Publications

April 2017 (Revised February 2020)
Case

Restructuring Ukraine

By: Kristin Mugford, Seema Amble and Tian Feng

In June 2015, Ukraine found itself struggling with a volatile and devalued currency, dramatically diminished foreign reserves, and a projected financing shortfall of $40 billion. Ukraine’s new government sought to return the nation to stability following political... View Details

Keywords: Exchange Rates; Politics; Macroeconomics; Financial Crisis; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Restructuring; Economy; Currency Exchange Rate; Banks and Banking; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Bonds; Sovereign Finance; Capital Markets; Credit; Debt Securities; Financial Liquidity; Financial Markets; Government and Politics; Ukraine

September 2002 (Revised March 2006)
Case

Environmental Power Corporation: Changing Manure Into Gold?

By: Ray A. Goldberg and Laure Mougeot Stroock

In 2002, Environmental Power Corp. (EPC), a small company developing renewable energy projects, was attempting to commercialize its "digester," a facility that extracted methane from manure, reduced manure's environmental impact, and generated electricity. The company... View Details

Keywords: Commercialization; Energy Generation; Renewable Energy; Environmental Sustainability; Investment; Projects; Wastes and Waste Processing; Corporate Finance; Business and Government Relations; Energy Industry

December 2022
Case

To Feed the Planet: Juan Luciano at ADM

By: Joshua D. Margolis, David E. Bell, Damien McLoughlin, Stacy Straaberg and James Weber

In December 2022, Juan Luciano, Chairman and CEO of agribusiness and nutrition giant ADM, considered the next phase of the historic company’s future. Beginning in 2011 when he joined as COO and moving into his tenure as CEO in 2015, Luciano led a transformation of ADM... View Details

February 2017 (Revised November 2017)
Case

1436: The First Pure Chinese Luxury Fashion Brand?

By: Anat Keinan, Sandrine Crener and Hannah H. Chang

The case traces the birth of 1436, a new luxury brand specializing in cashmere garments. It describes how this venture emerged organically out of a combination of manufacturing and retail expertise with the ambition of creating the first pure Chinese luxury brand. The... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Product Positioning; Luxury; Global Strategy; Fashion Industry; China

26 Sep 2023
Research & Ideas

Unpacking That Icky Feeling of 'Shopping' for Diverse Job Candidates

platforms that used a more developmental approach, which, in addition to recruitment, provided candidates with training, networking, and mentorship opportunities. “Your timeline for promotion and development may not align with the... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

August 2020 (Revised May 2021)
Case

PayPal: The Next Chapter

By: Michael Porter, Mark Kramer and Annelena Lobb

Can a social purpose and stakeholder capitalism confer a powerful competitive advantage in the age of COVID-19? For PayPal, the answer is yes. After spinning off from eBay in a 2015 IPO, the company declared its purpose as "democratizing financial services" by ensuring... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Finance; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Social Entrepreneurship; Competitive Advantage; Financial Services Industry

07 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

Digital Transformation: A New Roadmap for Success

process than those who reported otherwise. Some roundtable participants have added an "office of ethics" or ombudsman to provide oversight over ethics policies and practices and to adjudicate complex ethical challenges, engaging outside... View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards

20 Oct 2014
Blog Post

Create Buzzworthy Industry Education Events at HBS

As a presenting recruiting organization, you may face a marketing challenge. And that is, how to be both differentiated and relevant when you make an Industry Education Event to HBS students. These events provide companies with the... View Details

November 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Case

Dell Technologies: Bringing the Cloud to the Ground

By: Navid Mojir and V. Kasturi Rangan

The case tells the story of Dell Technologies and its efforts to revitalize its value proposition and escape a commodity trap by acquiring EMC for $67 billion—the largest tech acquisition in history. It also shows the deeply intertwined connections between a company’s... View Details

Keywords: Value Proposition; Go-to-market; Strategic Positioning; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Technological Innovation; Business Divisions; Information Technology Industry; Computer Industry

November 2018 (Revised June 2019)
Case

ofo

By: Mitchell Weiss

Dai Wei and his co-founders grew Beijing-based ofo from a school-based startup to a bike-share behemoth in a matter of months, topped an all-out market-share battle fueled with almost $1 billion in venture capital, provided 2 billion bicycle rides, soaked up the... View Details

2022
Book

Business Ethics: What Everyone Needs to Know

By: J.S. Nelson and Lynn A. Stout

An authoritative and practical guide to business ethics, written in an accessible question-and-answer format. In today's turbulent business climate, business ethics are more important than ever. Surveys of employees show that misconduct is on the rise. Cover stories... View Details

Keywords: Business Ethics; Organizational Behavior; Ethics; Governance Controls; Lawfulness

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February 2021 (Revised April 2024)
Case

Shopify: The Conquest for Chinese E-Commerce

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Avani Patel, Samantha Lin and Ariel Yang

In mid-2020, Tobias Lütke, CEO of Shopify, faced a critical decision on how to time potential expansion into the China market. Over the prior 15 years, his Canadian software-as-a-service company had grown from a small e-commerce solutions provider to a full service... View Details

27 Sep 2017
Blog Post

Meet the Latino Student Association

The Latino Student Organization (LASO) at the Harvard Business School is dedicated to fostering a collaborative community of aspiring Latino business leaders who wish to pursue a career in the United States. We provide resources and... View Details

Keywords: All Industries

October 1992 (Revised May 1993)
Background Note

Diversity in Accounting Principles: A Problem, a Strategic Imperative, or a Strategic Opportunity?

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

Provides an introduction to the diversity of generally accepted accounting principles. An example shows how financial reports in one firm could differ depending on accounting methods and principles selected. Presents arguments that this may be a problem, an imperative... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Opportunities

2009
Book

Commentaries and Cases on the Law of Business Organization

By: William T. Allen, Reinier H. Kraakman and Guhan Subramanian

Updated throughout, the Third Edition of Commentaries and Cases on the Law of Business Organization continues to provide a refreshingly accessible economic analysis perspective. The distinguished team of authors introduces and explains economic concepts in a way... View Details

Keywords: Business Organization; Economics; Law

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December 2002
Background Note

Simulation of Prices, Rates and Cash Flows (A)

Explicitly considers the most common propagation models for financial variables and explains how to determine the statistical properties of these variables and simulate their future values. Covers arithmetic Brownian motion, geometric Brownian motion, mean-reversion,... View Details

Keywords: Price; Cash Flow

September 2001
Technical Note

Technical Note on Consideration: Floors, Caps, and Collars

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

As equity-linked consideration has become more popular in acquisition and alliances, so has the use of the "price-protection" mechanisms, known variously as floors, caps, and collars. In general, these are contractual agreements that provide insurance to the... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Price; Acquisition