Publications

Managing the Future of Work

The nature of work is changing. As companies grapple with forces—such as rapid technological change, shifting global product and labor markets, evolving regulatory regimes, outsourcing, and the fast emergence of the gig economy—they must overcome challenges and... View Details

November 2010
Article

A New Era for Raiders

By: Guhan Subramanian

The article presents information on corporate methods of preventing hostile takeovers by corporate raiders, such as the poison pill strategy. It is noted that some of these techniques have become less popular and effective. An argument is presented that Section 203 of... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; United States

27 Apr 2009
News

Health Care Reform that Will Kill the U.S. Economy

08 Jul 2021
Video

Peter Wharton-Hood

Peter Wharton-Hood, a former senior executive at Standard Bank and Deutsche Bank in South Africa, discusses how a failed takeover attempt prompted Standard Bank in South Africa to invest in a range of new banking technologies, including an internet banking system which... View Details

March 2009 (Revised September 2010)
Case

HOYA Corporation (A)

By: W. Carl Kester and Masako Egawa

In 2007, HOYA of Japan must decide whether to change its friendly exchange offer for Pentax into a hostile cash tender offer. A surprising sequence of events had caused a friendly merger agreement to fall apart, resulting in a boardroom coup at Pentax and the... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Investment Activism; Corporate Governance; Governance Controls; Governing and Advisory Boards; Negotiation Tactics; Business and Shareholder Relations; Valuation; Japan

December 1999 (Revised April 2000)
Case

Franco Bernabe: Reflections on Telecom Italia (A)

By: Linda A. Hill and Kristin Doughty

In November 1998, Franco Bernabe left ENI to become CEO of Telecom Italia, Italy's primary telecommunications provider. Three months later, Roberto Colaninno, CEO of Olivetti SpA, an Italian computer and telecom company one fifth the size of Telecom Italia, launched a... View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Mergers and Acquisitions; Planning; Telecommunications Industry; Italy

Research Summary

Revitalizing Businesses

By: William E. Fruhan

William E. Fruhan, Jr. is exploring how firms act to enhance shareholder value when competitive pressures or takeovers threaten their operations. The approach most frequently taken involves fixing businesses that can be fixed and advantageously divesting those that... View Details

July 1990 (Revised August 1990)
Case

Kaiser Steel Corporation, 1950

By: Timothy A. Luehrman and William Schiano

Examines Kaiser Steel's initial equity offering in 1950. The first case in a sequence that will trace the history of corporate restructurings that occurred 30 to 40 years later, in the 1980s. Subsequent cases examine foreign competition and labor unrest, hostile... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Competition; Initial Public Offering; Capital Structure; Restructuring; Capital Markets; Ownership; Steel Industry; United States

October 2001 (Revised January 2002)
Case

Auction Vignettes

By: Guhan Subramanian and Michelle Kalka

This case consists of a series of short vignettes illustrating several auctions: the auctions for Hillary Clinton's biography and the talents of baseball star Alex Rodriguez; eBay online auctions; the Turkish government's auction for a 51% stake in its state-run gas... View Details

Keywords: Auctions

January 2003 (Revised July 2005)
Case

Finding a CEO for the School District of Philadelphia: Searching for a Savior?

Following the largest state takeover of a local public school district in U.S. history, a new governing body must find a CEO to effect a large-scale turnaround in the Philadelphia school district. This case examines the context of large urban public schools and... View Details

Keywords: Leading Change; Restructuring; Education; Crisis Management; Education Industry; Philadelphia

10 Feb 2012
News

World's Best B-School Professors: Clayton Christensen

October 1998 (Revised January 1999)
Case

Echlin vs. SPX

By: Paul M. Healy, Bjorn N. Jorgensen and Penny Joseph

Echlin has received a hostile takeover offer from SPX. Both companies have been undertaking major restructurings, and Echlin's shareholders face a difficult decision of whether to support current management or sell out to SPX. Students are asked to analyze the two... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Financial Statements; Business and Shareholder Relations

October 1988 (Revised May 1989)
Case

General Electric: Consumer Electronics Group

By: David J. Collis and Nancy Donohue

Highlights the General Electric takeover of RCA and the consolidation of the two companies' consumer electronic groups. Starting first with a history of the television industry in the United States, Europe, and Japan, and then a brief discussion of the main competitors... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Markets; Business Strategy; Consumer Products Industry; Electronics Industry

October 2007 (Revised December 2008)
Background Note

Evaluating M&A Deals: How Poison Pills Work

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

The poison pill defense against hostile takeovers was invented in 1982 by Martin Lipton, of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz. Pills are considered the most effective of all the normal defenses against a hostile bidder. Describes the two basic types of poison pills... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Deal; Mergers and Acquisitions

August 2005 (Revised March 2007)
Case

Politics and Prudential Supervision: ABN Amro's Bid for Antonveneta (A)

By: Rawi E. Abdelal and Christopher Bruner

Involves the March 2005 takeover bid launched by ABN Amro, the Dutch bank, for Padua-based Banca Antoniana Popolare Veneta S.p.A. (Antonveneta)--a bid that many would view as a test of Italy's commitment to the creation of a single European market for financial... View Details

Keywords: History; Transformation; Business and Government Relations; Integration; Competitive Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Emerging Markets; Financial Markets; Banks and Banking; Financial Services Industry; European Union; Italy

07 Mar 2019
News

It’s All About Mindset — Hubert Joly, CEO Best Buy

November 1996
Case

Del Webb Corporation (C), The

By: Jay W. Lorsch and Samanta Graff

Dion and the other Del Webb directors were open to having Industrial Equity Pacific (IEP) and Webcott Holdings representation on the board. The IEP representative was perceived as reserved and lacking in sophistication. Cotter of Webcott, however, struck the directors... View Details

Keywords: Crisis Management; Management Succession; Strategic Planning; Governing and Advisory Boards; Horizontal Integration; Conflict Management

March 1988
Case

Goodyear Restructuring

Features a firm with a strong, successful, clearly-defined product market strategy. In 1982, this strategy was augmented by new management to include other, conflicting goals. This has an immediate negative impact on the stock market's evaluation of Goodyear's stock... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Corporate Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Corporate Finance; Rubber Industry