Publications

September 2021 (Revised February 2022)
Case

Sawiris Foundation: Elevating Education in Egypt

By: Brian Trelstad and Alpana Thapar

Founded in 2001 by the Sawiris family, one of the wealthiest families in Egypt, the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development (SFSD) invested in human capital and provision of basic social services for the most marginalized Egyptians. In 2015, Noura Selim’s (MBA 2013)... View Details

Keywords: Sustainable Development; Social Enterprise; Education; Social Issues; Partners and Partnerships; Growth and Development Strategy; Education Industry; Egypt

14 Sep 2023
Blog Post

MBAs Accelerate Their Social Enterprise Ventures

are designed by or center people with disabilities. With 1 in 4 Americans living with disabilities, it’s imperative that all companies center product inclusion at the beginning of the product development cycle. Rea Savla: Solara, my... View Details

October 2020
Case

LifeBank Nigeria

By: Brian Trelstad, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Wale Lawal

The aspiration of addressing maternal deaths in Nigeria, which were mostly caused by blood shortages, led Temie Giwa-Tubosun to found LifeBank in 2015. LifeBank developed an online platform that enabled hospitals to connect and purchase blood from local blood banks and... View Details

Keywords: Systems Design; Social Business; Business At The Base Of The Pyramid; Health Care; Blood; Social Enterprise; Health Care and Treatment; Growth and Development Strategy; Finance; Health Industry; Transportation Industry; Africa; Nigeria

2006
Working Paper

Male Circumcision and AIDS: The Macroeconomic Impact of a Health Crisis

By: Amrita Ahuja, Brian Wendell and Eric D. Werker

Theories abound on the potential macroeconomic impact of AIDS in Africa, yet there have been surprisingly few empirical studies to test the mixed theoretical predictions. In this paper, we examine the impact of the AIDS epidemic on African nations through 2005 using... View Details

Keywords: Macroeconomics; Health Disorders; Welfare or Wellbeing; Poverty; Research; Education; Nutrition; Risk Management; Africa

Read Now

03 Jul 2012
First Look

First Look: July 3

Understanding Variation across Local Communities Authors:Christian Seelos, Johanna Mair, Julie Battilana, and M. Tina Dacin Publication:In Communities and Organizations. Vol. 33, edited by Christopher Marquis, Michael Lounsbury, and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Apr 2022
Blog Post

Harvard Team Wins Second Place in MIINT Impact Investing Competition

help students take on the role of an impact investor, walking them through topics such as how to measure impact or how to analyze a term sheet. MIINT at Harvard is organized by the HBS Impact Investing Club and HBS Senior Lecturer View Details

December 2009 (Revised March 2025)
Case

Phreesia: The Patient Intake Company

By: Regina E. Herzlinger, Sunaina Yarlagadda and Brian L. Walker

How should the co-founders of an organization that provides patient sign-in and billing services scale their company after five years of successfully targeting small private physician practices? Phreesia had deployed a direct mail and sales force strategy that resulted... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Social Entrepreneurship; Revenue; Health Care and Treatment; Health Industry

July 1997
Article

The Presidio Trust legislation: Preservation or Privatization?

By: Brian Trelstad

This analysis of the Presidio Trust legislation places the recent developments on the Presidio in the context of a century and a half of environmental planning. By first exploring the Presidio's history, and then tracing the more recent legislative background to the... View Details

Keywords: Presidio; Presidio Trust; National Parks; Urban Parks; Public-private Management; Natural Environment; Urban Scope; Planning

06 Aug 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Super Bowl Ads Sell Products, but Do They Sell Brands?

road. He goes on to say, "When there's no man around, Goodyear should be." It probably shouldn't be surprising that advertisers took a chauvinistic tone for spots appearing on a game that was expected to be watched mostly by... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Sports; Entertainment & Recreation; Media & Broadcasting

