Publications

January 2021 (Revised October 2024)
Case

Aptiv PLC Board of Directors (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

Aptiv’s board must decide whether a joint venture with an auto maker is the right next step in the company’s efforts to develop and commercialize a production-ready autonomous driving system. While many commentators believed that Aptiv’s self-driving technologies had... View Details

26 Jul 2013
News

Big 3 automakers thrive even as Detroit falters

30 Oct 2013
News

Make Big Bets: How Blockbuster Strategies Work

July – August 2008
Article

Leaders in Denial

By: Richard S. Tedlow

Henry Ford's stubborn refusal to admit the changeability of consumer demand allowed Chrysler and GM to horn in on his market. Half a century later the whole U.S. auto industry made the same mistake: Enter the Japanese. But denial comes in many forms, as Sears, Digital... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Judgments; Leadership; Demand and Consumers; Auto Industry; United States

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02 Dec 2008
News

In Defense Of American Cars

September 2000 (Revised September 2005)
Case

New Beetle, The

By: Rajiv Lal and Nilanjana R. Pal

Volkswagen of America introduced the New Beetle at the Detroit auto show in January 1998 to rave reviews from the automobile press and industry gurus. Elisabeth Vanzura, marketing director of Volkswagen American had the challenging task of converting this enthusiasm to... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Leadership; Marketing; Marketing Communications; Product Positioning; Market Entry and Exit; Sales; Auto Industry; United States

August 2006 (Revised July 2008)
Case

The Progressive Corporation

By: John R. Wells, Marina Lutova and Ilan Sender

For decades, Progressive has proven to be one of the most innovative players in the US auto insurance industry, but can it maintain its lead? Progressive has moved up to the number three position in the industry in 2006, but competitors are finally waking up to the... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Innovation and Invention; Insurance Industry; Insurance Industry; United States

20 May 2019
News

How Ferdinand Porsche’s Great-Grandson Is Gearing Up to Disrupt The Sports Car Market

March 2018
Case

EKOL Logistics: Thinking Outside the Box

By: Willy C. Shih and Esel Çekin

This case describes Ekol, an intermodal transportation and logistics company, and how it manages capacity planning. Its busiest routes linked motor vehicle assemblers in Germany and Turkey with many of their parts suppliers, but it had also developed key links in... View Details

10 Apr 2006
Research & Ideas

American Auto’s Troubled Road

For decades, the U.S. auto industry ruled America's economy, shaped the country's development, and influenced American culture and social mores. Now, buffeted by globalization and other powerful forces, it... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Auto; Auto; Auto

12 Feb 2015
Video

Make Big Bets: How Blockbuster Strategies Work

June 1997
Case

Olympic Financial Ltd.

By: Krishna G. Palepu and Sarayu Srinivasan

Olympic Financial is a sub-prime lender in the auto financing industry. Several other financing companies have been wrought with accounting fraud and business mismanagement. Olympic's debt has been downgraded, and its stock has been denigrated although the company is... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Crime and Corruption; Valuation; Financial Reporting; Credit; Financial Services Industry

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Research Summary

Overview

The Information Age has introduced well recieved opportunities to track performance. Fitbits and Fuelbands show individuals their own performance; service companies including Uber and leading hospitals help pick from drivers or doctors based on how others rate them;... View Details

Keywords: Management Accounting; Performance Measurement; Incentives; Control; Healthcare Industry; Education; Education Industry; Education Industry; Education Industry; Education Industry; Education Industry; United States; Japan; India

February 2008 (Revised July 2008)
Case

Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy

By: Regina M. Abrami, William C. Kirby, F. Warren McFarlan, Keith Chi-ho Wong and Tracy Manty

With an almost forty-year history as a business in China, the Wanxiang Group has navigated through the significantly different political and economic changes in China to succeed as a global leader in the auto parts industry and to develop into a broad business... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Global Strategy; Business History; Growth and Development Strategy; Vertical Integration; Auto Industry; Hangzhou; United States

winter 1985
Article

The Nonpecuniary Costs of Automobile Emissions Standards

By: Timothy F. Bresnahan and Dennis Yao

An important component of the costs of automotive air-pollution control has been nonpecuniary: a decline in vehicle performance characteristics. This regulatory impact on what the auto industry calls "drivability" has never been quantified, although there is... View Details

Keywords: Transportation; Pollutants; Cost; Standards; Performance; Quality; Auto Industry

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22 Nov 2006
Research & Ideas

CEO Succession: The Case at Ford

a very good record which are the LBOs, almost never go for that sort of CEO. They look for an industry figure who really knows a lot about the business and that company—often a retired CEO. Q: Is it easy to predict who's going to be the... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Aisner; Auto; Auto

May 2002 (Revised February 2004)
Case

Innovation at Progressive (A): Pay-As-You-Go Insurance

By: Frances X. Frei and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar

Consumer auto insurance is a price-sensitive industry in which customers rarely pay a premium to a provider even for additional service features. Progressive spends more on additional service features than its competitors do; consumers don't pay extra for these... View Details

September 2007
Case

Still Leading (B4): Lee Iacocca—Driving Impact

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Lance P. Pierce

Lee Iacocca, a successful CEO of an auto company, devoted himself after retirement to several social causes. Describes issues in the transition. View Details

Keywords: Transition; Transformation; Retirement; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Civil Society or Community; Auto Industry

April 2019
Case

Coup or Crime? The Case of Carlos Ghosn

By: Aiyesha Dey, Jonas Heese and Puneet Brar

This case explores the interplay of global corporations, management styles, and local traditions through the high profile arrest of auto industry icon, Carlos Ghosn, in November 2018. The case allows students to debate opposing theories that led to the arrest and... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Globalized Markets and Industries; Problems and Challenges; Ethics; Governance Controls