Publications

May 1998 (Revised October 1998)
Case

Teleswitch (A)

Describes the financing history of Teleswitch, a maker of small digital telephone switches for the wireless/cellular industry. As the case ends, Teleswitch is revisiting its selection of an investment banker for its hoped-for IPO. A rewritten version of an earlier... View Details

Keywords: Initial Public Offering; Investment Banking; Entrepreneurship; Financing and Loans; Wireless Technology; Manufacturing Industry; Telecommunications Industry

February 1991
Case

Burlington Northern: The ARES Decision (A)

By: Julie H. Hertenstein and Robert S. Kaplan

Burlington Northern's decision whether to invest in ARES, an automated train control system, is a ($350 million) strategic investment in information technology. Although set in a service industry (railroad) the issues around this decision arise in many organizations... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Rail Transportation; Information Technology; Competitive Strategy; Performance Evaluation; Performance Effectiveness; Cost vs Benefits; Technology Adoption; Technological Innovation; Customers; Quality; Rail Industry

24 Mar 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Securing Jobs or the New Protectionism? Taxing the Overseas Activities of Multinational Firms

Keywords: by Mihir A. Desai

October 2011
Case

CSN Stores

By: William A. Sahlman and Neil Tolaney

In March 2011, CSN Stores is a collection of nearly 200 Internet retail websites, including Cookware.com, Strollers.com, and Luggage.com. Co-founders Niraj Shah and Steve Conine were considering making a major investment to build brand equity at the corporate level. View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Distribution Channels; Investment; Brands and Branding; Equity; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Information Technology Industry; Retail Industry

October 1995 (Revised December 1998)
Case

Otis Elevator Company (A): China Strategy

By: Michael Y. Yoshino and Thomas W. Malnight

Examines the evolution of Otis's joint venture in China, from inception to the political crisis in 1989. Raises the question of whether or not the company should make an additional investment in the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square incident. View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Decisions; Investment; Globalization; Government Administration; Business and Government Relations; Strategy; China

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January 1994
Background Note

Note on Financial Programming Over Long Horizons

By: Timothy A. Luehrman

Introduces students to financial programming as a way to incorporate concepts and tools from modern corporate finance theory into a framework for managing over long horizons. Particular attention is paid to corporate capital budgeting and investment processes. View Details

Keywords: Framework; Theory; Investment; Business Processes; Capital Budgeting; Corporate Finance

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July 2018
Teaching Note

The Perfect Storm: What Happens When the Market Moves Four Standard Deviations?

By: Nori Gerardo Lietz and Sayiddah Fatima McCree

Adam Carter was the portfolio manager for Tate Modern Finance III, L.P. (“Tate” or the “Fund”), the third in a series of U.S. commercial real estate debt funds sponsored by the London-based Tate Partners. The Fund was capitalized with $700 million of equity... View Details

Keywords: CMBS; CLO; Repo Financing; Real Estate; Financial Strategy; Investment Funds; Financing and Loans

25 Mar 2025
HBS Seminar

Lou Shipley, Harvard Business School

Video

Dr. Ahmed Heikal

Dr. Ahmed Heikal, Chairman and Founder of Qalaa Holdings, describes how the initial capital raised to start the firm was applied to profitable investments in cement and construction companies. View Details

October 2024 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Southern California Industrial: Freezer Drive

By: Arthur I Segel, Dwight Angelini and W. Matt Kelly

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Boston based real estate private equity firm was seeking to make their very first West Coast investments in hopes of establishing their presence in the strategic region. An exciting property suddenly became available on the... View Details

Keywords: Real Estate Development; Acquisition; Health Pandemics; Risk and Uncertainty; Expansion; Cost vs Benefits; Investment Return; Real Estate Industry

Web

Featured Topics - Faculty & Research

History Case Method Project Creating Emerging Markets Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard Entrepreneurship Global Health Care Impact Investments Impact-Weighted Accounts Institute for Business in Global Society Institute for Strategy... View Details

Said Darwazah

Keywords: Pharmaceuticals

Michael S. Kaufman

A Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Business School, Michael co-developed and teaches a second year MBA course, “Challenges and Opportunities in the Restaurant Industry.”

A founder and partner of Positive Strategy LLC, a management/strategy consulting... View Details

2010
Article

Has the Shift to Stronger Intellectual Property Rights Promoted Technology Transfer, FDI, and Industrial Development?

By: Lee Branstetter, C. Fritz Foley and Kamal Saggi

This article reviews recent research conducted by the authors that finds that intellectual property rights reform increases technology transfers, foreign direct investment inflows, and industrial development. It also places the findings of this work in the broader... View Details

Keywords: Intellectual Property; Rights; Information Technology; Body of Literature; Foreign Direct Investment; Industry Growth

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Read Now

2025
Working Paper

When Where Watt: Harnessing the Value of Time and Location for Renewable Electricity Generation

By: Vishrut Rana, Christian Kaps and Serguei Netessine

Problem definition: Investments in renewable energy have surged worldwide in recent years, with over $2 trillion spent globally on clean energy. This surge was driven by growing policy support, concerns about energy security, and, most importantly, the cost... View Details

Keywords: Wind Power; Electricity Distribution; Renewable Energy; Profit; Investment Return; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Geographic Location; Revenue; Energy Industry; Utilities Industry

SSRN

September 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Case

B Lab: Building a New Sector of the Economy

By: Christopher Marquis, Andrew David Klaber and Bobbi Thomason

The founders of B Lab are on a mission to create a new sector of the economy and are specifically focused on a three objectives: 1) building a community of Certified B Corporations (B=Benefit) that legally expand their corporate responsibilities to include... View Details

Keywords: Economic Sectors; Social Entrepreneurship; Investment; Policy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Government Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Social Enterprise; Value Creation

04 May 2012
Working Paper Summaries

No News Is Good News: CSR Strategy and Newspaper Coverage of Negative Firm Events

Keywords: by Jiao Luo, Stephan Meier & Felix Oberholzer-Gee

16 May 2007
Working Paper Summaries

Growth and the Quality of Foreign Direct Investment: Is All FDI Equal?

Keywords: by Laura Alfaro & Andrew Charlton

June 2004 (Revised July 2005)
Case

Procter & Gamble: Global Business Services

By: Thomas J. DeLong, Warren Brackin, Alex Cabanas, Phil Shellhammer and David L. Ager

Dave Walker, vice-president of business service opportunities and chairman of the governance team at Procter & Gamble, must decide what to do with P&G's 5,700 employee Global Business Services (GBS) group. GBS brought together internal services such as finance,... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Change Management; Decision Making; Globalized Firms and Management; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Organizational Design