Publications

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December 2001
Case

Alibaba.com (B)

By: F. Warren McFarlan and Fred Young

The challenges the largest Chinese electronic commerce company faces many challenges at the end of 2001. This case describes how it has completely reoriented its strategy in the past 12 months to become a B-to-B company. The key question is: Will it work and what... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Business Strategy; Internet and the Web; Problems and Challenges; Information Technology Industry; China; United States

01 Oct 1996
News

HBS Alumni Association Board of Directors: President's Report

industries are represented, with a strong contingent from the financial and consulting communities. In terms of their involvement with the School, current Board members have participated in a number of volunteer capacities (thus the... View Details

Keywords: Cathy Connett

Fast Answer

Companies: strategy

Where can I find information on a company's strategy? Analysts' reports in LSEG Workspace are often a great source for information about strategic initiatives within public firms. ... View Details

July 2000 (Revised September 2005)
Case

BMG Entertainment

By: Jan W. Rivkin and Gerrit Meier

As dramatic changes in technology and customer tastes roil the music industry, the top executives of BMG Entertainment, one of the world's largest record companies, must decide how to organize for digital distribution of music. This case includes a brief history of the... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Competitive Strategy; Distribution Channels; Organizational Structure; Technological Innovation; Industry Structures; Customer Focus and Relationships; Growth and Development Strategy; Information Technology; Music Industry; Music Industry

01 Jun 2025
News

Origin Story: Mary Chen (MBA 2026)

Address label: Born outside Cleveland, Ohio, Chen grew up in California and Texas before attending Emory University in Georgia, where she majored in business. “My three siblings live in New York now, and I’ll be working there this summer, so that feels closest to... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; photo by Leah Fasten; climate finance; MBA; student life

October 2005 (Revised February 2006)
Case

Reactivity: A Case of Re-Invention

By: Myra M. Hart and Sylvia Sensiper

By the time Glenn Osaka joined Reactivity as its new CEO in January 2001, the Internet bubble had burst, the financial markets had turned, and the company's core businesses were drying up. He was not hired to lead a turnaround, but Osaka found that the firm's future... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Venture Capital; Organizational Culture; Applications and Software; Leadership Style; Product; Transformation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Information Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry

23 Oct 2019
News

Hands-on Simulations Complement the Case Method

Don’t let the fact that first-year MBA students immerse themselves in the beer industry fool you—they are learning about product development by participating in an online simulation. In fact, the use and complexity of simulations in the... View Details

Keywords: Educational Innovation

Fast Answer

Emerging Market/Frontier Market Fellowship Resources

worldwide from Euromonitor International. EMIS (Emerging Markets Information System) - Current country and company information emerging markets in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Middle East. Use country-specific... View Details

1997
Chapter

Frontiers of Online Financial Services

By: R. Kalakota and F. Frei

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Finance; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry

Fast Answer

FIELD Global Immersion Resources: Greece

Where can I find country, industry and market information and news about Greece? Industry and market research Passport Click on Search on the upper left side of the... View Details

November 1996 (Revised June 1999)
Case

Living on Internet Time: Product Development at Netscape, Yahoo!, NetDynamics, and Microsoft

By: Marco Iansiti and Alan D. MacCormack

Describes how four companies in the Internet software market approach product development. Drawing upon short case studies of three recent projects, students are invited to synthesize the common attributes of development practice in turbulent environments. View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Situation or Environment; Volatility; Risk and Uncertainty; Research and Development; Information Technology Industry; United States

01 Oct 1996
News

"Service-Profit Chain" Links Members of Service Management Unit

of large corporate databases. A management information systems specialist, Professor James I. Cash, Jr., focuses on how companies use information technology to improve organizational effectiveness and how... View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

01 Mar 2008
News

Conference Examines Intersection of Medicine and Business

With a focus on cutting-edge ideas shaping global health care, the HBS Health Industry Alumni Association drew some 300 participants to its annual three-day conference in early November, held for the first time on the Harvard Medical... View Details

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

November 1999 (Revised March 2002)
Case

Red Hat and the Linux Revolution

By: Alan D. MacCormack and Kerry Herman

The case describes the history of the Linux operating system and the open-source movement in general. Focuses on a critical decision being made by Red Hat, the largest distributor of Linux, about its future development efforts. The decision allows students to explore... View Details

Keywords: Open Source Distribution; Applications and Software; Product Development; Change Management; Research and Development; Business Processes; Disruptive Innovation; Information Technology Industry; North Carolina

August 1997 (Revised November 1998)
Case

Cambridge Technology Partners - 1991 Start Up

By: Paul A. Gompers and Catherine M. Conneely

Jim Sims tries to close the deal to create Cambridge Technology Partners (CTP) in a spin-out from a troubled technology consulting firm. The deal looks tenuous. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Negotiation Deal; Information Technology; Organizations; Information Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; Cambridge