Publications

July 2001
Technical Note

Technical Note on LBO Valuation (B): The Equity Cash Flow Method of Valuation using CAPM

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

Explains the equity cash flow method of valuation as it applies to leveraged buyouts. Also explains how to implement the changing cost of equity method using the CAPM. View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Forecasting and Prediction; Cash Flow; Cost of Capital; Equity; Valuation

July 1999 (Revised January 2003)
Case

Harley-Davidson Motor Company: Enterprise Software Selection

Describes Harley-Davidson's decision process for defining and selecting an enterprise-wide procurement software package and the institutional changes introduced as part of this process. Tells the story of Harley-Davidson's approach in developing integrated business... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Information Technology; Groups and Teams; Software; Motorcycle Industry

March 2011
Case

United Cereal: Lora Brill's Eurobrand Challenge

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Carole Carlson

The case, set within the European organization of a giant multinational breakfast foods company, describes a launch decision for a new cereal product. As the case evolves, the decision has major strategic and organizational implications for Lora Brill, European VP. The... View Details

Keywords: Subsidiaries; Market Entry; Multinational Corporations; Strategy; Business Subsidiaries; Managerial Roles; Multinational Firms and Management; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Marketing Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Product Launch; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Europe

August 1993
Background Note

Executing Change: Three Generic Strategies

By: Nitin Nohria and Rakesh Khurana

Describes the strengths and weaknesses of three generic strategies for implementing change--programmatic change, discontinuous change, and emergent change. View Details

Keywords: Change; Strategy

May 2004 (Revised March 2005)
Case

SOX-POX?

By: Jay W. Lorsch

Describes the experiences of audit committee chairmen in responding to and implementing the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Teaching Purpose: To help students understand the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on audit committees. View Details

Keywords: Government Legislation; Financial Reporting; Laws and Statutes; Accounting Audits

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March 2023
Background Note

A Primer on OKRs

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan (Jason) Ni

The OKR framework is a popular goal-setting and strategy execution tool that uses goal setting through “Objectives” and measuring performance using “Key Results” on a periodic basis to measure and drive performance. The OKR framework has been adopted and practiced at... View Details

Keywords: Business Organization; Talent and Talent Management; Framework; Corporate Governance; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Management Practices and Processes; Management Skills; Management Systems; Measurement and Metrics; Outcome or Result; Performance Effectiveness; Performance Evaluation; Performance Expectations; Performance Productivity; Performance Efficiency

13 Feb 2018
Working Paper Summaries

In Search of Organizational Alignment Using a 360° Assessment System: Evidence from a Retail Chain

Keywords: by Carolyn Deller, Susanna Gallani, and Tatiana Sandino; Retail

March 2007 (Revised January 2008)
Case

Korea: After the 1997 Financial Crisis

By: Laura Alfaro, Rafael M. Di Tella and Renee Kim

Examines what happened to Korea after the 1997 financial crisis and the implementation of the IMF-mandated reforms imposed on Korea as conditionalities to the country's emergency loan package. View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Macroeconomics; Financing and Loans; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Crisis Management; South Korea

December 1996 (Revised June 2003)
Case

Cynthia Hogan and the Birth of Novartis

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter

An American woman heads an integration office for merger transition activities between two giant Swiss pharmaceutical companies. She needed to develop an implementation plan to shape the new global powerhouse. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Global Strategy; Organizational Design; Strategic Planning; Pharmaceutical Industry; Switzerland; United States

January 1991 (Revised March 1991)
Case

Responsible Care

By: George C. Lodge and Jeffrey F. Rayport

Describes a 1989 initiative of the Chemical Manufacturer's Association (CMA) to secure chemical industry support for and implementation of a series of codes of conduct in the field of environmental health and safety. Called "Responsible Care", the program makes... View Details

Keywords: Business and Government Relations; Fairness; Ethics; Environmental Sustainability; Safety; Chemical Industry

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April 2007 (Revised November 2007)
Case

