Publications

May 2018
Supplement

Video Supplement to Toyota Motor Manufacturing, U.S.A. case (693-019): An updated video of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, Georgetown, KY site showing seat installation

By: Willy C. Shih

This is an updated video of the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky (TMMK) assembly facility in Georgetown, KY. It is meant to be paired with the 693-019 Toyota Motor Manufacturing U.S.A. case, but with higher quality video. The vidoe shows a line tour of Assembly Two... View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing; Manufacturing Strategy; Lean Management; Toyota Production System; Just-in-time; Lean Production; Automotive Industry; Automobile Manufacturing; Automotive; Automotive Supply Chain; Production; Operations; Logistics; Auto Industry; United States

Profile

Dan Lennox-Choate

glorious light. "I went in blind," Daniel says, about his transition from platoon leadership in Afghanistan, to becoming the executive officer of a headquarters company responsible for logistics and operations, stationed in... View Details

05 Jul 2006
Working Paper Summaries

The Motion Picture Industry: Critical Issues in Practice, Current Research & New Research Directions

Keywords: by Jehoshua Eliashberg, Anita Elberse & Mark A. A. M. Leenders; Entertainment & Recreation; Motion Pictures & Video; Advertising

22 Jan 2001
Research & Ideas

Control Your Inventory in a World of Lean Retailing

Manufacturers generally classify products in terms of broad product lines, developing a single marketing strategy and production plan for each line. That makes sense for marketing, but it's a mistake for production. Different SKUs [stock-keeping units] within a product... View Details

Keywords: by Frederick H. Abernathy, John T. Dunlop, Janice H. Hammond & David Weil; Consumer Products

01 Apr 2020
News

What My Time in Vietnam Taught Me About Dealing with Shortages

Paul Ignatius (MBA 1947) Paul Ignatius (MBA 1947) Paul Ignatius (MBA 1947) was a government official in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. He served as assistant secretary of defense for installations and logistics and, from 1967 to... View Details

19 Oct 2010
Working Paper Summaries

The Impact of Supply Learning on Customer Demand: Model and Estimation Methodology

Keywords: by Nathan Craig, Nicole DeHoratius & Ananth Raman; Apparel & Accessories; Fashion

06 May 2015
What Do You Think?

Are You Ready for Personalized Predictive Analytics?

Summing Up Personal Predictive Analytics: Should We Be Careful What We Wish For? The world of continuous monitoring of numerous sensors for machines and humans, limitless information storage capacity, and big data combined with rapid response View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

September 1992 (Revised April 1993)
Background Note

Recognizing Revenues and Expenses: When Is Income Earned?

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

An introduction to the accrual concept used in accounting and its importance to revenue recognition and the matching concept. To be used in conjunction with inventory valuation cases where delivery may not constitute a sale and revenue. View Details

Keywords: Accrual Accounting; Logistics; Value; Revenue Recognition

12 Oct 1999
Research & Ideas

Decoding the DNA of the Toyota Production System

The Toyota Production System is a paradox. On the one hand, every activity, connection, and production flow in a Toyota factory is rigidly scripted. Yet at the same time, Toyota's operations are enormously flexible and responsive to customer demand. How can that be?... View Details

Keywords: by H. Kent Bowen & Steven Spear; Manufacturing; Transportation; Auto

November 2017 (Revised May 2019)
Case

Wayfair: Fast Furniture?

By: Janice H. Hammond and Anna Shih

Keywords: Supply Chain; Logistics; Distribution; Web; Retail Industry; United States

22 Sep 2016
News

The Competitiveness of Lost Causes

directly to dealers in Seattle and mangoes to buyers in Europe.” Lack of infrastructure is a major challenge, notes Duch. “We’re helping them to establish logistics platforms, sales forces, and phone-based payment services, using power... View Details

01 Sep 2018
News

Ask the Expert: Delivering the Goods

expectations with promises of same-day delivery, the logistics industry is looking to completely new models, like crowdsourcing, autonomous technology, and on-demand delivery. Robert Reisner (MBA 1971), who led the Postal Service’s... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint

15 Apr 2002
Research & Ideas

In the Virtual Dressing Room Returns Are A Real Problem

Many distinctive aspects of the textile and apparel industries present challenges to implementing electronic commerce. First, and perhaps most important, is the difficulty of accurately characterizing the product online. Many of the characteristics of a garment that... View Details

Keywords: by Jan Hammond & Kristin Kohler; Apparel & Accessories; Fashion; Consumer Products; Manufacturing; Retail

September 2023
Supplement

CMA CGM: Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Container Shipping

By: Willy C. Shih

Marine transport is the most cost-effective way to move large volumes over long distances, and container shipping is the backbone of international trade in goods. Yet shipping contributed 3% of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions, and the deep-sea segment, which... View Details

Keywords: Container Shipping; Trade Links; Decarbonization; Environmental Strategies; Environmental Impact; Globalization; Trade; Environmental Regulation; Supply Chain; Logistics; Shipping Industry; European Union; Asia; North America

Annenberg built a fledgling, debt-burdened newspaper business into a publishing empire. He introduced Seventeen in 1944 – sparking a new trend in targeted publications to America’s youth. In 1953, he overcame numerous logistical... View Details

Keywords: Publishing & Print Media

Alumni Changing the World

James Reinhart

James Reinhart, MBA/MPA-ID 2009, is on a mission to keep clothing out of landfills. Co-founder and CEO of thredUP, Reinhart thought of his secondhand clothing business while at HBS and has since built a colossal logistics and supply chain... View Details

September 2019 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Port Competition in the Pearl River Delta

By: Willy Shih

This case examines the competition between ports and port operators in the Pearl River Delta over the last four decades. The cities surrounding the Pearl River estuary are the "workshop of the world," and the development of manufacturing in the region was heavily... View Details

Keywords: Trade Links; Global Business; Globalization; Trade; Supply Chain; Logistics; Transportation Industry; Asia; Hong Kong; China