Publications

September 1991 (Revised November 1997)
Case

Gillette's Launch of Sensor

By: Pankaj Ghemawat and Benjamin C. Esty

The introduction of the Sensor Shaving System, one of the biggest product launches ever, forced Gillette to reevaluate its strategy in its shaving and non-shaving business. It had to decide whether to go ahead with the launch and if so, at what scale. Permits analysis... View Details

Keywords: Product Launch; Technological Innovation; Innovation Strategy; Business Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Measurement and Metrics; Consumer Products Industry

Educators

2003
Article

BMW Group's Sustainability Management System: Preliminary Results, Ongoing Challenges, and the UN Global Compact

By: Michael W. Toffel, Natalie Hill and Kellie McElhaney

This article describes preliminary results and ongoing challenges faced by Designworks/USA, an industrial design subsidiary of BMW Group, in its sustainability management efforts since it implemented the world's first certified Sustainability Management System (SMS).... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Management Systems; Standards; Social Issues; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Outcome or Result; Auto Industry

Read Now

July 2015
Article

Prosocial Norms in the Classroom: The Role of Self-regulation in Following Norms of Giving

By: P. R. Blake, M. Piovesan, N. Montinari, F. Werneken and F. Gino

Children who are prosocial in elementary school tend to have higher academic achievement and experience greater acceptance by their peers in adolescence. Despite this positive influence on educational outcomes, it is still unclear why some children are more prosocial... View Details

Keywords: Behavior; Attitudes; Learning; Standards; Education Industry

Read Now

April 1994 (Revised November 1998)
Case

Kendall Square Research Corporation (A)

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

Kendall Square Research was a small competitor in the supercomputer industry. As sales grew rapidly in 1992 and early 1993, the company sold stock to the public for the first time and analysts forecast higher earnings for 1993. However, when the company's revenue... View Details

Keywords: Revenue Recognition; Standards; Accounting Audits; Computer Industry

Educators

2008
Chapter

How XBRL Will Dramatically Improve Reporting and Control Processes

By: Robert G. Eccles, Liv Watson and Mike Willis

Keywords: Financial Reporting; Applications and Software; Standards

Article

CEO Incentives and Firm Size

By: George P. Baker and Brian J. Hall

Keywords: Management; Motivation and Incentives; Size; Business Ventures

01 Mar 2016
News

Research Brief: The Benefits of Bias

the lackluster ones led to projects with a measurably larger academic impact than projects selected without significant specialized expert input. The takeaway was clear, says Li. “Strong conflict-of-interest policies to reduce bias come... View Details

Keywords: Erin Peterson

01 Jun 2004
News

The Inner-City Advantage

are smart moves. “Think about transaction processing,” he counseled. “That’s measured in bits and bytes, not square footage.” There are also opportunities for people who want to build businesses of size, said James H. Lowry (PMD 25,... View Details

Keywords: H. Naylor Fitzhugh Conference; Howard; Naylor; Fitzhugh; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

01 Sep 2003
News

Incentives and Operational Excellence

Operational problems can be the cause of an organization’s demise. Often they can be traced to poor controls in interorganizational settings, according to HBS associate professor V.G. Narayanan, a specialist in measurement systems and... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Retail Trade

Summer 2021
Article

The Cost and Evolution of Quality at Cipla Ltd, 1935–2016

By: Muhammad H. Zaman and Tarun Khanna

This article examines the evolution of Indian pharmaceutical manufacturer Cipla towards producing drugs that met the quality standards of European and U.S. regulators. It employs new research in Cipla’s corporate archives, the Creating Emerging Markets database, and... View Details

Keywords: Cipla; Pharmaceuticals; Drug Quality; Generics; Quality; Standards; Information Technology; Cost; Organizational Culture; Business History; Pharmaceutical Industry; India

2013
Chapter

Multinational Enterprises and Incomplete Institutions: The Demandingness of Minimum Moral Standards

By: Nien-he Hsieh

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) operate across countries that vary widely in their legal, political, and regulatory institutions. One question that arises is whether there are certain minimum standards that ought to guide managers in their decision making... View Details

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Decision Making; Standards

February 2004 (Revised July 2004)
Background Note

Retiree Benefit Note Analysis

By: David F. Hawkins

Walks the reader through the retiree benefit note disclosures required by SFAS 132, which were revised in 2003. View Details

Keywords: Retirement; Accounting; Standards; Compensation and Benefits

February 2001
Case

Sun Microsystems, Inc.: Solaris Strategy

In the late 1990s, Sun Microsystems' Solaris has emerged as the dominant UNIX-based alternative to Microsoft for server operating systems. At the same time, the open source operating system Linux has appeared unexpectedly, and it is generating significant excitement... View Details

Keywords: Digital Platforms; Competition; Open Source Distribution; Standards

01 Sep 2010
News

Faculty Research Online

The Hard Work of Measuring Social Impact Donors are placing nonprofits on the hot seat to measure social performance. Problem is, there is little agreement on what those metrics should be. Associate... View Details

Keywords: Securities, Commodities, and Other Financial Investments; Finance

16 Jul 2008
Op-Ed

What Should Employers Do about Health Care?

continued to go up. Most employers do not even measure the costs of poor health among their employees. If they did, however, they would discover that many of the steps they have taken to reduce benefit costs have actually made the costs... View Details

Keywords: by Michael E. Porter, Elizabeth O. Teisberg & Scott Wallace; Health

February 1987 (Revised February 2000)
Case

Polysar Limited

By: Robert L. Simons

Canada's largest chemical company produces and markets butyl rubber in two divisions, each treated as a profit center. The new plant in the North American Division operates below capacity resulting in a significant volume variance and an operating loss. The European... View Details

Keywords: Loss; Profit; Financial Management; Volume; Performance Capacity; Financial Statements; For-Profit Firms; Market Participation; Chemical Industry; Rubber Industry; Canada

Educators

October 2009 (Revised January 2014)
Teaching Note

Sustainability at Millipore (TN)

By: Michael W. Toffel

Teaching Note for [610012]. View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Organizational Structure; Investment; Projects; Performance Improvement; Framework; Measurement and Metrics; Corporate Disclosure; Biotechnology Industry