Publications

March 2025
Case

Fostering Community at Airbnb (A)

By: Jeffrey T. Polzer, Heather Whiteman and Sarah Mehta

Set in November 2020, this case explores Airbnb’s efforts to foster a culture of belonging, particularly given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the company’s workforce. It details how Airbnb used employee surveys and organizational network analysis (ONA)—a... View Details

Keywords: Change; Communication; Competency and Skills; Human Resources; Surveys; Information Technology; Health Pandemics; Organizational Culture; Networks; Accommodations Industry; Accommodations Industry; Accommodations Industry; United States; California

June 2010
Case

Playa Dorada Tennis Club: Expansion Strategy

By: W. Earl Sasser Jr. and Brent Kazan

Playa Dorada Beach & Resort in Boca Raton, Florida, faces a growing seasonal demand for tennis services. The number of guests is expected to double in the next few years, and while the tennis facilities are a popular and well-promoted amenity at the resort, court space... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Planning; Price; Expansion; Tourism Industry; Tourism Industry; Tourism Industry; Florida

Profile

Durdana Achakzai

and Latin America. Going to HBS is like traveling around the world to learn global business practices." Applying a broad perspective to energy Even though she had no plans to work in the entertainment industry, Durdana used her... View Details

01 Mar 2007
News

Winter Break Just Got Educational

IMMERSION EXPERIENCES: Students who traveled to New Orleans spent time working on Habitat for Humanity redevelopment projects. Winter break this year gave some 200 MBA students an opportunity to participate in one of three pilot,... View Details

Keywords: immersion; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Social Assistance; Health, Social Assistance; Corporate, Subsidiary, and Regional Managing Offices; Management

09 Jun 2017
News

Curating the Cuisine of Southwest China

industry. So I gave it a go. This was year 2000. And here I am, still in the business 17 years later, and loving it. April White: How have you seen the travel industry in China change in those past 17 years?... View Details

25 May 2011
News

Race to the Finish?

travels 100 miles on a single battery charge. Ghosn notes that 80 percent of the world’s daily driving is less than 50 miles. While electric car owners can charge up at home in a multihour process (usually overnight), Ghosn envisions... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons

January 2014 (Revised March 2015)
Technical Note

The Market Power of Platform-Mediated Networks

By: Benjamin Edelman

This note provides criteria to evaluate the power of a platform-mediated network. For a company considering building such a network or an investor considering funding such an effort, this analysis reveals the scope and desirability of the opportunity. Meanwhile, for a... View Details

Keywords: Intermediaries; Platforms; Platform Strategy; Business Model; Agreements and Arrangements; Distribution Channels; Networks; Technology Platform; Telecommunications Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Telecommunications Industry

December 2012
Case

Blink Booking

By: William R. Kerr, Magnus Thor Torfason and Alexis Brownell

Rebeca Minguela hopes to create an arbitrage platform, similar to Rocket Internet, that can bring start-up ideas and opportunities to Spain. However, Blink Booking, her first venture and proof of concept, is rocked by a co-founder's breach of confidence and departure.... View Details

Keywords: Clones; Cloning; Rocket Internet; Start-up; Equity Split; Arbitrage; Incubator; Mobile App; Expansion; Spain; Europe; Entrepreneurship; Ethics; Internet and the Web; Information Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; Spain; Europe

Profile

Nneka Ezeigwe

different kinds of industries on the ground, looking at what drives change and takes an economy to the next level. I’ll be able to work with policy makers and business leaders who are expanding Nigeria’s economy and political landscape.... View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing/Energy

05 Aug 2014
Blog Post

Leverage the Power of Alumni Networks in Recruiting

example, if your organization is participating in a company presentation, consider sending an alum of the school to help present. Our office will continue to travel to many US and international cities over the coming months and we... View Details

August 2016 (Revised July 2017)
Case

Singapore Airlines: Premium Goes Multi-Brand

By: Rohit Deshpande and Dawn H. Lau

Singapore Airlines had long been considered the gold standard for its innovative customer service. However, the company was faced with new sources of competition, from the rapid growth of Southeast Asian low-cost carriers on the one hand, to the expansion of premium... View Details

Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Air Transportation Industry; Air Transportation Industry; Singapore

2015
Government Testimony

Price Coherence in Online Platforms — Impact and Responses

By: Benjamin Edelman and Julian Wright

We examine the role of price coherence in shaping market structure and offer policy recommendations to advance both efficiency and equity. View Details

Keywords: Price Coherence; Price Parity; MFN; Distribution Channels; Market Design; Travel Industry; Travel Industry

Read Now

December 2008 (Revised July 2010)
Case

TravelCenters of America

By: Robin Greenwood, Daniel Jacob Goldberg and James Quinn

A New York-based hedge fund must decide whether to invest in TravelCenters of America (TA), a recent spin-off from a U.S.-based real estate investment trust. The case confronts students with the question: To what extent is this spin-off opportunity attractive from a... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Investment; Valuation; Real Estate Industry; Real Estate Industry; United States

February 2000 (Revised August 2000)
Case

Priceline.com: Name Your Own Price

By: Robert J. Dolan

Priceline.com is a new concept shifting the setting of price from sellers to buyers. The company aspires to use its patented process of advertising units of demand at named prices to suppliers in many categories. This case focuses on its initial use in the airline... View Details

Keywords: Price; Internet and the Web; Marketing; Emerging Markets; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States