Publications

July 2020 (Revised May 2021)
Case

Oxygen Esports

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

On May 4, 2020, a press release from Boston, Massachusetts, announced the launch of Oxygen Esports (Oxygen), a new organization that hoped to dominate the rising esports scene in New England. Oxygen was created from a merger between Helix eSports (Helix), an owner and... View Details

Keywords: Esports; Sports; Online Technology; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Entrepreneurship; Strategy

Article

Least-Cost Avoiders in Online Fraud and Abuse

By: Benjamin Edelman

Web users face considerable fraud, malfeasance, and economic harm that system operators could prevent or mitigate. Although the legal system can respond, regulations have mixed results. I examine the applicable legal rules that constrain online fraud and the economic... View Details

Keywords: Online Technology; Crime and Corruption; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Economics; Law

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2024
Working Paper

Old Moats for New Models: Openness, Control, and Competition in Generative AI

By: Pierre Azoulay, Joshua L. Krieger and Abhishek Nagaraj

Drawing insights from the field of innovation economics, we discuss the likely competitive environment shaping generative AI advances. Central to our analysis are the concepts of appropriability—whether firms in the industry are able to control the knowledge generated... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; AI and Machine Learning; Open Source Distribution; Policy

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16 May 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Marketplace or Reseller?

Keywords: by Andrei Hagiu & Julian Wright; Retail

March 2004 (Revised June 2004)
Case

Massport (A): The Aftermath of 9/11

This case looks at the turnaround at the Massachusetts Port Authority after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It begins with the situation during the immediate aftermath of 9/11 and then describes how the new CEO restructures the public agency to operate much more like a... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Change Management; Corporate Accountability; National Security; Governance Controls; Organizational Culture; Public Administration Industry; Massachusetts

24 Nov 2009
First Look

First Look: Nov. 24

and Frances X. Frei Publication:Chap. 8 in Operational Control in Asset Management: Processes and Costs. 1st ed., edited by Michael Pinedo, 154-168. Denmark: SimCorp StrategyLab, 2010 Abstract This chapter... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 2010 (Revised December 2010)
Case

Hôpital de Pontoise

By: Richard M.J. Bohmer, Daniela Beyersdorfer and Simon Harrow

In 2010, Andre Razafindranaly, managing director of a large French public hospital, considers which organizational structure will help them adjust to the changing health sector environment. The move from global budget to activity-based funding has led his and many... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Governance Controls; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Health Care and Treatment; Leading Change; Service Delivery; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Health Industry; France

January 2025
Case

COMAC - Chinese Aviation Soars to New Heights

By: William C. Kirby and Daniel Fu

COMAC's C919 manifested the first challenge to the Boeing-Airbus duopoly since it came to dominate aircraft manufacturing in the 1990s. Beijing sought to export the C919 abroad in its quest to become a "transportation superpower." Was it a wise decision for COMAC to... View Details

Keywords: Aviation; Boeing; Airbus; Aircraft; State-owned Enterprise (SOE); Chinese Manufacturing; Airline Industry; Airports; Global Strategy; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Duopoly and Oligopoly; Supply Chain; Expansion; Aerospace Industry; China; United States; Europe

July 2019
Article

Market Reaction to Mandatory Nonfinancial Disclosure

By: Jody Grewal, Edward J. Riedl and George Serafeim

We examine the equity market reaction to events associated with the passage of a directive in the European Union (EU) mandating increased nonfinancial disclosure. These disclosures relate to firms’ environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and would be... View Details

Keywords: Nonfinancial Information; Nonfinancial Performance; ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Investor Behavior; Disclosure; Disclosure Regulation; Regulation; Sustainability; Corporate Performance; Information; Corporate Disclosure; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Performance; Environmental Sustainability; Corporate Governance; Outcome or Result

SSRN

19 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

$15 Billion in Five Years: What Data Tells Us About MacKenzie Scott’s Philanthropy

meaningful patterns have begun to emerge.” Such themes are striking in their contrast with the approaches taken by other mega-donors, who often establish perpetual foundations, focus on specific issues, and exercise considerable control... View Details

Keywords: by Matthew Lee, Brian Trelstad, and Ethan Tran

November 2006 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Kerr-McGee

By: Robin Greenwood and André Perold

Activist investors Carl Icahn and Barry Rosenstein acquire a stake in Oklahoma-based company Kerr-McGee. They demand two board seats and ask the company to make several operational and financial changes, including the repurchase of equity and divestiture of their... View Details

Keywords: Investment Activism; Restructuring; Equity; Investment; Management; Governance Controls; Corporate Strategy; Chemical Industry; Energy Industry; United States

July 2004 (Revised July 2005)
Case

Activision: The 'Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer' Project

By: Alan D. MacCormack, Enrico D"Angelo and Kerry Herman

Mike Ward, the producer in charge of developing the Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer game for Activision, must decide whether to launch the game in time for the 2002 Christmas season. Complicating his decision are the lukewarm response from consumers to TV test spots of the... View Details

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Product Development; Customer Satisfaction; Projects; Business or Company Management; Product Launch; Marketing Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Industry Structures; Innovation Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

02 Aug 2006
Research & Ideas

Investor Protection: The Czech Experience

Protection in a Converging World," the expropriation and its aftermath "illustrate the interaction of property and contract rights in a global setting, how corporate control is shaped by geography, and how multinational firms... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Media & Broadcasting; Entertainment & Recreation

28 Aug 2012
First Look

First Look: August 28

is the ability to find the right balance among growing through innovation, staying true to its core, and controlling operational complexity. Purchase this case:http://hbr.org/search/613004-PDF-ENG MF Global:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2018
Working Paper

Show or Tell? Improving Agent Decision Making in a Tanzanian Mobile Money Field Experiment

By: Jason Acimovic, Chris Parker, David F. Drake and Karthik Balasubramanian

When workers make operational decisions, the firm's global knowledge and the workers’ domain-specific knowledge complement each other. Oftentimes workers have the final decision-making power. Two key decisions a firm makes when designing systems to support these... View Details

Keywords: Employees; Decision Making; Training; Performance Improvement; Money; Mobile Technology; Developing Countries and Economies; Financial Services Industry

SSRN

December 2014
Article

Clusters, Convergence, and Economic Performance

By: Mercedes Delgado, Michael E. Porter and Scott Stern

This paper evaluates the role of regional cluster composition in regional industry performance. On the one hand, diminishing returns to specialization in a location can result in a convergence effect: the growth rate of an industry within a region may be declining in... View Details

Keywords: Clusters; Economics; Industry Clusters; Economy; Growth and Development; United States

June 2001
Case

NESWC (A)

By: Michael A. Wheeler

Documents attempts to restructure a public-private partnership between the operator of a $200 million trash-to-energy cogeneration plant and a consortium of two dozen Massachusetts municipalities. Describes the process that led to a one-sided agreement, as well as the... View Details

Keywords: Private Sector; Public Sector; Energy Generation; Corporate Governance; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Negotiation Deal; Negotiation Process; Partners and Partnerships; Wastes and Waste Processing; Energy Industry; Massachusetts

November 2006 (Revised June 2010)
Case

SUN Brewing (B)

In July 2004, Shiv, Nand, and Uday Khemka are discussing their holdings in SUN Interbrew, a leading Russian beer producer that is part of the family's global portfolio of businesses. SUN Interbrew has been operating as a joint venture since 1998, when the Khemka... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Investment; Globalized Markets and Industries; Ownership Stake; Family Ownership; Valuation; Food and Beverage Industry; Russia