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May 2009
Article

The Empirical Impact of Intellectual Property Rights on Innovation: Puzzles and Clues

By: Josh Lerner

Economists have long seen the patent system as a crucial lever through which policymakers affect the speed and nature of innovation in the economy. It is not surprising, then, that the profound changes which have roiled the global patent system over the past 20 years... View Details

Keywords: Economy; Policy; Innovation and Invention; Intellectual Property; Rights; Business and Government Relations

Program

Aligning Strategy and Sales

sales recruitment, development, compensation, and performance management systems support corporate strategy Coordinate sales activities across different sales groups and throughout the enterprise Establish a flexible approach that enables... View Details

September 8, 2015
Article

Making Better Decisions in Your Family Business

By: Josh Baron, Rob Lachenauer and Sebastian Ehrensberger

Family businesses face complex decisions, from CEO succession to business strategies. A "four-room" model helps structure decision-making in these businesses: Owner Room (ownership goals and board election), Board Room (performance monitoring and CEO appointment),... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Decisions; Business Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Management Succession; Talent and Talent Management

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May 2021 (Revised May 2022)
Supplement

Odebrecht's 'Transformation Journey' (B)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Ruth Costas and Pedro Levindo

The case describes the changes in Odebrecht’s board of directors while the company had to file for court-supervised reorganization and cope with an ongoing feud within its founding family, and the new challenges that the Group’s leadership has to face. The changes in... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Misconduct; Corporate Governance; Crisis Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Reputation; Mission and Purpose; Business and Government Relations; Engineering; Family Business; Emerging Markets; Construction Industry; Brazil; Latin America

May 2010
Column

Block-by-Blockbuster Innovation

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter

Executives often find themselves debating the merits of incremental innovations versus game-changers, but that's a false dichotomy, says HBR columnist Rosabeth Moss Kanter. Even if a company is lucky enough to come up with the next Kindle, Swiffer, or smartphone,... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Resource Allocation; Product; Business Processes; Risk and Uncertainty

January 2008 (Revised December 2008)
Case

Codman Academy: Beyond the Start-up Phase

By: Stacey Childress and Tiffany K. Cheng

As it entered its seventh academic year, Codman Academy, an expeditionary learning charter school located in Dorchester, Massachusetts, was reflecting on its successes and challenges. The school had succeeded in placing every member of its most recent graduating class... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Leadership; Performance Improvement; Partners and Partnerships; Education Industry; Boston

18 Jun 2015
News

Three Bright Lights in American Infrastructure

02 Jun 2021
News

What Corporate Boards Can Learn from Boeing’s Mistakes

11 Dec 2018
News

Herzlinger Editorial Influences Federal Healthcare Policy

08 Sep 2015
Working Paper Summaries

Blinded by Experience: Prior Experience, Negative News and Belief Updating

Keywords: by Bradley R. Staats, KC Diwas & Francesca Gino

Article

Supporting Value-Based Health Care—Aligning Financial and Legal Accountability

By: Mark M. Zaki, Anupam B. Jena and Amitabh Chandra

U.S. health care payment and delivery-system reforms have focused on improving care by making organizations accountable for outcomes, quality, and costs. Payers have supported the implementation of accountable care organizations (ACOs), bundled-payment models, and... View Details

Keywords: Value-based Health Care; Accountability; Health Care and Treatment; United States

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August 2016 (Revised January 2017)
Case

Accounting for the iPhone Upgrade Program (A)

By: Jonas Heese, Krishna G. Palepu, H. David Sherman and Monica Baraldi

On September 9, 2015, Apple Inc. announced the “iPhone Upgrade Program,” a new way to purchase iPhone models 6s and 6s Plus in Apple’s retail stores throughout the U.S. Next to the strategic implications of the Upgrade Program, financial analysts tried to understand... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Apple Inc.; iPhone 6s; International Accounting; Electronics Industry; California; United States

February 2008 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Chronology of the Asian Financial Crisis

By: Laura Alfaro, Rafael Di Tella and Renee Kim

In July 1997, Thailand became the first Asian "tiger" economy to abandon its fixed exchange rate system in response to speculative attacks on its currency. Investors started to flee Asia, and the crisis rapidly spread to other countries. Central banks spent billions of... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Currency Exchange Rate; Central Banking; Policy; Crisis Management; Asia; Thailand

September 2006 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Tim Keller at Katzenbach Partners LLC (A)

By: Boris Groysberg, Christopher Marquis and Ayesha Kanji

Tracks of the first 6 months of a recent MBA grad, Tim Keller, at Katzenbach Partners, a boutique consulting firm focused on organizational change and strategy. Covers how Keller initially struggles with his assignment and ends with a question of whether or not he... View Details

Keywords: Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Personal Development and Career; Work-Life Balance; Projects; Situation or Environment; Strategy

January 1994 (Revised May 1995)
Case

Xerox: Design for the Environment

By: Richard H.K. Vietor

In 1990, Xerox undertook an "Environmental Leadership Program" designed to make Xerox an industry leader in non-polluting operations, recycling, and products actually designed for the environment. This effort flowed naturally out of the system of total quality... View Details

Keywords: Product Design; Production; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Organizational Design; Environmental Sustainability

October 1992 (Revised December 1996)
Case

Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance

In an effort to improve its global distribution system and thus enhance customer service in its shops around the world, Laura Ashley entered into a path-breaking strategic alliance with Federal Express Business Logistics Services. Under the terms of a loosely... View Details

Keywords: Partners and Partnerships; Customer Focus and Relationships; Distribution Industry; Retail Industry

January 1976 (Revised December 1988)
Case

Webster Industries (A)

The manufacturing manager of Webster's largest division is told to cut his managerial payroll by 15%. Provides company background data and a description of the manufacturing manager's reactions to the proposed reduction. Provides the students with an opportunity to... View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Cost Management