Publications

24 Jul 2023
News

Part-Time Employees Want More Hours. Can Companies Tap This ‘Hidden’ Talent Pool?

06 Nov 2012
First Look

First Look: November 6

improvements in outcomes such as productivity and longevity, and that good nuts-and-bolts management at individual firms shapes national performance. At 14 textile manufacturers in India, for example, an... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

24 Jun 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Don’t Just Survive—Thrive: Leading Innovation in Good Times and Bad

Keywords: by Lynda M. Applegate & J. Bruce Harreld

September 2015
Case

Eco7: Launching a New Motor Oil

By: John Quelch and Sunru Yong

Aaron Jonnerson, vice president of marketing at the automotive division of Avellin, must make marketing mix decisions for the launch of Eco7, a new environmentally-friendly motor oil. The company's performance has been mediocre, shareholder pressure is increasing, and... View Details

Keywords: Distribution Channels; Environmental Sustainability; Product Launch; Transportation; Energy Sources; Auto Industry

September 2011
Case

Vibco Industrial Vibrators

By: Das Narayandas, Kerry Herman and Matthew Preble

Karl Wadensten, president of Vibco Vibrators, was deciding whether to grow his small company through a marketing push for one of two technologies that he believed could launch his company to the next level of sales, or if he should continue to grow his company through... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Customer Relationship Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Marketing; Product Launch; Customization and Personalization; Expansion; Manufacturing Industry

01 Mar 2004
What Do You Think?

Are Customer Loyalty Initiatives Worth the Investment?

Reichheld, The Loyalty Effect). Instead of joining a debate, many respondents decried the misuse of the term "customer loyalty management" and superficial attempts to manage the phenomenon. In the view of Theresa Quintanilla,... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

January 1982 (Revised July 2007)
Case

Jody McVay

A Harvard MBA '78 has been successful at getting things done in a consumer products company with an "entrenched" culture. She has also handled issues women face in a "male culture" rather well. View Details

Keywords: Organizational Culture; Gender; Management Skills; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry

Find at Harvard

November 2009 (Revised March 2013)
Case

PureCircle

By: David E. Bell and Aldo Sesia

In December 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined that high-purity Rebaudioside A (Reb A), a natural and calorie-free product that a young company named PureCircle manufactured from the Stevia plant, could be used in beverages, foods, and as a... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Investment; Globalization; Leadership; Risk Management; Product Launch; Production; Performance Productivity; Business and Shareholder Relations; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

10 May 2011
Working Paper Summaries

The Impact of Forward-Looking Metrics on Employee Decision Making

Keywords: by Pablo Casas-Arce, F. Asís Martínez-Jerez & V.G. Narayanan; Banking

October 1984
Case

NIKE (D): Leisure Shoes

Focusing on middle manager Harry Leidboldt, this case presents a clear-cut strategic issue--should Nike move into the leisure shoe business? The teaching objective is to first view the decision as a business problem--can Nike succeed in this business? and secondly, to... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Expansion; Marketing Strategy; Management Practices and Processes; Management Teams; Product Development; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Sports Industry

02 Jan 2024
Research & Ideas

10 Trends to Watch in 2024

The lightning-fast ascent of generative AI isn’t the only sea change on the horizon for businesses in the new year. The global economy is in flux as war, climate change, trade issues, and infrastructure problems demand attention. Many companies continue to struggle to... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

27 Oct 2017
News

Wanted for any job: A bachelor’s degree. Is that smart?

July–September 2012
Article

The (Un)Hidden Turmoil of Language in Global Collaboration

By: Tsedal Neeley, Pamela J. Hinds and Catherine D. Cramton

Companies are increasingly relying on a lingua franca, or common language (usually English), to facilitate cross-border collaboration. Despite the numerous benefits of a lingua franca, our research reveals myriad challenges that disrupt collaboration and contribute to... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Loss; Spoken Communication; Performance Productivity; Research; Global Range; Problems and Challenges; Diversity; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues

Read Now

July 2020
Supplement

Instabeat—Crossing the Finish Line

By: Shikhar Ghosh, Nicole Tempest Keller and Alpana Thapar

Lebanese entrepreneur Hind Hobeika was just 21 years old when she launched her startup, Instabeat, which had developed the first real-time bio-feedback device for swimmers to monitor and improve their performance. It had been an extremely testing 10-year journey to... View Details

Keywords: Start-up; Wearables; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Information Technology; Information Infrastructure; Strategy; Operations; Management; United States; Lebanon

March 2003
Article

Technological Development and Medical Productivity: The Diffusion of Angioplasty in New York State

By: David M. Cutler and Robert S. Huckman

A puzzling feature of many medical innovations is that they simultaneously appear to reduce unit costs and increase total costs. We consider this phenomenon by examining the diffusion of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA)—a treatment for coronary... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Cost; Health Care and Treatment; Health Disorders; Performance Improvement; Product; New York (state, US)