Customer Focused Organization - Publications - Faculty & Research

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Leadership Execution and Action Planning (LEAP) - Course Catalog

range of organizational challenges. While traditional leadership courses contemplate “what” is leadership, LEAP focuses on “how” leaders must take action at critical moments to shape their organizations and... View Details

Rick Grinnell

Rick Grinnell is Founder and Managing Partner of Glasswing Ventures, focused on investing in AI-enabled security and enterprise infrastructure. As an experienced venture capitalist and operator, Rick has invested in some of the most... View Details

01 Jun 2015
News

Alumni and Faculty Books for June 2015

Alumni Books The Boat House Café: Book One of First Light by Linda Cardillo (MBA 1978) (Bellastoria Press LLP) A novel set on Martha’s Vineyard. Buffoonery on Woodhouse Avenue by Bob Garland (PMD 20, 1970) (Gabbrolandbooks) The fourth in a series of humorous novels.... View Details

18 May 2020
News

Joe O’Donnell Named Harvard Medal Recipient

Campaign, which launched in 2013. The Gazette also notes his philanthropic efforts, which have been focused on cystic fibrosis research through the Joey Fund, which O’Donnell established in 1986 after losing his own son, Joey, to the... View Details

December 2009 (Revised October 2015)
Case

Diamond Foods

By: David E. Bell and Mary Louise Shelman

CEO Michael Mendes has transformed a grower-owned cooperative into a publicly traded top marketer of snack foods. Diamond's organization, culture, product development process, advertising and promotion strategy, and specifically its marketing department have been built... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Business Model; Customer Focus and Relationships; Leadership; Marketing Strategy; Consumer Behavior; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Cooperative Ownership; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Retail Industry; United States

Citation

Educators

Purchase

15 Dec 2008
Research & Ideas

The Surprisingly Successful Marriages of Multinationals and Social Brands

Elephant Live Happily Ever After?" focuses on acquisitions of three social icons: Tom's of Maine acquired by Colgate, Stonyfield Farm Yogurt purchased by Danone, and Ben & Jerry's bought by Unilever. (Similar deals include... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

11 Oct 2004
Research & Ideas

Four Ways to Create Lasting Change

now work around here" had fundamentally changed. Some people in the organization remained skeptical about the seriousness of the customer service issues. Employees altered their behavior during the... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

23 Mar 2020
News

Signal Boost

notes, although representation across an organization is a valuable first step. For her team, it’s about what follows. “What I’m focusing on right now is, what’s next?” says Lara. “We’re updating our... View Details

Web

Real Estate Investing - Course Catalog

process of sourcing, underwriting, and ultimately acquiring real estate investments. Content and Organization The course is organized into three modules. Deal Making Fundamentals – The first module View Details

06 May 2008
First Look

First Look: May 6, 2008

series of options in the future and their subsequent revealed preferences over those options. Using a novel panel data set, we analyze the film rental and return patterns of a sample of online DVD rental customers over a period of four... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Jun 2002
Research & Ideas

A Litmus Test for Entrepreneurs

advice. He suggested that the company test and refine its business model by initially focusing on one payment operation, for parking tickets, in one U.S. city. The entrepreneurs almost bit off his head. "The leader in this market... View Details

Keywords: by Walter Kuemmerle

27 Mar 2025
Blog Post

IFC India 2025: Driving India's EV Future: Insights from Ather Scooter and Exponent Energy

reducing emissions. Our research focused on understanding the opportunities and hurdles faced by emerging 2-wheeler EV manufacturers and advancements in EV battery and charging technologies and infrastructure. As part of this research, we... View Details

05 Oct 2010
First Look

First Look: October 5, 2010

and market-implied yields fell, and the ability of ratings to predict default deteriorated. We offer several possible explanations for these findings that are linked to existing theories. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/09-051.pdf The Impact of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

About Us | Information Technology

hundreds of locations across five continents, partnering with faculty to produce media-rich case studies on companies and organizations including NASA, Chobani, Zappos, IDEO, Bridgewater Associates, Coca Cola, Siemens, Jazz at Lincoln... View Details

21 Jan 2020
Research & Ideas

Lessons for Retailers from the Rebirth of Indie Bookstores

As big box bookstores Barnes & Noble and Borders spread across the landscape in the 1990s, retail observers sounded the death knell for small, independent booksellers. But they had no idea of the onslaught that was coming. Amazon.com launched in 1995, offering... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Entertainment & Recreation

Bruce E. Karatz

Karatz has led KB Home during a period of immense growth. When he took over the CEO position, the company was selling and delivering 4,000 prefabricated homes a year. By 2003, the company was producing and selling over 27,000 homes. Karatz grew the business through... View Details

Keywords: Construction & Real Estate

01 Jul 2019
What Do You Think?

Are Super Stretch Goals Only for the Very Young?

Do Super Stretch Goals Require More Commitment Than a Large Organization Can Muster? Youth of an organization or its members is not the primary determinant of whether an View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

27 Jul 2019
Op-Ed

Does Facebook's Business Model Threaten Our Elections?

unconcerned. Engagement on various applications on the Facebook platform is up. Users appear comfortable with the trade they make to give up privileged information in exchange for a range of convenient and free services. Without a push by Facebook’s View Details

Keywords: by George Riedel

February 2009 (Revised April 2011)
Case

Mistry Architects (A)

By: Amy C. Edmondson, Robert G. Eccles and Mona Sinha

Describes an architecture firm founded and run by a husband and wife team, Sharukh and Renu Mistry, that emphasizes "green" building. The firm presents an unusual mix of projects-spanning the spectrum from larger corporate projects to small private homes. The mix also... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Customer Focus and Relationships; Design; Housing; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Community Relations; Environmental Sustainability; Nonprofit Organizations; Conflict and Resolution