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- Faculty Publications (254)
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- All HBS Web (449)
- Faculty Publications (254)
- April 2010 (Revised April 2010)
- Case
Mercadona
This case presents the predicament of a company trying to do right by its customers and its employees as the economic crisis of 2008 hits home. Fifteen years earlier, this Spanish supermarket chain had adopted its own version of total quality management, called the... View Details
Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Compensation and Benefits; Employee Relationship Management; Service Operations; Business Processes; Retail Industry; Spain
Ton, Zeynep, and Simon Harrow. "Mercadona." Harvard Business School Case 610-089, April 2010. (Revised April 2010.)
- July 2020 (Revised November 2020)
- Case
Pricing at Netflix
By: Elie Ofek, Marco Bertini, Oded Koenigsberg and Amy Klopfenstein
Since its launch in 1998 as “the Amazon.com of DVDs,” Netflix had evolved from a DVD rental company to a video streaming platform and producer of original films and television shows. As the company matured, it regularly increased prices and adjusted its product... View Details
Keywords: Pricing; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Finance; Price; Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Business Strategy; Adaptation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Digital Platforms; Customers; Customer Satisfaction; Customer Value and Value Chain; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; North and Central America; United States
Ofek, Elie, Marco Bertini, Oded Koenigsberg, and Amy Klopfenstein. "Pricing at Netflix." Harvard Business School Case 521-004, July 2020. (Revised November 2020.)
- 2025
- Working Paper
The Hidden Costs of Working Multiple Jobs: Implications for Spending Behavior and Wellbeing
By: Paige Tsai and Ryan W. Buell
Problem definition: Amidst inflation, rising costs of living, an explosion in remote and gig working opportunities, and an increase in the part-time labor mix in economies around the world, it is becoming evermore commonplace for
people to earn labor income... View Details
Keywords: Behavioral Operations; Employee Behavior; Job Design and Levels; Personal Finance; Well-being; Happiness; Satisfaction; Wages
Tsai, Paige, and Ryan W. Buell. "The Hidden Costs of Working Multiple Jobs: Implications for Spending Behavior and Wellbeing." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 25-036, January 2025. (Revised March 2025.)
- May 2016 (Revised January 2018)
- Case
Improving Repurchase Rates at zulily
By: Thales Teixeira and Sarah McAra
In February 2015, zulily cofounder and CEO Darrell Cavens faced a major challenge in his business, a Seattle-based daily deals site that catered to moms. The more he spent to acquire new customers, the less he retained them in the form of repeat purchases. This was an... View Details
Keywords: Zulily; Repurchase; E-commerce; Online Shopping; Fashion; Customer Relationship Management; Internet and the Web; Digital Marketing; Customer Satisfaction; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; Seattle
Teixeira, Thales, and Sarah McAra. "Improving Repurchase Rates at zulily." Harvard Business School Case 516-083, May 2016. (Revised January 2018.)
- September 1999 (Revised April 2001)
- Case
Credit Suisse (A) (Abridged)
By: W. Earl Sasser and William E. Fulmer
Credit Suisse is looking for ways to differentiate itself from current and likely competitors. After two years of restructuring, the bank's leadership wants profitable growth. It has decided to emphasize customer service. View Details
Keywords: Restructuring; Competitive Advantage; Customer Satisfaction; Banks and Banking; Growth and Development Strategy; Banking Industry; Retail Industry
Sasser, W. Earl, and William E. Fulmer. "Credit Suisse (A) (Abridged)." Harvard Business School Case 800-154, September 1999. (Revised April 2001.)
- 23 Mar 2017
- Cold Call Podcast
Cost-cutting Leads to Turbulence in the Airline Industry
- October 1991 (Revised August 2000)
- Case
Becton Dickinson & Company: VACUTAINER Systems Division (Condensed)
By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Frank V. Cespedes
Becton Dickinson, a phenomenally successful company with an 80% market share in the blood collection needles and syringes market faces a change in the customer buying environment (cost containment pressures at hospitals). This forces a reevaluation of the company's... View Details
Keywords: Business Divisions; Customer Satisfaction; Demand and Consumers; Market Participation; Distribution Channels; Success; Corporate Strategy; Value Creation; Health Industry
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Frank V. Cespedes. "Becton Dickinson & Company: VACUTAINER Systems Division (Condensed)." Harvard Business School Case 592-037, October 1991. (Revised August 2000.)
- 08 Dec 2008
- Research & Ideas
Thinking Twice About Supply-Chain Layoffs
inventory to distribution centers. "I call these people supply-chain foot soldiers." Having items in storage areas but not on the selling floor didn't count at all in their evaluations, but it counts a lot in customer View Details
- 11 Jan 2000
- Research & Ideas
Calling All Managers: How to Build a Better Call Center
call centers, with their attendant voice response units (VRUs—also known as automated voice response systems), need not be so inefficient. When a company manages its call center well, effectively linking a triad of service, information technology and internal... View Details
- March 2005 (Revised August 2007)
- Case
Brocade: Launching the Multiprotocol Router
By: Elie Ofek and Mamoon Hamid
Brocade management is preparing for the launch of a new technology for data storage. The multiprotocol router improves on existing technology and has the potential to change the way firms design their data storage networks. Students must determine the target market for... View Details
Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Price; Product Launch; Partners and Partnerships; Segmentation; Information Infrastructure; Technology Adoption; Information Technology Industry
Ofek, Elie, and Mamoon Hamid. "Brocade: Launching the Multiprotocol Router." Harvard Business School Case 505-064, March 2005. (Revised August 2007.)