March 2013 (Revised April 2014)
Case

Barnes & Noble: Managing the E-Book Revolution

By: Alan MacCormack, Brian Kimball Dunn and Chris F. Kemerer

The case describes competition in the market for E-Books, and Barnes & Noble's Strategy in this industry. As a traditional retailer, B&N was challenged by the introduction of digital technologies that allow books to be published, distributed and sold to consumers... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Technology Strategy; Platform Competition; Innovation Strategy; Information Technology; Product Development; Digital Platforms; Standards; Disruptive Innovation; Retail Industry; Publishing Industry; North America

28 May 2013
First Look

First Look: May 28

and Traffic Violations By: Yap, Andy J., Abbie S. Wazlawek, Brian J. Lucas, Amy Cuddy, and Dana R. Carney Abstract—Can the structure of our everyday environment lead us to behave dishonestly? Four studies found that expansive postures... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

14 Feb 2022
Blog Post

Celebrating Love @ HBS in 2022

home-made steak dinner. As nervous as I was about searing the meat just right, I was far more fascinated by Weston’s tales of service and dreams for the future. Here was a man of charisma and compassion; of commitment and creativity. One... View Details

May 2010
Article

Is Delaware's Antitakeover Statute Unconstitutional? Evidence from 1988-2008

By: Guhan Subramanian, Steven Herscovici and Brian Barbetta

Delaware's antitakeover statute, codified at Section 203 of the Delaware corporate code, is by far the most important antitakeover statute in the United States. When it was first enacted in 1988, three bidders challenged its constitutionality under the Commerce Clause... View Details

Keywords: Courts and Trials; Opportunities; Bids and Bidding; Laws and Statutes; Decisions; Change; Acquisition; United States

September 2002
Case

Abercrombie & Kent

By: Frances X. Frei, Brian Corbett, Mark Partin and Daniel Rethazy

Describes Abercrombie & Kent, the outdoor adventure company that has provided services throughout the entire history of the outdoor adventure industry. Provides an opportunity to learn how the company successfully grown into a premier player in the industry by adapting... View Details

Keywords: History; Financial Management; Activity Based Costing and Management; Service Operations; Marketing Reference Programs; Product Development; Business Growth and Maturation; Balance and Stability; Marketing Channels; Transportation; Growth and Development Strategy; Travel Industry

September 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

Epic: The Future of Health Information Technology

By: Regina E. Herzlinger and Brian L. Walker

How should the founder and leadership team of a health IT company with more than 45 years of market leadership prepare for the future, while navigating founder transitions and industry changes? Founded by Judy Faulkner in the late 1970s, Epic pioneered electronic... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Private Ownership; Customer Focus and Relationships; Information Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Health Industry; Electronics Industry; Information Technology Industry

January 2024 (Revised August 2024)
Case

Essex County Community Foundation: Pivot to Systems Philanthropy

By: V. Kasturi Rangan, Brian Trelstad and Courtney Han

2023 marked five years of the Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF)’s “systems philanthropy” approach to grantmaking. Located in northeastern Massachusetts, the community foundation served 800,000 residents across 34 cities and towns that varied widely by... View Details

Keywords: Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Reputation; Civil Society or Community; Social Issues; Alignment; Nonprofit Organizations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Leading Change; Massachusetts

June 2008
Case

Kidney Matchmakers

By: Brian J. Hall and Nicole Bennett

In this case we look at the design and development of an unconventional market, where neither money nor traditional "goods" are exchanged. Kidney exchange is an idea pioneered by HBS professor and market designer Alvin Roth and a small group of innovative doctors. This... View Details

Keywords: Moral Sensibility; Disruptive Innovation; Market Design; Market Transactions; Value Creation; Health Industry

September 2003 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Best Buy Co., Inc. (A): An Innovator's Journey

By: Dorothy A. Leonard and Brian DeLacey

The CEO of Best Buy, a hugely successful retailing company, has hired consulting firm Strategos to imbue the company with an improved innovative capability. The six-month program of experimental learning yields new business ideas and also trains Best Buy employees as... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Management Teams; Creativity; Adoption; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Employees; Learning; Training; Programs; Retail Industry; United States