Publications

2012
Book

The Founder's Dilemmas: Anticipating and Avoiding the Pitfalls That Can Sink a Startup

By: Noam Wasserman

Often downplayed in the excitement of starting up a new business venture is one of the most important decisions entrepreneurs will face: Should they go it alone or bring in cofounders, hires, and investors to help build the business? More than just financial rewards... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Partners and Partnerships; Social Psychology; Outcome or Result

Find at Harvard

April 2011
Case

The Sandbox: Creating a Bottom-Up Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

By: Shikhar Ghosh, Lynda M. Applegate, Rhea Ghosh and Amar Kumar

Discussion of new model of Social Enterprise that applies the venture capital model to social enterprise. View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Non-Governmental Organizations; Venture Capital; Business Model

November 2001 (Revised October 2006)
Case

Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants

By: Donald N. Sull, James K. Sebenius and Noam Wasserman

This case describes issues facing the founder-CEO of a high-tech start-up in Boston, as he negotiates with multiple large potential partners and investors. The negotiations include a potential business partnership with FleetCenter and Madison Square Garden, and a... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Venture Capital; Negotiation; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Power and Influence; Technology Industry; Boston

18 May 2023
Video

Rosabeth Moss Kanter presents "Toward Inclusive Entrepreneurial Ecosystems: Leading High-Impact Change"

18 Jan 2023
Blog Post

Career Planning and Development: Interview with Career Coach Wendi Zhang (MBA/MPP 2013)

more. We caught up with Wendi Zhang (MBA/MPP 2013), an HBS career coach with over 15 years of professional experience in high tech - including big tech, startups, and venture capital—to learn more about career coaching at HBS. Among her... View Details

25 Feb 2022
News

Get to Know Past NVC Participants: Trey Athletes

10 Jul 2010
News

Indian executives must focus on branding, execution: Harvard Don

04 Mar 2019
News

How to Navigate Investing in A.I., From Someone Who’s Done It

April 2000
Case

Financing of Project Achieve, The (A)

By: Mihir A. Desai

An entrepreneur is forced to analyze the tradeoffs between different equity providers through a detailed analysis of venture financing terms and cash flow forecasts. The founder of a Web-based IMS for schools must negotiate a term sheet, determine funding needs, value... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Forecasting and Prediction; Venture Capital; Cash Flow; Equity; Negotiation Deal; Valuation

30 Sep 2019
News

WeWork Needs Cash as Botched IPO Scuttles Planned Infusion

August 2022 (Revised February 2023)
Case

NewLab: Scaling an Innovation Engine

By: Tarun Khanna and George Gonzalez

Silicon Valley-veteran Shaun Stewart is the CEO of NewLab, a dynamic technology hub headquartered in the storied Brooklyn Navy Yard. Founded in 2016, NewLab fostered a community of entrepreneurs, corporate and government partners, and investors, all seeking to apply... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Social and Collaborative Networks; Global Range; Partners and Partnerships; Networks; Growth and Development Strategy; Opportunities; Brooklyn

31 Mar 2020
News

How To Recover Gracefully After Shutting Down Your Startup

September 2019
Case

Funding Sources for Science & Technology Start-ups in India

By: Tarun Khanna, Arjun Swarup and Rachna Tahilyani

India's start-up ecosystem is amongst the largest globally, with a variety of funding options from angel investors, venture capital and corporate venture capital to debt. Classic consumer focused start-ups which look to leverage technology have been able to raise... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Business Startups; Science; Information Technology; Financial Services Industry; Banking Industry; Technology Industry; India; South Asia