Publications

Read Now

10 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

Retailing Revolution: Category Killers on the Brink

powerful. Showroom Experience. Creating a showroom environment will likely have a significant role in the strategy of mass retailers and will be critical to the survival of category killers. The success of Apple's high-design, high-touch emporiums is causing retailers... View Details

Keywords: by Rajiv Lal & Jose B. Alvarez; Retail

15 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Businesses Beware: The World Is Not Flat

Thomas Friedman, author of "The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century", opines that a number of events ranging from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the rise of the Internet have flattened the competitive landscape worldwide by increasing... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

September 1992 (Revised April 1993)
Background Note

Recognizing Revenues and Expenses: When Is Income Earned?

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

An introduction to the accrual concept used in accounting and its importance to revenue recognition and the matching concept. To be used in conjunction with inventory valuation cases where delivery may not constitute a sale and revenue. View Details

Keywords: Accrual Accounting; Logistics; Value; Revenue Recognition

2012
Article

Behavioral Economics and the Psychology of Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

By: Joe Price and Jason Riis

Behavioral economics is an emerging paradigm that challenges the assumptions and predictions of classical economics. This new paradigm emphasizes that consumers do not always make optimal use of available information nor do they always make choices and tradeoffs in a... View Details

Keywords: Plant-Based Agribusiness; Food; Social Marketing; Decision Choices and Conditions; Consumer Behavior; Nutrition

Read Now

15 Jan 2013
News

Nine Rules for Stifling Innovation

January 2024 (Revised February 2024)
Technical Note

Computer Science for Strategists

By: Andy Wu and Matt Higgins

Two of the most important computer science principles in the technology industry are abstraction and platformization. Our aim with this note is to explain these concepts in an approachable way that brings managers and computer scientists a little closer together. View Details

Keywords: Strategist; Computer Science; Strategy; Management Practices and Processes

April 2001
Background Note

Exchange Rate Terminology and Analytics

An introduction to the concept of exchange rates, simple analytics regarding currency appreciation and devaluation, and real and nominal exchange rates. Concludes with a series of examples that illustrate how shifts in exchange rates and inflation can affect firms'... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Currency Exchange Rate; Inflation and Deflation

Web

The Five Forces - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

Forces analysis can help companies assess which industries to compete in—and how to position themselves for success. Key Industry Structure Concepts Every industry is different, but the underlying drivers of profitably are the same in... View Details

December 2022 (Revised November 2023)
Module Note

What Is the Game? Understanding the Environment

By: Maria P. Roche

As a strategist, one of your main tasks is to size up the external environment of your organization in its entirety. In this module, you will learn basic concepts and tools that will allow you to better understand the environment in which your organization operates. View Details

Keywords: Strategic Planning; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure

December 2004 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Chez Cora

By: David E. Bell, Hal Hogan and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Chez Cora is a chain of breakfast restaurants that successfully expanded from Quebec to Ontario. Is it organized appropriately for more growth? Could the concept work in the United States? If so, how should a migration to the United States be structured? Includes color... View Details

Keywords: Food; Global Strategy; Innovation Strategy; Growth Management; Service Operations; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry; Canada; United States

Find at Harvard

19 Nov 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Do Bonuses Enhance Sales Productivity? A Dynamic Structural Analysis of Bonus-Based Compensation Plans

Keywords: by Doug J. Chung, Thomas Steenburgh & K. Sudhir

December 2019
Technical Note

Technical Note on Bayesian Statistics and Frequentist Power Calculations

By: Amitabh Chandra and Ariel Dora Stern

This Technical Note provides an introduction to Bayes’ Rule and the statistical intuition that stems from it. In this note, we review the concepts that underlie Bayesian statistics, and we offer several simple mathematical examples to illustrate applications of Bayes’... View Details

Keywords: Bayesian Statistics; Mathematical Methods

08 Sep 2008
HBS Case

The Value of Environmental Activists

There are many methods, most financial, to measure the success of companies in meeting goals. But the question becomes a lot harder at Harvard Business School when MBAs are challenged to measure the efforts of environmental organizations like Greenpeace and the World... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Energy; Utilities

27 Sep 2015
News

Smaller, Faster, Cheaper, Over: The Future of Computer Chips

06 Dec 2013
News

Mandela Saw the Wisdom in Leading From Behind

18 Dec 2006
Lessons from the Classroom

Grooming Next-Generation Leaders

Finding and nurturing future leadership talent is a primary concern for most organizations. How can they identify top people, train them, and—here's the catch—retain them? And do so in the face of ever-increasing global challenges? Harvard Business School professors W.... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

23 Jul 2007
Research & Ideas

HBS Cases: How Wikipedia Works (or Doesn’t)

concept of "Enterprise 2.0"—a term coined by McAfee on the general idea of how Web 2.0 technologies can be used in business—popped up on Wikipedia, McAfee beamed. "I was bizarrely proud when my work rose to the level of inclusion in... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Publishing

25 May 2017
News

The Trouble with Optionality

February 2000 (Revised May 2000)
Background Note

Negotiation Analysis: A Synthesis

Presents a framework for analyzing and conducting negotiations. Highlights the importance of four mutually supporting modes of analysis: diagnosing the situation, shaping the structure, managing the process, and judging success. Key concepts are illustrated through the... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation