Publications

For the past 20 years, the theory of disruptive innovation has been enormously influential in business circles and a powerful tool for predicting which industry entrants will succeed. Unfortunately, the theory has also been widely misunderstood, and the "disruptive"... View Details

February 2004 (Revised January 2005)
Case

Hewlett-Packard: Culture in Changing Times

By: Michael Beer, Rakesh Khurana and James Weber

HP had been a highly successful and respected company for decades. It was well known for its company culture and management practices--the HP way--which emphasized both profits and people. Changing markets, strong competitors, and the growth of its computer business,... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Decision Choices and Conditions; Human Resources; Leading Change; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Performance Effectiveness; Adoption; Competition

10 Jan 2023
News

How to Live Happier in 2023: Diversify Your Social Circle

Paul W. Marshall

MBA Class of 1960 Professor of Management, Paul W. Marshall, is affiliated with the Entrepreneurial Management Unit and teaches The Entrepreneurial Manager in the Turnaround Environment. This Elective Curriculum course focuses on the role of... View Details

Keywords: aerospace; banking; brokerage; computer; consulting; defense; management consulting; manufacturing; metals; professional services; retail financial services; retailing; steel

Research Summary

Current Research

By: Leslie K. John

Professor John is a behavioral scientist who uses both laboratory and field experiments to investigate questions that are at the intersection of marketing, organizational behavior, and public policy.

Professor John’s work has been published in leading... View Details

April 2005 (Revised March 2006)
Case

RTY Telecom: Network Expansion

Requires real option analysis to analyze a capital expenditure decision by a large regional telecommunications firm. The firm needs to add network capacity for its broadband offering and is trying to decide on how to do this. One approach is simply to purchase this... View Details

Keywords: Expansion; Decision Choices and Conditions; Wireless Technology; Telecommunications Industry

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January – February 2012
Article

When One Business Model Isn't Enough

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Jorge Tarzijan

Trying to operate two business models at once often causes strategic failure. Yet LAN Airlines, a Chilean carrier, runs three models successfully. Casadesus-Masanell, of Harvard Business School, and Tarziján, of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, explore how... View Details

Keywords: Integration; Failure; Business Model; Service Operations; Asset Management; Value; Complexity; Competency and Skills; Business Strategy; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Risk and Uncertainty; Customer Relationship Management; Air Transportation Industry

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July 2008 (Revised June 2011)
Case

mixi (A)

By: Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Masaru Nomura and Kanako Miyoshi

Kasahara, the founder and CEO of mixi, the most successful Japanese on-line social network, is deciding between two strategic options: (i) B2C or (ii) C2C to leverage the power of the social network. In the B2C option, mixi would become a portal for on-line shopping... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Digital Platforms; Social and Collaborative Networks; Business Strategy; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Japan

October 2008 (Revised December 2008)
Supplement

Gillette Company (E): Procter & Gamble

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Matthew Bird

After arriving in 2001 as the first outsider Chairman and CEO in Gillette history, Jim Kilts led a remarkable turnaround. But by late 2004 he had to make a difficult decision. To better position the 104-year-old, Boston-based company, he opted to sell it to... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Decision Choices and Conditions; Leading Change; Growth and Development Strategy; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation

October 2003 (Revised April 2006)
Background Note

Moral Reasoning: A Practical Guide for Leaders

By: Sandra J. Sucher

We encounter moral or ethical challenges in our professional lives, in our close relationships, and as members of the broader communities that we are part of. This methodology demonstrates how moral reasoning works and how it can be integrated into a problem-solving... View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Moral Sensibility; Management Systems; Problems and Challenges; Civil Society or Community

May 20, 2016
Comment

World Health Organization Lacks Leadership to Combat Pandemics

By: John A. Quelch

When it comes to emergency preparedness for pandemics, the World Health Organization is falling short. It has not provided prompt and clear leadership to the world in combating either the Ebola or Zika viruses. Its leadership has been low energy, its representatives... View Details

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2009
Chapter

See No Evil: When We Overlook Other People's Unethical Behavior

By: Francesca Gino, Don A. Moore and M. H. Bazerman

It is common for people to be more critical of others' ethical choices than of their own. This chapter explores those remarkable circumstances in which people see no evil in others' unethical behavior. Specifically, we explore 1) the motivated tendency to overlook the... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Ethics; Moral Sensibility; Behavior; Motivation and Incentives

October 1988
Case

Agrico, Inc.: A Software Dilemma

By: F. Warren McFarlan

An information systems vice president has one hour to make an ethical decision: should a software program, left inadvertently on the company's computer, be copied and stored? Copying the program would protect clients' assets, but it seems to violate the vendor... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Ethics; Contracts; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Business and Shareholder Relations; Information Technology Industry

August 29, 2022
Other Article

Income Inequality Is Rising. Are We Even Measuring It Correctly?

By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, K. Blesch and Oliver P. Hauser

Income inequality is on the rise in many countries around the world, according to the United Nations. What’s more, disparities in global income were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, with some countries facing greater economic losses than others. Policymakers... View Details

Keywords: Income Inequality; Gini Coefficient; COVID-19 Pandemic; Government Administration; Equality and Inequality; Health Pandemics; Measurement and Metrics

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January 2017
Case

Bayer AG: Bidding to Win Merck's OTC Business

By: Benjamin C. Esty, Marc Baaij and Arjen Mulder

Shortly after submitting their best and final offer to acquire Merck's Consumer Care Division (a collection of "over-the-counter" (OTC) products with sales totaling $2 billion), the Bayer M&A team was given a chance to revise their bid because another potential... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Bidding Strategy; Valuing Synergies; Negotiations; Corporate Strategy; Business Unit Strategy; Bidding Process; Discounted Cash Flow; Cross-border M＆A; Tax Shields; Valuation; Competitive Strategy; Auctions; Bids and Bidding; Germany; United States; United Kingdom

July 2004 (Revised July 2005)
Case

Activision: The 'Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer' Project

By: Alan D. MacCormack, Enrico D"Angelo and Kerry Herman

Mike Ward, the producer in charge of developing the Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer game for Activision, must decide whether to launch the game in time for the 2002 Christmas season. Complicating his decision are the lukewarm response from consumers to TV test spots of the... View Details

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Product Development; Customer Satisfaction; Projects; Business or Company Management; Product Launch; Marketing Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Industry Structures; Innovation Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

05 Nov 2019
Blog Post

Environmental Change and Ground-level Impact

operations research, helping military leaders and policymakers think about how to make government more effective and efficient. It was an advisory, analytical role, and I enjoyed it very much—but after a while it felt a little too removed... View Details

17 Sep 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Input Constraints and the Efficiency of Entry: Lessons from Cardiac Surgery

Keywords: by David M. Cutler, Robert S. Huckman & Jonathan T. Kolstad; Health

February 2021
Background Note

Jobs to Be Done: A Toolbox

By: Derek C. M. van Bever, Bob Moesta, Iuliana Mogosanu, Shaye Roseman and Katie Zandbergen

The Jobs to Be Done methodology is both a theory and a practical approach for understanding customer behavior and why people make the choices they make. Many practitioners, whether they work for startups or incumbent businesses, find Jobs to Be Done useful because it... View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Decision Choices and Conditions; Knowledge Acquisition; Attitudes; Perception; Theory; Behavior; Customer Relationship Management