Transformations - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Dec 2023
News

3-Minute Briefing: Nathaniel Fick (MBA/MPA 2008)

As a Marine, I led some of the first units in Afghanistan and Iraq. What I loved about that experience was the intersection of a mission with building and leading teams. I came to HBS to develop the tools around that work, but in a very different context. On the... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

10 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 10, 2009

referred to the emirate as "the richest city in the world." Yet Al Mubarak, trusted advisor to the crown prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahayan, and Mubadala were charged with transforming the economy of the emirate. Many were... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Web

HBR Classics - Alumni

A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky Cracking the Code of Change , Michael Beer and Nitin Nohria Leading Change - Why Transformation Efforts Fail , John P. Kotter Tipping Point Leadership , W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne Global Collaboration Are... View Details

10 Feb 2020
In Practice

6 Ways That Emerging Technology Is Disrupting Business Strategy

Innovation Science. 2. Technology is propelling business transformation “While some firms think about technology merely as a different type of capital investment that does not impact their way of doing things, others are adopting new... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

Web

Curriculum - Business & Environment

equality, and poverty reduction. For the full listing, click here . Tough Tech Ventures (Spring 2025) Joshua Lev Krieger & Jim Matheson While tough technology has the potential to transform incumbent industries and tackle our most... View Details

Aug 27 2019
Interview

What's Your Platform Strategy?

22 Feb 2024
Blog Post

It’s Time to Build: Why the MS/MBA Is Right for You!

not always the first call to action for an entrepreneur. However, it is very compelling to see an institution like Harvard put its weight behind a program that equips young people to transform our society through technology. Personally, I... View Details

17 Mar 2015
First Look

First Look: March 17

Transformation from Analog to Digital This note examines the evolution of the thermostat industry as it transitioned from analog to digital technologies. It presents an overview of key industry participants and the shift in value creation... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

13 Mar 2023
Research & Ideas

What Would It Take to Unlock Microfinance's Full Potential?

In randomized control trials all over the world, instead of giving access to a loan, a one-time cash grant was found to have transformative impacts on livelihoods and businesses six months, one year, five years, 10 years later. We learned... View Details

Keywords: by Jen McFarland Flint; Financial Services

Web

Investors - Entrepreneurship

Co-Founder & Managing Partner - Transformation Capital, Transformation Capital PMD 1990 Sean Dalton Founder, METEOR Venture Capital MBA 1998 Monica Dodi Co-Founder & Managing Director, Women's Venture... View Details

24 Apr 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Corporate Social Entrepreneurship

Keywords: by James E. Austin & Ezequiel Reficco

Research Summary

The Servicification of the U.S. Economy: The Role of Startups versus Incumbent Firms

By: Karen Mills

Over the last few decades, the U.S. economy has exhibited a significant shift from manufacturing towards services. This transition has been particularly prominent in an important subcategory of services industries that drives innovation and employs many high-wage... View Details

2013
Book

Constructing Green: The Social Structures of Sustainability

By: Rebecca Henn and Andrew J. Hoffman

Buildings are the nation's greatest energy consumers. Forty percent of all our energy is used for heating, cooling, lighting, and powering machines and devices in buildings. And despite decades of investment in green construction technologies, residential and... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Green Technology; Green Building; Transition; Social Issues

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November 2017
Teaching Note

Tencent

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Teaching Note for HBS No. 718-426. Tencent had undergone many transformations since it was founded in 1998 as a simple messaging service. In 2017, it was the largest online games provider in China with a wide range of game types, China’s largest social networking... View Details

Keywords: Tencent; Tencent Holdings; WeChat; Social Networking; Social Networks; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Video Games; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Portals; Payments; Mobile Payments; O2O; Online-to-offline; E-commerce; Messaging; Subscription Model; Freemium; Mobile App Industry; Smartphone; PC; Monetization Strategy; Antitrust; Streaming; Cloud Computing; Artificial Intelligence; Big Data; Alibaba; Facebook; JD.com; Tesla; Bundling; Synergies; Digital Strategy; Imitation; Licensing; Agility; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Joint Ventures; Restructuring; Communication Technology; Blogs; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Investment; Investment Portfolio; Price; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Industry Growth; Monopoly; Media; Distribution Channels; Service Delivery; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Opportunities; Social and Collaborative Networks; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Cooperation; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Value Creation; Emerging Markets; Product Development; Segmentation; Business Units; Communication; Profit; Communications Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Financial Services Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Music Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; Web Services Industry; Asia; China; Canton (province, China)

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2014
Other Article

Communicating Change: When Identity Becomes a Source of Vulnerability for Institutional Challengers

By: Ryann Elizabeth Manning, Julie Battilana and Lakshmi Ramarajan

Social movements challenge institutions through two related communication processes: articulating collective action frames and constructing collective movement identity. We argue that frames not only express movement identity, but also provide openings through which... View Details

Keywords: Identity Threat; Institutional Change; Social Movements; Framing; Social Issues; Identity; Organizational Culture; Change

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08 Sep 2022
Book

Gen Xers and Millennials, It’s Time To Lead. Are You Ready?

‘The requirements have changed’ In a world where business is reckoning with issues like climate change, racial inequities, and gender bias, “we’re going through a massive transformation in leadership,” George says. “Boomers were trained... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

Research Summary

Mutiny in the Workplace: When Leaders Are Challenged From Within

My dissertation focuses on the rarely studied phenomenon of mutiny in organizations. Based on three recent cases of mutiny in professional organizations, I examine the process by which employee dissatisfaction transforms into collective mobilization... View Details

2022
Article

Dynamic Pricing Algorithms, Consumer Harm, and Regulatory Response

By: Alexander MacKay and Samuel N. Weinstein

Pricing algorithms are rapidly transforming markets, from ride-sharing apps, to air travel, to online retail. Regulators and scholars have watched this development with a wary eye. Their focus so far has been on the potential for pricing algorithms to facilitate... View Details

Keywords: Competition Policy; Regulation; Algorithmic Pricing; Dynamic Pricing; Economics; Law And Economics; Law And Regulation; Consumer Protection; Antitrust Law; Industrial Organization; Antitrust Issues And Policies; Technological Change: Choices And Consequences; Competition; Policy; Price; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Microeconomics; Duopoly and Oligopoly; Law

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2009
Book

Reorganize for Resilience: Putting Customers at the Center of Your Organization

By: Ranjay Gulati

In an era of raging commoditization and eroding profit margins, survival depends on resilience: staying one step ahead of your customers. Sure, most companies say they're "customer focused," but they don't deliver solutions to customers' thorniest problems. Why?... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Customer Focus and Relationships; Profit; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Cooperation

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February 2010 (Revised November 2013)
Case

Living PlanIT

By: Robert G. Eccles, Amy C. Edmondson, Susan Thyne and Tiona Zuzul

Living PlanIT is a start-up company that has developed a new, innovative business model for sustainable urbanization. This model reflects the software and technology backgrounds of its founders, Steve Lewis and Malcolm Hutchinson, and is in vivid contrast to other... View Details