Publications

March 2007 (Revised April 2011)
Case

Madam C.J. Walker: Entrepreneur, Leader, and Philanthropist

By: Nancy F. Koehn, Anne Dwojeski, William Grundy, Erica Helms and Katherine Miller

Madam C. J. Walker, who has been credited as the first self-made African-American woman millionaire, created a hair-care empire after years spent as a laundress in St. Louis, Missouri. Decades before the Civil Rights movement, her company gave employment to thousands... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Business History; Race; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Saint Louis

December 2001
Case

Sarah Vickers-Willis: Career Decisions (B)

By: Myra M. Hart, Lynda M. Applegate, Sarah Harden and Susan Saltrick

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Leadership; Internet and the Web; Social Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Business Startups

Profile

Seth Moulton

virtues of entrepreneurship that I had never understood before. In the process, I realized that becoming an entrepreneur was a much better fit for my personality and previous experience, so this was a very important revelation for me--and... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit / Government; Entrepreneurship

22 Nov 2011
News

A Storybook Beginning

goal of touching a million kids’ lives by 2015” by providing them with e-readers. Risher developed the idea for the venture during a world tour with his family that combined sightseeing with hands-on community improvement activities such... View Details

Keywords: Personal Services; Personal Services; Personal Services; Personal Services

Profile

Ben Faw

prides itself as a leadership development organization — and the infantry is the epitome of that. Once ankle deep, I figured I might as well go up to my chest.” As a first lieutenant, Ben served as a platoon leader in northern Iraq from... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit / Government; Technology; Manufacturing

01 Mar 2016
News

The Western Front

Hendrickson says: with personal connections. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has developed strong connections in the Valley, so the team started with his network and then spread out, meeting with startup... View Details

Keywords: Jason Feifer

15 May 2020
Blog Post

Words from an HBS Partner: Reflections on the Partner Experience

myself. At HBS I’ve been able to travel, develop great friendships with people from all over the world, work on my career, further develop my confidence and learn so much more about myself. Here are a few... View Details

10 Mar 2011
News

Philanthropy’s Dilemma

process of seeking answers to six key questions, each comprising a chapter: What are my values and beliefs? What is “success” and how can it be achieved? What am I accountable for? What will it take to get the job done? How do I partner with grantees? Am I getting... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; Personal Services; Personal Services

November 6, 2017
Article

The Common Traps of Working in Your Family's Business

By: Josh Baron

When your family’s name is on the door, you will never just be one of the gang — and everything you do could be fodder for the office rumor mill. Your actions are amplified because of your status in the company, and even seemingly small gestures can unintentionally... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Attitudes; Behavior; Personal Development and Career; Mission and Purpose

August 2008
Teaching Note

Tad O'Malley: The Investment Conundrum (TN)

By: G. Felda Hardymon, Josh Lerner and Ann Leamon

Teaching Note for [808125]. View Details

Keywords: Investment; Opportunities; Leveraged Buyouts; Personal Development and Career; Resource Allocation

July 1997
Case

Graffs, The (C)

By: Carl S. Sloane and Gregory C. Rogers

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Work-Life Balance; Family and Family Relationships; Conflict Management

Find at Harvard

12 PM – 1 PM EDT, 28 Sep 2018
Webinars: Career

How to Drive Company Performance and Employee Sustainability

Learn how to empower your teams in a way that encourages both high performance and sustainability, from Carolyn Everson, VP of Global Marketing Solutions at Facebook. View Details

Web

Health & Wellness Club | MBA

Wellness Club at HBS is focused on empowering our members with knowledge, wellness trends, and market development within the health and wellness space. As a member of the club, you will have access to industry leaders, health and wellness... View Details

October 2009
Article

Making Time Off Predictable—and Required

By: Leslie Perlow and Jessica L. Porter

People in professional services believe a 24/7 work ethic is essential for getting ahead—and so they work 60-plus hours a week and stay tethered to their BlackBerrys. This perpetuates a vicious cycle: Responsiveness breeds the need for more responsiveness. When people... View Details

Keywords: Management Practices and Processes; Performance Expectations; Performance Productivity; Work-Life Balance; Service Industry

Find at Harvard

April 2006
Case

Managing a Public Image: Cheri Mack

By: Robin J. Ely and Ingrid Vargas

Cheri Mack, an African-American woman, has just arrived at Harvard Business School after working for three years at a major consulting firm where she learned to adopt the demeanor of her male colleagues in order to fit in. Some of her male classmates are critical of... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Race; Reputation; Personal Development and Career; Leadership Style; Gender; Massachusetts

June 2013
Case

Ken Traub at American Bank Note Holographics

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Michael Norris

Ken Traub is hired as CFO for American Bank Note Holographics, the market-leading security holograph company in January 1999, but discovers on his first day that the company has misstated its financials and resigns. After consulting with the company for the next... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Moral Sensibility; Earnings Management; Crime and Corruption; Personal Development and Career; Management Teams; Technology Industry; Service Industry; United States

June 2009
Case

The Rise of President Barack Hussein Obama

By: David A. Thomas, Laura Morgan Roberts and Stephanie Creary

This case profiles President Barack Hussein Obama's rise to the presidency as an "improbable candidate." The case illustrates the ways in which he overcame criticism from those who questioned his credibility and his values, and skepticism from those who were unsure... View Details

Keywords: Ethnicity; Race; Political Elections; Leadership; Personal Development and Career; Creativity; Trust

January 2005
Case

Building Career Foundations: Humphrey Chen (A)

Follows the career decision making of a second-year MBA student who is engaged and must negotiate both cross-cultural and dual-career issues. Humphrey Chen must decide between a consulting firm and running his own start-up company (pre-Internet boom). He confronts... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Personal Development and Career; Family and Family Relationships; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues