Publications

July 1998 (Revised February 2004)
Case

The Pellegrins (A)

By: John A. Davis

A father and son working together in their family-owned publishing company are at a decision point because the son feels he is ready to become president at the age of 31. View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Management Succession; Family and Family Relationships; Family Ownership; Publishing Industry

18 Dec 2006
Lessons from the Classroom

Grooming Next-Generation Leaders

an individual can think beyond their job, can think bigger, and has the potential to make a bigger impact. It's a combination of the environment, talent seekers, and raw talent together that bring the right kind of people to our... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

13 Feb 2022
News

Deep Purpose by Ranjay Gulati: When Societal Purpose Truly Defines a Business

06 Aug 2014
Research & Ideas

Climbing Down from the Ivory Tower

creating the final versions. Some companies even base their business model on co-production; Build-a-Bear stores allow consumers to create personalized teddy bears. "With the growth of customizable technology, there is an appreciation of this co-generation View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Education; Health

27 Sep 2017
Research & Ideas

What Happens When Ordinary People Get Creative?

economy continues to make it easier for users to share new ideas with companies, society, and each other. Large firms routinely host open innovation contests to solve problems big and small, and forums like Quora encourage citizens to... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

The Founder's Dilemmas

Often downplayed in the excitement of starting up a new business venture is one of the most important decisions entrepreneurs will face: should they go it alone, or bring in... View Details

19 Jun 2014
Working Paper Summaries

Wisdom or Madness? Comparing Crowds with Expert Evaluation in Funding the Arts

Keywords: by Ethan R. Mollick & Ramana Nanda

September 2012 (Revised January 2013)
Case

J.C. Penney's 'Fair and Square' Pricing Strategy

By: Elie Ofek and Jill Avery

As a he gets ready to release 2nd quarter 2012 results, Ron Johnson, the new CEO of department store J.C. Penney, is reconsidering the dramatic changes he initiated for the business model and brand image of his company. A new pricing scheme he put in place in February,... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Consumer Behavior; Management Teams; Business Model; Marketing Strategy; Price; Brands and Branding; Decision Making; Retail Industry; United States

September 2008 (Revised September 2018)
Case

Traversing a Career Path: Pat Fili-Krushel (A)

By: Kathleen L. McGinn, Deborah M. Kolb and Cailin B. Hammer

Pat Fili-Krushel, CEO and president of WebMD and past president of ABC Network, contemplates accepting Richard Parson's offer to become the first executive vice president of administration at AOL Time Warner. Accepting this position would be a move back into mainstream... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Job Offer; Managerial Roles; Negotiation Tactics; Personal Development and Career; Power and Influence; Media and Broadcasting Industry

27 Feb 2007
First Look

First Look: February 27, 2007

letter from the Recording Industry Association of America, Inc. (RIAA) asking him to shut down eDonkey, MetaMachine's popular file-sharing system. In September 2005, more than 30 million users relied on eDonkey to share digital files, View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

Is There Help for the Big Ticket Buyer?

Bazerman The consumer decision-making literature has paid great attention to the information processing and decision making (or choice) of consumers. In the vast majority of... View Details

Keywords: by Max H. Bazerman

20 Jan 2022
Blog Post

Lessons Learned from My HBS Career Journey in Environmental Sustainability

course, I will likely be doing many non-sustainability related projects as well, but working at a place with several of my HBS classmates and with a structured learning and development process will be make... View Details

2006
Working Paper

The Limits of Authority: Motivation versus Coordination

By: Eric J. Van den Steen

This paper studies the effects of open disagreement on motivation and coordination. It shows how, in the presence of differing priors, motivation and coordination impose conflicting demands on the allocation of authority, leading to a trade-off between the... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Governance Controls; Organizational Culture; Agency Theory; Conflict and Resolution; Motivation and Incentives

SSRN

June 2024 (Revised September 2024)
Case

Sequoia Capital

By: Jo Tango, Christina Wallace, Srimayi Mylavarapu and Johnson Elugbadebo

Sequoia Capital, a venture capital firm founded in 1972, quickly grew to become one of the most storied venture capital firms in the world. Fueled by a strong culture, Sequoia's investment track record included the names of some of the largest global successes.... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Organizational Culture; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Restructuring; Corporate Strategy; Financial Services Industry

September 26, 2022
Article

Is Your Family Office Built for the Future?

By: Josh Baron and Rob Lachenauer

Family offices can provide a number of benefits, including privacy, customization, and having your own team to handle a wide range of services, such as guiding family philanthropy, managing shared properties, or even managing household help. Successful principals in... View Details

Keywords: Business Offices; Family and Family Relationships

Register to Read

March 2021
Supplement

Artea (A), (B), (C), and (D): Designing Targeting Strategies

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

Power Point Supplement to Teaching Note for HBS No. 521-021,521-022,521-037,521-043. This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on... View Details

Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Targeting; Algorithmic Data; Bias; A/B Testing; Experiment; Advertising; Gender; Race; Diversity; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Analytics and Data Science; Retail Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Technology Industry; United States

2017
Working Paper

The Accounting Rookie Job Market: A Practitioner's Guide

By: Ethan Rouen

This paper offers guidance and shares collective wisdom for accounting Ph.D. students who will be entering the academic job market. It is divided into two sections. The first offers subjective advice on the dissertation process—from choosing a topic to surviving the... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Jobs and Positions; Job Search

Read Now

October 2018
Article

Strategy and the Strategist: How it Matters Who Develops the Strategy

By: Eric J. Van den Steen

This paper addresses primarily two questions. First, when (and why) should a company’s strategy be developed by its CEO versus by some outside analyst or other insider? Second, how does strategy interact with vision (in the sense of a strong belief about the right... View Details

Keywords: Strategy And Leadership; Strategy And Execution; Strategy; Leadership