Publications

20 Aug 2021
Blog Post

Is the MBA Worth It? Hear What Recent HBS Grads Have to Say

How do you know if an MBA is worth it? We asked recent HBS alumni to reflect on their time at—and after—HBS. Here are their thoughts on the business school experience, the value of an MBA degree, and how to best prepare for HBS. Lindsay... View Details

13 Feb 2012
Research & Ideas

The Case Against Racial Colorblindness

"It's so appealing on the surface to think that the best way to approach race is to pretend that it doesn't exist," says behavioral psychologist Michael I. Norton, an associate professor at Harvard Business School. "But research shows... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

September 2020
Case

Jan Swartz: Steering Princess Cruises Through the COVID-19 Crisis

By: Boris Groysberg and Michael Norris

In the summer of 2020, Jan Swartz, President of Princess Cruises, was persevering to lead her company back from the depths of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Diamond Princess, one of Princess Cruises’ 18 ships was the site of one of the earliest large outbreaks of COVID-19... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; COVID-19; Leading Change; Crisis Management; Ship Transportation; Health Pandemics; Human Resources; Business Strategy; Gender; Personal Development and Career; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Travel Industry; Tourism Industry; Japan; United States

Tsedal Neeley, Harvard Business School professor, award-winning author, and global management and leadership expert, recently caught up with us to share her insights and advice as the workforce continues to go through rapid transformation brought about by the... View Details

18 May 2020
News

Big Structural Change

25 Jun 2012
Research & Ideas

Collaborating Across Cultures

a "snake." The story illustrates a common challenge to Hollywood filmmakers as they attempt to break into China's more than $2 billion-a-year film market—and to businesspeople in all industries as foreign markets become increasingly important to their View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

17 Oct 2024
Video

Sarah Kaplan: Challenges can be turned into innovation

07 Jun 2004
Research & Ideas

The Competition of Countries

Countries, like companies, need development strategies to succeed in a world of growing globalization. Professor Richard H. K. Vietor is an expert on business regulation and the international political economy. Vietor has taught at... View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia Churchwell

September 2007 (Revised November 2007)
Case

Bunge: Food, Fuel, and World Markets

By: Tarun Khanna, Santiago Mingo and Jonathan West

In 2007, Bunge, an agribusiness company, had over $26 billion in worldwide sales and was considered, along with Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), one of three very integrated worldwide agribusiness companies. Headquartered in White Plains, NY, the company has... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Operations; Organizational Design; Situation or Environment; Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; White Plains; Brazil

April 1996 (Revised September 2003)
Case

Crown Cork & Seal/CarnaudMetalbox

By: William E. Fruhan Jr. and William DeWitt

A U.S. packaging firm acquires a French packaging firm with the objective of creating the largest global packaging firm in the world. View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Service Industry; France; United States

July 2025
Case

Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Akiko Saito

In 2025, Kenichi Hori, President and CEO of Mitsui & Co., Ltd.—one of Japan’s most prominent Sogo Shosha (investment and trading companies with sprawling global footprints)—reflected on the company’s record-breaking profits. Its operations spanned multiple... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Management; Operations; Organizations; Japan

Research Summary

Other research activities

Apart from my dissertation research on the EU ETS, I am interested in topics such as foreign direct investment, global strategy, institutions and sustainability. I am currently working with several faculty members at Harvard Business School on issues ranging from... View Details

17 Mar 2004
Other Presentation

Cluster-Based Economic Development: What Have We Learned?

By: Christian H.M. Ketels

This presentation draws on ideas from Professor Porter's articles and books, in particular, The Competitive Advantage of Nations (The Free Press, 1990), "The Microeconomic Foundations of Economic Development," in The Global Competitiveness Report 2003... View Details

Keywords: Economics; Growth and Development; United Kingdom

Read Now

November 2021
Case

The Wolf in Cashmere: LVMH's Bid to Acquire Tiffany

By: Stuart C. Gilson and Sarah L. Abbott

In November 2019, the iconic U.S. jeweler Tiffany agreed to be acquired by the luxury goods conglomerate LVMH. The $16.6 billion transaction was scheduled to close in mid-2020. However, in 2020, the global COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on the luxury goods sector. In... View Details

Keywords: Mergers ＆ Acquisitions; Luxury Brand; COVID-19 Pandemic; Mergers and Acquisitions; Health Pandemics; Lawsuits and Litigation; Consumer Products Industry; United States; Europe

May 2025
Teaching Note

Boutiqaat: Influencing Retail in MENA

By: Juan Alcacer and Noor Al Qadhi

Boutiqaat, a Kuwait-based e-commerce platform, scaled an influencer-driven beauty retail model across MENA and now faces critical strategic choices about offline expansion and globalization. Founded in 2015, Boutiqaat combined social commerce, localized logistics, and... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Markets; Digital Strategy; Growth and Development; Expansion; Global Strategy; Distribution Channels; Business Model; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Retail Industry; Kuwait; Saudi Arabia; Middle East; North Africa

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

Keywords: Business Model; Business Startups; Development Economics; Entrepreneurship; City; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Urban Development; Construction Industry; Green Technology Industry; Real Estate Industry; Portugal

June 2005 (Revised February 2006)
Case

TCL Multimedia

By: Tarun Khanna, Felix Oberholzer-Gee and David Lane

TCL considers the underlying logic behind the globalization of one of China's most prominent companies. TCL, and similarly prominent companies in China, are in the forefront of China's emergence as one of the world's preeminent economic powers. Allows a discussion of... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Success; Business Strategy; Developing Countries and Economies; China