Bankinter: Growing Through Small and Medium Enterprises

Surveys the overall sequence of processes needed for the success of a strategy based on customer analytics. In particular, it charts the formulation and implementation of this strategy by a Spanish bank that decided to expand into the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME)... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Data and Data Sets; Knowledge Acquisition; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Segmentation; Banking Industry; Spain

April 2021 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Public Equities Impact Investing at BlackRock

By: Shawn A. Cole, Vikram S. Gandhi, Michael Norris and John Masko

In early 2021, BlackRock—the world’s largest asset manager with $9 trillion in assets under management (AUM)—sought to become a leader in promoting environmental and social sustainability. Over the previous ten years, CEO Larry Fink had written an annual open letter to... View Details

Keywords: Impact Investing; Renewable Energy; Climate Change; Environmental Sustainability; Equity; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Financial Management; Investment Funds; Investment Return; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Financial Services Industry; United States

June 1997
Case

Massachusetts General Hospital: CABG Surgery (B)

By: Steven C. Wheelwright and Mikelle Eastley

Once the CABG care path is implemented and other care paths begun, hospital staff and administration examine the resulting data. Further methods of improving care and reducing cost are presented for analysis. View Details

Keywords: Cost Management; Policy; Retention; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Operations; Performance Improvement; Health Industry

March 2003 (Revised December 2003)
Exercise

Organizational Alignment Exercise

By: Michael Beer and John J. Gabarro

Presents an overview of a method for diagnosing and developing an organization's capability to achieve its goals and implement its strategy, with exercises for application. A rewritten version of an earlier exercise. View Details

Keywords: Organizational Structure; Alignment

June 2001
Exercise

Strategic Human Resource Management Applications Exercise

By: Michael Beer

Overview of a method for diagnosing and developing an organization's capability to achieve its goals and implement its strategy, with exercises for application. A rewritten version of an earlier exercise. View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Design; Strategy

July 2015 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Ron Johnson: A Career in Retail

By: Das Narayandas, Joshua D. Margolis and Ryan Raffaelli

In April 2013, Ron Johnson (HBS '84) stepped down after just 18 months as CEO of J.C. Penney. In his brief tenure, Johnson, an acclaimed retailer respected for his innovation and success in shaping the retail image at Target and Apple, introduced dramatic departures... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Leadership Development; Legal Industry; Procurement; Professional Service Firms; Pricing; Organizational Behavior Modification; Change Management; Innovation Leadership; Situation or Environment; Failure; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Competition; Retail Industry; United States

September 2016 (Revised May 2018)
Case

Zurich Insurance: Zurich Oxygen

By: Boris Groysberg and Katherine Connolly

Zurich Insurance was undergoing organizational change after implementing five new people practices focused on manager development, diversity and inclusion, job model and data analytics, recruitment, and talent pipeline. The case “Zurich Insurance: Fostering Key People... View Details

Keywords: Managing Change; Management Development; Leadership; Organization Behavior; Management Skills; Organizational Culture; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leading Change; Leadership Development; Human Capital; Human Resources; Insurance; Insurance Industry

October 2013
Article

A Traffic Light Food Labeling Intervention Increases Consumer Awareness of Health and Healthy Choices at the Point-of-Purchase

By: Lillian Sonnenberg, Emily Gelsomin, Douglas E. Levy, Jason Riis, Susan Barraclough and Anne N. Thorndike

We surveyed customers in a hospital cafeteria in Boston, Massachusetts before and after implementation of traffic light food labeling to determine the effect of labels on customers' awareness and purchase of healthy foods. View Details

Keywords: Nutrition Labeling; Obesity; Food Labeling

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April 2021 (Revised August 2024)
Case

The Turnaround at Ford Motor Company

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Olivia Jung

This case describes the corporate turnaround of the Ford Motor Company under the charismatic leadership of Alan Mulally. Ford was in deep trouble in the early 2000s as its prices and debt ratings plummeted and employee morale suffered. In 2006, the company anticipated... View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Transformation; Restructuring; Organizational Culture; Leading Change; Performance Improvement; Auto Industry; North America