Publications

11 Aug 2011
Lessons from the Classroom

Perfecting the Project Pitch

Overcoming that obstacle can be a difficult process, especially for entrepreneurs who have a background in a technical, engineering, or another non-sales discipline. They are not used to having to convince anyone of the merits of their projects, and can be downright... View Details

Keywords: by Dennis Fisher

10 Oct 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, October 10, 2017

to lower end consumer price, through which media to convey Afrezza's benefits, and how to streamline the process of performing the lung test and getting the drug into the hands of patients. But would all these changes and initiatives, no... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

August 2015 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Amazon.com, 2021

By: John R. Wells, Benjamin Weinstock, Gabriel Ellsworth and Galen Danskin

In February 2021, Amazon announced 2020 operating profits of $22,899 million, up from $2,233 million in 2015, on sales of $386 billion, up from $107 billion five years earlier (see Exhibit 1). The shareholders expressed their satisfaction (see Exhibit 2), but not all... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Analysis; Retail; E-commerce; Amazon; Internet; Amazon.com; AmazonFresh; Jeff Bezos; Cloud Computing; Marketplaces; Streaming; E-reader Market; Digital Media; Mobile App; Online Retail; Shipping; Database; Tablet; Kindle; Kindle Fire; Smartphone; Delivery; Digital Platforms; Competition; Internet and the Web; Corporate Strategy; Digital Marketing; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Profit; Revenue; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Taxation; Business History; Human Resources; Resignation and Termination; Books; Human Capital; Working Conditions; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Practices and Processes; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Media; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Product Development; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Organizational Culture; Public Ownership; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Labor and Management Relations; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Integration; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Information Infrastructure; Information Technology; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Price; Applications and Software; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Working Capital; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Value and Value Chain; Retail Industry; Advertising Industry; Distribution Industry; Electronics Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Information Technology Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Music Industry; Publishing Industry; Shipping Industry; Technology Industry; Video Game Industry; Web Services Industry; United States; Washington (state, US); Seattle

January 2000 (Revised November 2000)
Exercise

WineMaster.com (A-2): Confidential Instructions for HomeBase

By: Guhan Subramanian

A two-person negotiation exercise involving the potential sale of a small e-commerce company to a large company. The parties need to negotiate four issues: the number of shares in the deal, the vesting period for the shares, whether the seller will get a seat on the... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Negotiation Process

October 2023
Case

Driving Sustainability at AB InBev

By: Ethan Rouen and Antonio Manuel Oftelie

It was the height of the summer in 2022, and Michel Doukeris, the CEO of Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), and Peter Kraemer, the company’s Chief Supply Officer, gazed across the vast desert surrounding Zacatecas, Mexico. They were visiting their Grupo Modelo Brewery,... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Transformation; Decisions; Environmental Sustainability; Leading Change; Growth Management; Business Model; Food and Beverage Industry; Mexico

November 2009 (Revised August 2011)
Case

Warner Bros. Entertainment

By: Gary P. Pisano and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Examines the process used by a major motion picture studio to develop and select movie projects. Warner Bros.' strategy is to focus its efforts on a small number of major "event" films (i.e., films with the potential to generate gross box office receipts of $300... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Film Entertainment; Risk Management; Product Development; Strategic Planning; Projects; Sales; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

July 2020
Article

Reframing Value in a Crisis

By: Frank V. Cespedes and David Hoffeld

Reframing is the process of moving buyers from their current perspective(s) to one that motivates a different response. The current crisis makes this capability more important than ever. View Details

Keywords: Sales; Customers; Perspective; Value; Change; Health Pandemics

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May 2020 (Revised June 2020)
Case

TransDigm's Acquisition and Integration of Arkwin Industries

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel W. Fisher

In May 2013, TransDigm, a company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and civilian aircraft, announced it was buying Arkwin Industries for $286 million in cash (3 times Arkwin’s sales of $91 million). Having acquired... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Value Creation; Strategy; Acquisition; Integration; Talent and Talent Management; Aerospace Industry

