Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(1,206)
- Faculty Publications (384)
- August 2010 (Revised January 2013)
- Case
Urban Water Partners (A)
By: Karthik Ramanna, George Serafeim and Aldo Sesia
The case explores a new business venture to bring clean water to residents of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, who otherwise cannot afford it. Management has enough money to get the company through August 2010 but needs more capital thereafter. An HBS alumnus is interested in... View Details
- 2010
- Working Paper
Venture Capital Investment in the Clean Energy Sector
By: Shikhar Ghosh and Ramana Nanda
We examine the extent to which venture capital is adequately positioned for the rapid commercialization of clean energy technologies in the United States. While there are several startups in clean energy that are well-suited to the traditional venture capital... View Details
- June 2010 (Revised February 2011)
- Case
The Fox Islands Wind Project (A)
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, James Thomas Corcoran, Max Gazor, Dylan Hogarty and Alexander H. Somers, Jr.
The market for electricity on the Fox Islands of North Haven and Vinalhaven, Maine is unique and costly for residents. Historically, electricity prices on the islands had been three times the national average because of the high cost of importing electricity via an... View Details
- April – May 2010
- Article
Banking Deregulations, Financing Constraints and Firm Entry Size
By: William R. Kerr and Ramana Nanda
We examine the effect of US branch banking deregulations on the entry size of new firms using micro-data from the US Census Bureau. We find that the average entry size for startups did not change following the deregulations. However, among firms that survived at least... View Details
- 2010
- Book
Mastering the VC Game: A Venture Capital Insider Reveals How to Get from Start-up to IPO on Your Terms
An essential, insider's guide to the secrets of the world of venture capital, written by one of the few people who have played on both sides of this high-stakes game. In it, you will find detailed insights, colorful stories, and practical advice gathered from... View Details
- April 2010
- Article
Performance Persistence in Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital
This paper presents evidence of performance persistence in entrepreneurship. We show that entrepreneurs with a track record of success are much more likely to succeed than first-time entrepreneurs and those who have previously failed. In particular, they exhibit... View Details
- February 2010 (Revised October 2010)
- Case
Re-THINK-ing THINK: The Electric Car Company
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and David Kiron
On January 5, 2010, 48-year-old Richard Canny was on his way to meet the governor of Indiana. He was reading his newly issued press release announcing that THINK planned to start automobile production in Elkhart County, Indiana to launch its THINK City battery-operated... View Details
- December 2009 (Revised June 2011)
- Case
Curt Schilling's Next Pitch
By: Noam T. Wasserman, Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Rachel Gordon
As his major-league pitching career was starting to wind down in 2006, baseball all-star Curt Schilling decided to become an entrepreneur. Looking to focus his tenacity and his passion for online role-playing games on a new challenge, he founded an online gaming... View Details
- December 2009 (Revised March 2025)
- Case
Phreesia: The Patient Intake Company
By: Regina E. Herzlinger, Sunaina Yarlagadda and Brian L. Walker
How should the co-founders of an organization that provides patient sign-in and billing services scale their company after five years of successfully targeting small private physician practices? Phreesia had deployed a direct mail and sales force strategy that resulted... View Details
- October 2009 (Revised June 2010)
- Case
1366 Technologies
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, Ramana Nanda and David Kiron
Just months after declaring their intent to become a solar cell equipment supplier, van Mierlo and Sachs were again revisiting the issue of what the company should be. Becoming a successful solar cell manufacturer would potentially be much more lucrative than becoming... View Details
- July 2009 (Revised October 2011)
- Case
VeeV on the Rocks?
By: Joshua D. Margolis, Christopher Marquis and Laura Winig
Three pressing challenges (equity split, extent of commitment to social responsibility, and product discoloration) confront VeeV, the world's first alcoholic beverage infused with acai berries. Brothers Courtney and Carter Reum founded VeeV in 2007 and the firm has... View Details
- 2009
- Working Paper
Banking Deregulations, Financing Constraints and Firm Entry Size
By: William R. Kerr and Ramana Nanda
We examine the effect of US branch banking deregulations on the entry size of new firms using micro-data from the US Census Bureau. We find that the average entry size for startups did not change following the deregulations. However, among firms that survived at least... View Details
- April 2009 (Revised December 2015)
- Case
Dot.com: Online Pet Retailing
By: Tom Nicholas and David Chen
From 1995 to 1999, the U.S. experienced a period of tremendous growth in its information technology (IT) sector. The IT industry, although it accounted for less than 10% of the U.S. economy's total output, contributed disproportionately to economic growth. One market... View Details
- Article
In Microfinance, Clients Must Come First
By: Srikant M. Datar, Marc J. Epstein and Kristi Yuthas
In the debate over whether microfinance works, few microfinance institutions articulate what, exactly, their ultimate goals are and how, exactly, they will achieve them. The authors cut through the confusion by mapping a clear theory of change for microfinance. If the... View Details
- October 2008 (Revised October 2009)
- Case
Blink: The European Air-Taxi Service
By: William A. Sahlman and Jackie Donnelly Russell
This case describes a new venture that is about to launch a Pan-European air-taxi service in 2008. View Details
- July 2008 (Revised November 2012)
- Case
Negotiating Equity Splits at UpDown
By: Noam Wasserman and Deepak Malhotra
Michael Reich is having severe doubts about how he split the equity with his co-founders two months ago, when they completed a one-page "November Agreement." Since then, Michael has found an angel investor and has worked non-stop on the business, while one co-founder... View Details
- June 2008
- Case
From xiaonei to hainei: The Quest for the Social Networking Service Market in China
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, Michael Shih-Ta Chen and Keith Chi-ho Wong
Wang Xing, the founder of Hainei.com, one of the fastest growing social networking service (SNS) providers in China, was preparing to raise funds from venture capitalists. Since late 2003, Wang had established several Internet startups in China. Xiaonei.com, which he... View Details
- June 2008
- Teaching Note
Transparent Value LLC (TN)
By: Sharon P. Katz and Krishna G. Palepu
Teaching Note for [108098]. View Details
- February 2008 (Revised August 2014)
- Case
MedVal Ventures
Is medical travel a viable business opportunity? A group of MBA students consider the pros and cons of starting a business that would send people from the U.S. to India for elective non-emergency surgeries. View Details
- August 2007 (Revised February 2008)
- Case
Pinnacle Ventures
By: Michael J. Roberts, William A. Sahlman and Elizabeth Kind
Describes a prospective "venture debt" loan to a new venture from the perspective of Patrick Lee, a principal at Pinnacle Ventures. Forces students to grapple with the nature of financial risk in the start-up firm and assess the prospective risks and returns to a... View Details