Publications

January 2023 (Revised August 2023)
Case

Nick Saban: Embracing 'The Process' of Sustaining Success

By: Ranjay Gulati and Eppa Rixey

Nick Saban, head coach of the University of Alabama football team from 2007-2022, fielded teams that won 183 of 208 games (88%), including a record-tying six national championships. Saban’s approach to coaching, known to many as “The Process,” and the consistent... View Details

Keywords: Purpose; Leadership And Managing People; Football; Recruiting; Talent Acquisition; Talent And Talent Management; Talent Development And Retention; Organization Change And Adaptation; Organizational Behavior; Sports; Leadership; Leadership Development; Organizational Culture; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Sports Industry; United States

28 Feb 2023
Cold Call Podcast

Muhammad Ali: A Case Study in Purpose-Driven Decision Making

Keywords: Re: Robert Simons; Sports

23 May 2017
First Look

First Look at New Ideas and Research: May 23, 2017

brand “made in China” with global ambitions. Purchase this case: https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/product/517032-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 617-033 Aston Martin: A Second Century of Performance and Luxury Following the March 2016 launch of DB11, Aston Martin... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

June 2019 (Revised May 2022)
Case

Roger Federer's TEAM8: Launching the Laver Cup

By: Anita Elberse

Roger Federer, widely regarded as the best tennis player in the history of the sport, walked onto the court to thunderous applause during in the second edition of the Laver Cup in September 2018. Named after tennis legend Rod Laver, the Cup pitted many of the greatest... View Details

Keywords: Superstars; Tennis; Tournaments; Entrepreneurship; Sports; Competitive Strategy; Value Creation; Sports Industry

January 2024
Case

Deion Sanders: The Prime Effect

By: Hise O. Gibson, Nicole Gilmore and Alicia Dadlani

In 2023, Deion Sanders, known as “Coach Prime,” became head football coach of the University of Colorado Boulder (CU). Sanders was tasked with leading CU’s struggling football program, which had only achieved one winning season in the last 15 years, back to glory. Many... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Style; Leading Change; Management Style; Race; Prejudice and Bias; Sports; Experience and Expertise; Sports Industry; United States; Colorado

19 Dec 2022
Research & Ideas

The 10 Most Popular Articles of 2022

7. Dick’s Sporting Goods Followed Its Conscience on Guns—and It Paid Off After the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, Dick's Sporting Goods' CEO declared: "I don't want to be part of the story... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

September 2022
Case

Blake Sports: Evolution of the CEO and the Executive Team

By: Boris Groysberg and Katherine Connolly Baden

Cameron (Cam) Barker, CEO and Founder of Blake Sports Apparel, sat in his office at his company’s headquarters in Birmingham, England, feeling stunned and disappointed. Only a few minutes prior, he had wrapped up a meeting with CFO James Ryan, a highly-respected star... View Details

Keywords: Leadership And Managing People; Leadership Skills; Team Dynamics; Team Effectiveness; Team Leadership; Team Management; Leadership Style; Leadership; Management; Management Skills; Management Style; Talent and Talent Management; Groups and Teams; United Kingdom

04 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

Is Government Just Stupid? How Bad Decisions Are Made

"Washington" telling them what they can and cannot do with their property. Both sides battle for increased or decreased legislation while ignoring possibilities for wiser regulation through joint problem solving. When a sports... View Details

Keywords: by Max H. Bazerman, Jonathan Baron & Katherine Shonk

January 2024
Case

National Football League and Private 5G

By: Andy Wu, Grant Son and Shuoyu Chen

On September 9, 2021, the National Football League (NFL) designated Verizon as its official 5G partner in a 10-year deal, committed to enhance the experience for NFL teams, players, and fans in stadiums. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “Verizon will help us... View Details

Keywords: Football; National Football League; 5G; Verizon; Communication Technology; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Technology Adoption; Risk and Uncertainty; Business Strategy; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Sports Industry; Sports Industry

December 2018 (Revised September 2019)
Case

Brand Activism: Nike and Colin Kaepernick

By: Jill Avery and Koen Pauwels

Nike's selection of politically polarizing Colin Kaepernick as the spokesperson for the 30th anniversary of its iconic "Just Do It" campaign catapulted the brand into the media spotlight and made it a political flashpoint for consumers across America. Would the choice... View Details

Keywords: Digital Marketing; Entertainment; Politics; Activism; Brand Equity; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Communications; Sports; Advertising; Social Media; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; United States; North America

18 Dec 2013
HBS Case

Lessons from the Lance Armstrong Cheating Scandal

tarnishing the entire sport of professional cycling. When Armstrong confessed to Oprah Winfrey in January 2013 that he had "doped"—taken performance-enhancing drugs—to win his record seven consecutive Tour de France victories... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Sports

August 2021
Case

Andreessen Horowitz’s Cultural Leadership Fund (A)

By: Anita Elberse, Briana Richardson and Cydni Williams

In May 2020, Chris Lyons, a partner at leading venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz receives the news that his company has reached a verbal agreement with one of Silicon Valley’s hottest social-media startups to lead its ‘Series A’ funding round, in a deal that... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Talent Management; General Management; Inclusion; Talent and Talent Management; Diversity; Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; Networks; Nonprofit Organizations

02 Jan 2014
Working Paper Summaries

Managing the Family Firm: Evidence from CEOs at Work

Keywords: by Oriana Bandiera, Andrea Prat & Raffaella Sadun

23 Aug 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Field Evidence on Individual Behavior & Performance in Rank-Order Tournaments

Keywords: by Kevin J. Boudreau, Constance E. Helfat, Karim R. Lakhani & Michael Menietti

23 Aug 2011
First Look

First Look: August 23

PublicationsChallenges to Business in the Twenty-First Century Authors:Gerald Rosenfeld, Jay W. Lorsch, and Rakesh Khurana, eds. Publication:Cambridge, Mass.: American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2011 An abstract is unavailable at this time. Book:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

27 Sep 2018
Research & Ideas

Religion in the Workplace: What Managers Need to Know

communicated so people on the front line don’t have to decide how to work through these issues and make things up in the moment.” Muslim headscarf meets retailer’s dress code Sporting goods retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, founded in... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Food & Beverage; Apparel & Accessories

14 Aug 2006
HBS Case

On Managing with Bobby Knight and “Coach K”

"Is it better to be loved or feared?" Machiavelli asked. At Harvard Business School, Professor Scott Snook uses this classic quote to help students become more effective leaders. Using two of the most successful college basketball coaches in history—coaches... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Sports

December 2023
Case

Francis Ngannou

By: Anita Elberse

In May 2023, professional fighter Francis Ngannou is facing a choice: re-sign with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the world’s premier mixed-martial-arts (MMA) organization, or opt for a contract with the Professional Fighters League (PFL), a growing but... View Details

Keywords: Contracts; Compensation and Benefits; Sports; Decision Choices and Conditions

September 2023
Supplement

David Beckham (B): Signing Lionel Messi to Inter Miami CF

By: Anita Elberse and David Moreno Vicente

In June 2023, David Beckham, co-owner of Major League Soccer team Inter Miami CF, is hoping to find a way to bring Lionel Messi, widely regarded as one of the best players the world of soccer has ever seen, to his team. But Messi—a seven-time winner of the Ballon d’Or... View Details

Keywords: Soccer; Football; Superstars; General Management; Sports; Negotiation Offer; Competitive Strategy; Compensation and Benefits; Entertainment; Media; Marketing; Sports Industry; Miami