Publications

13 Apr 2022
News

Robert L. Ryan (MBA 1970), Former CFO of Medtronic Inc. and Union Texas Petroleum, to be HBS' 2022 Class Day Speaker

May 2003 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Marks & Spencer: The Phoenix Rises

By: Joseph L. Bower

The great U.K. retailer fell on hard times in 1998. In 2001, a new CEO was recruited who appears to have succeeded in turning around this world-renown company. This case examines the steps he took (strategic, structural, and recruiting key people) and highlights a... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Recruitment; Leadership Development; Crisis Management; Supply and Industry; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Segmentation; Retail Industry

Research Summary

Ruling the Waves: Business and Politics along the Technological Frontier

By: Debora L. Spar

There are certain periods of time when technological innovation pushes at the frontiers of government and law; when technology undermines state authority and opens massive loopholes for entreneneurs to exploit. During these critical junctures, rules disappear and... View Details

March 2022 (Revised April 2022)
Teaching Note

Spotify's Audio-First Strategy: Leading the Podcasting Market

By: Hong Luo and Carol Lin

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 721-439. Within 15 years, CEO Daniel Ek had led Spotify from an ambitious startup to a multi-billion dollar company that had transformed the music industry. As part of Spotify’s next phase of growth, the platform would invest heavily in... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Divisions; Customer Relationship Management; Revenue; Music Industry

March 1984 (Revised November 2001)
Case

Decline of the Dollar, The: 1978

Describes the U.S. experience with floating exchange rates between 1973 and 1978, focusing on the rapid decline of the dollar in the summer of 1978. Illustrates the major determinants of the exchange rates and the role of government intervention in the foreign exchange... View Details

Keywords: Currency Exchange Rate; Government and Politics; Macroeconomics; United States

Article

Power to the People

By: Eric D. Werker

Every nongovernmental organization has a mission statement. For example, CARE, one of the world's largest and best-funded NGOs, explains its mission as serving "individuals and families in the poorest communities in the world. Drawing strength from our global... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Food; Service Operations; Inflation and Deflation; Experience and Expertise; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Knowledge; Poverty; Agribusiness; Diversity; Non-Governmental Organizations; Innovation and Invention; India

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24 May 2022
Blog Post

Get to Know 2022 Class Day Student Speaker Peter James Kiernan

View Video Peter James Kiernan (MBA 2022) has been selected as the student speaker for Harvard Business School’s (HBS) Class Day celebration, held this year on Wednesday, May... View Details

November 2022
Background Note

The Future of E-Commerce: Lessons from the Livestream Wars in China

By: Ayelet Israeli, Jeremy Yang and Billy Chan

This note explores the emerging multi-billion dollar commerce trend of livestream commerce. Livestream commerce is the sale of goods or services directly to consumers via live shows on digital platforms (such as social media or e-commerce platforms). It is a form of... View Details

February 2002 (Revised December 2003)
Exercise

Incentives Game, The

By: Jason R. Barro, Brian J. Hall and Jonathan Lim

This exercise provides an opportunity to gain insight about designing, negotiating, and responding to incentives. The setting is investment management. A class is divided into a certain number of investment firms. Each company has one CEO and begins with four portfolio... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Compensation and Benefits; Investment; Management

01 Mar 2024
News

Game On

It’s raining in Sarasota. And not a light sprinkle but a proper, Florida drenching, so the outdoor courts at the Pickleball Club’s Lakewood Ranch location are deserted. Inside is a different story. Most of the 12 courts are in play. With four people to a court, all... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; photographed by Edward Linsmier; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Arts, Entertainment

17 Jun 2021
News

Investing in a Post-COVID World; Exploring the Pandemic’s Impact on Gender Equity

Howard Stevenson and Bill Sahlman The conference kicked off with Professors Stevenson and Sahlman presenting a master class on the pandemic’s... View Details

Keywords: Margie Kelley

2015
Article

Aid and the Rise and Fall of Conflict in the Muslim World

By: Faisal Z Ahmed and Eric D. Werker

The conflict following the Arab Spring is not the first wave of civil war in the Muslim world in recent time. From the mid-1980s to the end of the century, an average of one in 10 predominantly Muslim countries experienced violent civil war in any given year. We... View Details

Keywords: War; International Relations; Religion; Energy Sources

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Read Now

30 Aug 2004
Research & Ideas

Real Estate: The Most Imperfect Asset

As a driver of both the overall economy and of individual wealth, real estate is pretty hard to beat. As Harvard Business School professor Arthur Segel says, real estate is the largest asset View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Johnston; Construction; Real Estate

19 Apr 2019
Blog Post

Instagram Takeover - The MBA Oath

The MBA Oath is a voluntary pledge MBAs take to create value in the business world responsibly and ethically. Founded at HBS in 2009, it was modeled after the Hippocratic Oath... View Details

21 Jun 2021
Blog Post

Celebrating the Past, Crafting the Future Part 1: HBS/HKS Faculty Reflections

Graduating more than ten HBS | HKS Joint Degree classes is an accomplishment in which all of us — students, alumni, faculty, and staff — can take considerable pride. The program’s mission of developing... View Details

February 1994 (Revised August 1994)
Background Note

Note on Contingent Environmental Liabilities

By: Richard H.K. Vietor and Forest L. Reinhardt

Addresses contingent environmental liabilities that are the result of unforeseen environmental risks where the dollar amount of such liabilities is unknown and depends on future events. In contrast, fines for violating environmental laws are liabilities, but are not... View Details

Keywords: Legal Liability; Risk Management; Natural Environment; Laws and Statutes; Pollutants; Governance Compliance; United States