Publications

October 2023 (Revised April 2024)
Case

ghSMART & Co: Building and Scaling a Time Smart Firm

By: Ashley Whillans and Sara Coronel Rodriguez

"For ghSMART, freedom is the first principle from which all good things flow”—Geoff Smart, Chairman and Founder, ghSMART. ghSMART was a leadership advisory firm that was grounded in the principle of freedom. Talented Consultants and Partners could work remotely from... View Details

Keywords: Time; Consulting Firms; Time Management; Talent and Talent Management; Employee Relationship Management; Innovation Strategy; Knowledge Sharing; Organizational Culture; Going Public; Partners and Partnerships; Expansion; Reputation

18 Dec 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, December 18, 2018

valuation of $200 million and debating changes to them that will allow them to grow their business. Ensuring that their marketing dollars were being spent efficiently was critical to the data-driven View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

01 Jun 1996
News

Keepers of the Flame

It's an international celebration of sport and goodwill whose humble beginnings date back two millennia. Today, with the vastly expanded modern Games, putting on the Olympics has become as much View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons

01 Mar 2010
Op-Ed

A Golden Opportunity for Ford and GM

too few consumers. Mulally's first act was to borrow $23.5 billion by mortgaging the entire company to give Ford the runway necessary to retool its aging lineup. Mulally moved fast, trimming unpopular lines, cutting View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Auto

01 Dec 2015
News

Leading Boston and Beyond

(MBA 2002), served as the city’s CFO from 2010 to 2014 after working as an advisor to the mayor and serving in the department of administration and finance. Mitch Weiss (MBA... View Details

Keywords: Jen Myers; Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support; Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support

18 Jun 2024
Research & Ideas

Industrial Decarbonization: Confronting the Hard Challenges of Cement

Cities like Cairo; Chongqing, China; Delhi; and Kinshasa, Congo are experiencing population explosions accompanied by unprecedented demand for homes, offices, factories, and infrastructure. In the United States, the Biden Administration’s policy-driven infrastructure... View Details

Keywords: by by Janelle Conaway; Green Technology; Energy; Industrial Products; Manufacturing

Blog

HBS Online and Executive Education Leadership: Q+A with Patrick Mullane and Luis Viceira

the potential of this union? (PM): First, having multi-modal ways of delivering learning when corporations come to the School asking to educate their managers or leaders in a... View Details

August 2003 (Revised January 2013)
Case

Multinational Corporations in Apartheid-era South Africa: The Issue of Reparations

By: Geoffrey Jones and Cate Reavis

Considers the lawsuits filed on behalf of victims of apartheid against multinationals who operated in South Africa prior to 1994. Reviews the debates about divestment from and sanctions against South Africa from the 1950s. Includes case studies of companies that... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Multinational Firms and Management; Government Legislation; Lawsuits and Litigation; Business and Government Relations; Prejudice and Bias; South Africa

16 Mar 2009
Research & Ideas

When the Internet Runs Out of IP Addresses

ISPs all offer IPv4 transit. Transition raises the question of who goes first. ISPs have hesitated to offer IPv6 service because there's not much demand. Users (and end-user networks like companies View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Telecommunications

June 2022
Teaching Plan

Lifebank Nigeria

By: Brian Trelstad, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Wale Lawal

The aspiration of addressing maternal deaths in Nigeria, which were mostly caused by blood shortages, led Temie Giwa-Tubosun to found LifeBank in 2015. LifeBank developed an online platform that enabled hospitals to connect and purchase blood from local blood banks and... View Details

Keywords: Systems Design; Social Business; Business At The Base Of The Pyramid; Health Care; Blood; Social Enterprise; Health Care and Treatment; Growth and Development Strategy; Finance; Health Industry; Transportation Industry; Africa; Nigeria

01 Nov 2017
What Do You Think?

What Are the Real Lessons of the Wells Fargo Case?

loan recipients to take out insurance on autos that were already insured. Wells Fargo management claimed that it was unaware of customer complaints collected by the insurance company. Further, when made... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Banking

March 2011
Case

Calveta Dining Services, Inc.: A Recipe for Growth?

By: James L. Heskett and Patricia Girardi

Calveta Dining Services contracts with senior living facilities (SLFs) for the management of food service to residents. Created by Antonio Calveta and built on his passion for food and traditional family values, the firm had enjoyed three decades of strong growth when... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Vision; Employee Empowerment; Service Management; Family Businesses; Growth Strategy; Family Business; Expansion; Communication; Employee Relationship Management; Service Operations; Organizational Structure; Growth and Development Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

January 2018
Case

Scaling Swagbucks (A)

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport and Matthew G. Preble

In early 2014, Chuck Davis (HBS '86) has joined Swagbucks as its first professional CEO to scale a successful and profitable brand promotion and consumer research business. Davis came into the job while serving as a venture partner at TCV, a growth stage VC firm,... View Details

Keywords: Loyalty Management; Scaling; Scale; Entrepreneurship; Human Resources; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Design; Leading Change; Growth Management; Religion; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Transition; Leadership; Web Services Industry; Technology Industry