Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(1,817)
- Faculty Publications (303)
- September 20, 2004
- Comment
How Consumers Value Global Brands
By: Douglas Holt, John A. Quelch and Earl L. Taylor
In 2002, we carried out a two-stage research project in partnership with the market research company Research International/USA to find out how consumers in different countries value global brands. First, we conducted a qualitative study in forty-one countries to... View Details
- September 2004
- Article
Relative Explanatory Power of Agency Theory and Transaction Cost Analysis in German Salesforces
By: Manfred Krafft, Sönke Albers and Rajiv Lal
- summer 2003
- Article
Patents, Invalidity, and the Strategic Transmission of Enabling Information
By: James J. Anton and Dennis A. Yao
The patent system encourages innovation and knowledge disclosure by providing exclusivity to inventors. Exclusivity is limited, however, because a substantial fraction of patents have some probability of being ruled invalid when challenged in court. The possibility of... View Details
- February 2003 (Revised March 2007)
- Case
Internet Customer Acquisition Strategy at Bankinter
By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez, V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem
Bankinter, a relatively small Spanish bank, has a large presence as an Internet financial services provider. Leading the way to profitability through the Internet will give Bankinter a major competitive advantage over the larger, more established Spanish banks. Ann... View Details
- January 2003 (Revised September 2007)
- Background Note
A Note on Racing to Acquire Customers
Examines factors that motivate a firm's race to acquire customers in newly emerging markets and explores conditions under which racing strategies are likely to yield attractive returns. Provides a definition of racing behavior, introduces the notion of an optimal level... View Details
- August 2002 (Revised June 2006)
- Case
Great Dakota Bank: Online Banking
By: Frances X. Frei, Youngme E. Moon and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar
In 2002, Great Dakota Bank's retail division is considering how heavily it should be promoting the company's online banking service. A recent promotional campaign appears to have significantly increased enrollments in online banking, but it is unclear whether the bank... View Details
- April 2002 (Revised March 2006)
- Background Note
Economics of Retail Banking Note
By: Frances X. Frei and Dennis Campbell
Explains the financial operations of retail banking, highlighting profitability challenges facing the industry. For U.S. banks, it is quite common for more than half of the customer base to be unprofitable and to have relatively few customers make up the vast majority... View Details
Keywords: Customers; Economics; Cost; Banks and Banking; Profit; Revenue; Service Operations; Banking Industry; United States
- Dec 2001
- Other Presentation
Innovation Lecture
In his lecture, Professor Porter gave a sharp analysis of the Dutch economy. His message was that the Netherlands must watch its step because it is losing momentum as a knowledge-based economy. Not because it is performing badly, but because other countries are doing... View Details
- November 2000 (Revised December 2000)
- Background Note
Online Content Providers
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Alastair Brown
Describes the business model for online content providers, companies that distribute copyright content via the Internet. Focuses on their revenue and cost drivers and on the ways that online content providers create value for consumers. Also investigates the benefits... View Details
- October 2000 (Revised March 2003)
- Case
Merck & Company: Evaluating a Drug Licensing Opportunity
By: Richard S. Ruback and David B Krieger
This explores the valuation of an opportunity to license a compound before it enters clinical trials. Describes Merck's decision tree evaluation process is presented. Information required to evaluate a specific licensing opportunity is provided, including the costs of... View Details
- October 2000 (Revised March 2004)
- Background Note
Variance Analysis and Flexible Budgeting
By: Robert S. Kaplan
Facilitates the teaching of cases on variance analysis and flexible budgeting. Uses algebra, diagrams, and numerical examples to illustrate the calculation of price, quantity, and mix variances for revenues and costs, and a flexible budget for analyzing indirect and... View Details
- Article
Valuation of Bankrupt Firms
By: S. C. Gilson, E. S. Hotchkiss and R. S. Ruback
This study compares the market value of firms that reorganize in bankruptcy with estimates of value based on management's published cash flow projections. We estimate firm values using models that have been shown in other contexts to generate relatively precise... View Details
- August 1999 (Revised May 2001)
- Case
Catanese and Vulcan (A)
By: V.G. Narayanan and Sanjay Pothen
A small CPA firm puts in a new performance measurement system, and profits increase by 350% in less than a year. This case illustrates the reasons for improved profitability as well as the sustainability of levels of growth, the opportunities, and the threats that... View Details
- February 1998 (Revised May 2007)
- Case
Airborne Express
By: Jan W. Rivkin
In the wake of a highly successful quarter, senior managers of Airborne Express, the third largest player in the express mail industry, review the firm's competitive position. Airborne has survived, and recently prospered, in an industry with significant economies of... View Details
- January 1998 (Revised July 2019)
- Case
Cafes Monte Bianco: Building a Profit Plan
By: Robert L. Simons and Antonio Davila
Alert: This case has been revised since its original publication; all amounts have been converted to euros and the dates have been updated to 2020. If you’ve taught with this case in the past, please note that changes may affect teaching plans and classroom use. Using... View Details
- October 1997
- Article
Does Competition Kill Corruption?
By: Christopher Bliss and Rafael Di Tella
Corrupt agents (officials or gangsters) exact money from firms. Corruption affects the number of firms in a free-entry equilibrium. The degree of deep competition in the economy increases with lower overhead costs relative to profits and with a tendency toward similar... View Details
- September 1997 (Revised February 2000)
- Exercise
Exercises in Option Pricing and Real Option Analysis
By: Benjamin C. Esty
Contains five problems, one each on basic option pricing, abandonment value, the value of waiting to invest, contingent claims analysis (equity as a call option), and strategic decision making in an option framework. The goal is for students to recognize option value... View Details
- September 1997
- Article
The Cost of Price Incentives: An Empirical Analysis of Motivation Crowding-Out
By: Bruno S. Frey and Felix Oberholzer-Gee
- April 1997
- Case
Peoria Engine Plant (A): (Abridged)
By: Robert S. Kaplan and Amy P. Hutton
Describes the cost control system used at an automobile engine plant for labor and overhead costs. The finance staff prepares daily, weekly, and monthly variance reports against budgets. Department supervisors, finance staff, and the plant manager discuss the use and... View Details
- November 1996 (Revised February 1997)
- Case
Historical Society of Pennsylvania, The
By: Stephen A. Greyser and Stephanie L. Woerner
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania (HSP) runs one of the nation's most important research libraries and a museum focusing on colonial history. Financial analysis shows that the society has absorbed increased costs of operation over the past decade through slow but... View Details