January 2000 (Revised November 2000)
Exercise

WineMaster.com (A-1): Confidential Instructions for WineMaster

By: Guhan Subramanian

A two-person negotiation exercise involving the potential sale of a small e-commerce company to a large company. The parties need to negotiate four issues: the number of shares in the deal, the vesting period for the shares, whether the seller will get a seat on the... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Negotiation Process

19 Sep 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, September 19

September 2017 Management Science Channel Integration, Sales Dispersion, and Inventory Management By: Gallino, Santiago, Antonio Moreno, and Ioannis Stamatopoulos Abstract—We study the effects of the introduction of cross-channel... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 1994 (Revised March 1995)
Case

Astra/Merck Group

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Marie Bell

Astra/Merck (A/M), originally a joint venture of AB Astra and Merck & Co., is preparing to be an independent company in 1993. Since the company does not engage in basic research and development of drugs, it is essentially a distribution organization. Fundamental to... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Marketing Strategy; Distribution; Performance Evaluation; Research and Development; Risk and Uncertainty; Sales; Competitive Strategy; Pharmaceutical Industry

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August 2017 (Revised July 2018)
Case

MannKind Corporation: Take a Deep Breath, This Time Afrezza Will Work

By: Elie Ofek and Amanda Dai

In June 2014, MannKind Corporation announced that after years of development and billions of dollars in expenses, the FDA had finally approved its drug, Afrezza. MannKind would thus be the only company with an inhalable insulin on the market. As an alternative to... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Adoption; Pharmaceutical Industry

16 Nov 2011
Working Paper Summaries

Private Equity and Employment

Keywords: by Steven J. Davis, John C. Haltiwanger, Ron S. Jarmin, Josh Lerner & Javier Miranda

May 2017
Teaching Note

Hilti Fleet Management (A) and (B)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Oliver Gassmann and Roman Sauer

These notes are meant to accompany Hilti Fleet Management (A): Turning a Successful Business Model on Its Head (717-427) and Hilti Fleet Management (B): Towards a New Business Model (717-465).
This case explores the introduction of fleet management in the... View Details

April 2020
Supplement

Oaktree: Pierre Foods Investment

By: Victoria Ivashina and Terrence Shu

This case is a setting to discuss “loan to own” investment strategy that is often pursued by distressed investors. The aftermath of the 2007 financial crisis left many companies with poor liquidity and limited ability to obtain credit. One of these companies was Pierre... View Details

Keywords: Distress Investing; Investment; Debt Securities; Strategy; Restructuring

January 1997 (Revised June 1997)
Case

Southwire: Beyond 2000

By: F. Warren McFarlan and Melissa Dailey

Southwire, based in Carrollton, GA, was the leading producer of aluminum and copper rod, wire, and cable for the transmission and distribution of electricity. In one decade, CEO Roy Richards, Jr. grew annual sales from $500 million in 1985 to $1.9 billion in 1995, an... View Details

Keywords: Leading Change; Growth Management; Competitive Strategy; Global Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

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13 Feb 2007
First Look

First Look: February 13, 2007

Working PapersAdding Bricks to Clicks: The Effects of Store Openings on Sales through Direct Channels Authors:Jill Avery, Mary Caravella, John Deighton, and Thomas Steenburgh Abstract We assess the effect of opening physical retail... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Program

Creating Brand Value

cultural and relationship prowess today's business-to-consumer (B2C) brand managers need. You will explore branding as a collective and collaborative meaning-making process among firms, consumers, and other cultural producers, acquiring... View Details

April 2004 (Revised August 2004)
Teaching Note

BuildingBlocks International

BuildingBlocks International (BBI) plans to accomplish its mission to help children in developing countries succeed in school by bringing management expertise to local organizations. Two years after founding BBI, however, the team hasn't figured out exactly how to make... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Social Marketing; Developing Countries and Economies; Sales