Publications

November 2012
Case

Tracy Palandjian at Social Finance US (A)

By: Alnoor Ebrahim, Catherine Clark and Beth Bafford

It had been eighteen months since Tracy Palandjian had left her position as a managing director at The Parthenon Group to start an ambitious venture called Social Finance US. With a mission "to mobilize investment capital to drive social change," her new organization... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Social Enterprise; Social Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career

Five years ago, the Business Roundtable issued a statement pledging to “lead their companies for the benefit of all stakeholders.” In the past five years, stakeholderism has gained wider acceptance and helped many corporate leaders see the value of taking the... View Details

November 2023
Case

Gabon Special Economic Zone

By: John Macomber and Wale Lawal

Tropical rain forest covers about 80% of the West African nation of Gabon, part of the Congo Basin and the "lungs of the world." Gabon is one of the first nations to earn revenue from carbon sequestration...as long as the rain forest remains intact. There are... View Details

Keywords: Economic Development; Forestry; Wood; Carbon Credits; Supply Chain; Economic Growth; Developing Countries and Economies; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Government Administration; Business and Government Relations; Strategy; Forest Products Industry; Africa; Gabon

March 2024
Supplement

ELCA's Series A Cap Table Exercise (Student Version)

By: Raymond Kluender, Anke Becker and Johnson Elugbadebo

In ELCA, the company must decide between two term sheets: one put forth by STV and one put forth by ESV.

This exercise is an analysis of the implications of these two term sheets on the ownership structure and the payouts of common and preferred... View Details

Keywords: Analysis; Venture Capital; Investment; Ownership Stake

Professor Christopher A. Bartlett received an economics degree from the University of Queensland, Australia (1964), and both the masters and doctorate degrees in business administration from Harvard University (1971 and 1979).

As a practicing manager prior... View Details

Keywords: consulting; health care; management consulting; manufacturing; medical supplies; wine

October 1999
Case

ZEFER: Building a Business at Hyperspeed

By: John T. Gourville and Joseph B. Lassiter III

In the past 18 months, ZEFER has gone from a several-person Internet consulting firm to a major player in the information-technology services industry. In particular, in the past six months, it has grown from 40 to 400 professionals, has hired a seasoned management... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development; Recruitment; Venture Capital; Acquisition; Organizational Culture; Managerial Roles; Growth Management; Information Technology Industry

28 May 2024
In Practice

Job Search Advice for a Tough Market: Think Broadly and Stay Flexible

‘yes’ The venture capital and startup job market is particularly slow this year. I am reaching into my network more than in prior years to put students in touch with people in the industry. Down rounds and layoffs in tech have been in the... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

October 2001
Case

SchoolSuccess.net

By: James E. Austin and Arthur McCaffrey

The mission of the nonprofit Jumpstart for Young Children was to address the problem of school readiness of low-income family preschoolers. It had been growing significantly, and to achieve its projected expansion would require major increases in funding. After... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Early Childhood Education; Venture Capital; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Startups; Management Teams

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2014
Book

Empire of Cotton: A Global History

By: Sven Beckert

The epic story of the rise and fall of the empire of cotton, its centrality to the world economy, and its making and remaking of global capitalism. Cotton is so ubiquitous as to be almost invisible, yet understanding its history is key to understanding the origins... View Details

Keywords: Economic Systems; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Globalized Markets and Industries; Society; Manufacturing Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

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January 1995 (Revised August 1997)
Background Note

Cross-Border Valuation

By: Kenneth A. Froot and W. Carl Kester

Provides a review of valuation techniques used to assess cross-border investments. Discusses the discounting of free cash flows with a weighted average cost of capital and the use of adjusted present value. Special concerns such as foreign-exchange risk, country risks,... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues

December 2011
Case

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters: Confidential Information for Negotiation with Keurig

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann, Shikhar Ghosh and James K. Sebenius

Case provides confidential information for students assuming the role of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) senior executives in a negotiation to license technology from Keurig, a startup that has developed an innovative "portion pack" coffee brewing solution. The... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Food and Beverage Industry

25 Apr 2017
News

Harvard Business School’s annual contest for entrepreneurs is a case study unto itself

05 Nov 2020
Video

Entrepreneurial Opportunities in a Post-COVID World: The Future of Retail & E-Commerce

2023
Working Paper

LALIGA—From a Soccer Competition Organizer to a Global Player in the Sports and Entertainment Industry

By: Stephen A. Greyser, Kenneth Cortsen and Juan Fuentes Fernández

LALIGA, the first- and second-tier professional soccer league (known as “football” outside of the U.S. and Canada) in Spain, enters its 100th soccer season later this decade. The most popular game in the world (Giulianotti, 2012) has gone through many changes since... View Details

Keywords: Soccer; ＂Sports Organizations,; Business History; Strategy; Brands and Branding; Technology Adoption; Sports Industry

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01 Dec 2014
Working Paper Summaries

Financing Innovation

Keywords: by William R. Kerr & Ramana Nanda

March 2022 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Clara Wu Tsai and Brooklyn Loan Innovation

By: Archie L. Jones, Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Henry McGee

Philanthropist Clara Wu Tsai is committed to racial equity and investing in Brooklyn-based minority business owners. In the wake of the George Floyd murder, she decides to create a new initiative called the Social Justice Fund and commit an initial $50 million over 10... View Details

Keywords: Minority-owned Businesses; Racial Equity; Entrepreneurship; Race; Values and Beliefs; Small Business; Partners and Partnerships; Social Issues; Investment; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Decision Making; Brooklyn

March 2007 (Revised March 2008)
Case

The Nikkei 225 Reconstitution

By: Robin Greenwood

Taka Haneda, a proprietary trader at the Tokyo office of Goldman Sachs, has just learned that the Nikkei 225 will undergo a significant redefinition over the coming week. He faces several billion dollars of customer orders, as well as the opportunity to commit the... View Details

Keywords: Financial Liquidity; Stocks; Investment Return; Price; Market Transactions; Financial Services Industry; Tokyo

September 2001
Case

Charitableway

By: James E. Austin and Elizabeth Kind

In early 2001, Charitableway, an ePhilanthropy application service provider that enabled the collection of charitable donations online; faced major strategic decisions relating to its alliance with United Way of America to foster workplace giving online. One of the... View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving