Publications

Research Summary

THEME #2: BUILDING CAPABILITIES THROUGH VARIATION

Prior work has yet to establish definitively the role that variation (e.g. in individuals' activities or organizational processes) plays in the development of capabilities. Variation is usually either not considered (e.g., the learning curve examines... View Details

07 Feb 2012
First Look

First Look: February 7

optimization-based TFM approach in the CDM environment. Read the paper: http://trb.metapress.com/content/g6kt053v4651386t/ Performance Pressure as a Double-Edged Sword: Enhancing Team Motivation While Undermining the Use of View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 May 2021
Blog Post

Taking Measure on Memorial Day

you could do more.” With Jamie in mind, I’ve learned that successes and failures are not measures of a life well-lived. Instead, I’ve learned that a legacy is defined by the ways in which we share our gifts with the world. Graduation Day... View Details

December 2020 (Revised April 2021)
Case

IBM Watson at MD Anderson Cancer Center

By: Shane Greenstein, Mel Martin and Sarkis Agaian

After discovering that their cancer diagnostic tool, designed to leverage the cloud computing power of IBM Watson, needed greater integration into the clinical processes at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, the development team had difficult choices to make. The Oncology... View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Innovation Strategy; Knowledge Management; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Operations; Failure; Information Technology; Applications and Software; Health Care and Treatment; Product Development; Health Industry; Information Technology Industry; Technology Industry; United States; Houston; Texas

October 2001 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Sarnia Corporation

By: Thomas R. Piper

A division manager must explain why his division failed to meet its budgeted profit performance as well as meet with members of his management team to discuss corrective action. View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Business Divisions; Profit; Management Teams; Managerial Roles; Failure; Performance; Strategy

Find at Harvard

11 Aug 2008
Research & Ideas

Strategy Execution and the Balanced Scorecard

committed to strategic issues. We don't advocate abandoning an intense focus on operations and their improvement. But we do advocate planning strategy, not just describing it as important. The senior management team needs to have regular,... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

18 May 2009
Research & Ideas

The Unseen Link Between Savings and National Growth

particularly in developing, technology-poor countries. Harvard Business School professor Diego Comin teamed with Harvard University's Philippe Aghion and Brown University's Peter Howitt to research the issue and write the working paper... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert

2023
Case

Christiana Figueres and the Collaborative Approach to Negotiating Climate Action

By: James K. Sebenius, Laurence A. Green, Hannah Riley-Bowles, Lara SanPietro and Mina Subramanian

This case study centers on Harvard’s Program on Negotiation 2022 Great Negotiator, Christiana Figueres, and her efforts as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to build momentum for, and ultimately pass, the 2015... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Negotiation; Environmental Regulation; International Relations; Leadership

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03 Oct 2023
What Do You Think?

Do Leaders Learn More From Success or Failure?

on a wealth of field experience, is an argument for failure—intelligent failure. She defines intelligent failure as having four key attributes: “ it takes place in new territory; the context presents a credible opportunity (in relation to... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

18 Dec 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, December 18, 2018

Mitigating Malicious Envy: Why Successful Individuals Should Reveal Their Failures By: Brooks, Alison Wood, Karen Huang, Nicole Abi-Esber, Ryan W. Buell, Laura Huang, and Brian Hall Abstract—People often feel malicious envy, a destructive... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Web

Faculty & Research

1997, Patrick Awuah had a dream: to bring liberal arts education to Ghana. Amid the country’s declining economy and pervasive corruption problems, Awuah saw education as an opportunity to reverse its fortunes by investing in the next generation of African leaders. Five... View Details

24 Jan 2024
Op-Ed

Why Boeing’s Problems with the 737 MAX Began More Than 25 Years Ago

in design and production with its newest jumbo jet, the 787 Dreamliner. Such frequent, repeated crises point to a deeper issue than isolated engineering mishaps. The underlying cause of these issues is a leadership failure that has... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Air Transportation; Transportation; Aerospace

January 2006
Case

Jack Strang at SequenceLabs

By: Mukti Khaire, John J. Gabarro and Lynda M. Applegate

How can entrepreneur manage his firm if things go wrong despite having a great idea, a solid team, and financial backing? Jack Strang founded a biotech firm with his friend Peter Evans, to develop molecular pathway-based "cures" for metabolic disorders. The idea was... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Entrepreneurship; Business or Company Management; Venture Capital; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Business Growth and Maturation; Failure; Biotechnology Industry

03 Oct 2022
Research & Ideas

Why a Failed Startup Might Be Good for Your Career After All

the VC firm risk supporting an entrepreneur with a questionable track record? A recent paper might contain the answer. Entrepreneurs coming off an initial VC-backed failure often see their careers accelerate in their follow-on job, as... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Article

Values, Purpose, Meaning, and Expectations: Why Culture and Context Matter

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter

The "rational person" standard, based on assumptions of economic self-interest, has long prevailed in legal reasoning. But understanding of decision making, behavioral choices, and possibilities for action must be enlarged to include a variety of factors that give... View Details

Keywords: Standards; Interests; Decision Making; Behavior; Value; Groups and Teams; Performance Expectations; Organizational Culture; Leadership; Business Cycles; Forecasting and Prediction; Motivation and Incentives

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22 Mar 2016
First Look

March 22, 2016

Abstract—Many believe that the recent emphasis on enterprise risk management function is misguided, especially after the failure of sophisticated quantitative risk models during the global financial crisis. The concern is that top-down... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2014
Case

The Kursk Submarine Rescue Mission — Short Film

By: Anette Mikes and Tom Ryder

During a military exercise in August 2000, a state-of-the-art Russian nuclear submarine, the Kursk, sank in the Barents Sea, triggering global media attention and an international rescue effort.
In addition to Russia's Northern Fleet, two other organizations got... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Groups and Teams; Crisis Management

September 2019 (Revised December 2019)
Supplement

Anthony Soohoo: Retrospection on Dot & Bo

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann, Allison M. Ciechanover and George Gonzalez

The case describes the final year of the once-promising furniture e-tailer, Dot & Bo, that included a challenging fundraising market, troubles with logistics and operations, and a team tragedy. The founder looks back at the experience and shares his learnings about... View Details

Keywords: Startups; Furnishing; Leadership; Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Internet and the Web; Failure; Learning; E-commerce; United States