- May 2012
- Background Note
Innovation Magic
By: Stefan Thomke and Jason Randal
Why do certain product and service experiences seem like magic, making them all but destined for success, while other items languish on store shelves? For a better understanding of that, perhaps there's no better place to turn to than the world of magic. Consider that... View Details
Keywords: Innovation; Product Differentiation; Experimentation; Personal Strategy & Style; Innovation and Invention; Creativity; Service Operations; Product; Customer Satisfaction
Thomke, Stefan, and Jason Randal. "Innovation Magic." Harvard Business School Background Note 612-099, May 2012.
- January 2011
- Case
Aardvark
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld and Lauren Barley
Aardvark is an online social search service that allows users to pose questions and receive answers from other users in their extended social network. The case explores the process that Aardvark's founders used to design and develop their product based on intensive... View Details
Keywords: Business Startups; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Entrepreneurship; Product Design; Product Development; Social and Collaborative Networks; Internet and the Web
Eisenmann, Thomas R., Alison Berkley Wagonfeld, and Lauren Barley. "Aardvark." Harvard Business School Case 811-064, January 2011.
- January 1999 (Revised December 2000)
- Case
Finale
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, Michael J. Roberts and Matthew C. Lieb
Designed for use with "Room for Dessert" to show the changes between creating the initial business plans and starting to serve customers. Conforti and Moore have to both manage the business and deliver service to customers on a day-to-day basis in the initial location... View Details
- Article
How Much Is a Reduction of Your Customers' Wait Worth? An Empirical Study of the Fast-Food Drive-Thru Industry Based on Structural Estimation Methods
In many service industries, companies compete with each other on the basis of the waiting time their customers experience, along with other strategic instruments such as the price they charge for their service. The objective of this paper is to conduct an empirical... View Details
Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Price; Service Delivery; Mathematical Methods; Competition; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry
Allon, Gad, Awi Federgruen, and Margaret P. Pierson. "How Much Is a Reduction of Your Customers' Wait Worth? An Empirical Study of the Fast-Food Drive-Thru Industry Based on Structural Estimation Methods ." Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 13, no. 4 (Fall 2011).
Gerald Zaltman
*Joined Harvard Faculty: 1991
Prior Faculty Appointments: Northwestern University, 1968-75;
University of Pittsburgh, 1975-91
Prior Faculty Appointments: Northwestern University, 1968-75;
University of Pittsburgh, 1975-91
*Doctoral Degree in Sociology Received from: The John Hopkins University;
MBA Degree Received from: The University of... View Details
- October 1993 (Revised July 1997)
- Case
Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A)
By: Roy D. Shapiro and Michael D. Watkins
AT&T's Universal Card Services (UCS) has been extremely successful during its short lifetime. Dedicated to improving service quality and customer satisfaction, chief quality officer Rob Davis and his quality team have designed and put into place an unusual measurement... View Details
Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Policy; Compensation and Benefits; Performance Evaluation; Quality; System; Telecommunications Industry
Shapiro, Roy D., and Michael D. Watkins. "Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A)." Harvard Business School Case 694-047, October 1993. (Revised July 1997.)
- Article
Are You Really Innovating Around Your Customers' Needs?
By: Sunil Gupta
Every company believes it is customer-centric. However, most of them are product- and service-centric first, focusing on how to enhance their offerings rather than putting themselves in their customers’ shoes. To come up with truly innovative customer-centric ideas,... View Details
Gupta, Sunil. "Are You Really Innovating Around Your Customers' Needs?" Harvard Business Review (website) (October 1, 2020).
- 18 Jun 2013
- First Look
First Look: June 18
mid-2012 Lit Motors had created both engineering and design prototypes and conducted initial customer tests on less than $750,000 of investment. Lit Motors' founder, Daniel Kim, had started the company to design and manufacture an... View Details
Keywords: Anna Secino
- February 1996 (Revised November 1996)
- Case
Wainwright Industries (A): Beyond the Baldrige
By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Norman Klein
Traces the growth of Wainwright, a small automotive supply company, focusing on its commitment to quality in 1981 and the evolution of its quality culture. Breakthrough programs that stress "trust and belief" in the workforce and commitment to customers result in... View Details
Keywords: Quality; Customer Satisfaction; Customer Relationship Management; Ethics; Business or Company Management; Standards; Machinery and Machining; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Auto Industry; Missouri
Kanter, Rosabeth M., and Norman Klein. "Wainwright Industries (A): Beyond the Baldrige." Harvard Business School Case 396-219, February 1996. (Revised November 1996.)
- February 2021
- Case
Drizly: Managing Supply and Demand through Disruption
By: Kris Ferreira
It was April 6th, 2020, and the management team at Drizly—an online alcohol marketplace where consumers could browse and purchase alcohol from local liquor retail stores via Drizly’s app for immediate home delivery—were thrilled to see record-breaking sales from the... View Details
Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Demand and Consumers; Growth and Development; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Value and Value Chain; Customer Satisfaction; Goals and Objectives; Supply Chain Management
Ferreira, Kris. "Drizly: Managing Supply and Demand through Disruption." Harvard Business School Case 621-097, February 2021.