Publications

17 Oct 2023
HBS Case

With Subscription Fatigue Setting In, Companies Need to Think Hard About Fees

different combinations of product features, usage levels, and number of users. “Subscription models that have been successful are ones that build tiers that align well with the needs and preferences of different customer segments,” Ofek... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Consumer Products; Information; Information Technology

October 2016
Case

Supercell

By: William R. Kerr, Benjamin F. Jones and Alexis Brownell

Supercell is a young Finnish smartphone game company with an unusual team structure and company philosophy. It is already one of Finland’s most valuable companies, and despite being only six years old, it has put up some impressive numbers: as of 2016, it has released... View Details

Keywords: Supercell; Finland; Video Games; Firm Structure; Startups; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Groups and Teams; Video Game Industry; Finland

2012
Book

Producing Prosperity: Why America Needs a Manufacturing Renaissance

By: Gary P. Pisano and Willy Shih

For years—even decades—in response to intensifying global competition, American companies decided to outsource their manufacturing operations in order to reduce costs. But we are now seeing the alarming long-term effect of those choices: in many cases, once... View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Production; Competitive Advantage; Transformation; Innovation and Invention; Manufacturing Industry; United States

Web

Accounting & Management - Faculty & Research

initiative overload strains the organization, raising the question: is Cobuz’s stretch agenda visionary or too much, too fast? Keywords: AI ; Artificial Intelligence ; CEO Succession ; CEO Role ; Family Business Citation Related Serafeim,... View Details

William C. Kirby

William C. Kirby is T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies at Harvard University and Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. He is a Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor. He serves as Chairman of the Harvard... View Details

Keywords: education industry; wine

13 Apr 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Knowing When to Ask: The Cost of Leaning-in

Keywords: by Christine L. Exley, Muriel Niederle, and Lise Vesterlund

April 2019 (Revised June 2019)
Case

Ariadne Labs: Building Impactful Partnerships

By: Ariel D. Stern and Sarah Mehta

In September 2018, the executive team at Ariadne Labs (Ariadne), a Boston-based organization dedicated to improving health systems through the discovery and implementation of simple tools, faced a number of strategic decisions. Chief among them, the seven-year-old... View Details

Keywords: Health; Health Care and Treatment; Innovation and Invention; Social Enterprise; Nonprofit Organizations; Partners and Partnerships; Health Industry; Boston

May 2012 (Revised October 2012)
Case

Yum! Brands

By: Jordan Siegel and Christopher Poliquin

Yum!, the owner of KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell, asks what might be the lessons from its success in China for currently contemplated expansion into India and Africa. Also, the company contemplates whether Taco Bell can succeed abroad as part of a new expansion push.... View Details

Keywords: International Business; International Marketing; Global Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; Europe; Australia; Africa; Asia

December 2008
Supplement

Procter & Gamble in the 21st Century (B): Welcoming Gillette (Abridged)

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Matthew Bird

A.G. Lafley and P&G leaders decided to approach the Gillette integration differently from previous mergers. Using P&G's purpose, values, and principles (PVP) it treated the acquisition as a merger which sought to take the "best of both" from each company. In the... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Integration; Mission and Purpose; Values and Beliefs; Change Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation

17 Dec 2012
News

Sir Alex leads the way

13 Mar 2020
News

Rosabeth Moss Kanter on Purpose-Driven Leadership, Storytelling, and Social Impact

Eight Business Books to Challenge Your Thinking

We hope our readers are able to enjoy plenty of downtime this summer, as leisure and rest are an important part of preventing burnout and allowing ourselves time to develop new ideas.

We’ve rounded up recommendations for eight books that have held our... View Details

09 Jan 2024
In Practice

Harnessing AI: What Businesses Need to Know in ChatGPT’s Second Year

while nascent, showed exponential growth in both capability and wonder. “A recurring theme that emerged was the prospect that, at least in the near future, successful outcomes would be achievable through human-AI collaborations rather... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Information Technology

January 2024
Case

ECOALF: Fashion for the Future

By: Elizabeth A. Keenan, Diego Aparicio, Carlota Moniz and María José Satrústegui

ECOALF, a Spanish fashion brand and sustainability pioneer, aimed to tackle the industry's challenges of excessive consumption and production. The brand's mission was to create timeless apparel exclusively from recycled and eco-responsible materials, matching the... View Details

March 2012 (Revised February 2013)
Background Note

The Hybrid Vehicle Market

By: Michael W. Toffel and Nazli Z. Uludere Aragon

This note describes the hybrid electic vehicle market, the results of different automaker strategies, and the environmental regulatory issues that can promote or inhibit market growth in the United States. Introduces students to the technologies and regulatory aspects... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Product Development; Information Technology; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Auto Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Japan; United States

November 2007 (Revised February 2011)
Case

The Ice King

By: Tom Nicholas and Sandra Nicholas

Provides an opportunity to examine the risk-reward tradeoff and the travails of entrepreneurial venturing in the nascent U.S. economy. Traces the origins and development of Frederic Tudor's Ice Company, a business which developed during the 19th century to hack chunks... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Cost vs Benefits; Entrepreneurship; Globalization; Business History; Operations; Risk and Uncertainty; United States

July 1989
Background Note

Learning by the Case Method in Marketing

Introduces learning by the case method, with application to marketing learning. Places case learning in the stream of experiential learning and explains the advantages and disadvantages of experiential learning methods. Turning to case learning specifically, the note... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Cases; Learning