Publications

May 2017
Case

Pho Hoa Dorchester

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger, Michael Raiche and Roger Zhu

Pho Hoa is a traditional, family-owned Vietnamese restaurant in Dorchester, Massachusetts that opened in 1992. As he approached retirement in recent years, the founder/owner has scaled down his involvement in the day-to-day operations, leading to a number of... View Details

26 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

How Grocery Bags Manipulate Your Mind

willingness to purchase organic, indulgent, and baseline items. In this case, the results showed no significant difference between the two groups with regard to organic items, which rated highly across the board. However, participants... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail

05 Jun 2007
First Look

First Look: June 5, 2007

the United States. What has driven its success? How can it be sustained? Purchase this case: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=706417 John Mackey and Whole Foods Market Harvard Business School Case 807-111... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

21 Aug 2007
First Look

First Look: August 21, 2007

Purchase this supplement: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=507036 Earthbound Farm Harvard Business School Case 807-061 Describes a set of decisions confronting the senior management of Earthbound Farm, the largest View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 2011 (Revised April 2014)
Case

sweetriot 2.0

By: Christopher Marquis, Donna Khalife and Bobbi Thomason

In the fall of 2010, Sarah Endline, CEO and Founder of sweetriot, an organic chocolate company, was deciding the best way to grow her organic chocolate company, while keeping her chocolate physically and conceptually on the shelf. She wanted to grow the offerings and... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Profit; Business Strategy; Business Growth and Maturation; Social Enterprise; Growth and Development Strategy; Experience and Expertise; Economic Growth; Organizational Culture; Mission and Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Food and Beverage Industry; New York (state, US)

October 2018
Case

Recipe for Success: Growth and Evolution at Cafe Cupcake

By: Anthony Mayo and Heather Beckham

Café Cupcake (CC) is a fast-casual restaurant chain that offers artisan cupcakes and light fare throughout the southeastern United States and Texas. This case chronicles the growth and evolution of Café Cupcake. It also considers the specific human resource challenges... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Human Resources; Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Food and Beverage Industry

April 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Case

The Dannon Company: Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility (A)

By: Christopher Marquis, Pooja Mehta Shah, Amanda Elizabeth Tolleson and Bobbi Thomason

At the end of 2009, The Dannon Company was considering pro actively communicating its CSR efforts to consumers. With the strong connection between Dannon's production of health foods and its commitment to health and nutrition-based CSR activities, communicating these... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Nutrition; Marketing Communications; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Natural Environment; Food and Beverage Industry

November 2004
Case

Innocent Drinks

By: William A. Sahlman and Dan Heath

The three founders of a London-based, start-up smoothie company must decide between three growth options: expansion of the existing product line into Europe, extension of the brand into other product categories, or continued organic growth within the United Kingdom. View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Expansion; Business Growth and Maturation; Industry Growth; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Corporate Finance; Brands and Branding; Food and Beverage Industry; United Kingdom; Europe

December 2007
Case

Akshaya Patra: Feeding India's Schoolchildren

By: David M. Upton, Christine Ellis, Sarah Lucas and Amy Yamner

Describes a highly successful effort by an Indian Charity to feed poor schoolchildren at lunchtime. This provides two significant benefits. It improves nutrition for the children, and helps keep them in school since the provided meal is occasionally the only meal they... View Details

Keywords: Food; Service Operations; Education; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Food and Beverage Industry; India

2023
Working Paper

How Wicked Problems Drive Business Performance: A Review of the Academic Literature

By: Caroline Adelson, Charlotte Kuller, Cate Tompkins, Ellora Sarkar, Samantha Price and Marco Iansiti

Recent years have seen a rise in the number of businesses engaged in the pursuit of “purposeful” activities – that is, activities that engage with the broader community in ways that expand beyond the pursuit of shareholder value. Many of these activities involve... View Details

Keywords: Wicked Problems; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Social Issues; Performance

Read Now

July 2022 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Nestlé, Shared Value and KitKat Diplomacy

By: Geoffrey G. Jones and Sabine Pitteloud

The case revolves around the decision on March 23, 2022 by Mark Schneider, the chief executive of Swiss-based Nestlé, to withdraw the emblematic Kit Kat chocolate bar from sales in Russia in response to the invasion of Ukraine in the previous month, although not its... View Details

Keywords: Shared Value; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Globalized Economies and Regions; Ethics; War; Social Issues

Web

Great American Business Leaders of the 20th Century - Leadership

Chesebrough Chesebrough Manufacturing Company, 1875–1909 Colby M. Chester General Foods Corporation, 1924–1935 Hugh J. Chisholm International Paper Company, 1899–1907 Walter P. Chrysler Chrysler Corporation, 1924–1935 Elisabeth Claiborne... View Details

March 2020
Case

Forbidden City: Launching a Craft Beer in China

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Carole Carlson

This case describes a difficult choice faced by Victor Wang, Managing Director of Singapore-based Eurasian Brewing Company (EBC), concerning the competing product launch plans of Le Jie, Vice President of EBC's China and East Asian operations, and Vivian Chin, EBC's... View Details

Keywords: Subsidiary Management; Craft Brewing; Strategy; Decision Making; Organizational Structure; Business Model; Growth and Development Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Management Style; Food and Beverage Industry; China; East Asia

Rosabeth Moss Kanter holds the Ernest L. Arbuckle Professorship at Harvard Business School, specializing in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change. Her strategic and practical insights guide leaders worldwide through teaching, writing, and direct... View Details

2017
Working Paper

Business and Sustainability: New Business History Perspectives

By: Ann-Kristin Bergquist

This working paper provides a long-term business history perspective on environmental sustainability. For a long time, the central issues addressed in the discipline of business history concerned how business enterprises innovated and created wealth, as well as... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Business History; Perspective