Publications
Publications
Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(624)
- Faculty Publications (155)
airlines
→
- February 2014 (Revised May 2014)
- Background Note
Flying High, Landing Low: Strengths and Challenges for U.S. Air Transportation
By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Aditi Jain and Ai-Ling Jamila Malone
The U.S. air transportation system flies high on some indicators, mostly involving capacity to take to the air, but lands low on others, mostly involving ground facilities and processes. This note provides an overview of the history and current state of air... View Details
- January 2014
- Case
Emirates Airline: Connecting the Unconnected
By: Juan Alcacer and John Clayton
Narrates the story of Emirates, an airline founded in 1985 in Dubai that by 2013 was among the three largest commercial airlines in the world. The case emphasizes how Emirates capitalized on its location—a small city–state strategically located to reach ¾ of the world... View Details
- January 2014 (Revised May 2014)
- Background Note
Rail Transportation in the United States
By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Matthew Guilford
In the 20th century, automobiles and airlines pushed rail into the background as an often-troubled and neglected mode. After a review of the long history of rail in the U.S., this paper examines the situation in the 21st century, including the rail market structure,... View Details
- December 2013 (Revised August 2015)
- Case
Viva Macau (A)
By: Dante Roscini and G. A. Donovan
A fast-growing Macau-based airline backed by private US investors faces a dramatic expropriation in the wake of the first change of head of government since the former Portuguese colony became a Special Administrative Region of China. The case allows students to... View Details
- March 2013
- Article
For Mobile Devices, Think Apps, Not Ads
By: Sunil Gupta
Many companies envision mobile ads becoming an integral part of their communications strategies. But there's a growing consensus that ads don't work on mobile devices; consumers just don't like them. Instead of creating tiny banner ads, smart marketers will turn to... View Details
- April 2012
- Case
People Express Airlines
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Lauren Barley
Recounts the history of People Express Airlines, which grew rapidly after its inception in 1980 then failed spectacularly in 1986. Profiles People's aggressive strategy and its distinctive approach to human resource management, which emphasized job rotation and minimal... View Details
- 2011
- Other Unpublished Work
International Air Transport Association Vision 2050
IATA asked 35 strategic thinkers to develop this vision for the next 40 years for the airline industry. The group benefited greatly by the inspirational and strategic leadership and wisdom of Singapore's Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew. And Harvard University Professor... View Details
- May 2011
- Article
Think Customers Hate Waiting? Not So Fast...
By: Ryan W. Buell and Michael I. Norton
Managers typically look for ways to reduce wait time to increase customer satisfaction. New research suggests there's a better approach: showing customers a representation of the effort, whether literal or not, being expended on their behalf while they wait. (The... View Details
- November 2010
- Supplement
LAN Airlines in 2008: Connecting the World to Latin America (B)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Jorge Tarzijan
Provides updated facts on Lan Airlines as of 2010. It is meant to be used as a supplement to "Lan Airlines in 2008: Connecting the World to Latin America" (Harvard Business School Case 709-410). View Details
- April 2010 (Revised January 2013)
- Case
Southwest Airlines: In a Different World
By: James L. Heskett and W. Earl Sasser Jr.
This is the fourth in a 35-year series of HBS cases on an organization that has changed the rules of the game globally for an entire industry by offering both differentiated and low-price service. The focus of the case is on whether Southwest Airlines should buy gates... View Details
- March 2010
- Background Note
Airline Travel in the U.S.
By: Sunil Gupta and Kavita Shukla
How should airlines respond to the rising share of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) as consumers increasingly search the web to buy tickets? View Details
- February 2010 (Revised August 2010)
- Case
Sheikh Mohammed and the Making of 'Dubai, Inc.'
By: Anthony Mayo, Nitin Nohria, Umaimah Mendhro and Johnathan Cromwell
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has converted Dubai from a sleepy little coastal village into a world-class city, famous for its ambition, drive, and economic promise. He is the founder, part-owner, and visionary behind companies such as Emirates Airlines, a... View Details
- 2009
- Book
Entrepreneurs, Managers, and Leaders: What the Airline Industry Can Teach Us About Leadership
By: Anthony J. Mayo, Nitin Nohria and Mark Rennella
'Entrepreneurs, Managers, and Leaders' examines the role that business leaders play in shaping industries and how the evolving context of industries shapes leaders in turn. This co-evolutionary process of leadership and industry development is told through the story of... View Details
- September 2009
- Article
Are You Having Trouble Keeping Your Operations Focused?
As a business broadens over time, it can lose the operational edge that led to its original success. Core strengths atrophy, efficiency or quality suffers, and sharper rivals close in to take advantage of the loss of focus. In his classic article "The Focused Factory"... View Details
- August 2009 (Revised March 2010)
- Teaching Note
Two Ways to Fly South: Lan Airlines and Southwest Airlines (TN)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Jorge Tarzijan and Jordan Mitchell
Teaching Note for 707414. View Details
- March 2009
- Teaching Note
Lan Airlines in 2008: Connecting the World to Latin America (TN)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Jorge Tarzijan and Jordan Mitchell
Teaching Note for [709410]. View Details
- November 2008
- Case
HNA Group: Moving China's Air Transport Industry in a New Direction
By: William C. Kirby, F. Warren McFarlan and Tracy Manty
HNA Group, the parent company of Hainan Airlines, was positioning itself to go global and make a mark for itself as the largest private airline in China. Positioned squarely behind the "Big Three" state-owned carriers, Hainan Airlines sought to create a world-class... View Details
- October 2008 (Revised June 2011)
- Case
JetBlue Airways: Managing Growth
By: Robert S. Huckman and Gary P. Pisano
Considers the situation facing David Barger, President and CEO of JetBlue Airways, in May 2007 as he addresses the airline's need to slow its growth rate in the response to increasing fuel costs and the effects of major operational crisis for the airline in February... View Details
- August 2008 (Revised August 2009)
- Case
Lan Airlines in 2008: Connecting the World to Latin America
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Jorge Tarzijan and Mitchel Jordan
Lan Airlines operates three distinct models: low-cost for domestic short-haul flights, full-service for international routes; and an international cargo business, the latter of which makes up 33% of Lan's overall revenues (markedly different from many U.S. legacy... View Details
- March 2008 (Revised August 2023)
- Case
Vueling Airlines
By: Paul A. Gompers and Kristin A. Perry
Keywords: Air Transportation Industry