Publications

May 2024 (Revised July 2024)
Case

Lowe’s: Improving the Total Home Strategy

By: Elie Ofek, K. Shelette Stewart and Alicia Dadlani

In 2023, Marvin Ellison, CEO of Lowe’s, contemplated enhancements to the company’s Total Home Strategy to accelerate performance and grow market share. In the last five years since becoming CEO, Ellison had championed a turnaround of the company, completing a... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; E-commerce; Competition; Brands and Branding; Business Strategy; Retail Industry

October 2017 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Jumia Nigeria: from Retail to Marketplace (A)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Namrata Arora

Founded in 2012, Jumia Nigeria, a startup effort by Germany-based Rocket Internet, aimed to become an African Amazon. The company entered the nascent market and immediately enjoyed an uptick in consumer spending fueled by the strength of Nigeria’s oil-based economy. By... View Details

Keywords: Retail; Marketplace; Inventory; Ecommerce; Funding; Business Ecosystem; Business Ecosystems; Competition; Business Model; Globalization; Emerging Markets; Expansion; Logistics; Competitive Strategy; E-commerce; Retail Industry; India; Nigeria; Africa

Program

Real Estate Management Program

Summary In today's increasingly unpredictable, competitive real estate sector, your ability to make the best decisions requires a thorough grasp of how the industry is evolving and how the relationships among design, development,... View Details

Keywords: Real Estate; Real Estate

October 1999 (Revised October 2005)
Case

Autobytel.com

By: Youngme E. Moon

Autobytel enjoys first-mover advantage in the Internet new car buying space. According to a number of metrics, it is the online leader in this category. However, a number of competitors have sprung up, raising questions about the long-term viability of Autobytel's... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Internet and the Web; Marketing Channels; Strategy; Internet and the Web; Competition; Business Model; Service Operations; Budgets and Budgeting; Growth and Development; Auto Industry

23 Mar 2015
News

President Obama to Announce New Steps to Attract Foreign Investors and Create Jobs through the Continued Expansion of the SelectUSA Initiative

October 2003 (Revised January 2009)
Case

Transforming Matsui Securities

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Masako Egawa, Jamie Ladge and Haruki Umezawa

Michio Matsui, president and CEO of Matsui Securities, transformed a small regional securities company into a leading player in the online broking industry in Japan. Discusses how he transformed the business model and culture of the company and took advantage of the... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Innovation and Invention; Leading Change; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business Model; Organizational Culture; Financial Markets; Competitive Advantage; Japan

22 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

Getting to Eureka!: How Companies Can Promote Creativity

respectively, for the NASA Tournament Lab, a new online project designed to tackle complex computational problems by setting up competitions among scientists to come up with solutions. But the findings from... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

10 Mar 2009
First Look

First Look: March 10, 2009

work to China, DSHM would become uncompetitive. However, in outsourcing the work, some skills would necessarily have to be transferred, potentially teaching the future competition and providing them with a platform to attack DSHM's core... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Web

Find Answers - MBA

together your application, and highly encourage you to take advantage of our online resources and ongoing events . We also offer Application Help Sessions led by our Admissions team to assist candidates who have started their... View Details

Program

Senior Executive Program—Africa

Summary African countries face a distinct set of social, economic, and political conditions that create unique business challenges—along with exciting opportunities. To gain a competitive advantage, businesses across the continent need... View Details

Program

Changing the Game

skills needed to bargain more effectively, make better decisions on the spot, and consistently deliver results. You may also be interested in the related program: Changing the Game: Negotiation and Competitive Decision-Making—Virtual.... View Details

Lynda M. Applegate

Lynda M. Applegate is a Baker Foundation Professor at HBS and is Chair of the Advisory Committee for Harvard University’s Masters Degree of Liberal Arts in Finance and Management at the Harvard University Extension School. She has also played a... View Details

Program

The Business of Entertainment, Media, and Sports

long-term competitive advantage. Key Benefits Emphasizing the obstacles facing entertainment industry decision-makers, this program will help you develop and execute more effective business strategies. You will debate and analyze the... View Details

Keywords: Media & Entertainment; Media & Entertainment

16 Dec 2014
First Look

First Look: December 16

IEEE Security & Privacy Accountable? The Problems and Solutions of Online Ad Optimization By: Edelman, Benjamin G. Abstract—Online advertising might seem to be the most measurable form of marketing ever invented. Comprehensive records... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

January 2020
Case

Ureed.com: The Marketplace for Language

By: Ashley V. Whillans, Esel Çekin and Alpana Thapar

Jordanian entrepreneur, Nour Al Hassan, founded Tarjama in 2008, tapping into an underserved and high demand need: Arabic translation service. Its lean model comprised of hiring full-time employees, mainly women, who worked from home. It steadily grew over the... View Details

Keywords: Language Translation; Freelancers; Entrepreneurship; Human Resources; Management; Expansion; Quality; Growth and Development Strategy

Web

Curriculum - MBA

likely in the life sciences or biotech space. Capstone Overview First Year August Harvard Business School Online CORe Harvard Business School As with all MBA candidates, MS/MBA students take a short test to determine whether they are... View Details

21 Aug 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, August 21, 2018

it is no longer enough for firms to be better or cheaper to gain competitive advantage. These new rules make it essential for companies to reexamine four fundamental aspects of their business to thrive in the digital era—their strategy,... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

February 2000 (Revised October 2000)
Case

Open Market, Inc.: The E-Commerce Wars

By: James I. Cash Jr., Janis Lee Gogan, Michael Haselkorn and Mani Subramani

Continues the story of Open Market, Inc., a company founded in 1994 to support electronic commerce on the Internet. Despite a very successful initial public offering, the firm had reached a growth plateau, and the management team was considering several strategic... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing Channels; Product Marketing; Product Development; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Information Technology Industry; Web Services Industry