Publications

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January 2013 (Revised September 2013)
Case

Royal DSM: Fighting Hidden Hunger

By: Rebecca Henderson, Noah Fisher and Mary Shelman

In 2007 Royal DSM, a leading life science and materials company, entered a partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP) to combat hidden hunger around the world by providing micronutrient solutions. The case investigates the unexpectedly large impact the partnership... View Details

Keywords: Conflict of Interests; Human Needs; Partners and Partnerships; Global Range; Nutrition; Science-Based Business; Non-Governmental Organizations; Service Industry; Health Industry

18 Apr 2023
News

Leading Organizational Equity: OneTen Community of Practice Summit

September 2002
Case

KaBOOM!

By: James E. Austin and Jose Miguel Porraz

KaBOOM! is a nonprofit organization developing playgrounds in partnership with corporations and communities. It has grown since 1995 to a national organization that has built 338 playgrounds in partnerships with over 40 companies. This case deals with the nature of... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Strategy; Nonprofit Organizations; Business and Community Relations; Growth and Development

February 2004 (Revised March 2004)
Background Note

Profitability Drivers in Professional Service Firms

By: Ashish Nanda

This case presents a simple model of the drivers of profitability in a professional service partnership and conducts an empirical exploration of the determinants of profitability among AmLaw 100 firms over the period 1994 to 1999. View Details

Keywords: Profitability; Model; Profit; Partners and Partnerships; Law; Service Industry

10 Apr 2023
Video

Career Journeys | Mariah Cushman

September 2009 (Revised August 2011)
Case

Urban Decay: A Great Idea

By: Lena G. Goldberg

Casual discussions of ideas for a new business can have unintended legal consequences and expectations about founder status and ownership shares may diverge widely. Using facts from a litigated case, the concept of inadvertent formation of a partnership is explored. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Spoken Communication; Lawsuits and Litigation; Ownership Stake; Partners and Partnerships

30 Jan 2018
News

We need employers to step up and change health care

April 2022 (Revised May 2022)
Case

Mastercard Labs (A)

By: Linda A. Hill, Sunil Gupta, Emily Tedards and Julia Kelley

When Ajaypal (Ajay) Banga became the CEO of Mastercard in 2010, he shifted the company’s competitive focus from card networks to cash itself. Mastercard’s new vision of a “World Beyond Cash” distilled into a three-pronged framework: Grow the core business, Diversify... View Details

February 1995 (Revised October 2006)
Case

Brainard, Bennis & Farrell (A)

By: John J. Gabarro and Andrew P. Burtis

A law firm must decide how to split partnership profits among the partners. Issues of seniority versus performance, performance evaluation, and lack of consensus of values dominate the discussions. A rewritten version of an earlier case. View Details

Keywords: Partners and Partnerships; Performance Evaluation; Values and Beliefs; Rank and Position; Profit Sharing; Legal Services Industry

Video

Gabriela Cabrera

Gabriela Cabrera, President of Manos del Uruguay, explains how partnerships with internationally renowned brands such as Ralph Lauren have scaled their social and economic impact. View Details

November 2016
Case

Bayern Munich in China

By: Karim Lakhani, Sascha L. Schmidt, Michael Norris and Kerry Herman

In 2015, German football club Bayern Munich is considering how to enter the Chinese market. Should it build its own infrastructure or rely on third-party partnerships to reach this massive football fan base? View Details

Keywords: Football; Soccer; Bundesliga; Digital Technology; Market Entry; Sports; Global Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Online Technology; Sports Industry; Germany; China

September 1999 (Revised July 2022)
Case

The Goldman Sachs IPO

By: Ashish Nanda, Malcolm S. Salter, Boris Groysberg and Sarah Matthews

Addresses the proposed IPO and raises questions regarding how agency costs may rise or fall as Goldman converts from a private partnership to a public limited corporation. View Details

Keywords: Initial Public Offering; Going Public; Corporate Governance; Agency Theory; Transformation; Financial Services Industry

September 2023
Case

David Beckham (A)

By: Anita Elberse and David Moreno Vicente

In January 2022, superstar-athlete-turned-entrepreneur David Beckham is deciding on a proposal that has the potential to significantly change the trajectory of his business career: Authentic Brands Group (‘Authentic’) has offered to engage in a strategic partnership... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Decisions; Brands and Branding; Negotiation Offer; Partners and Partnerships; Sports

09 Jul 2014
Research & Ideas

How Business Leaders Can Strengthen American Schools

to career," says Rivkin. In Cincinnati, the Strive Partnership serves as a central clearing house for aligning goals with the metrics and decisions to meet those goals. "This fosters a sense of collective responsibility but... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Education

11 Oct 2023
Blog Post

HBS Career Journeys | Mariah Cushman

HBS Career & Professional Development sat down with students to talk about their career journeys. Mariah Cushman (MS/MBA 2023) shares her experience building a partnership with her career coach, and how she leveraged HBS’s recruiting... View Details

April 2020 (Revised June 2020)
Case

Oriental Land Co., Ltd.—Tokyo Disney Resort

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Akiko Kanno

This case describes the history of Oriental Land Co. Ltd.’s (OLC's) Tokyo Disney Resort (TDR), its operations, the extent of vertical integration, and the challenges it faced in 2018 as OLC's chairman and CEO, Toshio Kagami, contemplated how best to deal with... View Details

Keywords: Strategy For Multi-business Firm; Business Models; Growth; Theme Parks; Disney; Disney Parks; Licensing; Royalties; Two-part Tariffs; Oriental Land Co.; Tokyo Disneyland; Tokyo DisneySea; Tokyo Disney Resort; Tokyo Disney; Growth Strategy; Hotels; Hotel Industry; Partnership; Development; Attractions; Rides; Urayasu; Kagami; Congestion; Pricing; Amusement Parks; Amusement Park Industry; Brand; Branding; History; OLC; Corporate Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Business History; Price; Retention; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Agreements and Arrangements; Contracts; Operations; Vertical Integration; Problems and Challenges; Partners and Partnerships; Business Strategy; Expansion; Rail Transportation; Transportation Networks; Accommodations Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Tourism Industry; Asia; Japan; Tokyo; United States

November 1999
Case

IBM Ireland: Reinventing Education Crosses the Atlantic

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and John R. R Scannell

IBM has just launched an innovation partnership with the Irish Ministry of Education to bring information technology to Irish schools. Wired for Learning was developed in the United States; how well will it be applied in Ireland? View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Partners and Partnerships; Innovation Strategy; Education; Technology Adoption; Government and Politics; Technology Industry; Education Industry; United States; Republic of Ireland

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June 2004 (Revised January 2005)
Background Note

Principals, Agents, and Partners

By: Arthur I Segel, Armen Panossian and Jeff Mandelbaum

The establishment of the principal-agent relationship, the duties owed by the agent to the principal, and the principal's liability for illegal actions or representations made by the agent are all examined. Also covers the creation of partnerships and the duties of... View Details

Keywords: Partners and Partnerships; Agency Theory; Legal Liability