Publications

December 2021 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Katerra (A)

By: Lindsay N. Hyde, Thomas R. Eisenmann and Tom Quinn

In April 2020, Katerra executives struggled with a series of decisions that would determine the fate of one of the best-funded construction startups in history. Katerra was founded in 2015 by technology-industry executive Michael Marks and commercial real estate... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Entrepreneurship; Failure; Construction; Real Estate Industry; Technology Industry; United States

March 1999 (Revised April 1999)
Case

Environmental Risk Management at Chevron Corporation

By: Forest L. Reinhardt, Monica M Mandelli and Jennifer Burns

Chevron Corp., headquartered in San Francisco, manages a worldwide, vertically integrated value chain from the oil well to the gasoline station. Mishandling of oil at any stage of production can damage the natural environment, human health, corporate profitability, or... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Risk and Uncertainty; Environmental Sustainability; Energy Generation; Supply Chain Management; Metals and Minerals; Management Systems; Management Teams; Trade; Vertical Integration; Energy Industry; Mining Industry

August 2006 (Revised May 2016)
Case

Cluster Mobilization in Mitteldeutschland

By: Jeffrey Fear, Christian H.M. Ketels and Claudia Linsenmeier

As part of the privatization in Eastern Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Dow Chemical made a major investment in the Halle-Leipzig region, one of the largest chemical industry sites in Europe. The executive in charge of Dow's operations in the region, Bart... View Details

Keywords: Industry Clusters; Development Economics; Privatization; Chemicals; Foreign Direct Investment; Management Teams; Private Sector; Competitive Strategy; Brands and Branding; Market Participation; Chemical Industry; Germany

16 Jun 2015
First Look

First Look: June 16, 2015

of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Emphasis is on executive leadership and firm strategy in coordinating across a global network of partners in the production of a new aircraft. Purchase this case:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

January 1999
Case

Ciba Specialty Chemicals

By: Forest L. Reinhardt

Based on extensive interviews, this case discusses the environmental policies of a successful firm in the specialty chemicals business. Executives at Ciba have differentiated products along environmental lines and have used environmental scrutiny as a tool for cutting... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Business or Company Management; Cost Management; Risk Management; Business Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Competitive Advantage; Chemical Industry

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20 Dec 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

How to Design a Better Customer Experience

(The accompanying teaching note is available to instructors to help them run the exercise.) Thomke, who has worked with global firms on upping their customer experience game, has taught the class in the HBS View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Health; Entertainment & Recreation

2012
Other Unpublished Work

The Efficacy of Shareholder Voting: Evidence from Equity Compensation Plans

By: Ian D. Gow, Christopher S. Armstrong and David F. Larcker

This study examines the effects of shareholder support for equity compensation plans on subsequent chief executive officer (CEO) compensation. Using cross-sectional regression, instrumental variable, and regression discontinuity research designs, we find little... View Details

Keywords: Voting; Equity; Executive Compensation; Rights; Performance Effectiveness; Business and Shareholder Relations; Mathematical Methods; Motivation and Incentives

June 18, 2019
Article

Research: Investors Reward Companies That Talk Up Their Digital Initiatives

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Wilbur Chen

A study of how companies disclose their digital initiatives on earnings calls and written communications finds that more firms are using these technologies, that financial markets reward companies that disclose such initiatives, but that financial performance... View Details

Keywords: Digital Technologies; Disclosure; Investment; Performance Improvement

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June 2008 (Revised April 2013)
Case

Bernd Beetz: Creating the New Coty

By: Geoffrey Jones and David Kiron

Considers the creation of the world's largest fragrance company by Bernd Beetz, appointed chief executive of Coty Inc. in 2001. In 1990 the German consumer goods company Benkiser began acquiring fragrance and cosmetics brands with the intent of developing a beauty... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Entrepreneurship; Globalized Firms and Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Germany; United States

24 Nov 2009
Working Paper Summaries

From Strategy to Business Models and to Tactics

Keywords: by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell & Joan Enric Ricart

11 Oct 2010
Research & Ideas

It Pays to Hire Women in Countries That Won’t

co-wrote with Lynn Pyun of MIT and B.Y. Cheon of Hanshin University and the Korea Labor Institute. Focusing on South Korea, the team interviewed scores of multinational and local executives to find out whether a View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

20 Sep 2022
Research & Ideas

How Partisan Politics Play Out in American Boardrooms

data, combined with the voter registration records of 3,786 top executives working at 941 firms in the S&P 1500 between 2008 and 2020. They pulled documents from states that share records and track voter... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

February 2016
Case

Health Catalyst

By: Kevin Schulman and Suresh Balu

Dan Burton, Health Catalyst CEO (HBS Baker Scholar), and Tom Burton, Health Catalyst Senior Vice President of Product Development and cofounder, closed on a $41 million investment round. Their firm was one of the hottest companies in the health information technology... View Details

Keywords: Service Management; Strategy; Operations Management; Information Technology; Information Management; Entrepreneurship; Service Delivery; Competitive Strategy; Performance; Information Technology Industry; Health Industry

15 Sep 2022
Research & Ideas

Looking For a Job? Some LinkedIn Connections Matter More Than Others

When it comes to seeking a new job, making connections on LinkedIn can be key to landing an offer. But building a large network on the platform isn’t as crucial as cultivating the right kinds of connections, new research shows. While networking on digital platforms can... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

January 2006
Article

Are Perks Purely Managerial Excess?

By: Raghuram G. Rajan and Julie Wulf

A widespread view is that executive perks exemplify agency problems--they are a route through which managers misappropriate a firm's surplus. Accordingly, firms with high free cash flow, operating in industries with limited investment prospects, should offer more... View Details

Keywords: Problems and Challenges; Cash Flow; Business or Company Management; Situation or Environment; Performance Productivity; Investment; Executive Compensation

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03 Jan 2023
What Do You Think?

How Would the Leadership Style of Girl Scouts' Frances Hesselbein Fare Today?

(iStockphoto/400tmax) While summarizing comments to this same question asked about Jack Welch in last month’s column (shown below), I received word of Frances Hesselbein’s death. Welch was regarded by many as the greatest CEO of the 20th century. Hesselbein, national... View Details

Keywords: Re: James L. Heskett

September 2007
Supplement

Leadership in Law: Amy Schulman at DLA Piper (Video Supplement)

By: Boris Groysberg

What does it take to build a successful career over time? Describes Amy Schulman's career progression and role as a star senior litigator and top executive at one of the world's largest law firms. It focuses on different stages in her career and what she did to be... View Details

Keywords: Law; Personal Development and Career; Time Management; Work-Life Balance; Governing and Advisory Boards

April 1997 (Revised July 1997)
Case

KPMG Peat Marwick U.S.: One Giant Brain

Demonstrates how organizations can move toward creation of processes and information technology infrastructures for effective knowledge management in order to enhance performance and productivity. More specifically, describes the knowledge management strategy of KPMG... View Details

Keywords: Internet; Information Technology; Knowledge Management; Service Industry; Consulting Industry; United States