Publications

16 Nov 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Private Equity and COVID-19

Keywords: by Paul A. Gompers, Steven N. Kaplan, and Vladimir Mukharlyamov; Financial Services

09 Jul 2013
News

Competitiveness expert slams Obama tax plan

13 May 2019
News

Why this professor says you should root for Uber's IPO to fail

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

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

January 2011
Supplement

Fixed Income Arbitrage in a Financial Crisis (D): TED Spread and Swap Spread in May 2009

The D case briefly recounts the action that investment manager Albert Mills takes in the matter of an unusually low U.S. dollar fixed-floating swap spread. He must decide what to do next. View Details

Keywords: Credit Derivatives and Swaps; Interest Rates; Financial Crisis

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

June 2014 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Johnson & Johnson: The Promotion of Wellness

By: John A. Quelch and Carin-Isabel Knoop

To create the world's healthiest workforce, diversified health care giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) mandated participation in its "Culture of Health" program globally, customized by location, culture, and specific health needs to offer prevention-focused education,... View Details

Keywords: Healthcare; Employee Motivation; Transformation; Ethics; Health; Human Resources; Leadership; Management; Personal Development and Career; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Health Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; North and Central America; Middle East; Latin America; Europe; Asia

14 Apr 2009
First Look

First Look: April 14, 2009

Working Papers The Investment Strategies of Sovereign Wealth Funds Authors: Shai Bernstein, Josh Lerner, and Antoinette Schoar Abstract This paper examines the direct private equity investment strategies... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 Jan 2007
Research & Ideas

The Business of Free Software

IT vendors including Oracle, IBM, and Sun that traditionally have built offerings based on proprietary technologies are now investing billions of dollars into open source software—arrangements that are transforming in some ways the... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Computer

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

November 2017
Teaching Note

Amazon.com, 2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Teaching Note for HBS No. 716-402. On January 28, 2016, Amazon announced record 2015 operating profits of $2.2 billion on $107 billion of sales, and the markets responded with cautious optimism. For years, founder and CEO Jeffrey Bezos had prioritized growth and... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Analysis; Retail; E-commerce; Amazon; Amazon.com; AmazonFresh; Jeff Bezos; Cloud Computing; Marketplaces; Streaming; E-reader Market; Digital Media; Mobile App; Online Retail; Shipping; Database; Tablet; Kindle; Kindle Fire; Smartphone; Delivery; Market Platforms; Two-Sided Platforms; Competition; Internet; Corporate Strategy; Online Advertising; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Profit; Revenue; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Taxation; Business History; Human Resources; Resignation and Termination; Books; Human Capital; Working Conditions; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Practices and Processes; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Media; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Product Development; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Organizational Culture; Public Ownership; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Labor and Management Relations; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Integration; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Hardware; Information Technology; Mobile Technology; Online Technology; Technology Networks; Technology Platform; Web; Web Sites; Price; Software; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Working Capital; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Value and Value Chain; Retail Industry; Advertising Industry; Distribution Industry; Electronics Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Information Technology Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Music Industry; Publishing Industry; Shipping Industry; Technology Industry; Video Game Industry; Web Services Industry; United States; Washington (state, US); Seattle

20 Oct 2014
News

Private Equity Titans Open Cloistered World to Smaller Investors

Video

Mostafa Terrab

Mostafa Terrab, Chairman and CEO of Morocco-based OCP Group, outlines the company’s commitments towards sustainability, which include major investments in solar power as well as the development of customized fertilizer with carbon-sequestering potential. View Details

12 Nov 2019
Video

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson and Managing Director of Biocon, India’s largest biopharmaceutical company, relates how gender bias set her on a path to invest in industrial enzymes and the foundation of... View Details

May 2009 (Revised January 2011)
Case

Enel: Power, Russia, and Global Markets

By: Rawi E. Abdelal, Richard H.K. Vietor and Sogomon Tarontsi

Although the global trend toward liberalization of electric utilities forced Enel, the largest power company in Italy, to give up some of its assets in its home base, it also opened up many opportunities abroad, including in Russia, one of the largest electricity... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Energy Generation; Foreign Direct Investment; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business and Government Relations; Utilities Industry; Russia; Italy

July 2011 (Revised November 2012)
Case

Ultimate Fighting Championship: License to Operate (A)

By: George Serafeim and Kyle Welch

The case describes the challenges that Ultimate Fighting Championship faced as a result of regulatory opposition and loss of the license to operate. The genesis of the business idea, the subsequent growth, and the fall of the UFC are described. The case concludes with... View Details

Keywords: Governance Compliance; Ethics; Judgments; Investment; Sports Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry