Publications

March 1998 (Revised November 2004)
Case

FAG Kugelfischer-A German Restructuring

By: Stuart C. Gilson

A large German manufacturer of ball bearings and precision machinery experiences severe financial difficulty brought on by poor management practices, an ill-conceived acquisition of a former East German ball-bearings company, and an industry recession. The company... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Acquisition; Restructuring; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Machinery and Machining; Policy; Resignation and Termination; Management Practices and Processes; Performance Evaluation; Business and Shareholder Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Europe; Germany; United States

Teaching Interest

Overview

By: Ethan S. Bernstein

Professor Bernstein currently teaches a second-year MBA course in Managing Human Capital (MHC). He is also the faculty chair for the Harvard Business School Online Developing Yourself as a Leader course and teaches in a variety of executive education... View Details

23 Oct 2019
News

After the Storm

And it hit me particularly hard being a woman of color and seeing myself in their shoes at one point in time. You know, we’ve seen this across the country in so many ways, where men have behaved poorly and often resign or are fired, and... View Details

Keywords: Elementary and Secondary Schools; Educational Services

April 2025
Case

Giving Up on a Passion: Elizabeth Rowe at the Boston Symphony Orchestra

By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Maisie Wiltshire-Gordon and Alexis Lefort

For 20 years, Elizabeth Rowe was a world-renowned principal flutist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. But in 2024, Rowe decided to leave her position to pursue a new full-time career as a leadership coach. At 50, Rowe was well under the typical retirement age, and,... View Details

25 Sep 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, September 25, 2018

proposed; the latest one by Prime Minister May triggered the resignation of a number of key ministers. All of them struggle to deal with a fundamental tension: how to square barrier-free trade between the UK and the EU, especially across... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

15 Feb 2011
First Look

First Look: Feb. 15

School Case 411-056 Mark Hurd resigned as the CEO of Hewlett-Packard in 2010 after the board discovered that he had misfiled expense reports and paid an HP contractor for unsubstantiated work. After Hurd left HP, he joined Oracle, an HP... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2024 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Governing OpenAI (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Suraj Srinivasan and Will Hurwitz

In late November 2023, OpenAI’s new board of directors took stock of the situation. The company, which sought to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI)—computer systems with capabilities exceeding human abilities—was looking to regain its footing after a chaotic... View Details

02 Oct 2015
News

The ‘F’ Word

and CEO Barry Diller. Mr. Diller was and is a brilliant businessman, but we simply had different management styles—I was unhappy and resigned after about a year. Leaving a position like that was certainly a failure, in my eyes at least... View Details

Keywords: Walt Disney Studios

02 Sep 2008
First Look

First Look: September 3, 2008

from a family perspective, his business runs into challenges when he merges it into a Canadian company and winds up with 30% ownership. McCrea eventually resigns and has to deal with his role in the failure of the company and the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Aug 2008
First Look

First Look: August 12, 2008

Business School Case 808-137 In late November 2000, Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd., the once-monopolized telecom operator owned by the Taiwanese government, was on its way to privatization. Mr. C.K. Mao, Chairman of the company, who headed the job only three months... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Jun 2022
News

Blissful Thinking

bring along more successful people, and you’ll have more career endurance. Thirty-three million Americans have quit their jobs since the spring of 2021. What can good leaders do to make sure that workers are engaged and happy? The Great View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell; illustration by Dan Winters

01 Dec 2012
News

From Where We Stand

my estimation, an unnecessary $100 billion loss to the American taxpayer. I had learned by experience—the "bitterest" road—the power of vested interests in DC, and resigned after two years. Yet despite my failure, I had acquired a deep... View Details

01 Dec 2019
News

John McArthur

professor. We became friends for life and HBS gave me a chance to leave US State Department while in South Vietnam and join the class of 1972 in January 1971 while on a sabbatical. I never looked back and resigned from Government during... View Details

Keywords: Dean

11 Sep 2012
First Look

First Look: September 11

many devices were sold by telephone service providers, creating increased retail competition. To add to Best Buy's problems, on April 10, 2012, CEO Brian Dunn resigned after an investigation into his personal conduct. On June 7, 2012,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

26 Nov 2013
First Look

First Look: November 26

fraud and other violations by both the U.S. Attorney's office and the SEC. The Board was faced with the resignation of the founder and chairman, management succession issues, the failed merger with Cerberus, and the lawsuit in Delaware.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Sep 2006
First Look

First Look: September 12, 2006

organizational culture, alignment, leadership style/fit, and change management. Purchase this case: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=406111 The Board of Directors at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter (A) Harvard Business School Case 405-105... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Sep 2021
News

Immelt in the Hot Seat: Episode 2

almost resigned as CEO of GE. READ MORE Dan Morrell: I want to talk about an episode in 2009. This is in the wake of the financial crisis and you guys had just made a dramatic cut to the dividend. You were in a cab with your... View Details

October 2016 (Revised January 2017)
Supplement

Bally Total Fitness (B): The Fall, 2005–2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

By many measures the largest health-club chain in the United States in the early 2000s, Bally Total Fitness sold most of its remaining fitness clubs to 24 Hour Fitness in 2014 and disappeared from the industry top 100 rankings. After Bally was bedeviled by accounting... View Details