Profit - Publications - Faculty & Research

Ivan J. Houston

Houston was instrumental in streamlining Golden State’s operations and enabling it to profitably expand. He moved the company into the group insurance field securing business from organizations such as Ford, General Motors, and AT&T.... View Details

Keywords: Finance

01 Apr 1998
News

Going For The Summit

Dozens of blue-chip advertisers have flocked to the site; according to Carpenter, iVillage may be the only private content company with more than $1 million a month in revenue. Although the company is not yet operating in the black, she expects it to become View Details

Keywords: Caroline Chauncey

John R. Sculley

computer maker, which grew to earn substantial profits and revenues of almost $2.7 billion in 1987. Under Sculley’s leadership, Apple unveiled progressive models of the Macintosh personal computer, allowing the company to regain a... View Details

Keywords: Computers & Electronics

Alan C. Greenberg

As head of one of the nation’s leading securities trading, investment banking, and brokerage firms, Greenberg became a legend with his ability to both deliver profits and champion ethics. Greenberg encouraged his Bear Stearns employees to... View Details

Keywords: Finance

Henry Ford II

When Ford took over Ford Motor in 1945, the company was losing $9.5 million per month. Ford implemented an audit system for the company, while automating company plants. As a result of Ford’s leadership, the Ford Motor Company boasted net View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

20 Nov 2019
News

From the Ground Up

Paul Phillips (MBA 2003) is cofounder of Kai-Viti Water, which bottles and sells artesian water from the Fiji Islands. In this interview he talks about the company’s policy of dedicating profits from the company to support basic education... View Details

Keywords: Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing; Manufacturing

01 Dec 2015
News

Multimedia Simulation Provides Real-World Reality Check

Technology Services. It is an example of how experiential learning and technology are being incorporated into the MBA curriculum. The School’s most complex simulation to date, “Strategic Brew” focuses on maximizing the profitability of a... View Details

01 Dec 2013
News

Climate Change as Must-See TV

low-carbon economy. He is the managing director of GameChange Capital LLC, a private-equity firm cofounded with Hohn to back companies offering scalable and profitable solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A former senior adviser... View Details

Keywords: videos; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Professional Services; Broadcasting (except Internet); Information; Arts, Entertainment

01 Apr 2002
News

Stocking Up Can Build Customer Value

A classic business problem from the 1950s illustrates the tension between inventory costs and missed sales. A newspaper vendor must decide how many papers to buy each day based on typical demand. His profit is optimized, the solution... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

February 2025
Case

Hyperscaling Dreams: Ualá's Path from Startup to Fintech Champion

By: Juan Alcácer and Manuel Franck

Ualá, a fintech startup founded in Argentina in 2017 by Pierpaolo Barbieri, aimed to increase financial inclusion in Latin America through a digital platform linked to a prepaid card. After rapid success in Argentina, it expanded into Mexico and Colombia, acquiring... View Details

Keywords: Banks and Banking; Leadership; Venture Capital; Talent and Talent Management; Strategy; Credit; Business Startups; Profit; Growth and Development Strategy; Banking Industry; Argentina; Mexico; Colombia; Latin America

Citation

Educators

Purchase

March 2008 (Revised March 2009)
Case

The Home Depot, Inc.

For its first 20 years, Home Depot was known for its entrepreneurial spirit and focus on customer service. Merchandising, purchasing, and store operations were all decentralized. When the company hit $45 billion in sales, many believed that a more disciplined approach... View Details

Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Profit; Leading Change; Six Sigma; Service Operations; Business Processes; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Retail Industry

Citation

Educators

Purchase

24 Jul 2014
Op-Ed

Reform Tax Law to Keep US Firms at Home

More broadly, the corporate tax is ripe for reform. In addition to international reforms and a rate reduction, reform should address the two other major developments in the corporate tax arena: a) the growing prominence of non-C corporate business income, and b) the... View Details

Keywords: by Mihir Desai; Pharmaceutical

02 Jan 2008
Research & Ideas

Most Popular Stories 2007

shows how one of the forces that threatens established companies can also be a source of salvation: disruptive change. Plus: Innovation worksheets. Bringing 'Lean' Principles to Service Industries Toyota and other top manufacturing companies have embraced, improved,... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

07 Nov 2005
What Do You Think?

Is Less Becoming More?

niches. They report that "nearly 70 percent of managers admit that excessive complexity is raising their costs and hindering their profit growth." In other words, there is a trade-off between innovation and complexity on the one... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Consumer Products

David M. Ogilvy

Though he founded the advertising giant that is best known for its hard-sell approach, Ogilvy himself is known for his creativity and for championing the softer side of advertising. Despite the minimal profits earned by such an approach,... View Details

Keywords: Services

06 Nov 2019
Op-Ed

Torched Planet: The Business Case to Reinvent Almost Everything

The world is. on. fire. The Earth is burning. We only have a little time to arrest climate change, and if we fail to do so the consequences will be both dire and irreversible. We have the technology and the resources to fix things, if we want to. We even have a... View Details

Keywords: by Rebecca Henderson; Energy

03 Jan 2018
What Do You Think?

In the Wake of #MeToo, Should Corporate Boards Hire Compliance Officers?

covered up for so long. In some cases, the charges occasioned firings, resignations, and political losses. Of course, the misbehavior was not confined to sexual harassment. It included activities occasioned, in some cases, by pressure to meet View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

17 Apr 2017
HBS Case

This Turkish Debt Collector Is Customer-friendly

they could turn themselves around and become profitable again. The company developed a soft approach, training its employees to develop relationships with customers, learning about their individual circumstances and counseling them on how... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Financial Services

01 Aug 2012
What Do You Think?

Should CEOs Worry About ‘Too Big to Succeed?’

relationships. Unfortunately, many corporate leaders focus on profits and the Wall Street drivers toward big business and profits. It has become the death knell for many corporations." Phil Harris, joining in, pointed out that there... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Manufacturing; Financial Services

10 Nov 2008
What Do You Think?

How Much Can You Ask of Your Customers?

Business," Harvard Business Review, October 2008, pp. 60-69. James L. Heskett, W. Earl Sasser, Jr., and Joe Wheeler, The Ownership Quotient: Putting the Service Profit Chain to Work for Unbeatable Competitive Advantage (Boston:... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

Publications