Publications

2008
Article

Ambidexterity as a Dynamic Capability: Resolving the Innovator's Dilemma

By: Charles O'Reilly and Michael Tushman

How do organizations survive in the face of change? Underlying this question is a rich debate about whether organizations can adapt—and if so, how. One perspective, organizational ecology, presents evidence suggesting that most organizations are largely inert and... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Competency and Skills; Innovation and Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Design; Performance Efficiency; Competitive Advantage

June 2018
Article

Cost of Experimentation and the Evolution of Venture Capital

By: Michael Ewens, Ramana Nanda and Matthew Rhodes-Kropf

We study how technological shocks to the cost of starting new businesses have led the venture capital model to adapt in fundamental ways over the prior decade. We both document and provide a framework to understand the changes in the investment strategy of VCs in... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Investing; Abandonment Option; Technological Innovation; Venture Capital; Investment

2017
Working Paper

Cost of Experimentation and the Evolution of Venture Capital

By: Michael Ewens, Ramana Nanda and Matthew Rhodes-Kropf

We study how technological shocks to the cost of starting new businesses have led the venture capital model to adapt in fundamental ways over the prior decade. We both document and provide a framework to understand the changes in the investment strategy of VCs in... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Investing; Abandonment Option; Technological Innovation; Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; Investment

SSRN

Article

Capabilities, Cognition and Inertia: Evidence from Digital Imaging

By: M. Tripsas and G. Gavetti

There is empirical evidence that established firms often have difficulty adapting to radical technological change. Although prior work in the evolutionary tradition emphasizes the inertial forces associated with the local nature of learning processes, little... View Details

Keywords: Business Offices; Organizations; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques

February 2010
Background Note

Millipore Background Note

By: Elie Ofek and Natalie Kindred

This note provides background on Millipore Corporation, a global provider of products and services used primarily in the discovery, development and production of therapeutic drugs. With a track record of quickly adapting to the evolving needs of its customers,... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Customer Focus and Relationships; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

06 Jan 2020
Working Paper Summaries

The Future of Executive Development: The CLO’s Compass and The Executive Programs Designer’s Guide

Keywords: by Mihnea Moldoveanu and Das Narayandas; Education

2025
Article

Educating Students and Professionals on the Business Implications of Climate Change

By: Michael W. Toffel

As climate change poses unprecedented challenges and opportunities, the private sector must play a pivotal role in both adaptation and mitigation efforts. This article discusses the new Harvard Business School Online course, Business and Climate Change, designed to... View Details

Keywords: Climate Impact; Online Courses; Online Education; Decarbonization; Mitigation Policies; Climate Risk; Climate Change; Risk Management; Science; Policy; Business Education; Adaptation

November 2011 (Revised August 2012)
Background Note

Customer Discovery and Validation for Entrepreneurs

By: Frank V. Cespedes, Thomas Eisenmann and Steven G. Blank

Provides practical guidelines for conducting market research to explore and validate demand for entrepreneurial offering. Explains how the research objectives of entrepreneurs might differ from those relevant to managers evaluating product or service offerings to... View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Entrepreneurship

2022
Working Paper

Institutional Emplacement and the Novel Resurgence of Independent Bookstores

By: Ryan Raffaelli and Ryann Noe

This study reveals how actors leverage physical place as an asset to facilitate organizational adaptation and industry evolution. Through a longitudinal, qualitative analysis of the U.S. independent bookselling industry from 1995 to 2019, we outline how dispersed... View Details

Keywords: Industry Growth; Small Business; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business Processes; Retail Industry; Publishing Industry; United States

27 Apr 2015
News

Reconnecting on education

Career Coach

Wendi Zhang

Wendi partners with MBA students and alumni to meet them where they are in their career journey, and 1) if undecided - helps them get clarity, 2) if decided - coaches them in taking the next steps to reach the next goal post(s), and 3) upon reaching the next goal -... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products; Entertainment / Media; Entrepreneurship; Angel Investing; Financial Services (All); Venture Capital; Financial Services (All); Real Estate; Social Enterprise; Startup - Founder; Entrepreneurship; Startup - Joiner; Entrepreneurship; Technology

September–October 2023
Article

Reskilling in the Age of AI

By: Jorge Tamayo, Leila Doumi, Sagar Goel, Orsolya Kovács-Ondrejkovic and Raffaella Sadun

In the coming decades, as the pace of technological change continues to increase, millions of workers may need to be not just upskilled but reskilled—a profoundly complex societal challenge that will sometimes require workers to both acquire new skills and... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; AI and Machine Learning; Training; Adaptation; Employees; Digital Transformation

Register to Read

March 2008 (Revised November 2009)
Case

New Schools for New Orleans 2008

Founded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina as a catalyst for the transformation of the public education system in New Orleans, President Sarah Usdin and CEO Matt Candler must adapt their strategy to respond to a continuously shifting local context. By 2008, conditions on... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Education; Social Entrepreneurship; Situation or Environment; Adaptation; Value Creation; Education Industry; New Orleans

11 Mar 2010
Working Paper Summaries

The Many Faces of Nonprofit Accountability

Keywords: by Alnoor Ebrahim

23 Mar 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Finding Excuses to Decline the Ask

Keywords: by Christine Exley & Ragan Petrie

October 2010 (Revised July 2012)
Case

Global Expansion at Sanford C. Bernstein

By: Linda A. Hill and Dana Teppert

Sanford C. Bernstein, a premier sell-side research firm, is expanding globally and has recently opened an office in Hong Kong. Global Director of Research Robert van Brugge must consider how best to organize the firm's research department to enhance cross-sector and... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Talent and Talent Management; Globalized Firms and Management; Knowledge Sharing; Leading Change; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Design; Research; Financial Services Industry; Hong Kong

16 Mar 2016
Video

Testing Your Social Venture: Iterating Based on Market Feedback

05 Sep 2012
News

Are Firms Neglecting Succession Plans?

2020
White Paper

Building the On-Demand Workforce

By: Joseph B. Fuller, Manjari Raman, James Palano, Allison Bailey, Nithya Vaduganathan, Elizabeth Kaufman, Renée Laverdière and Sibley Lovett

The right talent, in the right place, at the right time, is the equation for success in today’s world. In an era of technological change, demographic shifts, and economic uncertainty, companies can enhance their ability to compete by building a flexible... View Details

Keywords: Future Of Work; On-demand Economy; Workforce; On-demand Workforce; Competitive Advantage; Human Capital; Talent and Talent Management; Recruitment