Publications

13 Oct 2015
First Look

October 13, 2015

2015 Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press Shadow Cold War: The Sino-Soviet Competition for the Third World By: Friedman, Jeremy Abstract—The conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War has long been understood in a global... View Details

2018
Working Paper

How Scheduling Can Bias Quality Assessment: Evidence from Food Safety Inspections

By: Maria Ibanez and Michael W. Toffel

Many production processes are subject to inspection to ensure they meet quality, safety, and environmental standards imposed by companies and regulators. Inspection accuracy is critical to inspections being a useful input to assessing risks, allocating quality... View Details

Keywords: Assessment; Bias; Inspection; Scheduling; Econometric Analysis; Empirical Research; Regulation; Health; Food; Safety; Quality; Performance Consistency; Performance Evaluation; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry

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05 Feb 2024
What Do You Think?

How Do You Hire for Attitude?

to what is often referred to as “fit” with the organization. There are two other indicators that I observed being put into practice last month during a case-writing trip to a well-known gourmet restaurant in California wine country. This... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

24 Oct 2023
HBS Case

From P.T. Barnum to Mary Kay: Lessons From 5 Leaders Who Changed the World

I knew that in order to get something, I had to give up something else.” Her mother worked at a restaurant to support them, and Ash would call her for instructions on cooking and other household tasks. Her mother patiently motivated her... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

2020
Book

Fit to Compete: Why Honest Conversations About Your Company's Capabilities Are the Key to a Winning Strategy

By: Michael Beer

Is Silence Killing Your Strategy?
In his thirty years of working in corporations, Harvard Business School professor Michael Beer has witnessed firsthand how organizational silence derails strategic objectives. When employees can't speak truth to power, senior... View Details

Keywords: Honesty; Communication; Organizational Culture; Trust; Strategy; Performance Effectiveness

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June 2020 (Revised July 2023)
Case

Time Out: The Evolution from Media to Markets

By: Kate Barasz and Eva Ascarza

In February 2020, Time Out’s chief executive officer Julio Bruno is evaluating the strategic direction of the company. Over the span of five decades, Time Out — the global media and entertainment brand — had gone from a self-published counterculture publication in... View Details

Keywords: Branding; Media Businesses; Hospitality; Hospitality Industry; Digital; Brands and Branding; Media; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Strategy; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United Kingdom; United States

04 Mar 2024
What Do You Think?

Do People Want to Work Anymore?

who run a Michelin-starred restaurant. As I described in last month’s column, their strategy is to create a fine dining experience with less than half the people they employed at their previous restaurant. It requires careful hiring of people willing to work steadily... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

2020
Working Paper

Revenue Collapses and the Consumption of Small Business Owners in the Early Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic

By: Olivia S. Kim, Jonathan A. Parker and Antoinette Schoar

Using detailed transaction-level data from financial accounts, this paper shows that the revenues of small businesses and the consumption spending of their owners both decline by roughly 40% following the declaration of the national emergency in March 2020. However,... View Details

Keywords: Revenue; Small Business; Health Pandemics; Spending

Find at Harvard

Is Silence Killing Your Strategy? In his thirty years of working in corporations, Harvard Business School professor Michael Beer has witnessed firsthand how organizational silence derails strategic objectives. When employees can't speak truth to power, senior... View Details

June 2018
Case

Meridian Systems

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Michael J. Roberts

The Meridian Systems case focuses on a start-up in the restaurant point of sale (POS) systems market. In early 2018, Meridian is getting ready to roll out a POS system based on a new technology—a tablet-based, Wi-Fi-enabled POS system (the "tablet" system, or... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Sales; Strategy; Salesforce Management; Organizational Structure; Technological Innovation; Marketing Strategy

03 Dec 2014
HBS Seminar

Ginger Jin, University of Maryland

Web

Hiring Organizations

Partners Recove Recur Software RedBird Capital Partners Redpoint Ventures REEF Reflex Technologies Reformation Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Relari Relay Investments RenWave Kore Replica Restaurant Brands International Rethink Education REV... View Details

25 Apr 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research, April 25

inspections. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=52570 Survival of the Fittest: The Impact of the Minimum Wage on Firm Exit By: Luca, Dara Lee, and Michael Luca Abstract—We study the impact of the minimum wage on firm exit in the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

September 2023 (Revised January 2024)
Case

AB InBev: Brewing Up Forecasts during COVID-19

By: Mark Egan, C. Fritz Foley, Esel Cekin and Emilie Billaud

In July 2021, the CEO of AB InBev's European operations and his team strategized to position the company for success post-pandemic. As the world's largest beer company, boasting over 500 brands, revenue of $46 billion, and a workforce of 160,000 in 2020, AB InBev... View Details

September 2020
Case

Chip and Joanna Gaines' Magnolia Network

By: Anita Elberse and Julia McNicholas

Chip and Joanna Gaines, who have shot to fame as stars of the hit television show Fixer Upper, are preparing to launch their own television network. It is April 2019, a year since the home-renovation show Fixer Upper’s fifth season on cable channel HGTV ended, and more... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Television; Superstars; Innovation; Creative Industries; Talent; General Management; Celebrities; Television Entertainment; Entrepreneurship; Joint Ventures; Innovation and Invention; Marketing; Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry