Publications

23 Oct 2000
Research & Ideas

The Strategy-Focused Organization

weather that depressed sales of natural gas and home heating oil. As you know, this is also the first quarter we are operating with the Balanced Scorecard, so I can see performance across a broader set of indicators. Market shares in our key View Details

Keywords: by Robert S. Kaplan & David P. Norton

16 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Strategy and the Internet

best practice, its rivals tend to copy it quickly. Best practice competition eventually leads to competitive convergence, with many companies doing the same things in the same ways. Customers end up making decisions based on price,... View Details

Keywords: by Michael E. Porter

30 May 2018
Research & Ideas

Should Retailers Match Their Own Prices Online and in Stores?

brick-and-mortars, including Best Buy, Target, Staples, and Sears, will gladly match their online prices in-store if a customer asks for them. However, others, like Home Depot, Bloomingdale’s, and Macy’s, are usually quite firm about... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail

01 Mar 2024
News

Case Study: Testing the Waters

Illustration by Christina Spano Endurance training was nothing new to Lauren Picasso (MBA 2014), who’d raced through her younger years as a cross-country runner and swimmer. In 2017, when she was director of marketing at Jet.com and looking for a physical challenge,... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; Food and Beverage Stores; Retail Trade

October 2013 (Revised August 2015)
Supplement

Outotec (B): Action Plan

By: Robert J. Dolan and Doug J. Chung

Outotec was a market leader in providing mining solutions to large mining companies. The company’s specialization and proprietary technology created value for its customers and helped the firm differentiate from its competitors. Yet, Outotec was not pricing or... View Details

Keywords: Value-based Pricing; Bargaining Power Of Buyers; Marketing; Segmentation; Price; Policy; Sales; Management; Value Creation; Mining Industry

October 2013 (Revised August 2015)
Case

Outotec (A): Project Capture

By: Robert J. Dolan and Doug J. Chung

Outotec was a market leader in providing mining solutions to large mining companies. The company’s specialization and proprietary technology created value for its customers and helped the firm differentiate from its competitors. Yet, Outotec was not pricing or... View Details

Keywords: Value-based Pricing; Bargaining Power Of Buyers; Marketing; Segmentation; Price; Policy; Sales; Management; Value Creation; Mining Industry

16 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Restaurant Revolution: How the Industry Is Fighting to Stay Alive

[div class=infogram-embed data-id=_/57Y0v9Xi9HTtAOb900lW][/div] Various segments of restaurants experienced the crisis differently. Those previously adept at drive-through and takeout service weathered the storm well while others, reliant... View Details

Keywords: by Michael S. Kaufman, Lena G. Goldberg, and Jill Avery; Food & Beverage

Web

Student Research - Doctoral

a family foundation or donor-advised fund constitute the fastest growing segment of charitable giving in the United States. Using a novel database of foundation tax filings, I document facts about top donors, estimate how they... June... View Details

August 2006 (Revised February 2009)
Case

Tanishq: Positioning to Capture the Indian Woman's Heart

By: Das Narayandas and Kerry Herman

The firm has to choose between an established brand, Tanishq, and a new skunkworks brand, GoldPlus, to go after the Indian plain gold jewelry market: Tanishq, initially targeted at a western customer, has undergone strategic retooling and has currently been... View Details

Keywords: Customers; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Segmentation; Apparel and Accessories Industry; India

09 Mar 2003
Research & Ideas

Six Keys to Building New Markets by Unleashing Disruptive Innovation

refinements or radical breakthroughs, improve the performance of established products and services along the dimensions that mainstream customers in major markets historically have valued. Examples: a microprocessor that enables personal... View Details

Keywords: by Clayton M. Christensen, Michael E. Raynor & Scott D. Anthony

09 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

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

price decreases segmented by customer and channel. Another hallmark of stressful situations is that they can lead to paralysis and inaction, what Nathan Furr calls “unproductive uncertainty.” He recommends... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg and Sarah Abbott

24 Apr 2023
HBS Case

What Does It Take to Build as Much Buzz as Booze? Inside the Epic Challenge of Cannabis-Infused Drinks

use bespoke strategies to navigate the splintered regulations. Are there ripe customer segments waiting to be tapped? Cann has prioritized larger marketing campaigns with the goal of raising overall... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

19 Apr 2010
Research & Ideas

The History of Beauty

strove to create a brand that symbolized style and elegance, he got his first order by smashing a bottle of his perfume on the floor of a prominent Parisian department store, in a successful gambit to get customers to smell it. He created... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Beauty & Cosmetics

01 Oct 2012
Research & Ideas

Better by the Bundle?

Nintendo, this gives the company a way to separate out segments of consumers—we call this dynamic customer segmentation." Some consumers don't care much about the specific game and will go for the bundle,... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

October 2016
Case

The Quiet Ascension of LA Fitness

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In 2016, LA Fitness was the largest chain of non-franchised fitness clubs in North America, operating 676 clubs, serving 4.9 million members, and generating revenues of over $1.9 billion. Founded by Chinyol Yi, Louis Welch, and Paul Norris in 1984, the privately held... View Details

Keywords: LA Fitness; Health Clubs; Fitness; Gyms; Chain; Exercise; Personal Training; Retention; Bally Total Fitness; 24 Hour Fitness; Planet Fitness; Buildings and Facilities; Acquisition; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; For-Profit Firms; Customers; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Demographics; Age; Gender; Income; Residency; Borrowing and Debt; Capital; Capital Structure; Cash; Cash Flow; Cost; Private Equity; Financial Condition; Financial Liquidity; Financing and Loans; Investment Return; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Business History; Employees; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Human Capital; Contracts; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Operations; Service Operations; Leasing; Private Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Sales; Salesforce Management; Situation or Environment; Opportunities; Sports; Strategy; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Mobile Technology; Technology Platform; Health Industry; United States; California; Los Angeles