Publications

August 2022
Supplement

Zalora: Data-Driven Pricing Recommendations

By: Ayelet Israeli

This exercise can be used in conjunction with the main case "Zalora: Data-Driven Pricing" to facilitate class discussion without requiring data analysis from the students. Instead, the exercise presents reports that were created by the data science team to answer the... View Details

Keywords: Pricing; Pricing Algorithms; Dynamic Pricing; Ecommerce; Pricing Strategy; Pricing And Revenue Management; Apparel; Singapore; Startup; Demand Estimation; Data Analysis; Data Analytics; Exercise; Price; Internet and the Web; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Retail Industry; Fashion Industry; Singapore

June 2017
Teaching Note

IBM Transforming, 2012–2016: Ginni Rometty Steers Watson

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jonathan Cohen

Ginni Rometty, who became IBM CEO in 2012, led efforts to transform the company around cognitive computing and the AI platform Watson. This Teaching Note helps instructors understand and teach the Harvard Business School case “IBM Transforming, 2012–2016: Ginni Rometty... View Details

Keywords: Digital; Technological Change; Artificial Intelligence; Data; IBM; Watson; Internet Of Things; Innovation and Invention; Management; Sales; Information Technology; Technological Innovation; Transformation; AI and Machine Learning

March 2011 (Revised April 2021)
Case

The Whiz Kids

By: Tom Nicholas and David Chen

In October 1945, Henry Ford II received a telegram in his office at the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan written by Charles "Tex" Thornton, a U.S. Air Force colonel. The telegram presented an opportunity for Ford to deploy a system of statistical control which... View Details

Keywords: Ford Motor Company; Statistical Control; Management Systems; Accounting; Operations; Strategy; Mathematical Methods; Auto Industry; United States

12 Sep 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, September 12, 2017

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=53200 September–October 2017 Harvard Business Review Managing Our Hub Economy: Strategy, Ethics, and Network Competition in the Age of Digital Superpowers By: Iansiti, Marco, and Karim R.... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

24 Oct 2006
First Look

First Look: October 24, 2006

managing the political conflict and the informational and procedural shortcomings that accrue to organizational differentiation. Finally, we show that the creation of an independent group responsible for... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2008
Chapter

Artistic Methods and Business Disorganization

The idea that artists' work can usefully inform business practice has gained support in recent years. Managers have long described some business activities as "more art than science," but usually they've meant by this that they don't understand the activity and can't... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Creativity

2020
Working Paper

Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 7 The Value Structure of Technologies, Part 2: Strategy without Numbers

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

Functional analysis as set forth in the last chapter decomposes a technical system into functional components that do things to advance the system’s purpose and the goals of its designers. Functional analysis in turn can be used to construct value structure maps... View Details

Keywords: Modularity; Value Structure Mapping; Value Capture; Information Technology; Organizations; Strategy; Value Creation

SSRN

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09 Jul 2019
Blog Post

Solving the Complexities of the Biotechnology Industry

Biotechnology is a complex industry which combines applied science & engineering and applied business practices with life science. It is the most multi-faceted industry segment there is because it is ultimately focused on the most complex open system: The human... View Details

2010
Working Paper

Conceptual Foundations of the Balanced Scorecard

By: Robert S. Kaplan

David Norton and I introduced the Balanced Scorecard in a 1992 Harvard Business Review article (Kaplan & Norton, 1992). The article was based on a multi-company research project to study performance measurement in companies whose intangible assets played a central role... View Details

Keywords: Asset Management; Balanced Scorecard; Management Systems; Performance Improvement; Strategy

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2010
Working Paper

Just Say No to Wall Street: Putting A Stop to the Earnings Game

By: Joseph Fuller and Michael C. Jensen

Putting an end to the "earnings game" requires that CEOs reclaim the initiative by avoiding earnings guidance and managing expectations in such a way that their stocks trade reasonably close to their intrinsic value. In place of earnings forecasts, management should... View Details

Keywords: Stocks; Performance Expectations; Goals and Objectives; Risk and Uncertainty; Growth and Development Strategy; Decisions; Risk Management; Budgets and Budgeting; Earnings Management; Value; Projects

SSRN

October 2001
Background Note

A Note on Team Process

By: Linda A. Hill and Maria Farkas

When tasks are highly complex, demand a diversity of skills, or require a commitment from the involved parties, teams are usually the most effective way to approach them. But a group of people working together does not automatically equally a team, and groups are often... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Decision Making; Management; Business Processes; Performance Effectiveness; Performance Efficiency; Groups and Teams; Conflict and Resolution

September 2020
Case

Drinkworks: Home Bar by Keurig

By: Sunil Gupta, Jonathan Levav and Julia Kelley

In the summer of 2018, Drinkworks CEO Nathaniel Davis needed to make a number of go-to-market decisions ahead of his company’s upcoming product launch. Formed through a joint venture between Keurig Dr. Pepper and Anheuser-Busch InBev, Drinkworks had developed an... View Details

03 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Lehman Brothers Plus Five: Have We Learned from Our Mistakes?

financial system is still fragile, it is definitely better. The banks have more capital, are making loans again, and have regained the trust of depositors. Company boards and management are asking more... View Details

Keywords: Re: Multiple Faculty; Banking; Financial Services; Construction; Real Estate

February 2016 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Scaling Well by Doing Good: Motivating Talent at b.good

By: Francesca Gino, Paul Green Jr. and Bradley Staats

Boston-based fast-casual chain b.good was founded on the idea of healthy food, sourced locally, and prepared in-store. The founders had built a value-based business and worked hard to cultivate a sense of family—among employees, customers, and suppliers. In 2015, they... View Details

Keywords: Motivation; Values; Corporate Culture; Growth Strategy; Motivation and Incentives; Values and Beliefs; Growth Management; Organizational Culture; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; New England

May 16, 2016
Article

Food Safety Economics: The Cost of a Sick Customer

By: Dina Gerdeman and John A. Quelch

Chipotle Mexican Grill’s ongoing struggle to win customers back months after a contaminated food crisis highlights the challenges companies face with keeping food safe.

Chipotle has seen its shares tumble and recently reported its first-ever quarterly loss... View Details

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July 1989 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Kanthal (A)

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Multinational company needs an improved cost system to determine the profitability of individual customer orders. Its strategy is to have significant sales and profitability growth without adding additional administrative and support people. The new cost system... View Details

Keywords: Cost Accounting; Earnings Management; Cost Management; Financial Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Business or Company Management; Customer Relationship Management; Sales; Business Strategy; Profit; Electronics Industry