and unsafe working conditions, in order to help improve worker safety. The case describes how Intenseye’s... View Details

Keywords: Privacy; Product Development; Operations; Technological Innovation; Value Creation; Production; Distribution; Safety; Risk and Uncertainty; Technology Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Distribution Industry; Turkey; Middle East; United States

Web

Strategy Execution Online Course | HBS Online

system you can use to focus organizational attention on emerging threats and uncertainties Apply course-wide knowledge by proposing a set of solutions to strategy execution challenges at a growing consulting firm Capstone activity:... View Details

18 Feb 2020
Blog Post

A Vision of Love@HBS in 2020

choice we both made every day. We chose to be patient with one another, kind to one another, and to trust each other and the depth of our relationship despite the uncertainty we felt. When Seiko finally arrived in Boston, I brought her to... View Details

August 1995 (Revised December 2003)
Case

Cricket Road, 503

By: William J. Poorvu and Donald A. Brown

In September 2003, Mason Sexton, a young, inexperienced developer, was making plans to replace a rooming house he had inherited next to the University of Virginia campus in Charlottesville with a new 14-unit, 5-story apartment house. His attempts to assemble the... View Details

Keywords: Property; Entrepreneurship; Housing; Buildings and Facilities; Construction; Risk and Uncertainty; Management Practices and Processes; Real Estate Industry; United States