Publications

11 Feb 2002
Research & Ideas

The Quiet Leader—and How to Be One

for your new book was the unusual course you've been teaching for MBA students on moral leadership in organizations. What is a quiet leader? Is quiet leadership a topic you had been thinking about prior to... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

January 2007 (Revised August 2007)
Case

Fulton County School System: Implementing the Balanced Scorecard

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Monica Nah Lee

Illustrates the adaptation and implementation of a private sector management tool, the Balanced Scorecard, to a public school district. As part of a continuous improvement initiative, the Director of Planning and Policy facilitates the development of a strategy map and... View Details

Keywords: Education; Governance; Leadership; Balanced Scorecard; Performance Improvement; Strategy; Education Industry

27 Sep 2018
Research & Ideas

Religion in the Workplace: What Managers Need to Know

considered one of the last taboos,” says Senior Lecturer Derek van Bever. “Our students have been asking for it because they see very clearly that they will be in positions of global leadership where they will have to deal with it.” To... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Food & Beverage; Apparel & Accessories

01 Nov 2017
What Do You Think?

What Are the Real Lessons of the Wells Fargo Case?

leadership might begin by changing the Visions and Values section on the current company web page to read: “We believe in our vision and values more strongly today than we did the first time we put them on paper more than 20 years ago.... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Banking

November 2005 (Revised August 2007)
Case

ConAgra Foods: The Next Chapter

By: Ray A. Goldberg and Mary L. Shelman

In 2005, CEO Bruce Rohde has almost completed the integration of ConAgra Foods' collection of 90 independent operating companies into a focused, value-added firm and was beginning to think about his successor. ConAgra had become the second largest food company and No.... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Corporate Strategy; Leading Change; Management Succession; Strategic Planning; Brands and Branding; Food; Agribusiness; Product Marketing; Management Teams; Transformation; Customer Focus and Relationships; Food and Beverage Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

February 2018
Case

Aetna and the Transformation of Health Care

By: Rebecca M. Henderson, Russell Eisenstat and Matthew Preble

Mark Bertolini, chairman and CEO of the health insurer Aetna, faces a number of questions as he seeks to transform Aetna from a classic insurance company into a business that will engage much more deeply with its members around their personal health goals. His strategy... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Insurance; Transformation; Behavior; Leading Change; Strategy; Insurance Industry; Health Industry; United States; Connecticut

22 Feb 2010
Op-Ed

Tragedy at Toyota: How Not to Lead in Crisis

but a leadership crisis. During Chrysler's 1980s crisis, CEO Lee Iacocca took charge, restoring consumer trust and prosperity. When General Motors emerged from bankruptcy last summer, Chairman Ed Whitacre became the trustworthy,... View Details

Keywords: by William George; Auto

25 Sep 2017 - 27 Sep 2017
Lecture

Three-Day Series on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Africa

By: Euvin Naidoo

Africa and the 4th Industrial Revolution: Innovation, leapfrogging and the promise and challenges of the Demographic Dividend Optional pre-seminar viewing: 2017 MasterClass on Digital Innovation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution Monday, September 25, ... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Invention; Africa

Read Now

April 2017 (Revised October 2017)
Case

Wal-Mart Update, 2017

By: David B. Yoffie and Eric Baldwin

In 2017 Wal-Mart was still the world’s largest company, with over $480 billion in annual revenue and operations in 28 countries. Although it had mostly vanquished its rival discount retailers in the U.S., it was struggling to find the right growth strategy. Facing a... View Details

Keywords: E-Commerce Strategy; Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Business Growth and Maturation; Growth and Development Strategy; Global Range; Business Strategy; Corporate Strategy; E-commerce; Retail Industry

November 2016 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Improving Access at VA

By: Ryan W. Buell, Robert S. Huckman and Sam Travers

In 2015, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ran the largest healthcare system in the United States, with over 1,700 sites of care that served nearly 9 million veterans. One year earlier, a scandal had erupted over a cover-up of the excessive wait times veterans... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Service Delivery; Social Issues; Health Care and Treatment; Government Administration; Performance Improvement; Public Administration Industry; Health Industry; United States

August 2007
Module Note

Managing Networked Businesses: Platform Evolution Module

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann

Offers an overview of conceptual content and pedagogical guidance for instructors using a six-session module, "Platform Evolution," from "Managing Networked Businesses" (MNB), a case-based MBA elective course on platform-mediated networks. The module explores the... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Networks; Business or Company Management; Rights; Business Strategy; Problems and Challenges; Multi-Sided Platforms; Market Transactions; Innovation and Invention; Marketing; Competition; Market Entry and Exit

23 Oct 2020
Video

Entrepreneurship Opportunities in a Post-COVID World: The Future of EdTech

Akshita Joshi

Akshita Joshi is a doctoral candidate in the Organizational Behavior program at Harvard Business School. She has 15 years of work experience & holds an MBA from Stanford GSB & an M.A. in Psychology from UCP Portugal. Her research is focused on the emotional,... View Details

02 Jun 2022
Research & Ideas

Blissful Thinking: When It Comes to Finding Happiness, 'Your Dreams Are Liars'

be happier, personally, too. As he began to dig into the research, the conclusions were unambiguous: “I needed to retire and dedicate myself to sharing knowledge,” recalls Brooks, who left AEI in 2019. At HBS, he teaches the Leadership... View Details

Keywords: by Dan Morrell

31 Oct 2023
Research & Ideas

Beyond the 'Business Case' in DEI: 6 Steps Toward Meaningful Change

were less likely to appoint a Black teammate to a leadership position, compared with those who weren’t exposed to this research. Those hearing the business case were also less likely to agree that racially diverse teams perform better. In... View Details

Keywords: by Katherine Hutt Scott and Barbara DeLollis

May 2024 (Revised April 2025)
Case

Leading Culture Change at Microsoft Western Europe

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Cat Huang

In 2023, Cindy Rose, President of Microsoft Western Europe, faced a critical decision. Rose grappled with the potential impact of widespread layoffs on psychological safety and the cultural transformation she had championed since her arrival. When Rose had first joined... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Organizational Culture; Transformation; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Problems and Challenges; Motivation and Incentives; Groups and Teams; Business or Company Management; Technology Industry; Europe

April 2025
Case

Giving Up on a Passion: Elizabeth Rowe at the Boston Symphony Orchestra

By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Maisie Wiltshire-Gordon and Alexis Lefort

For 20 years, Elizabeth Rowe was a world-renowned principal flutist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. But in 2024, Rowe decided to leave her position to pursue a new full-time career as a leadership coach. At 50, Rowe was well under the typical retirement age, and,... View Details