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- All HBS Web (2,444)
- Faculty Publications (739)
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- January 2008
- Article
Mastering the Management System
By: Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton
Companies have always found it hard to balance pressing operational concerns with long-term strategic priorities. The tension is critical: World-class processes won't lead to success without the right strategic direction, and the best strategy in the world will get... View Details
Keywords: Framework; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Management Systems; Operations; Performance Improvement; Strategy
Kaplan, Robert S., and David P. Norton. "Mastering the Management System." Special Issue on HBS Centennial. Harvard Business Review 86, no. 1 (January 2008): 62–77.
- February 1990 (Revised July 1992)
- Case
Whistler Corp. (A)
By: Gary P. Pisano
Describes the circumstances surrounding Whistler Corp.'s decision whether or not to continue manufacturing operations in the United States. The company had been experiencing severe problems in its domestic manufacturing operations and was thus unable to compete with... View Details
Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Production; Problems and Challenges; Competitive Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States
Pisano, Gary P. "Whistler Corp. (A)." Harvard Business School Case 690-011, February 1990. (Revised July 1992.)
- 24 Sep 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
The Impact of Regulation on Strategic Positioning: Self-Regulation in the RTE Cereal Industry
- May 1993 (Revised October 1993)
- Case
Vanity Fair Mills: Market Response System
Describes the "Quick Response" program developed by Vanity Fair Mills (VFM), a division of the VF Corp. Beginning in 1989, VFM reorganized its manufacturing systems, invested heavily in computer and telecommunications equipment, and formed "partnership" agreements with... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Logistics; Distribution Channels; Manufacturing Industry
Buzzell, Robert D. "Vanity Fair Mills: Market Response System." Harvard Business School Case 593-111, May 1993. (Revised October 1993.)
- 2010
- Working Paper
Specialization and Variety in Repetitive Tasks: Evidence from a Japanese Bank
By: Bradley R. Staats and Francesca Gino
Sustaining operational productivity in the completion of repetitive tasks is critical to many organizations' success. Yet research points to two different work-design related strategies for accomplishing this goal: specialization to capture the benefits of repetition... View Details
Keywords: Employees; Working Conditions; Service Delivery; Performance Productivity; Financial Services Industry; Japan
Staats, Bradley R., and Francesca Gino. "Specialization and Variety in Repetitive Tasks: Evidence from a Japanese Bank." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 11-015, August 2010. (Revised May 2011.)
- July 2010 (Revised September 2011)
- Background Note
Hiring Professionals in China: A Practitioner's Guide
By: Heidi K. Gardner
This note outlines how leading professional service firms operating in China revise their standard hiring practices to fit local challenges and customs. Based on interviews with professionals in a number of established accounting, strategy consulting, and executive... View Details
Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Globalized Firms and Management; Employees; Selection and Staffing; Service Industry; China
Gardner, Heidi K. "Hiring Professionals in China: A Practitioner's Guide." Harvard Business School Background Note 411-029, July 2010. (Revised September 2011.)
- April 2008
- Exercise
Exercise: Customer-Operator Letter Writing
By: Frances X. Frei
The exercise involves having students write letters to an organization of their choice describing their operating experience at a detailed level. The companies' responses are paired with the students' letters and the entire collection is made available to the class.... View Details
Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Customer Satisfaction; Customer Value and Value Chain; Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Performance Improvement
Frei, Frances X. "Exercise: Customer-Operator Letter Writing." Harvard Business School Exercise 608-126, April 2008.
- May 2013
- Article
The Performance Frontier: Innovating for a Sustainable Strategy
By: Robert G. Eccles and George Serafeim
By now most companies have sustainability programs. They're cutting carbon emissions, reducing waste, and otherwise enhancing operational efficiency. But a mishmash of sustainability tactics does not add up to a sustainable strategy. To endure, a strategy must address... View Details
Keywords: Sustainability; Innovation; Environment; Corporate Reporting; Corporate Social Responsibility; Governance; Strategy; Value; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance; Environmental Sustainability; Innovation and Invention
Eccles, Robert G., and George Serafeim. "The Performance Frontier: Innovating for a Sustainable Strategy." Harvard Business Review 91, no. 5 (May 2013): 50–60.
- November 2012
- Case
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)
By: H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Matthew Preble
Considers whether New Balance, one of the world's five largest manufacturers of athletic footwear, should respond to Adidas' planned acquisition of Reebok—a transaction that would join the second- and third-largest companies in the industry. Highlights the unique... View Details
Keywords: Production; Competitive Strategy; Supply Chain; Brands and Branding; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry; Retail Industry; Asia; United States
Bowen, H. Kent, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop, and Matthew Preble. "New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)." Harvard Business School Case 613-006, November 2012.
- March 2004 (Revised June 2004)
- Case
Blackout: August 14, 2003
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Ryland Matthew Willis
On August 14, 2003, an electricity blackout cascaded throughout the northeastern United States and Canada. Describes the structure, technology, and economics of the electric utility industry and how gradual deregulation beginning in the 1970s placed unprecedented, and... View Details
Keywords: Information Technology; Performance Improvement; Infrastructure; Energy Sources; Business and Government Relations; Networks; Emerging Markets; Failure; Economics; Utilities Industry; Canada; Northeastern United States
Eisenmann, Thomas R., and Ryland Matthew Willis. "Blackout: August 14, 2003." Harvard Business School Case 804-156, March 2004. (Revised June 2004.)
