Publications

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March 2011 (Revised June 2011)
Supplement

Arck Systems (B)

By: Ian Larkin

The Arck Systems series of cases describes the dilemmas faced by a senior sales manager in determining a sales compensation plan at an enterprise software company. The existing compensation plan is aggressive and highly rewards "star" performers. The cases track a... View Details

Keywords: Change; Framework; Compensation and Benefits; Management; Organizational Design; Outcome or Result; Performance Evaluation; Sales; Motivation and Incentives; System; Software

Web

Podcast - Business & Environment

Addict TuneIn Pandora Audacy Deezer JioSaavn 30 Jul 2025 Climate Rising Designing for Resilience: with Alex Berkowitz of Coastal Protection Services This episode is another in our series on Climate Resilience featuring Alex Berkowitz,... View Details

25 Apr 2012
Research & Ideas

The Importance of Teaming

performing together. Members of these teams learn how to interact. They've developed trust and know each other's roles. Advocating stable boundaries, well-designed tasks, and thoughtfully composed membership, many seminal theories of organizational effectiveness... View Details

Keywords: Re: Amy C. Edmondson

20 Apr 2010
First Look

First Look: April 20

http://icc.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/dtq013?ijkey=WB7zzaO3bsqcw4t&keytype=ref Pension Fund Design in Developing Economies Author: Luis M. Viceira Publication: In Evaluating the Financial Performance of Pension Funds,... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

December 24, 2019
Article

Why It's So Hard to Change People's Commuting Behavior

By: Ariella S. Kristal and A. V. Whillans

Car commuters report higher levels of stress and lower job satisfaction compared to train commuters—in large part because car commuting can involve driving in traffic and navigating tense road situations. Some employers are trying to get involved and reduce car... View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Motivating People; Time And Wellbeing; Time Stress; Commuting; Behavior; Change; Motivation and Incentives

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Article

Money is No Object: Testing The Endowment Effect in Exchange Goods

By: Dan Svirsky

We present a new experimental design to test whether the endowment effect exists for exchange goods, like money. We compare three groups to a baseline: one endowed with money, one endowed with chocolate coins, and one endowed with chocolate coins described as "tokens."... View Details

Keywords: Perception; Valuation; Goods and Commodities; Attitudes

July 1994 (Revised August 1994)
Case

Pacific Bell: Centrex Reengineering

Describes the redesign and rollout of the new order-fulfillment process for a flagship product at Pacific Bell. Pacific Bell is one of the Regional Bell Operating Companies comprised of seven regional business units. Rather than implement the new process, roles, and... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Change Management; Information Technology; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Telecommunications Industry

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Insights & Advice Blog

Partnering with student clubs is a great way to build relationships, promote your brand, and discover our MBA talent. [...] How Student-Proposed Internships Can Create Value 20 May 2025 | Summer Internships One student shares her experience View Details

July 2024
Case

Wizards of the Coast and Magic: The Rebounding

By: Boris Groysberg and Tom Quinn

This case traces the history and growth of the Magic: The Gathering trading card game. From its development in 1993 by tiny studio Wizards of the Coast, to Wizards’ acquisition by toy giant Hasbro in 1999, to its evolution into a billion-dollar brand in 2023,... View Details

04 Apr 2019
Blog Post

Finding Your Creative Outlet on Campus

HBS podcast designed to take an in-depth look at various people in the MBA community. Early in the year, I was interviewed for an episode about creatives on campus. A few weeks later, I decided to get involved as the podcast’s Marketing... View Details

November 2016 (Revised March 2018)
Module Note

Strategy Execution Module 9: Building a Balanced Scorecard

By: Robert Simons

This module reading explains how to construct a strategy map and build a balanced scorecard. Using an internal value chain model, the module illustrates how a balanced scorecard can support and enable customer management, innovation, operations, and post-sale service... View Details

Keywords: Management Control Systems; Implementing Strategy; Execution; Performance Measurement; Strategy Map; Business Goals; Customer Measures; Strategy; Balanced Scorecard; Business Model

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Harvard Business School Online Courses & Learning Platforms

August 28 $1,850 Certificate 3 Courses Credential of Readiness (CORe) Designed to help you achieve fluency in the language of business, CORe is a business fundamentals program that combines Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and... View Details

11 Feb 2010
Working Paper Summaries

The Architecture of Complex Systems: Do Core-periphery Structures Dominate?

Keywords: by Alan MacCormack, Carliss Y. Baldwin & John Rusnak; Video Game; Web Services

December 2021
Case

Slice Labs: Creating a Fraud-free Online Insurance Platform

By: Amit Goldenberg, Max Bazerman and Ruth Page

"Slice Labs: Creating a Fraud-Free Online Insurance Platform" engages students with the challenge of how to influence other parties to not engage in fraud in the context of digital insurance. The case is centered around Slice, a digital insurance company that was... View Details

January 2015
Article

Collaboration in Multi-Partner R&D Projects: The Impact of Partnering Scale and Scope

By: Anant Mishra, Aravind Chandrasekaran and Alan MacCormack

How can firms design collaboration structures for effective performance in R&D projects that involve multiple partners? To address this question, we examine the theoretical underpinnings of collaboration structures in multi-partner R&D projects—i.e., the scale and the... View Details

Keywords: Multi-Partner R＆D Projects; Empirical Research; New Development; Collaboration Structures; Partnering Scale And Scope; Partners and Partnerships; Infrastructure; Performance Capacity; Research and Development; Collaborative Innovation and Invention

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08 Feb 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Team Scaffolds: How Minimal In-Group Structures Support Fast-Paced Teaming

Keywords: by Melissa A. Valentine & Amy C. Edmondson

29 Aug 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Location Fundamentals, Agglomeration Economies, and the Geography of Multinational Firms

Keywords: by Laura Alfaro and Maggie Xiaoyang Chen

January 1993 (Revised October 1994)
Background Note

Note on Adjusted Present Value

By: Timothy A. Luehrman

Describes the "adjusted present value" (APV) approach to discounted cash flow analysis. Much of the note is devoted to a critical comparison of APV and an approach based on the wrighted average cost of capital (WACC). Argues that APV is usually, if not always, simpler,... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Cost of Capital