Publications

19 Aug 2024
News

Quantum Leap

Subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Spotify More Skydeck episodes Dan Morrell: Hi, this is Dan Morrell, host of Skydeck. Quantum computing has long been talked about as one of the next big things—the kind of technology, like AI, that will change everything. But to our... View Details

August 2014
Case

Rent the Runway (Abridged)

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann, Brent Goldfarb and David A. Kirsch

Two months after a successful launch In November 2009, the cofounders of Rent the Runway (RTR), a website that rented designer dresses, are debating whether to grow their startup at a measured pace and focus on improving operational effectiveness, or raise a new round... View Details

Keywords: Lean Startup; Electronic Commerce; Fashion; Expansion; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; E-commerce; Fashion Industry

February 2003 (Revised July 2003)
Case

Ember Corporation: Developing the Next Ubiquitous Network Standard

By: Rebecca Henderson and Nancy Confrey

Ember is a venture capital-funded start-up that hopes to establish a standard for ubiquitous wireless networks. Its unique approach and proprietary technology promises to create enormous value in a wide variety of markets, particularly in local sensing and control.... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Wireless Technology; Value; Competitive Strategy; Standards; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry

01 Jun 2010
News

Pitch for Change

The “Pitch for Change” wasn’t a case of saving the best for last, because all that came before was so good. But the elevator-pitch, business-plan showdown did close February’s 11th annual Social Enterprise Conference on a high note: Competing against contenders from... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Professional Services

September 1999 (Revised July 2001)
Case

Charles Schwab Corporation (B)

By: F. Warren McFarlan and Nicole Tempest

Catches the situation facing Charles Schwab Corp. in late August 1999 in the dramatically changing brokerage industry. Their bold moves in January 1998 have created a new industry competitive pattern and provoked aggressive response by companies like Merrill Lynch. View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Business Strategy; Situation or Environment; Competition; Financial Services Industry

01 Oct 2000
News

Bringing Up Baby

top of that, her second child arrived in June. "Motherhood is all about being flexible in a fast-paced environment, being tolerant, and welcoming change," McCartney told Business Week (June 26, 2000). "Working in the Internet is the... View Details

01 Mar 2018
News

March 2018 Alumni and Faculty Books

an in-depth analysis of the opportunities and challenges, both traditional and contemporary, of doing business in India. Great Service Made Simple by Frederic B. Sargent (OPM 2) (The Sustainable Service Institute) A short story with... View Details

February 2022
Case

Agora (A)

By: Lindsay N. Hyde, Thomas R. Eisenmann and Tom Quinn

Agora was a civic technology (civic tech) startup founded by Elsa Sze, who wanted to enhance the connection between political officials and their constituents by facilitating virtual “town halls,” making underrepresented voices heard and benefiting elected and... View Details

Keywords: Civic Technology; Government Administration; Conferences; Business Startups; Business Strategy

November 2004
Case

Barry Diller and IAC/InterActiveCorp

By: William A. Sahlman and Ryland Matthew Willis

Describes a discussion involving Barry Diller and the top management team at IAC/InteractiveCorp. about whether to buy LendingTree.com. If so, at what price and on what terms? View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Strategy; Management Teams; Business or Company Management

30 Sep 2014
News

Life Lessons on the Open Seas

to the program’s success, including learning how to think outside the box to solve complex problems, as well as developing strategies for marrying the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds. He cites Professor William Sahlman's principles... View Details

Keywords: Jill Radsken

November 2015 (Revised October 2017)
Case

Dollar General Bids for Family Dollar

By: Jonas Heese, Paula A. Price, Suraj Srinivasan and David Lane

In spring 2015, Dollar General's CEO Rick Dreiling was looking ahead to retiring at year's end but worried about ensuring continued growth for the company he had built since 2008 into a market leader in the U.S. discount retail world. Dollar General operated over... View Details

Keywords: Dollar General; Family Dollar; Dollar Tree; Antitrust; Board Of Directors; Activist Investors; Federal Trade Commission; Acquisition; Valuation; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry; United States

2002
Report

Technology Strategy: The Theory and Application of the Christensen Model

By: C. M. Christensen and Steven Milunovich

Keywords: Technology; Business Strategy; Disruptive Innovation

01 Sep 2017
News

Ink: Miami’s Dark Neon Era, the Language of Success, and Getting Psyched Up

introduced English as the lingua franca Takeaway Two Things to Do Before Your Next Big Presentation (from left: photos by Russ Campbell) (from left: photos by Russ Campbell, Blaise Hayward) In his new book, Psyched Up: How the Science of Mental Preparation Can Help You... View Details

Keywords: April White; Publishing Industries (except Internet); Information

April 2001 (Revised August 2001)
Case

Color Kinetics Incorporated (A)

By: Das Narayandas and Mary N. Caravella

Two-year-old start-up Color Kinetics has developed unique colored lighting technology using digitally controlled LEDs, and has developed that technology into a successful line of products for its first targeted market of "retailtainment." Now in November 1999, the... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Growth and Development; Management Teams; Marketing Strategy; Product Launch; Market Entry and Exit; Business Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Electronics Industry

March 2019
Supplement

KITEA (E): IKEA's Opening Day

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in 2016 as Amine Benkirane, CEO of the furniture retailer KITEA, observes KITEA’s dormant sales on the day IKEA opens its first store in Morocco. It then provides information on IKEA’s Morocco store, as well as a detailed pricing comparison between IKEA... View Details

Keywords: Private Sector; For-Profit Firms; Business Strategy; Strategic Planning; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Adaptation; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry; Africa; North Africa; Morocco

October 2001 (Revised December 2004)
Case

Chiang-Sho Ltd.

Chiang-Sho Ltd. is a joint venture producing agricultural machinery in China. The CEO must decide how to respond to pressure from the Chinese partner--also the joint venture's largest customer--to increase production and lower prices. The CEO must choose either a... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Business Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; China