- June 2025
- Case
Larry Culp at General Electric: Rebuilding an American Icon
By: Nitin Nohria, Kayti Stanley, Ashka Stephen and Drew Goydan
As he takes over as CEO of the iconic industrial giant General Electric, Larry Culp faces a range of urgent issues as the company is delisted from the DJIA and is seen by many as heading towards bankruptcy. Culp steers GE through a series of carefully thought-out moves... View Details
- July–August 2018
- Article
Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing to Model the Costs of Various Process-Improvement Strategies in Acute Pain Management
By: Keyuri Popat, Kelly Ann Gracia, Alexis B. Guzman and Thomas W. Feeley
Pain control for patients undergoing thoracic surgery is essential for their comfort and for improving their ability to function after surgery, but it can significantly increase costs. Here, we demonstrate how time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) can be used to... View Details
Keywords: Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing; Health Care and Treatment; Cost Management; Performance Improvement
Popat, Keyuri, Kelly Ann Gracia, Alexis B. Guzman, and Thomas W. Feeley. "Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing to Model the Costs of Various Process-Improvement Strategies in Acute Pain Management." Journal of Healthcare Management 63, no. 4 (July–August 2018): e76–e85.
- 17 Jan 2023
- Cold Call Podcast
Nestlé’s KitKat Diplomacy: Neutrality vs. Shared Value
- August 2007 (Revised April 2008)
- Case
Texas Pacific Group--J. Crew
By: Michael J. Roberts, William A. Sahlman and Lauren Barley
Describes Texas Pacific Group's purchase and operation of J. Crew, the catalog and specialty clothing retailer. Highlights the issues involved in financing such a transaction, and then focuses on the operational challenges of turning around the business, and of TPG's... View Details
Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Private Equity; Financing and Loans; Investment; Operations; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Retail Industry
Roberts, Michael J., William A. Sahlman, and Lauren Barley. "Texas Pacific Group--J. Crew." Harvard Business School Case 808-017, August 2007. (Revised April 2008.)
- August 2012
- Case
Polar Sports, Inc.
By: W. Carl Kester and Wei Wang
Polar Sports, Inc. is a fashion skiwear manufacturing company in Littleton, Colorado. The company has a unique design for skiwear using a special synthetic material that improves insulation and durability. The ski apparel industry is highly competitive and the best way... View Details
Keywords: Production; Decision Choices and Conditions; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Finance; Manufacturing Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry; Colorado
Kester, W. Carl, and Wei Wang. "Polar Sports, Inc." Harvard Business School Brief Case 913-513, August 2012.
- March 2017 (Revised April 2017)
- Case
OXXO's Turf War Against Extra (A)
By: Tatiana Sandino, Gerardo Pérez Cavazos and Annelena Lobb
In 2006, Mexican convenience store chain OXXO faced a threat from a formidable competitor, the rival convenience chain Extra. OXXO had embarked on an initiative to fortify its corporate culture and operating system, but the threat of Extra raised the question of... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Culture; Organizational Design; Competitive Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Mexico
Sandino, Tatiana, Gerardo Pérez Cavazos, and Annelena Lobb. "OXXO's Turf War Against Extra (A)." Harvard Business School Case 117-021, March 2017. (Revised April 2017.)
- 2012
- Article
Specialization and Variety in Repetitive Tasks: Evidence from a Japanese Bank
By: B. Staats and F. Gino
Sustaining operational productivity in the completion of repetitive tasks is critical to many organizations' success. Yet research points to two different work-design-related strategies for accomplishing this goal: specialization to capture the benefits of repetition... View Details
Keywords: Motivation; Productivity; Specialization; Variety; Work Fragmentation; Boundaries; Performance Productivity; Organizations; Research; Strategy; Motivation and Incentives; Opportunities; Market Transactions; Resource Allocation; Performance; Goals and Objectives; Learning
Staats, B., and F. Gino. "Specialization and Variety in Repetitive Tasks: Evidence from a Japanese Bank." Management Science 58, no. 6 (June 2012): 1141–1159.
- August 2000
- Case
Project ACHIEVE - January 2000
By: H. Kent Bowen and Elizabeth Kind
Education services target public schools to assist the school with technology and services that will improve their communication with students, parents, and the community. There is also the goal of increasing scores of measured learning. How does a small company do... View Details
Keywords: Information Technology; Service Delivery; Learning; Interactive Communication; Measurement and Metrics; Performance Consistency; Business and Community Relations; Expansion; Technology Adoption; Education Industry
Bowen, H. Kent, and Elizabeth Kind. "Project ACHIEVE - January 2000." Harvard Business School Case 601-044, August 2000.
- November 2005 (Revised May 2007)
- Case
Leading Change at Simmons (A)
By: Tiziana E. Casciaro, Amy C. Edmondson, Stacy McManus and Kate Roloff
Explores the challenge of managing large-scale organizational change at Simmons, an old and established company that manufactures and distributes mattresses. The new CEO, Charlie Eitel, hired to turn the organization's performance around, considers whether to implement... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Motivation and Incentives; Leading Change; Employee Relationship Management; Manufacturing Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States
Casciaro, Tiziana E., Amy C. Edmondson, Stacy McManus, and Kate Roloff. "Leading Change at Simmons (A)." Harvard Business School Case 406-046, November 2005. (Revised May 2007.)
- Spring 2020
- Article
The Basic Economics of Internet Infrastructure
By: Shane Greenstein
The internet's structure and operations remain invisible to most economists. What determines the economic value of internet infrastructure and the incentives to improve it? What are the open research questions for the most salient policy issues? This article reviews... View Details
Greenstein, Shane. "The Basic Economics of Internet Infrastructure." Journal of Economic Perspectives 34, no. 2 (Spring 2020): 192–214.