Publications

October 2011 (Revised December 2013)
Case

Lehman Brothers and Repo 105

By: Anette Mikes, Gwen Yu and Dominique Hamel

The collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 was the largest bankruptcy in US history. The case examines the economics of the off-balance sheet transactions Lehman undertook prior to the collapse, and highlights the corporate governance challenges in situations where firms... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Policy; Accounting Audits; Corporate Governance; Financial Instruments; Risk Management; Financial Services Industry

21 Mar 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research, March 21

India's economic prospects looked bright for a developing country—it had a well-trained government bureaucracy bequeathed by the British, a secure legal system, national railroads, and more advanced industry than, for example, China. Why... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

04 Feb 2016
Blog Post

Meet the HBS Tech Club

register to attend! What courses are popular for students interested in tech? Many people cross-register for the foundational computer science course at Harvard College (CS50). A smattering also cross register for MIT courses at the Media... View Details

01 Dec 2016
News

In My Humble Opinion: Chip Brewer (MBA 1991)

(photo by Christina Gandolfo) Perhaps not surprisingly, Oliver “Chip” Brewer III (MBA 1991) found his first job in golf while playing the game with a friend who happened to know the founder of Adams Golf. At the time, Brewer was working in the paper View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

13 Mar 2005
Research & Ideas

The Tricky Business of Nonprofit Brands

brands establish this incredible level of trust? A: Trust is essential for nonprofits. The purchasers or donors are not the ones receiving or benefiting from the nonprofit organization's services and programs. Since the purchasers cannot... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls

06 Sep 2016
First Look

September 6, 2016

buyer characteristics. Consider the experiences of condo developers targeting retirees who wanted to downsize their homes. Sales were weak until the developers realized their business was not construction but transitioning lives. Instead of adding more features to the... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

Arthur Schleifer

Keywords: computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer; computer

09 Aug 2011
First Look

First Look: August 9

that the most popular rule is rational choice; it is used in about half the cases. To participate in the competitions, researchers are asked to email the organizers models (implemented in computer programs) that read the incentive... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

02 Jun 2010
What Do You Think?

How Do You Weigh Strategy, Execution, and Culture in an Organization’s Success?

Several noted that "it all depends" on other factors. For example, Basel Kakah commented that "[responses to] those questions could [depend on] the nature and size of the organization as well as the nature of the industry... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

November 1999 (Revised March 2003)
Case

Webvan: Groceries on the Internet

By: John A. Deighton and Kayla Bakshi

What are the prospects for grocery shopping on the Web? This case invites a comparison of seven business models, with particular emphasis on Webvan. Why does the investment community value Webvan at $7.8 billion after less than six months of operating experience, and... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Experience and Expertise; Investment; Information; Marketing; Distribution Channels; Service Delivery; Cognition and Thinking; Internet and the Web; Retail Industry; Retail Industry

13 May 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Just Say No to Wall Street: Putting A Stop to the Earnings Game

Keywords: by Joseph Fuller & Michael C. Jensen; Financial Services

04 Jan 2012
First Look

First Look: January 4

nonfinancial information that has not yet been provided. Globalization and Beauty: A Historical and Firm Perspective Author:G. Jones Publication:EurAmerica 41, no. 4 (December 2011) Abstract This paper uses the beauty industry to explore... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

Web

Strategy Awards & Honors - Faculty & Research

MBA/Executive education from the Strategic Management Division of the Academy of Management. Maria P. Roche : Runner-up for the Best Paper in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the 2024 Industry Studies Association Annual Conference for... View Details

Web

Valerie Porciello | About

services is to enable a holistic view across the life cycle of the faculty, from recruitment through retirement. The DRFD team's singular focus is supporting an environment where faculty members at all stages of their career have the... View Details

September 2020 (Revised February 2021)
Case

Zameer Kassam Fine Jewelry: Engaging Clients

By: Ryan W. Buell and Amy Klopfenstein

Zameer Kassam Fine Jewelry (ZKFJ) designs custom engagement rings that tell the story of a couple’s relationship. The case describes the company’s process for engaging clients, which has historically been a relatively offline, high-touch experience. Obliged by... View Details

Keywords: Customer Engagement; Service Delivery; Health Pandemics; Internet and the Web; Customer Satisfaction; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Growth and Development; Retail Industry

05 Nov 2021
Op-Ed

Is the Business World Finally Ready for the Wisdom of Shibusawa?

Eiichi Shibusawa continues to gain influence in Japan—even though he died almost a century ago. Japan’s government announced earlier this year that the 19th century business leader would be the face on 10,000 yen ($90) bank notes—the highest value denomination in... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones and Rei Morimoto; Financial Services; Retail

2009
Other Unpublished Work

The Pecora Hearings

By: David Moss, Cole Bolton and Eugene Kintgen

In 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, the Senate Banking Committee began a much-publicized investigation of the nation's financial sector. The hearings, which came to be known as the Pecora hearings after the Banking Committee's lead counsel Ferdinand... View Details

Keywords: Financial History; Financial Crisis; Financial Markets; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Government Legislation; Laws and Statutes; Business and Government Relations; Financial Services Industry

07 Jul 2003
What Do You Think?

Can We Have Too Much Productivity Improvement?

improvements improve life somewhere in the globe, but not necessarily in the U.S.A." Bill Donohue wrote that "In the 20's ... the root cause may perhaps have been the massive building of low cost assembly line-based industrial... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

March 2025
Case

The Changing Climate on Wall Street

By: Clayton S. Rose, Maxim Pike Harrell and Michael Norris

Increasing and conflicting regulatory requirements and political pressures regarding climate change tested the leaders of U.S. financial institutions, as they struggled to determine how best to comply while managing their business and its risks. In October 2024,... View Details