Publications

January 2015 (Revised March 2017)
Case

New Urban Mechanics

By: Mitchell Weiss

Funding to scale Citizens Connect, Boston's 311 app, is both a blessing and a burden and tests two public entrepreneurs. In 2012, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts provides Boston's Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics with a grant to scale Citizens Connect across the... View Details

09 Jan 2024
Research & Ideas

Could Clean Hydrogen Become Affordable at Scale by 2030?

Hydrogen is poised to move from the sidelines of global clean energy as the industry learns to produce it more efficiently and at lower cost, according to newly published research led by Gunther Glenk, a climate fellow with Harvard Business School's Institute for the... View Details

Keywords: by Desmond Dodd; Energy; Green Technology

19 Mar 2014
Research & Ideas

A Brand Manager’s Guide to Losing Control

commercial messages. Social media did not have that contract, so that when customers were interrupted by brands in social media, it felt abrupt, inappropriate, and out of place." The power shift from marketers to consumers has created a landscape of what Avery... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Advertising

October 2012
Article

Data Scientist: The Sexiest Job of the 21st Century

Key to the effective use of big data are the analytical professionals known as "data scientists," who can both manipulate large and unstructured data sources and create insights from them. Data scientists are difficult to hire and retain, but their skills will be... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Data Scientists; Business Analytics; Analytics and Data Science; Mathematical Methods; Jobs and Positions

Read Now

October 2013 (Revised April 2018)
Technical Note

Non-Equity Financing for Entrepreneurial Ventures

By: Joan Farre-Mensa, Ramana Nanda and Piyush Jain

Young, and particularly high-growth ventures often need to raise significant external finance, since their internal cash flow is usually insufficient to support the investments needed to grow. Although raising equity from venture capital or angel investors is the... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurship; Finance; Financial Services Industry

16 Dec 2022
Research & Ideas

Why Technology Alone Can't Solve AI's Bias Problem

In a cluttered online world, few can resist the convenience of an automated ranking when deciding what movie to watch on Netflix or which seafood restaurant looks promising in a Google search. But when it comes to finding a job candidate or someone to do a basic... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Technology

25 Mar 2019
Research & Ideas

The Secret Life of Supply Chains

the source for its highest paying jobs. What’s more, most of those jobs are not in supplying parts, but rather in supplying services, such as in engineering, computer programming, and design. Their findings offer a new way to break down... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Manufacturing; Service

13 Apr 2021
News

How Inclusive Managers Create Glass-Shattering Organizations

Article

Divide and Conquer: Competing with Free Technology under Network Effects

By: Deishin Lee and Haim Mendelson

We study how a commercial firm competes with a free open source product. The market consists of two customer segments with different preferences and is characterized by positive network effects. The commercial firm makes product and pricing decisions to maximize its... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Product Launch; Network Effects; Open Source Distribution; Adoption; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage

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28 Feb 2024
News

Know Your HBS Staff: Aleksandra Kojić

May 1989 (Revised August 2006)
Case

RJR Nabisco

By: Richard S. Ruback

Gives students the opportunity to explore issues facing the board of directors in a leveraged buyout. RJR Nabisco is valued under different operating strategies and the source of gains in leveraged buyouts is stressed. View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Profit; Operations; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Valuation

Co-authored by Feng Zhu

Which source of information contains greater bias and slant-text written by an expert or that constructed via collective intelligence? Do the costs of acquiring, storing, displaying, and revising information shape those... View Details

November 2009
Case

VF Brands: Global Supply Chain Strategy

By: Gary P. Pisano and Pamela Adams

This case examines VF Brands global supply chain strategy. Historically, VF has used a combination of in-house manufacturing and traditional arms-length sourcing arrangements. At the time of the case, the company is considering a third approach to supplier relations... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Logistics; Supply Chain Management; Partners and Partnerships; Cooperation; Vertical Integration; Apparel and Accessories Industry

July 2004 (Revised September 2004)
Case

Novell: CEO-led Turnaround and Growth Strategy

By: Richard L. Nolan and Robert D. Austin

Novell CEO Jack Messman tried to return the company to its leadership position in the software industry through a strategy that embraces Linux and other open source software. This case serves as an introduction to open source software and strategies based on open... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Value Creation; Open Source Distribution; Applications and Software; Intellectual Property; Business Strategy; Information Technology Industry

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Profile

Evelyne White

Bookalokal is a social dining platform that launched in Brussels in 2012. The initial concept: Connect travelers with locals through home-cooked, gourmet meals in people's homes. Prospective diners search through Bookalokal's online database of hosts, choose a favorite... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Services

August 2019 (Revised September 2021)
Background Note

Analytical Tools in Private Equity: Return Bridge

By: Victoria Ivashina and Abhijit Tagade

This note explains the rationale and derivation behind “return bridge,” a key analytical tool used in the private equity industry to understand sources of value-add. The note elaborates on the advantages and the shortcomings of the return bridge. View Details

Keywords: Return Bridge; Private Equity; Value Creation; Analysis