Production Technologies - Publications - Faculty & Research

17 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

Who is Boss in the Sharing Economy?

than traditional businesses that employ their workers. And so it seemed until June, when the California Labor Commission disrupted the sharing economy when it declared that an Uber driver was an employee, not an independent contractor. Far from being a "neutral View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Technology; Technology

01 Mar 2025
News

Heartland

climate-friendly technologies for controlled environment crop production are demonstrated and tested. Offal is a problem for ranchers who sell direct-to-consumer because it is frequently sent to rot in... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; photos by Vance Jacobs. OPEN CONCEPT: Lambert at Quail Ridge Dairy in Fort Morgan, Colorado.

25 Aug 2022
News

Open Market

and changing market dynamics, all while still launching new products and services to remain competitive. Robinhood has adapted to many changes and, if anything, has proven to be a disruptor in how it has taken the concept of investing and... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell; illustration by Keith Negley; Securities, Commodities, and Other Financial Investments; Finance

July 2001 (Revised December 2001)
Case

American Express Interactive

By: Lynda M. Applegate

Follows the protagonist, Sonia Sharpe, as she and her American Express Interactive Team attempt to develop and market an interactive, on-line, corporate travel service in a highly competitive environment. Looks at the possible resources and partnerships a company needs... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Entrepreneurship; Partners and Partnerships; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Product Positioning; Applications and Software; Technological Innovation; Global Strategy; Expansion; Information Technology; Vertical Integration; Financial Services Industry; Travel Industry

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06 May 2002
Research & Ideas

A Toolkit for Customer Innovation

ranging from minor modifications to major new innovations. The user-friendly tools, often integrated into a package we call a "tool kit for customer innovation," deploy new technologies like computer simulation and rapid... View Details

Keywords: by Stefan Thomke & Eric Von Hippel

October 1995
Teaching Note

Procter & Gamble: Improving Consumer Value Through Process Design TN

By: F. Warren McFarlan

Teaching Note for (9-195-126). View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Customer Focus and Relationships; Distribution Channels; Information Technology; Value Creation; Logistics; Management Practices and Processes; Consumer Products Industry

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01 Dec 2003
Research & Ideas

Sometimes Success Begins at Failure

commit often substantial resources to vetting new technologies through processes that aim to affirm their viability and marketability (or lack thereof). In doing so, firms reduce the chance that new products... View Details

Keywords: by Henry Chesbrough; Health; Pharmaceutical

14 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works

That's not what most people thought when digital technology first started to gain a foothold in the entertainment business. Chris Anderson's "long-tail theory" was very popular. Anderson argued that when online channels enable... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Entertainment & Recreation

10 Jun 2022
Blog Post

New Venture Competition 2022: Business and Environment Ventures

entrants, underscoring the growing level of interest and opportunities to address this critical issue. The winners of both the Tough Tech Prize and Alumni Track had innovative approaches to confronting the climate challenge: Aaron Sabin (MS/MBA 2023) won the Tough... View Details

01 Feb 1997
News

New Releases

in the world of digital communications will lie not in knowing how to engineer big technological breakthroughs but in how to develop products and services by creatively combining new and existing View Details

27 Mar 2025
Blog Post

IFC India 2025: Driving India's EV Future: Insights from Ather Scooter and Exponent Energy

offering premium models like the 450X and Rizta, featuring touchscreen dashboards, WhatsApp navigation, and live location sharing. Their focus on performance and technology appeals to customers upgrading from traditional two-wheelers,... View Details

10 Apr 2023
Blog Post

Creating Emerging Markets Sustainability Series - Innovations to Address the Global Water Crisis

saves water.” Innovations such as drip irrigation present an opportunity for significant water conservation, especially when one considers the fact that agricultural production will need to increase (by at least 60% according to some... View Details

15 Oct 2015
Blog Post

Why We Recruit: Medallia

product management, and customer solutions teams. What recruiting tactics have you found most successful in engaging with students and/or alumni at HBS? Medallia connects with HBS talent in a number of different ways. This year we look... View Details

Keywords: Technology

April 2023
Case

Fizzy Fusion: When Data-Driven Decision Making Failed

By: Michael Parzen, Eddie Lin, Douglas Ng and Jessie Li

This is a case about a fictional New York beverage company called Fizzy Fusion. The business is facing supply chain and inventory management challenges with its new product, SparklingSip. Despite seeking help from a data science consulting firm, the machine learning... View Details

Keywords: Supply Chain Management; Production; Risk and Uncertainty; Analytics and Data Science; Food and Beverage Industry

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06 Feb 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas: February 6, 2018

personnel data for newly hired college graduates within an Indian technology firm. We leverage the fact that the assignment of an employee to one of many production centers within the firm is uncorrelated... View Details

Web

Launching Tech Ventures - Course Catalog

companies. Those who will join early-stage startups (typically in a product manager, business development, sales, marketing, or growth role). Those who will work at growth stage technology firms (in a... View Details

26 May 2015
First Look

First Look: May 26

for two completely different reasons. The first is a change in technology that reduces the value of co-location (stickiness). This tends to lead to the decoupling of design and production activities and to a... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

08 Nov 2016
Blog Post

Alumni: Where Are They Now? Featuring: Phil Strazzulla

product roadmap. How has having an MBA impacted your career? We're a startup most of our future customers have never heard of. HBS gives me credibility when selling to larger companies. While HBS helped shape the way I think about the... View Details

Keywords: Technology

01 Dec 2004
News

The Future of Stem Cells

Stem cells have been much in the news recently. But the hot-button ethical and political questions currently surrounding this area of research may ultimately prove moot, if the past is any guide. Business history shows that if the desire for a View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons

June 2021
Case

HelloSelf: Search

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In August 2018, after nearly six months of searching, Charles Wells was convinced that he should found HelloSelf to help people improve their sense of mental wellbeing. Those feeling mentally unwell would receive support from fully qualified clinical psychotherapists,... View Details

Keywords: Mental Health; Health Care and Treatment; Internet and the Web; Business Model; Product Launch

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