Product Engineering - Publications - Faculty & Research

22 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Bringing ‘Lean’ Principles to Service Industries

in workers who haven't traditionally taken part in innovation. "It's about unlocking the power of thousands of software engineers and encouraging innovation up and down the organization," Staats says. "You can impact View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Computer

September 2023 (Revised May 2025)
Teaching Note

On

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karolin Frankenberger, Sascha Mader, Jordan Mitchell and Karen Elterman

Teaching Note for "On," HBS Case No. 723-430. On is a premium performance running shoe company founded in Switzerland in 2010. The company rapidly gained traction through its unique CloudTec cushioning technology, its innovative midsole plate called the Speedboard, and... View Details

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27 Apr 2009
Research & Ideas

Building Businesses in Turbulent Times

they were converted into securities and sold again and again. We can't fix our current economic problems by simply spending more money to buy bad debt. Rather, we need real innovation that creates jobs and drives productive economic... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

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HBS Working Knowledge – Harvard Business School Faculty Research

expect? Harvard Business School faculty members highlight four trends to watch. Popular Rapport: The Hidden Advantage That Women Managers Bring to Teams by Kara Baskin 25 JUN 2024 | Research & Ideas Lack of communication between managers and their employees can hurt... View Details

October 2001 (Revised March 2002)
Case

Siemens AG: Global Development Strategy (A)

By: Stefan H. Thomke and Ashok Nimgade

Describes how Siemens, the German electrical engineering giant, has developed and manages global R&D in its large Information and Communications Networks (ICN) division. In 1994, Siemens opened its Bangalore (India) center, which has now grown into one of its largest... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Research and Development; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Product Development; Telecommunications Industry; Germany; Bangalore

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John Deighton is The Harold M. Brierley Professor of Business Administration Emeritus at Harvard Business School. He is an authority on consumer behavior and marketing, with a focus on digital and direct marketing. He teaches in the area of Big Data in Marketing,... View Details

Keywords: consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products

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Faculty & Advisors | MBA

the Imaging Lab at EPIX Medical, and also worked as a lead Engineer at Hewlett-Packard Medical Products Group, working on developing innovative MRI, Ultrasound, and Telemedicine products. Satish Tadikonda is... View Details

December 2017 (Revised December 2018)
Case

OCP Group

By: Kristin Fabbe, Forest Reinhardt, Natalie Kindred and Alpana Thapar

This case explores the strategy of OCP Group, the 95% state-owned Moroccan firm charged with managing the North African country’s vast reserves of phosphate. Phosphate was one of the most vital macronutrients for plant health, along with nitrogen and potassium, and... View Details

Keywords: OCP; OCP Group; Casablanca; Chemicals; Operations; Transformation; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Chemical Industry; Morocco

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November 2018
Case

Komatsu Komtrax: Asset Tracking Meets Demand Forecasting

By: Willy Shih, Paul Hong and YoungWon Park

Komatsu's Komtrax system started as a way of remotely monitoring and tracking equipment for the purpose of improving operational efficiency. This case follows its evolution towards other uses including demand forecasting for its sales, marketing, and production... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Manufacturing; Manufacturing Industry; Data Strategy; Internet Of Things; Construction; Production; Analytics and Data Science; Strategy; Performance Efficiency; Forecasting and Prediction; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Japan

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11 Jul 2011
Research & Ideas

Non-competes Push Talent Away

The relative risk of post-MARA emigration by more productive inventors, holding more than the median number of overall patent citations, was 187 percent higher in Michigan than in states that continued not to honor non-competes. But the... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Technology

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

How the Internet Became Commercial

In less than a decade, the Internet went from being a series of loosely connected networks used by universities and the military to the powerful commercial engine it is today. This book describes how many of the key innovations that made this possible came from... View Details

April 2020
Case

Ment.io: Knowledge Analytics for Team Decision Making

By: Yael Grushka-Cockayne, Jeffrey T. Polzer, Susie L. Ma and Shlomi Pasternak

Ment.io was a software platform that used proprietary data analytics technology to help organizations make informed and transparent decisions based on team input. Ment was born out of founder Joab Rosenberg’s frustration that, while organizations collected ever... View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Information Technology; Knowledge; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Management; Operations; Information Management; Product; Product Development; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Communications Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Web Services Industry; Middle East; Israel

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August 2001
Case

Charmed Technology

By: Youngme E. Moon

Charmed Technology, a California start-up known primarily for its high-profile fashion shows featuring "wearable" computers, has just released its first product. The "CharmIT" is being billed as the world's first affordable, wearable computer for consumers. The key... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Resignation and Termination; Technological Innovation; Marketing Strategy; Product Development; Luxury; Information Infrastructure; Value Creation; Computer Industry; Fashion Industry

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October 2022
Case

Beam Dental (A)

By: Rembrand Koning and Alicia Dadlani

In May 2014, Alex Frommeyer, cofounder and CEO of Kentucky-based Beam Dental, a seed-stage startup that developed connected toothbrushes that tracked brushing habits, needed to decide which strategy to pitch to a venture capital firm. The first pitch deck played to the... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Business Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Financing and Loans; Presentations; Product Development; Insurance Industry; United States; Kentucky; Ohio

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July 2024
Case

Living up to Purpose and Performance at Parker Hannifin

By: Hubert Joly, Alicia Dadlani and Martha Hostetter

In 2019, Parker Hannifin, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of motion and control technologies, did something unusual for an industrial company: it created a purpose statement. Even though it already had a clear business strategy and longstanding culture of... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Health Pandemics; Leadership; Business or Company Management; Organizational Culture; Business Strategy; Communication Strategy; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Cleveland; Ohio; United States

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24 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 24, 2018

black markets for narcotics, marijuana, sex, and surrogacy as well as the design of markets for kidney transplants in the face of widespread laws against (and broader repugnance for) compensating organ donors. I conclude with open questions and View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

January 2009 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Cisco Business Councils (2007): Unifying a Functional Enterprise with an Internal Governance System

By: Ranjay Gulati

In response to the 2001 market downturn, Cisco Systems implemented a major restructuring that transformed the company from a decentralized to centralized organization. While recognizing that a centralized, functional structure was necessary to avoid product and... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Customer Focus and Relationships; Governing and Advisory Boards; Resource Allocation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Corporate Strategy; Technology Industry

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January 1987 (Revised January 2002)
Case

Baker Precision Instruments, Inc.

By: Ramchandran Jaikumar, Roy Shapiro, Donald Rosenfield and Kathryn E. Stecke

A rapidly growing machine parts manufacturer is trying to decide whether to acquire an advanced Flexible Manufacturing System or Systems. The selection decisions must address the impact of new technology, the effect of setup times on production planning and capacity,... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Cost vs Benefits; Machinery and Machining; Production; Decision Choices and Conditions; Management Systems; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry

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November 2012 (Revised September 2013)
Case

Restructuring at Nova Chemical Corporation (Abridged)

By: Scott P. Mason

Management of a diversified chemicals company faces two financial decisions: whether to finance a major investment in new production facilities for its rapidly expanding Environmental Products Division, and whether to sell a more slowly growing non-specialty chemicals... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Decision Choices and Conditions; Chemicals; Environmental Sustainability; Corporate Finance; Chemical Industry

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