Publications

Teaching Interest

Strategic Financial Analysis

By: Suraj Srinivasan

In a competitive climate, how do some companies outperform others? Managers, consultants, analysts, and investors must understand financial analysis to answer that question and make strategic decisions that drive business profitability and... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Change; Restructuring; Strategy

June 1991
Case

Continental Carriers, Inc.

By: W. Carl Kester

A U.S. trucking company is considering using debt for the first time to acquire another company. The directors of the company are divided in their opinion of the likely impact of leverage on Continental Carriers' performance. Their differences must be reconciled and a... View Details

Keywords: Debt Securities; Financing and Loans; Acquisition; Borrowing and Debt; Equity; Transportation Industry; United States

January 2014
Supplement

Amgen Inc.: Pursuing Innovation and Imitation? (B)

By: Ian Mackenzie

The (B) case reveals that Sharer decided that Amgen should enter the emerging biosimilars business. However, he took the better part of a year to syndicate the decision across the senior team while in parallel investing in some time-critical process development. The... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Pharmaceutical Industry; Biotechnology Industry; United States

03 Apr 2013
News

Judgment as the Essence of Leadership

21 Aug 2018
News

Cultivate Curiosity

March 2007 (Revised March 2012)
Case

Edward Jones in 2006: Confronting Success

By: David J. Collis and Troy Smith

When Jim Weddle took over as Managing Partner of Edward Jones in January 2006, the brokerage firm was at a critical juncture. The firm's distinctive strategy had enabled it to grow from its roots in small-town America to become the 4th largest broker in the U.S. Weddle... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Performance; Competitive Advantage; Financial Services Industry; United States

Research Summary

Research overview

The growth of consumer review websites over the past decade has revolutionized the way in which consumers learn about product quality. The centrality of information to consumer welfare has also been underscored in public policy debates, where quality disclosure has... View Details

April 1980 (Revised September 1985)
Background Note

The Disposable Diaper Industry in 1974

By: Michael E. Porter

Describes the rapidly growing disposable diaper industry in 1974, a period in which Procter and Gamble's industry leadership faced strong challenges from Kimberly Clark, Johnson and Johnson, and Union Carbide. The latter two firms were in the process of entry into the... View Details

Keywords: Market Entry and Exit; Competition; Consumer Products Industry

August 2014 (Revised May 2016)
Case

Husk Power

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and Sid Misra

In late 2013, Husk Power Systems found itself falling further and further behind plan. The founding CEO had decided to resign. His co-founder is faced with the decision of quitting his corporate job in the US to head to India and help form a new management team. Husk... View Details

15 Apr 2020
News

Will Fintech ‘Save the Day’ as USA Struggles with Corona Stimulus?

24 Mar 2016
News

What I’ll Miss About Andy Grove

The Price of Fairness

We study resource allocation problems that involve multiple self-interested parties and a central decision maker. We introduce and study the price of fairness, which is the... View Details

July 2020
Supplement

CSL Capital Management: Patriot Proppants (B)

By: Victoria Ivashina and Yury Kapko

This two-part case series follows CSL Capital’s 2009 investment in the greenfield manufacturing company, Patriot Proppants. CSL, a recently established investment firm, employs a unique investment model, funding new ("greenfield") energy service businesses that serve... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Renewable Energy; Decision Making

2024
Dictionary Entry

Jerry R. Green (1946-)

By: Eddie Dekel, John Geanakoplos and Scott Duke Kominers

Jerry Green has a deep and long-standing connection to Harvard University, and in particular with its Economics Department. This paper begins by reviewing his intellectual background, and then turns to exploring how he has influenced scholars through his wide-ranging... View Details

Keywords: Economics; Microeconomics; Theory; History; Game Theory; Decision Choices and Conditions; Education Industry; North America; United States; Cambridge; Massachusetts; Boston

May 1983 (Revised December 1987)
Case

Technical Data Corp.

By: William A. Sahlman

Describes a decision confronting the president of a small company about selling some or all of the shares in his company to another firm. Technical Data Corp. provides analytical services to professional bond market traders over a system of computer terminals operated... View Details

Keywords: Stocks; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Internet and the Web; Information Infrastructure; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Valuation; Negotiation Tactics; Mergers and Acquisitions; Corporate Strategy; Horizontal Integration; Information Industry; Service Industry

February 2004 (Revised April 2004)
Case

Orchid Partners: A Venture Capital Start-up

By: Myra M. Hart and Kristin Lieb

The development of a new venture partnership and the challenges associated with raising its first fund are chronicled. The decision to focus on early-stage investments, the determination of the appropriate size of the fund, the fund-raising process, and the steps in... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; Problems and Challenges; Partners and Partnerships; Investment; Motivation and Incentives; Financing and Loans; Personal Development and Career

January 1997 (Revised May 1997)
Background Note

Country Analysis: A Framework to Identify and Evaluate the National Business Environment

A manager's ability to build profitable firms depends upon the business environment within which firms interact. This note presents a framework to help understand, anticipate, and perhaps foster changes in the business environment. Describes building a picture of the... View Details

Keywords: Country; Analysis; Macroeconomics