Publications

09 Sep 2008
First Look

First Look: September 9, 2008

influence the companies being rated. We focus on corporate environmental ratings, the primary purpose of which is to help investors select "socially responsible" and avoid "socially irresponsible" companies. We... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

22 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 22, 2008

crises, the Dasheng cotton mills became a state-owned enterprise in 1953. In the wake of the economic reforms, the successor to the original Dasheng Enterprise was restructured as the Jiangsu Dasheng Co. Ltd. in 1996. Issues of View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

02 Apr 2013
First Look

First Look: April 2

abstract available. Purchase this case: http://hbr.org/search/813160-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 513-090 Juan Valdez: Innovation in Caffeination Corporate entrepreneurs attempt to revive Colombia's famous Juan Valdez brand in the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2009 (Revised December 2009)
Case

Relational Investors and Home Depot (A)

By: Jay W. Lorsch and Kaitlyn Simpson

In 2006, amidst shareholder upset over CEO Robert Nardelli's compensation and Home Depot's declining stock price, Relational Investors decided to further investigate the situation. As experts in turning around underperforming and undervalued companies, Relational's... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Financial Management; Investment; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Ownership Stake; Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Strategy

16 Feb 2023
HBS Case

ESG Activists Met the Moment at ExxonMobil, But Did They Succeed?

The impact-investment hedge fund Engine No. 1 made a big splash in May 2021 when it managed to get three nominees elected to the ExxonMobil board of directors. It was an open effort to prod the oil giant toward renewable energy and test whether activist investing could... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Financial Services

24 Oct 2006
First Look

First Look: October 24, 2006

improving forecasts in corporate settings. We examine the implementation of a supply chain planning process at a consumer electronics company, concentrating on the consensus forecasting approach around which the process revolves. Our... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Jul 2021
Book

Good News for Disgraced Companies: You Can Regain Trust

problems start.” Regaining trust While some corporations still aren’t in the clear, Sucher says it’s possible to bounce back and points to Michelin as doing the right things to regain trust. In 1999, the tire manufacturer mishandled a... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

October 2016
Case

Malenti Strings: Intrapreneurship within FLG, Inc.

By: David A. Garvin and Rachel Gordon

This case follows Jenica Fletcher as she rebuilds her company's guitar strings division from the ground up. Convinced that she could turn the division around if given complete independence from corporate headquarters, Fletcher relocated the group, rebranded it as... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Management Style; Management Practices and Processes; Restructuring; Business Divisions; Consumer Products Industry

November 2012
Teaching Note

Brink's Company: Activists Push for a Spin-off (TN)

By: Suraj Srinivasan

The case this Teaching Note addresses studies the decision of the security services company Brink's Corporation to spin off its home security division from the rest of the company. The decision followed intense pressure on the company by three activist hedge funds that... View Details

Keywords: Activist Investors; Spin-off; Leveraged Recapitalization; Debt; Hedge Funds; Conglomerates; Valuation; Restructuring; Accounting; Business Strategy; Investment Activism; Service Industry

March 2023 (Revised September 2023)
Case

Patagonia: 'Earth Is Now Our Only Shareholder'

By: Brian Trelstad, Nien-hê Hsieh, Michael Norris and Susan Pinckney

In September 2022, Yvon Chouinard, the iconoclastic founder of outdoor apparel company Patagonia, announced a new ownership model for his company. Chouinard and his family had held complete control of the company's voting and non-voting stock since its founding 50... View Details

09 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

It’s Time to Reset Decision-Making in Your Organization

actual problem.” Thus, diagnosis of the situation is a prerequisite to crafting a response. They argue that volatility should be met with agility; uncertainty with information; complexity with restructuring (with internal operations... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg and Sarah Abbott

January 1990 (Revised March 1991)
Case

American Red Cross Blood Services: Northeast Region

By: Robert L. Simons

Recounts the financial difficulties and management changes experienced by American Red Cross Blood Services: Northeast Region (NER) during the 1980s. After summarizing industry-wide changes in the collection, testing, and distribution of blood and blood products, the... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Budgets and Budgeting; Financial Management; Restructuring; Health; SWOT Analysis; Social Enterprise; Marketplace Matching; Management Style; Organizational Culture; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Health Industry; North and Central America