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March 2016 (Revised May 2018)
Case

ASOS PLC

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Launched in 2000, ASOS was one of the world’s largest online fashion specialists in 2018. Focusing on young consumers aged 16–25 years, the company offered over 85,000 items on its websites, many times more than the largest fashion stores, and added several thousand... View Details

Keywords: ASOS; AsSeenOnScreen; Online Fashion; Online Apparel; Nick Beighton; Nick Robertson; E-commerce; E-Commerce Strategy; Online Retail; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Social Media; Marketplaces; Shipping; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Startups; For-Profit Firms; Customer Focus and Relationships; Age; Gender; Currency Exchange Rate; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Scope; Global Range; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Selection and Staffing; Journals and Magazines; Human Capital; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Communications; Marketing Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Media; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; United Kingdom; England; London

13 Oct 2009
Research & Ideas

7 Lessons for Navigating the Storm

sitting on a rare opportunity, and they must be systematic in how they take advantage of it if they want to make positive changes," says George, a Professor of Management Practice at HBS and the former chairman and CEO of Medtronic,... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

03 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

Transforming Manufacturing Waste into Profit

It's been said that "one man's trash is another man's treasure." HBS Assistant Professor Deishin Lee, however, has taken that old adage a step further in her recent working paper Turning Waste into By-Product by showing how it's possible for companies to turn... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Manufacturing

January 2021 (Revised April 2022)
Case

Best Buy's Corie Barry: Confronting the COVID-19 Pandemic

By: William W. George and Amram Migdal

This case examines the leadership of Corie Barry, the new CEO of Best Buy, with a focus on actions the company took in 2020 to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. The case includes a history of Best Buy’s strategy and leadership, including the transitions between the... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Change; Disruption; Volatility; Communication; Competency and Skills; Customers; Decision Making; Ethics; Fairness; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Finance; Cash Flow; Financial Condition; Financial Liquidity; Goods and Commodities; Corporate Governance; Health Pandemics; Human Resources; Executive Compensation; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Resignation and Termination; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Innovation and Invention; Jobs and Positions; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Job Design and Levels; Job Interviews; Job Offer; Labor; Employment; Human Capital; Working Conditions; Law; Leadership; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Management; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Practices and Processes; Management Style; Management Succession; Management Systems; Management Teams; Risk Management; Operations; Distribution; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Logistics; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Supply Chain; Organizations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Outcome or Result; Personal Development and Career; Retirement; Work-Life Balance; Planning; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; Relationships; Business and Community Relations; Labor and Management Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Safety; Science; Strategy; Retail Industry; North and Central America; United States; Minnesota

18 Jul 2022
Research & Ideas

After the 'Crypto Crash,' What's Next for Digital Currencies?

systems for coordinating group decisions or managing event tickets. The long-run view is that there is real fundamental technological value here, and so what really matters for the market is whether we can realize that value through... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Financial Services; Technology

March 2017
Case

Cantel Medical

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Cantel Medical Corporation provided infection prevention and control products and services for patients, caregivers, and other healthcare providers. In 2016, Cantel generated sales of $665 million and net profits of $60 million, double the levels of five years earlier.... View Details

Keywords: Cantel; Charles Diker; Furniture Industry; Matrix Organization; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Units; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Chemicals; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Health; Health Care and Treatment; Business History; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Structure; Problems and Challenges; Research and Development; Opportunities; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Information Technology; Biotechnology Industry; Chemical Industry; Health Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; United States; New Jersey

10 Oct 2007
First Look

First Look: First Look: October 10

Abstract We study the effect of small windfalls on consumer-spending decisions by examining the purchasing behavior of a sample of online grocery shoppers over the course of a year. We compare the purchases customers make when redeeming a... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

26 Jul 2016
First Look

July 26, 2016

Moody’s downgrading the bank’s debt due to rising nonperforming assets. She embarks on a mission to improve the bank’s risk taking and management abilities, ensure uniform customer experience, and encourage... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

18 Mar 2008
First Look

First Look: March 18, 2008

this time. Toward a Theory of Behavioral Operations Authors:Francesca Gino and Gary P. Pisano Publication:Manufacturing and Service Operations Management (forthcoming) Abstract Human beings are critical to the functioning of the vast... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

28 Oct 2008
First Look

First Look: October 28, 2008

Course MaterialsAdobe Systems: Working Towards a 'Suite' Release (A) Harvard Business School Case 409-014 The case examines the tools a manager can use to keep her project on track and manage conflict and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

03 Jan 2017
First Look

January 3, 2017

Winter 2017 MIT Sloan Management Review Why Big Data Isn't Enough By: Chai, Sen, and Willy C. Shih Abstract—There is a growing belief that sophisticated algorithms can explore huge databases and find relationships independent of any... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

01 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 1, 2008

behavior of a sample of online grocery shoppers over the course of a year. We compare the purchases customers make when redeeming a $10-off coupon they received from their online grocer with the purchases the same View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

12 Jun 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, June 12, 2018

Management Journal The Ethnic Migrant Inventor Effect: Codification and Recombination of Knowledge Across Borders By: Choudhury, Prithwiraj, and Do Yoon Kim Abstract—Ethnic migrant inventors may differ from locals in terms of the... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

24 Jul 2017
Research & Ideas

People Have an Irrational Need to Complete 'Sets' of Things

things incomplete” Do you want customers to refer more of their friends to your company’s website? Ask them to refer friends in arbitrary “batches” of five at a time. Looking to increase charitable giving to your nonprofit organization?... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

February 2024
Case

AGENTS.inc: Pathways to Growth at an AI Startup

By: Frank Nagle, Manuel Hoffmann, Karoline Ströhlein and Susan Pinckney

The case describes the history of AGENTS.inc. Despite being a small startup, with only four employees, that had never had a funding round, the company boasted an impressive client portfolio including multiple Fortune 500 companies. While AGENTS.inc had been an early... View Details

25 Sep 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, September 25, 2018

not increase the quality of employee-company matches but is associated with relatively higher employee departure rates in stores where the manager is likely to be more informed than headquarters (stores that serve repeat customers, stores... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

09 Jun 2021
Research & Ideas

How Tennis, Golf, and White Anxiety Block Racial Integration

HBS. Jachimowicz co-authored the research with Eric Anicich, assistant professor of management and organization at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business; Merrick Osborne, a doctoral student at USC Marshall;... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald

November 2020 (Revised April 2021)
Case

Roll-Ups and Surprise Billing: Collisions at the Intersection of Private Equity and Patient Care

By: Trevor Fetter and Kira Seiger

This case describes the increasing investment by private equity (PE) firms in patient care and other healthcare services. The case focuses on investments in physician staffing firms and roll-up strategy investments in physician practice management (PPM). Included in... View Details