Publications

04 Jun 2020
Book

It’s Not About You: Why Leaders Need to Look Outward

for teams to thrive, even in the leader’s absence. Frei, the UPS Foundation Professor of Service Management at Harvard Business School, served as senior vice president for leadership and strategy at Uber and has consulted with WeWork and... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

March 2025
Teaching Note

Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena: Ticket to a Greener Future

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jacob A. Small

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 325-110. CEO Tim Leiweke reviewed the process by which his newly formed Oak View Group had managed a major rebuild of a landmark arena in Seattle which attracted a National Hockey League franchise and major entertainers concerned about... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Leadership; Bids and Bidding; Standards; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Green Buildings; Construction; Partners and Partnerships; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; Seattle

December 2008 (Revised February 2015)
Case

A.J. Washington: Retaining an NFL Star

By: Andrew Wasynczuk and Nicole Shae Bennett

General Manager Luke Kolville, of the Los Angeles Spartans, struggles with the best approach to negotiate a long-term contract for his star quarterback. The agent for Washington is relatively new to the industry and has his sights set particularly high. Kolville needs... View Details

Keywords: Retention; Human Capital; Contracts; Managerial Roles; Negotiation; Groups and Teams; Sports Industry; Los Angeles

09 Dec 2008
First Look

First Look: December 9, 2008

economists—had foreseen. The crisis raises questions about how competently financial institutions, such as mutual funds, managed their global capital investments. It raises questions about how effective the International Monetary Fund's... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

04 Mar 2014
First Look

First Look: March 4

http://ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/login?url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091305?nosfx=y August 2013 Harvard Business Review Manage Your Work, Manage Your Life By: Groysberg, Boris, and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

July 2005 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Real Madrid Club de Futbol (Multimedia)

By: John A. Quelch

In June 2004, Florentino Perez, a well-known Spanish businessman, was elected president of Real Madrid, one of the world's top soccer clubs. In his campaign, Perez had promised to turn around the club's finances, bring in world-class talent, and extend the club's brand... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Sports; Expansion; Sports Industry; Spain

17 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

How ‘Hybrid’ Nonprofits Can Stay on Mission

possibility that hiring managers would be swayed by their own backgrounds, meaning that sporting either a finance degree or a social work degree didn't result in preferential treatment for a potential... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

July–August 2014
Article

Sustainability in the Boardroom: Lessons from Nike's Playbook

By: Lynn S. Paine

One surprising role of Nike's corporate responsibility committee is to provide support for innovation. More and more companies recognize the importance of corporate responsibility to their long-term success—and yet the matter gets short shrift in most boardrooms,... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Corporate Accountability; Globalized Firms and Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry

Find at Harvard

February 2016 (Revised March 2016)
Case

America's Cup in 2013: Oracle Team USA vs. Emirates Team New Zealand (A)

By: Rory McDonald, Alan MacCormack and Vanessa Ampelas

Four teams across the world are furiously designing, building, testing, and learning to sail a boat that would be one-of-a-kind in order to win the 2013 America's Cup. Choosing the best development path was a challenge as the teams had less than three years to prepare,... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Competition; Innovation and Management; Sports; Sports Industry; New Zealand; United States

30 Jun 2014
Lessons from the Classroom

The Role of Emotions in Effective Negotiations

could Kate have done differently to get a better outcome? "We spend a lot of time talking both about what emotions we elicit in others based on our behavior, and what we need to do to manage our own emotions. There are lessons on... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Sports; Sports

21 Aug 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

Companies Love Big Data But Lack the Strategy To Use It Effectively

Source: peterhowell Big data has shifted the ground under every business, enough so that many managers are waking up to the fact that they are already behind in developing a smart data strategy. Data has always been important in business,... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

19 Feb 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, February 19, 2019

algorithm uncovers two distinct behavioral types: "leaders" and "managers." Leaders focus on multi-function, high-level meetings, while managers focus on one-to-one meetings with core functions. Firms with leader CEOs are on average more... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

06 Aug 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Super Bowl Ads Sell Products, but Do They Sell Brands?

managers to think about what they want to get out of this. And how do I measure the success of it? Do I want brand awareness? Do I want to drive sales? Do I want to drive conversation on social media? Those are all worthy goals, but... View Details

Keywords: Sports; Sports; Sports; Sports

04 Jun 2012
Research & Ideas

The Business of Life

unusual application of an economic term delighted Christensen, a management professor known around HBS and the globe as both a brilliant business thinker and a deeply religious man. For more than a decade he has been a go-to consultant... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

November 2002 (Revised January 2003)
Case

Mount Everest-1996

Describes the events that transpired during the May 1996, Mount Everest tragedy. Examines the flawed decisions that climbing teams made before and during the ascent. View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Groups and Teams; Crisis Management; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; Nepal

October 2020
Case

Michael Phelps: 'It's Okay to Not Be Okay'

By: Boris Groysberg, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Michael Norris

In 2020, Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, with 28 medals in various swimming events, was now retired. As he looked back on his 20+ year athletic career, he considered what had gone into making him the greatest of all time—the highs and lows,... View Details

Keywords: Mental Health; Talent and Talent Management; Training; Health; Success; Performance Improvement; Personal Development and Career; Family and Family Relationships; Sports; Competition; Sports Industry; United States; Baltimore; Arizona; Sydney; Athens; Beijing; London

21 Apr 2021
Research & Ideas

The Pandemic Conversations That Leaders Need to Have Now

leaders manage these conversations effectively. Drawing on our insights and those of others, we offer this guide to help leaders have the kinds of discussions we need to be having right now. The four I’s of conversational leadership The... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg, Robin Abrahams, and Katherine Connolly Baden

07 May 2013
First Look

First Look: May 7

publicly announced their intention to sell their 76.7% stake in Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A., an iconic Italian producer of sport performance motorcycles. The decision followed a six-year turnaround during which Ducati returned to... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

September 1998 (Revised July 1999)
Case

Spyder Active Sports, Inc. and CHB Capital Partners (A)

By: John A. Davis, Louis B. Barnes and Peter K. Botticelli

After establishing a small but profitable skiwear business, an entrepreneur decides to sell a minority stake in the firm to outside investors. His goal is to acquire the capital needed to grow the business, even though this will entail a substantial transformation of... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Private Equity; Family Business; Business Growth and Maturation; Entrepreneurship; Sports Industry; Sports Industry