Publications

January 2009 (Revised February 2009)
Case

F-Secure Corporation: Software as a Service (SaaS) in the Security Solutions Market

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Robert D. Austin, Kalle Lyytinen, Esko Penttinen and Timo Saarinen

Describes the development of a business model based on "software as a service" (SaaS) for security solution distributed through Internet Service Providers (ISPs). F-Secure disruptively entered a mature business with dominant players by executing an innovative new... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Disruptive Innovation; Service Delivery; Internet; Information Technology Industry

April 1998 (Revised November 1999)
Case

CitySoft, Inc.

By: Myra M. Hart, Marco Iansiti, Andrea H. Chermayeff and Diana S. Gardner

Two entrepreneurs are discussing how to scale-up their new company. They face a variety of issues, ranging from hiring and training to strategy and focus. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Business Strategy; Business Growth and Maturation; Selection and Staffing; Internet; Web Services Industry

Find at Harvard

09 Mar 2016
Lessons from the Classroom

In This Classroom, Beer Can Improve Your Grade

combined into one “industry” in which those teams compete, independent from the other industry groupings. With each round, teams can see how they’re faring and how their rivals are performing, altering their path as needed. The game... View Details

Keywords: by Roberta Holland; Education; Food & Beverage

05 Aug 2010
What Do You Think?

What Is Customer Opinion Good For?

dominance, mainly through the design of new businesses and products before the competition might get to them. They wrote, "To set a company on a strong, profitable growth trajectory it won't work to benchmark competitors Nor is conducting... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett; Technology

02 Dec 2009
What Do You Think?

Should Immigration Policies Be More Welcoming to Low-Skilled Workers?

warehousing industry in the Southwestern U.S. as "by and large dependable and hard working, and their children will probably have better jobs than they have." As Irv Williamson put it: "Why would anybody consider limiting... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

06 Dec 2021
News

Truth Be Told

state or another industry to find a job, and they may not find a job at the same level. But when we expanded to a longer term, looking at a variety of consequences over time, we found that the amount of money whistleblowers get seems to... View Details

Keywords: April White; Corporate, Subsidiary, and Regional Managing Offices; Management

02 Nov 2010
First Look

First Look: November 2, 2010

Investment Advisor (RIA) industry that seeks to value for its investors through asset diversification and active macro-level investing. The firm implements its proprietary investment model by trading exclusively exchange-traded funds... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Feb 2025
Blog Post

How risk can be the key to a sustainable future with Sophie Levin (MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences 2022)

leaders I most admired often had interdisciplinary backgrounds. Around the same time, I realized I wanted to explore new industries and expand my skill set. HBS’s focus on leadership and its commitment to creating positive change felt... View Details

04 Jun 2013
First Look

First Look: June 4

Edelman, Benjamin, and Stephen M. Ryan Abstract—Every device connected to the global Internet needs a numeric identifier, an "Internet Protocol" address ("IP address"). The Internet's continued growth presents a... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

27 Apr 2021
Research & Ideas

New Research: Surviving Bankruptcy, Useful Economics, and Retirement

watches, especially the stainless-steel sports models, had dramatically increased, resulting in a supply shortage worldwide. This case study examines the high-end watch industry and discusses an organization’s objective and related... View Details

20 Oct 2021
Blog Post

Mobilizing Private Sector Action For Racial Equity in Milwaukee: SE Summer Fellow Zach Komes (MBA 2022)

priorities this summer were to familiarize myself with the assets and challenges facing our city’s economy, while learning from leaders who are driving change. I enjoyed getting an overview of our “cluster” growth View Details

02 Jan 2001
Research & Ideas

Can Japan Compete? [Part One]

Japanese government model had profound costs that were unrecognized. Protecting local industries such as the construction industry or agriculture seemed pretty innocuous, but it had huge costs that were... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace & Hilah Geer

05 Sep 2007
First Look

First Look: September 5, 2007

Indian scientists to U.S. technology formation increased dramatically in the 1990s, before noticeably leveling off after 2000 and declining in the case of India. Growth in ethnic innovation is concentrated in high-tech sectors; the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

May 2005 (Revised February 2007)
Case

HNA Group: "A Miracle in Civil Aviation"

By: Cynthia A. Montgomery and Carole Winkler

Chen Feng and three others started Hainan Airlines in China during a historic transformation and privatization of the civil aviation industry. From a small loan from the local province in 1992, Chairman Chen built the company into a conglomerate that, by 2003, owned... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Air Transportation; Business Growth and Maturation; Competitive Advantage; Emerging Markets; Business Startups; Air Transportation Industry; China

September 2016
Supplement

Health Leads: Reaching for Impact (B)

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Sarah Appleby

The (B) case documents the development of a strategy to achieve system-level impact in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape for a nonprofit focused on addressing patients' basic social needs through healthcare institutions. Founded in 1996 with a volunteer-staffed... View Details

Keywords: Scaling Social Impact; Scaling Social Enterprise; Health Care Delivery; Health Care Outcomes; Nonprofit Scaling; Nonprofit; Social Enterprise; Social Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Nonprofit Organizations; Growth and Development Strategy; Health Industry; United States

March 2016
Case

Residency Select or J3Personica?

By: William Kerr and Kathryn S. Roloff

Residency Select, LLC provides psychometric assessments for matching medical students to residency programs. After a series of successful pilots, founder Alan Friedman is considering whether to continue developing his offerings in this area, or whether to expand into... View Details

Keywords: Marketplace Matching; Expansion; Higher Education; Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry

February 2014 (Revised August 2014)
Case

3D Systems

By: Karim R. Lakhani and David Lane

In late 2013, Rajeev Kulkarni needed to decide how best to facilitate the emergence of a broad base of users and content to promote the sale of 3D Systems' consumer-focused 3D printers. As yet, neither the company nor users had identified an indispensable application... View Details

Keywords: 3D Printing; Business Ecosystems; 3D Systems; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Copyright; Two-Sided Platforms; Product Development; Customization and Personalization; Manufacturing Industry

December 1998 (Revised July 2000)
Case

Implementing Strategies for Mobile Telephony: The Cases of BellSouth and U S WEST

By: Clayton M. Christensen

Recounts how BellSouth and US WEST developed and implemented their strategies for becoming major players in the mobile telephony business. Shows how initial success at BellSouth attracted more resources and aggressive investment, while initial failures at US WEST... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Outcome or Result; Opportunities; Expansion; Mobile Technology; Communications Industry