Publications

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

Keywords: Railroad History; History; Rail Transportation; Rail Industry

August 2012
Supplement

Albert 'Jack' Stanley in Nigeria (C)

By: Lena G. Goldberg and Annelena Lobb

The international joint venture that successfully bid for $6 billion in contracts to build LNG trains on Nigeria's Bonny Island became entangled in a widening bribery and corruption probe triggered by an unrelated accusation against an employee of one of the JV... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Crime and Corruption; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Governance Compliance; Law; Joint Ventures; Business Subsidiaries; Government Legislation; Rail Industry; Nigeria; United States; United Kingdom

September 2009
Article

Spousal Control and Intra-Household Decision Making: An Experimental Study in the Philippines

By: Nava Ashraf

Using an experimental design I elicit causal effects of spousal observability and communication on financial choices of married individuals in the Philippines. Making choices public moves men from putting money into their own account to consumption; communication with... View Details

Keywords: Intra-household; Bargaining; Experiments; Economic Development; Saving; Governance Controls; Decision Choices and Conditions; Personal Finance; Family and Family Relationships; Household; Gender

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November 2004 (Revised June 2005)
Background Note

Designing Products and Processes: Aligning Hierarchical Problem Levels with Problem-Solving Team Forms

All complex systems have four distinct hierarchical design levels: system objectives, architecture, interfaces, and components. Each level has a distinct design question associated with it. Distinguishing among these levels and understanding the questions associated... View Details

Keywords: Design; Complexity

April 1997
Case

Private Management and Public Schools (B)

Examines the prospects for private management in U.S. public schools. Focuses on the education and business strategies of firms seeking to expand as a result of charter school legislation that allowed for-profit entities to enter and compete for students with access to... View Details

Keywords: For-Profit Firms; Public Sector; Value; Education; Business Strategy; Government and Politics; Education Industry; United States

December 1987 (Revised August 1990)
Case

Florida Power & Light's Quality Improvement Program

Describes a major electric utility's highly successful effort to institute a comprehensive quality improvement program throughout the organization. Designed to be used in a comparative analysis of the quality improvement effort described in Paul Revere Insurance Co.... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Quality; Performance Productivity; Utilities Industry; Florida

19 Oct 2018
News

7 projects win Harvard Global Institute grants

20 Oct 2015
HBS Seminar

Elizabeth Pontikes, University of Chicago Booth School of Business

07 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

Digital Transformation: A New Roadmap for Success

However, as much as possible, they recommend designing organizations to mirror the end-to-end experience of the customer so that employees solve problems "through the eyes of the customer." This structure tends to support an enterprise... View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards

May 2010 (Revised June 2012)
Case

From Imitation to Innovation: Zongshen Industrial Group

By: Willy Shih and Nancy Hua Dai

As Zuo Zongshen drove the transformation of the Zongshen Industrial Group from an early imitator in the motorcycle business to a company that increasingly focused on innovation as a way to get out of the hyper-competitive commodity business, he continually faced new... View Details

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Learning; Investment; Disruptive Innovation; Knowledge Acquisition; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Competitive Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Motorcycle Industry; China

Web

Biography - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

competition, the environment, and health care. His approach is based on understanding the overall economics and structure of complex systems, in contrast to particular elements or parts. His extensive research is widely recognized in... View Details

Robert Simons

Robert Simons is a Baker Foundation Professor at Harvard Business School. For over 35 years, Simons has taught accounting, management control, and strategy execution courses in both the Harvard MBA and Executive Education Programs. For 2023/24, he is... View Details

25 Jan 2021
Book

In a Nutshell, Why American Capitalism Succeeded

How did the United States become the world’s center of business growth following its founding in 1776? Surely a number of nations had powerful natural resources, stable financial and legal institutions, and dynamic entrepreneurs over that same span. Why was American... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Manufacturing

Jan W. Rivkin

Jan W. Rivkin is a Professor in the Strategy Unit at Harvard Business School. In the past, he has served as Faculty Chair of the MBA Program, Senior Associate Dean for Research, and head of the Strategy Unit. His research, course development, and teaching focus on... View Details

Keywords: airline; computer; internet; music; transportation

August 2024
Case

Lucky Ones Coffee: Employing People with Disabilities

By: Richard S. Ruback, Robin Greenwood, Joe Higgins, Matthew Preble and Dave Habeeb

Katie Holyfield and Taylor Matkins founded The Lucky Ones Coffee in 2017 with a mission to create jobs in Park City, Utah for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The company quickly earned strong support from the local community, and by early 2023... View Details

Keywords: Service Industry; Tourism Industry; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Utah; United States

Article

Variety of Innovation in Global Value Chains

By: Giulio Buciuni and Gary P. Pisano

This article analyzes how the geography and organization of pre- and production stages in Global Value Chains (GVC) contribute to lead firms' innovation development. A novel approach in GVC studies is introduced based on transaction cost economics (TCE) and the... View Details

Keywords: GVC; Global Value Chains; Manufacturing; Production; Global Range; Innovation and Invention

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2018
Working Paper

Executive Development Programs Enter the Digital Matrix: I. Disrupting the Demand Landscape

By: Das Narayandas and Mihnea C. Moldoveanu

Executive development programs have entered a period of disruption catalyzed by the digitalization of content, connectivity, and communication and are driven by renewed demand for high-level executive and managerial skills. Unlike other segments of higher education,... View Details

Keywords: Executive Education; Internet and the Web; Disruption; Management Skills; Leadership Development

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May 2015
Case

Venture Republic, 2011

By: W. Carl Kester and Mayuka Yamazaki

In December 2011, the founders of Venture Republic, a Japanese developer and operator of on-line search engines for shopping and travel, faced a decison about whether or not to take the company private in a management buyout transaction just three years after an... View Details

Keywords: Management Buyout; MBO; Valuation Methodologies; Financing Decisions; Conflicts Of Interest; Governance; Japan; Search Engines; Going Private; Conflict of Interests; Internet and the Web; Valuation; Privatization; Financing and Loans; Corporate Governance; Web Services Industry; Japan