Publications

November 2000
Case

Wit Capital: Evolution of the Online Investment Bank (B)

Describes the evolution of Wit Capital from its origins as a small brewery to an online investment bank advising both small technology-based companies seeking to raise capital and large companies seeking to acquire Internet companies, as well as offering retail... View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Disruptive Innovation; Service Delivery; Investment Banking; Entrepreneurship

September 2012
Supplement

Intraoperative Radiotherapy for Breast Cancer (B)

By: Willy Shih

The intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) business at Carl Zeiss Meditec had struggled with growth since the time of the (A) case. Though the unit had grown revenues in excess of 50% and had exceeded its EBIT target, it faced several key strategic choices. Should it... View Details

Keywords: Radiotherapy; Breast Cancer; Brachytherapy; Therapeutic Radiation; Oncology; Oncology Treatment Systems; Elekta AB; Varian Medical Systems; Xoft; Electronic Brachytherapy; Intraoperative Radiotherapy; Disruptive Innovation; Health Care and Treatment; Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Health Industry; Germany

28 Nov 2016
News

Digital Change: Lessons from the Newspaper Industry

December 1999 (Revised December 2000)
Case

Charles Schwab: A Category of One

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Thomas H. Esperson

Examines Charles Schwab's on-line discount brokerage firm and questions whether or not Schwab has effectively balanced the old and new world of stock trading, and has remained a leader between giants like Merrill Lynch and Internet pure plays like E-Trade. Also looks... View Details

Keywords: Financial Institutions; Banks and Banking; Technological Innovation; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry

May 2001 (Revised December 2001)
Case

Cisco Systems: Building Leading Internet Capabilities

By: Richard L. Nolan and Christina L. Darwall

Cisco has invested in building a leading IT, Internet-based infrastructure. This case describes Cisco's latest efforts to broaden Internet capabilities in the company from 30% to 60% penetration. The strategy is intended to sustain Cisco's double-digit revenue growth... View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Information Technology; Technological Innovation; Revenue; Growth and Development Strategy; Information Technology Industry

September 2021 (Revised December 2021)
Case

Telepass: From Tolling to Mobility Platform

By: Chiara Farronato, Stefano Denicolai and Sarah Mehta

Telepass, until very recently the sole processor of electronic toll payments on Italy’s highways, has ambitions beyond tolling. Since the mid-2010s, the company has been expanding into adjacent services. In 2017, Telepass launched TelepassPay—a mobile payment... View Details

Keywords: Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services

18 Aug 2015
News

Turning a Profit When Your Product is Free

01 Jun 2010
News

Powering Up

Watertown, Massachusetts. The company builds systems derived from innovative electricity-delivery technology developed by an MIT professor (Boston Globe, February 22, 2010). While initial applications —... View Details

September 2011 (Revised July 2012)
Case

Building Watson: Not So Elementary, My Dear!

By: Willy Shih

This case is set inside IBM Research's efforts to build a computer that can successfully take on human challengers playing the game show Jeopardy! It opens with the machine named Watson offering the incorrect answer "Toronto" to a seemingly simple question during the... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Standards; Product Development; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Mathematical Methods; Research and Development; Information Technology

July 2018
Case

Financing Anghami's Growth

By: Ramana Nanda and Eren Kuzucu

In December 2012, less than two years into the founding of their music-streaming platform Anghami, cofounders Elie Habib and Eddy Maroun found themselves evaluating an unorthodox term sheet. Habib and Maroun needed to make a decision vis-à-vis the proposal put forth by... View Details

15 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Rethinking E-Leadership

it helps people deal with the great challenges offered by technological innovations and the emergence of the new economy," Mills proclaims. Although those challenges are... View Details

Keywords: by Melissa Raffoni

22 Jan 2013
First Look

First Look: Jan. 22

Using Public-Private Partnerships to Improve Firm Survival, Employment Growth, and Innovative Performance Authors:Chai, Sen, and Willy C. Shih Abstract View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Career Coach

Christina LaMontagne

Christina (HBS '09, Dartmouth '03) has held senior roles across innovative healthcare companies. She has led small digital health companies to achieve market leadership and >$100M ARR View Details

Keywords: Technology; Technology

September 2012 (Revised May 2013)
Case

Automating the Paris Subway (A)

By: Michel Anteby, Elena Corsi and Emilie Billaud

In 2001, the head of the Paris Subway reflected on how to transform Line 1 into a driverless line without triggering a social conflict. After the shock of the 2000 Notre Dame de Lorette subway accident, in which a train derailed and caused 25 injuries in a Paris subway... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Technological Innovation; Rail Transportation; Labor Unions; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Conflict Management; Rail Industry; Transportation Industry; Paris

15 Feb 2000
Research & Ideas

The Right Connections

From genome research to e-commerce, new ventures are popping up everywhere, competing for the cash needed to turn them into successful enterprises. But when vying against others in industries where high uncertainty, long development cycles, crowded markets, View Details

Keywords: by Judith A. Ross

22 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 22, 2008

monetary policy rules are no short-cut to credibility in situations where vulnerability to economic and political shocks, not time-inconsistency, are overarching concerns for investors. Download the paper from SSRN ($5)... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

14 Nov 2006
First Look

First Look: November 14, 2006

in markets around the world. They prided themselves on their sustainable fishing practices, which were not the norm for the industry. Seafood buyers traditionally bought on price. Clearwater's innovations View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 2004
Case

World Wide Licenses Ltd.: From Disney to Polaroid

World Wide Licenses (WWL) was a low-technology firm that licensed famous brands, which it then applied to timepieces, stationery, and back-to-school products. It transformed into a digital imaging company and landed worldwide rights to the Polaroid brand name. Explores... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership Development; Brands and Branding; Technology Adoption; Technological Innovation; Transformation