Publications

24 Dec 2013
First Look

First Look: December 24

alternative financing models of corporate lenders, including banks and finance companies.) The second major component of the case concerns distressed debt investment strategies... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

02 Oct 2012
First Look

First Look: October 2

strategies leads to better access to finance. We hypothesize that better access to finance can be attributed to a) reduced agency costs due to enhanced stakeholder engagement and b) reduced informational... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 1983 (Revised January 1989)
Case

American Home Products Corp.

American Home Products is a company with virtually no debt. Students are asked to analyze the company's debt policy and make a recommendation to the CEO. It is likely that adding debt to the capital structure would create some value for shareholders; the CEO is firmly... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Business Strategy; Borrowing and Debt; Consumer Products Industry

February 2009
Case

HP: The Computer is Personal Again

By: Rajiv Lal and Cathy Ross

In September 2008, Todd Bradley, executive vice president of Hewlett-Packard Company's Personal Systems Group (PSG), gathered his thoughts before a meeting with his top executives and managers for product design and marketing. On the agenda was a discussion of... View Details

Keywords: Revenue; Product Positioning; Corporate Strategy; Computer Industry; Retail Industry

Web

Introduction - Georges F. Doriot : Educating Leaders, Building Companies, Baker Library, Harvard Business School

Clubs Faculty & Research Business & Environment Business History Christensen Center for Teaching & Learning Entrepreneurship Faculty & Research Global Healthcare HBS Working Knowledge Institute for Strategy & Competitiveness Leadership... View Details

25 Apr 2005
Research & Ideas

New Learning at American Home Products

This entry into medical instruments was similar to the strategy of Squibb, but took place on a much more modest scale than that of SmithKline or Warner-Lambert. The disposal of the confectionery and household goods followed. In 1984... View Details

Keywords: by Alfred D. Chandler Jr.; Chemical; Health; Manufacturing; Pharmaceutical

Web

“It’s like a pie-eating contest” | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

business people like you.’” Leadership Fellows builds a bridge Josh’s initial explorations were a “rough go.” When he looked for internship opportunities, he found that “no one understood why a finance guy would want to go into health... View Details

21 Jan 2009
First Look

First Look: January 21, 2009

sentiment. One explanation for this discrepancy is that consumers are motivated to use moral disengagement strategies to reduce cognitive dissonance when their desire for a product conflicts with their moral standards. In two studies we... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

October 2007 (Revised November 2007)
Case

Barclays Global Investors and Exchange Traded Funds

By: Luis M. Viceira and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Provides an overview of the Exchange Traded Funds (EFT) industry and highlights the leadership role that Barclays Global Investors (BGI) has played in this developing asset class. BGI launched its first ETFs under the iShares brand name in 2000, and by mid-2007 BGI was... View Details

Keywords: History; Venture Capital; Asset Management; Stocks; Investment Funds; Leading Change; Expansion; Competitive Strategy; Capital Markets; Global Strategy; Financial Strategy; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Asia; Europe

December 1994 (Revised June 1995)
Case

State Street Boston Corporation: Leading with Information Technology

A financial institution, State Street Boston Corp., is transformed from regional bank to global custodian and money manager. The corresponding evolution of the company's information systems is illustrated, focusing on the role attributed to information technology in a... View Details

Keywords: Expansion; Information Technology; Business Strategy; Banks and Banking; Banking Industry; United States

Find at Harvard

01 Oct 1997
News

Theory & Practice

Whether or not game theory has applications for business strategy remains unclear - to date, empirical studies have been too limited to yield any definitive conclusions. In Games Businesses Play: Cases and Modules, HBS professor Pankaj... View Details

October 2008
Case

TripIt: The Traveler's Agent

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Gabriele Piccoli and Kathryn Brohman

In July 2008, the co-founders of TripIt, a free online travel organizer that aggregated travelers' bookings from many top travel websites, had recently secured $5.1 million in new financing. While the co-founders believed that their company offered travelers a unique... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Investment; Profit; Revenue; Growth and Development Strategy; Competition; Internet; Travel Industry

May 2022
Case

Grupo Big Exit: Options for Advent and Walmart

By: Victoria Ivashina, Ruth Costas and Pedro Levindo

After conducting an impressive turnaround in Walmart’s subsidiary in Brazil, Private Equity firm Advent International has to decide how to exit this investment: through an IPO or selling the business to Carrefour. View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Divestiture; Finance; Strategy; Private Equity; Brazil; Latin America

January 1, 1982
Article

Price Wars, More Liberal Credit and Other Competitive Maneuvers

By: M. E. Porter

Keywords: Competition; Price; Credit

13 Dec 2016
First Look

December 13, 2016

strategies with the new entrants. Yet, while the much needed increase in sources for financing has been welcome by small businesses, these innovative fintech lenders have sparked concerns around transparency... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

March 2017
Supplement

eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014: Interview with John Donahoe, eBay CEO 2008-2015

By: David B. Yoffie, Eric Baldwin and Tom Ryder

This video, a supplement to HBS Case No. 717-417, features an interview with former eBay CEO John Donahoe, providing his perspective on eBay's response to activist investor Carl Icahn's attack on eBay, which began in January 2014. After giving some of his own... View Details

Keywords: Activist Shareholder; Activist Investors; Technology; Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Investment Activism; Financial Services Industry; Retail Industry; Technology Industry

April 2000
Case

Francisco Partners

By: Josh Lerner and David L. Gallo

Francisco Partners (which focuses on buyouts of high-technology firms) aims to be the largest first-time fund ever raised. The rationales for the fund, fundraising strategy, and partnership terms and conditions are among the topics explored. View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Leveraged Buyouts; Venture Capital; Financial Strategy; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Investment Funds; Financial Services Industry