Publications

March 2002
Background Note

Incentive Strategy Within Organizations

By: Brian J. Hall

This case serves as a supplement to any course on incentive design and implementation. The analysis first locates incentive strategy within the larger structure of organizations and markets and then helps to define the central components and difficulties of incentive... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Compensation and Benefits; Performance Evaluation; Strategy; Situation or Environment; Problems and Challenges

September 2023 (Revised July 2024)
Case

Honest Jobs: A Path to Redemption

By: Paul A. Gompers and Jeffrey Barkas

Founded by a formerly incarcerated job seeker, Honest Jobs' mission is to be the hub where people with criminal records come to build careers and employers come to find great talent. Honest Jobs faced early challenges as a two-sided platform for justice-involved job... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Venture Capital; Recruitment; Entrepreneurial Finance; Selection and Staffing; Digital Platforms; Job Search; Mission and Purpose; Expansion; Employment Industry; United States; Colorado; Ohio; Texas

21 Jan 2021
Video

Sunil Bharti Mittal

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, discusses the company’s internationalization process and that the expansion into 15 African countries has ultimately failed due to the lack of appreciation for the problems faced within Africa and the... View Details

22 May 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Componential Theory of Creativity

Keywords: by Teresa M. Amabile

Article

Finding Lost Profits: An Equilibrium Analysis of Patent Infringement Damages

By: James J. Anton and Dennis A. Yao

We discuss how a seller can appropriate rents when selling knowledge that lacks legal property rights by solving either an expropriation or a valuation problem and then analyze how seller rents increase when a portion of the intellectual property (IP) can be protected.... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Patents; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Knowledge; Rights; Strategy; Valuation; Problems and Challenges

Find at Harvard

Read Now

February 1998 (Revised January 1999)
Case

Rob Parson at Morgan Stanley (C)

A year after Rob Parson's manager decided to postpone Parson's promotion, Parson's new manager Gary Stuart faces the decision of promotion again. Stuart considers whether the efforts Parson had made were sufficient. Teaching purpose: To explore managerial problems... View Details

Keywords: Management; Personal Development and Career; Performance Evaluation; Financial Services Industry

04 Apr 2023
Blog Post

African American Student Union Spotlight on Tech

managing multiple stakeholders by listening to their needs and seeking optimal solutions to complex problems. At HBS, I use my ability to understand stakeholder needs and solve View Details

January 2023 (Revised April 2023)
Case

Cobalt Robotics: Scaling Workplace Robotics

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Nicole Tempest Keller and Kyung Keun Park

Founded in 2016, Cobalt Robotics, based in Fremont, California, was a Robot-as-a-Service (RaaS) company that built autonomous workplace robots that were designed to replace or supplement human security guards. Outfitted with over 60 sensors, Cobalt robots patrolled... View Details

Keywords: Information Infrastructure; Disruptive Innovation; Innovation and Invention; Marketing Strategy; Marketing Channels; Customers; Technology Industry; United States; California

23 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 23

problems (and the ways they reinforce each other), this paper offers a new approach to community transformation which calls for leaders to use technology to inform and connect people. We need to convert the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

August 2023 (Revised September 2023)
Case

Zegna

By: Rohit Deshpandé, Dante Roscini and Elena Corsi

In 2023, the Italian luxury Zegna brand, traditionally known for formal menswear, was refocusing towards leisure wear, following a recent consumer trend. Such a move exposed the brand to more competition, in a segment where perhaps its made-in-Italy feature was less of... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Product Marketing; Product Positioning; Luxury; Competition; Fashion Industry; Italy

July 1983 (Revised September 1986)
Case

Johnson Wax: Enhance (B)

After the initial ASSESSOR indicated problems in formulation, product position, and advertising copy, Enhance was modified and retested using ASSESSOR. Compares the new results as well as presenting teaching study data. Enhance is well below predicted share. Is the... View Details

Keywords: Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Advertising; Product Development; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

July 1993 (Revised June 1994)
Case

Phil Knight Managing NIKE's Transformation

By: Hugo Uyterhoeven

Describes Nike's responses to market and competitive challenges as well as its attempts at an organizational transformation from unstructured entrepreneurial management to more formalized, professional management. Focuses on Phil Knight's leadership role. View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Leadership; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Problems and Challenges; Competition

June 2015
Case

Ethiopia: An Emerging Market Opportunity?

By: John A. Quelch and Sunru Yong

This case centers on the potential and challenges of entering an emerging market. It provides a brief overview of the Ethiopian market, market reforms and policies, and the business environment faced by foreign companies. Three multinational businesses, CareCo, ShoeCo,... View Details

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Emerging Markets; Foreign Direct Investment; Ethiopia

April 2002
Supplement

Grey Warner, Merck Latin America

By: Michael Beer

Grey Warner, the vice president of Merck's Latin America region, discusses the challenges raised in the case and the lessons learned. View Details

Keywords: Strategic Planning; Values and Beliefs; Change Management; Problems and Challenges; Management Teams; Pharmaceutical Industry; Latin America

22 May 2008
Working Paper Summaries

Testing Strategy with Multiple Performance Measures Evidence from a Balanced Scorecard at Store24

Keywords: by Dennis Campbell, Srikant M. Datar, Susan L. Kulp & V.G. Narayanan; Food & Beverage

December 1997
Case

Fixed Income Valuation

By: W. Carl Kester

A collection of problems that introduces students to the use of discounted cash flow analysis in the valuation of fixed income securities. Students are required to estimate bond prices and yields to maturity, among other items. View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Cash Flow; Bonds

12 Nov 2014
News

Bank Regulators Making Up for Crisis Failures

June 2, 2013
Article

Corporate Sustainability Is Not Sustainable

By: Auden Schendler and Michael W. Toffel

Despite perceptions that sustainable business efforts are progressing, the environment reminds us we're failing to deal with the problem sufficiently. Here's what business leaders must do next. View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Environmental Sustainability; Failure