Publications

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March 1983 (Revised January 1984)
Case

Merloni Group

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

The general manager of the recently-established French subsidiary of an Italian appliance company is in conflict with headquarters about unexpectedly poor financial performance. Headquarters management believes it should be able to exert more control over the... View Details

Keywords: Business Subsidiaries; Trade; Organizational Structure; Performance Evaluation; Power and Influence; France; Italy

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March 1997 (Revised January 1999)
Case

SureCut Shears, Inc.

By: W. Carl Kester

A bank loan officer must determine whether to waive convenants and extend terms on a line of credit granted to SureCut Shears. At issue is whether the inability of SureCut to pay down its line of credit is due to a temporary cyclical downturn or other long-term... View Details

Keywords: Business Cycles; Finance; Performance; Problems and Challenges

January 1989
Case

Benetton S.p.A.

By: Howard H. Stevenson

Focuses on the strategic/organizational development of Benetton. Examines the organizational structure which has allowed the company to expand into a world scale company from its small entrepreneurial base. Examines the functional strategies which have allowed a huge... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Organizational Structure; Growth and Development; Business Strategy; Performance Effectiveness; Fashion Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry

March 2018
Case

Summit Public Schools (A)

By: John J-H Kim and Aldo Sesia

Summit Public Schools was a very successful charter management organization with schools in California and Washington State. The students came from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds, many from economically disadvantaged households. While nearly all of its students... View Details

Keywords: K-12; Online Learning; Virtual Learning; Blended Learning; Secondary Education; Middle School Education; Early Childhood Education; Learning; Business Model; Performance Improvement; Technology

February 1985 (Revised July 1986)
Case

Applichem (A)

Applichem has six plants in different countries making the same chemical product. The purpose of this case is to allow students to think about what costs are relevant to management in this process industry environment, about how to define a comparison of costs and... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Performance Productivity; Operations; Performance Improvement; Chemical Industry

08 Aug 2023
Research & Ideas

The Rise of Employee Analytics: Productivity Dream or Micromanagement Nightmare?

hiring and productivity, says Jeffrey T. Polzer, the UPS Foundation Professor of Human Resource Management at Harvard Business School. His recent paper probes how organizational researchers should study people analytics practices, which... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand

2008
Working Paper

An Investigation of Earnings Management through Marketing Actions

By: Craig James Chapman and Thomas J. Steenburgh

Prior research hypothesizes managers use "real actions," including the reduction of discretionary expenditures, to manage earnings to meet or beat key benchmarks. This paper examines this hypothesis by testing how different types of marketing expenditures are used... View Details

Keywords: Performance Expectations; Earnings Management; Marketing Strategy; Financial Reporting; Brands and Branding; Food and Beverage Industry

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February 1990 (Revised April 1991)
Background Note

Quick Response in the Apparel Industry

By: Janice H. Hammond

It has been estimated that the U.S. apparel industry wastes over $25 billion annually due to inefficient practices, long lead times, and insufficient coordination between channel partners. In response to intense competition from off-shore producers, the industry has... View Details

Keywords: Information; Distribution Channels; Performance Efficiency; Partners and Partnerships; Adaptation; Business Strategy; System; Technology; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

06 Jan 2011
What Do You Think?

How Should Management Deal With “Anonymous”?

view," but to ask how, if at all, organizations can or should be defended against the response from Anonymous? Its actions, triggered by the attacks on Wikileaks, hinted at a future of everything from Internet mischief (a la Anonymous) to cyber warfare, with View Details

Keywords: by James L. Heskett

15 Sep 2009
News

Last Look - September 2009

was performed at Harvard’s Sanders Theatre for an audience of about 1,200 people on November 28, 1942, the evening of Boston’s deadly Cocoanut Grove fire.” George Hanford (MBA ’43 March) wrote, “I can’t help observing that they all look... View Details

Keywords: Keith Larson; Business Schools & Computer & Management Training; Business Schools & Computer & Management Training

March 1990 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Analog Devices, Inc.: The Half-Life System

By: Robert S. Kaplan

The company has committed to major improvements in quality, cost, and on-time delivery performance. Despite strong senior management support, however, the actual rate of improvement was disappointing until a new measurement philosophy was introduced. The new approach... View Details

Keywords: Quality; Performance Improvement; Earnings Management; Financial Reporting; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Performance Productivity; Business or Company Management; Cost Management; Measurement and Metrics; Management Teams; Semiconductor Industry

November 2001 (Revised April 2002)
Case

Taking Charge at Dogus Holding (A)

By: Rakesh Khurana, Gina Carioggia and Simon Johnson

Describes 37-year-old Ferit Sahenk's challenges in taking over his father's traditionally managed $14 billion Turkish conglomerate in a period of economic instability. Leading the large holding company into the 21st century will require the establishment of a more... View Details

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Trade; Competitive Strategy; Decision Making; Leadership; Performance Effectiveness; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Family Business; Change Management; Turkey

May 2017
Case

Cambridge Franchise Partners

By: Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Two partners commence a rollup in the quick-service restaurant segment. They focus on operating improvements and spinning-off real estate. View Details

Keywords: Real Estate; Mergers and Acquisitions; Operations; Performance Improvement; Property; Management

21 Jul 2003
Research & Ideas

Don’t Get Buried in Customer Data—Use It

on," says Harvard Business School marketing professor Gerald Zaltman. A more strategic approach to data mining can provide the foundation for that decision-making architecture. Below, advice on how to use information about the... View Details

Keywords: by Jean Ayers

March 2007 (Revised November 2012)
Case

Parmalat Uruguay (A)

By: Paul Marshall and Gustavo Herrero

Three young MBAs create a partnership to acquire the assets of Parmalat in Uruguay. Focuses on their analysis prior to submitting a bid and their plan for improving the operations once their bid is accepted. In addition to improving operations, they must negotiate with... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Restructuring; Entrepreneurship; Borrowing and Debt; Negotiation; Performance Improvement; Uruguay

08 May 2015
News

An alternative view of the role of the corporation in society

Do corporations do well by doing good? Or do firms that engage in environmental and social initiatives destroy shareholder wealth? George Serafeim, the Jakurski Family Associate Professor of Business Administration, has studied how... View Details

August 2009
Case

Meeting the Diversity Challenge at PepsiCo: The Steve Reinemund Era

By: David A. Thomas and Stephanie Creary

This case profiles PepsiCo's diversity journey under the leadership of former chairman and CEO Steve Reinemund who instituted diversity as one of the company's strategic imperatives. It demonstrates the ways in which Reinemund partnered with his leadership team and... View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Leadership; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Culture; Performance Effectiveness; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

March 1997 (Revised December 1999)
Case

Alden Products, Inc.--European Manufacturing

By: Robert H. Hayes

The European organization of Alden Products, Inc. is contemplating a doubling of unit sales over the next ten years. Their largest plant, located in Holland, was set up 25 years earlier to supply all demands of the EEC countries on the continent. It has since expanded... View Details

Keywords: Production; Growth Management; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Strategic Planning; Performance Capacity; Business Strategy; Netherlands; Europe