Publications

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October 2003 (Revised December 2020)
Case

Globalizing Consumer Durables: Singer Sewing Machine before 1914

By: Geoffrey Jones and David Kiron

Examines the global strategy of Singer, one of the world's first multinationals, before 1914. Singer, a U.S. pioneer of the modern sewing machine, established its first foreign factory in Scotland in 1867. Investments followed in manufacturing and marketing in other... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Multinational Firms and Management; Global Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Globalization

October 1976 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Sunkist Growers, Inc.

By: Stephen A. Greyser and John A. Quelch

A new media strategy for lemon advertising involving the concentration of the entire budget in a single-print vehicle, is under consideration. View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Marketing Communications; Advertising

November 2006
Case

Competitive Headaches (A): The Analgesic Wars

By: Dennis A. Yao

Addresses the problem of competing with a me-too consumer product. Focuses on Bristol-Meyers' 1975 strategy for introducing a competitor to Tylenol in the analgesic market. View Details

Keywords: Market Entry and Exit; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Consumer Products Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

March 1986 (Revised October 1990)
Supplement

Peter Browning and Continental White Cap (B)

Describes the new divisional vice president's decisions and strategies in his first full year of management there. His influence style and tactics are demonstrated. View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Management Teams

06 Oct 2010
Research & Ideas

John Kotter: Four Ways to Kill a Good Idea

"confounding questions, inane comments, and verbal bullets." This excerpt looks at attack strategies used by naysayers: fear mongering, delay, confusion, ridicule. For more information, read Kotter's HBR.org blog post, Know Your... View Details

Keywords: by John Kotter & Lorne A. Whitehead

October 1997 (Revised January 1998)
Case

Oxfam America

By: James E. Austin and James Kondo

Oxfam America, a nongovernmental organization providing grant assistance to organizations fighting hunger, poverty, and their causes, was engaged in a new strategy formulation process, led by its new president. View Details

Keywords: Change; Situation or Environment; Non-Governmental Organizations; Strategy

June 2024
Module Note

Assets, Resources, and Capabilities

By: David J. Collis

This module note explores why we need to study resources, what resources are, how we know they are valuable, and what a resource-based strategy requires. View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy

09 Aug 2004
Research & Ideas

A Diagnostic for Disruptive Innovation

into a low-end disruptive innovation targeted at these customers. This strategy provided a better match among the innovation, the target market, and the organization's abilities. Competitor Diagnostic The third diagnostic assesses... View Details

Keywords: by Scott D. Anthony, Mark W. Johnson & Matt Eyring

Research Summary

General research interests

Implications of information technology for strategy and operations
Organizational knowledge, learning, and information processing
Business growth and scalable organizational architectures
Japanese busines
High technology... View Details

25 Nov 2022
News

From Kodak to Nokia, why do so many big companies end up failing?

February 2000 (Revised April 2000)
Case

Microsoft, 2000

By: Michael G. Rukstad, David B. Yoffie and Carl Johnston

Surveys five threats to the sustainability of Microsoft's strategy (imitation, substitution, hold-up, slack, and saturation) and examines Microsoft's response to these threats. Teaching purpose: To evaluate the sustainability of Microsoft's competitive advantage. View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Planning; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Strategy; Information Technology; Information Technology Industry

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October 2013 (Revised April 2015)
Case

Myomo: Getting Sales in Motion

By: Frank V. Cespedes, Shikhar Ghosh and Matthew Preble

In late 2012, the management team of Myomo, a startup which had designed a unique myoelectric arm brace for patients with dysfunctional arms, was deciding which of the three sales models the company had tested to pursue as its sales strategy going forward. Each model... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Information Technology; Marketing Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Health Care and Treatment; Business Startups; Sales; Growth and Development Strategy; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Health Industry

June 2013 (Revised January 2024)
Case

Governance and Sustainability at Nike (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Nien-hê Hsieh and Lara Adamsons

Two members of Nike's executive team must decide what sustainability targets to propose to Nike's CEO and to the corporate responsibility committee of Nike's board of directors. Set in 2012, the case traces the evolution of Nike's approach to environmental and social... View Details

Keywords: Nike; Hannah Jones; Mark Parker; Phil Knight; Philip Knight; Eric Sprunk; Jill Ker Conway; Phyllis Wise; Don Blair; Sustainable Business And Innovation; SB＆I; Flyknit; DyeCoo; Footwear; Athletic Footwear; Apparel; Athletic Apparel; Sustainability; Greenpeace; Detox Campaign; Dirty Laundry; Water; Water Use; Water Pollution; Water Resources; Corporate Responsibility Committee; Judgment; Board Of Directors; Board Committees; Environmental And Social Sustainability; Footwear Industry; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decisions; Ethics; Fairness; Globalized Firms and Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governance; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Innovation and Invention; Innovation and Management; Innovation Leadership; Innovation Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Performance; Alignment; Supply Chain; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Judgments; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Asia; China; United States; Oregon; Portland

2015
Working Paper

A Normative Theory of Dynamic Capabilities: Connecting Strategy, Know-How, and Competition

By: Gary P. Pisano

The field of strategy has mounted an enormous effort to understand, define, predict, and measure how organizational capabilities shape competitive advantage. While the notion that capabilities influence strategy dates back to the work of Andrews (1971), attempts to... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Advantage; Organizations

SSRN

Read Now

22 Feb 2013
News

The Thought Leader Interview: Cynthia Montgomery

19 Feb 2014
News

Choosing the Right Customer

2015
Book

Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges

By: Amy Cuddy

We often meet life's challenges with fear and anxiety. We fail to be our best and end up feeling regretful and powerless. In Presence, Amy Cuddy presents a scientifically grounded way to align our speech and nonverbal behavior with our beliefs, abilities, and... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Attitudes; Emotions

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January 2018 (Revised October 2020)
Case

The Rise and Rise (?) of Walmart (A): Battling Kmart

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Eric Van den Steen and Karen Elterman

This case, set in 1990, describes the history of Walmart and asks what competitive strategies Kmart might adopt in response to Walmart's success. It discusses the strategy and organization of both companies in terms of HR practices, store location, distribution,... View Details

Keywords: Walmart; Kmart; Organization; Company Culture; Pricing; Procurement; Supercenter; Strategy; Competition; Organizational Culture; Competitive Strategy; Retail Industry; United States; Bentonville; Arkansas

January 2018
Teaching Note

Suominen Wipes the Slate Clean

By: Boris Groysberg, Kalle Heikkinen, Michael Norris and James Barnett

In 2016, after successfully turning around Finnish nonwovens manufacturer Suominen, CEO Nina Kopola faces a decision on the company’s strategy moving forward. View Details

Keywords: Nonwovens; Female Protagonist; Turnaround; Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Pulp and Paper Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Europe; United States; Finland