Publications

January 2014
Case

In a Bind: Peak Sealing Technologies' Product Line Extension Dilemma

By: Robert J. Dolan and Heather Beckham

Peak Sealing Technologies (PST), a manufacturer of premium carton sealing tapes, stresses technological innovation as the company's core value. But when a new regional competitor introduces a less expensive and inferior product, PST is faced with a decision that could... View Details

17 Sep 2012
Research & Ideas

Blue Skies, Distractions Arise: How Weather Affects Productivity

efficiency. In "Rainmakers: Why Bad Weather Means Good Productivity," the authors show that workers are especially productive on rainy days, simply because they're not tempted by the possibilities of a sunny day—a walk in the park, for... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

Program

Managing Innovation

companies across the globe. With new insight into innovation processes, you will be ready to take action and lead a highly creative, innovation-focused culture that can consistently deliver results. This program is eligible for the Certificate of View Details

13 Jan 2016
Research & Ideas

The Problem with Productivity of Multi-Ethnic Teams

result.” Co-ethnic teams more productive As Pons and his co-researchers analyzed the data, however, they found a disturbing result about the ethnic makeup within teams. Those canvassing teams made up of two people of different ethnicities... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

Managing the Future of Work

The nature of work is changing. As companies grapple with forces—such as rapid technological change, shifting global product and labor markets, evolving regulatory regimes, outsourcing, and the fast emergence of the gig economy—they must overcome challenges and... View Details

November 2003 (Revised April 2004)
Background Note

Why Consumers Don't Buy: The Psychology of New Product Adoption

By: John T. Gourville

Looks at the consumer psychology of new product adoption. Identifies a key reason why consumers do not adopt innovations as quickly as developers think they should--an irrational resistance to behavioral change. Identifies strategies for firms to manage and overcome... View Details

Keywords: Product Launch; Consumer Behavior; Social Psychology

14 Aug 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Rainmakers: Why Bad Weather Means Good Productivity

Keywords: by Jooa Julia Lee, Francesca Gino & Bradley R. Staats

January 2023 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Belden and Digital Transformation: From Product Sales to Solutions Sales

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Amy Klopfenstein

This case concerns the industrial automation division at Belden, a hardware manufacturer. While Belden historically sold products such as cables, wires, and other networking devices, EVP of Industrial Automation Ashish Chand recognized that IT vendors were entering the... View Details

Keywords: Implementation; Sales Cycle; Digital Transformation; Sales; Product Positioning; Business Model; Market Entry and Exit; Customer Focus and Relationships; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Supply and Industry; Technology Industry; North America; United States

Research Summary

Managing Networked Businesses

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann

Platform-based businesses that leverage network effects face a distinctive set of management challenges. A platform encompasses components and rules that facilitate interactions between the platform's users. A platform-based product or service exhibits a network... View Details

03 Nov 2015
Video

Harnessing productive tensions in hybrid organizations

March 2021
Article

Targeted Price Controls on Supermarket Products

By: Alberto Cavallo and Diego Aparicio

We study the impact of targeted price controls for supermarket products in Argentina from 2007 to 2015. Using web scraping, we collected daily prices for controlled and non-controlled goods and measured the differential effects on inflation, product availability, and... View Details

Keywords: Prices; Controls; Price Dispersion; Economics; Price; Cost Management; Goods and Commodities; Retail Industry; Argentina

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Read Now

January 1989 (Revised March 1995)
Case

Du Pont Freon Products Division (A)

By: Richard H.K. Vietor and Forest L. Reinhardt

In 1988, the Du Pont Co. is abruptly confronted with solid scientific evidence that chlorofluorocarbons are destroying the earth's ozone shield. Du Pont, with its Freon brand product line serving markets for foam insulation, electronics solvents, and especially... View Details

Keywords: Business Divisions; Policy; Management; Brands and Branding; Production; Service Operations; Natural Environment; Competition; Corporate Strategy; Environmental Sustainability

March 1996
Case

New Product Development at Canon: The Contact Sensor Project

By: Joseph L. Bower and Michael Partington

Canon is one of the leading innovators in the world. This case describes the processes by which Canon manages the flow of ideas from basic science to new products, and how it harnesses product innovation to a strategy of diversification. View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Strategic Planning; Innovation and Invention; Innovation Strategy; Management Practices and Processes; Diversification; Success; Consumer Products Industry

August 1995 (Revised September 1995)
Case

Hutton Branch Manager (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Jane Palley Katz

The manager of an E.F. Hutton branch office must decide how best to approach a colleague whose aggressive and ethically problematic cash management practices have cost the branch a major institutional client. These practices had been encouraged by top management at... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Business or Company Management; Decisions; Management Skills; Cash Flow; Financial Management; Investment; Management Teams; Financial Services Industry

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Research Summary

"On design of operations & production management technology-base and performance database for empowerment of global/local industries in the international business environment"

His current research interests are in the reinforcement of continuous improvement schemes such as TPM, its global transfer and road-mapping for empowerment of industries. One of his aims while at Harvard TOM Unit is to establish infrastructure which enables... View Details

September 1991
Case

General Foods Corp.: Product Management--1991

By: Stephen A. Greyser

Keywords: Product; Management; Food and Beverage Industry

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May 1997 (Revised March 1998)
Case

Teradyne: Managing Disruptive Change

By: Joseph L. Bower

Three cases deal with the introduction of a new product to Teradyne's line of semiconductor test equipment. Teradyne: Managing Strategic Change provides historic and administrative background for the other two cases. Teradyne: The Aurora Project deals with the problems... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Disruption; Management; Market Entry and Exit; Product; Product Development; Problems and Challenges; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Technology

5 Feb 2009 - 7 Feb 2009
Conference Presentation

Corporate Stakeholders Management Framework: A FMCG Company Case Study

By: Shashank Shah

Keywords: Stakeholder Management; Consumer Products Industry; India

2023
Working Paper

Cost-Efficient Decarbonization of Portland Cement Production

By: Gunther Glenk, Anton Kelnhofer, Rebecca Meier and Stefan Reichelstein

Accounting for nearly 8% of global annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the cement industry is considered difficult to decarbonize. While a sizeable number of abatement levers for Portland cement production is becoming technologically ready for deployment, many are... View Details