Publications

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11 May 2021
Blog Post

Q+A on the Socioeconomic Inclusion Task Force with Holly Fetter (MBA 2020) and Alexxis Isaac (MBA 2020)

There was genuine appreciation of our efforts to create a dataset behind some of that intuition. Holly: This was definitely a partnership and a very collaborative process with administrators, some of whom... View Details

June 2004 (Revised September 2007)
Case

Zara: IT for Fast Fashion

In 2003, Zara's CIO must decide whether to upgrade the retailer's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. Despite... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Customer Value and Value Chain; Information Management; Infrastructure; Supply Chain Management; Information Technology; Retail Industry

March 2022
Case

Unilever: Remote Work in Manufacturing

By: Prithwiraj Choudhury and Susie L. Ma

In December 2021, Unilever—one of the world’s largest producers of consumer goods—was in the midst of a pilot project to digitize its manufacturing facilities and enable remote work for factory employees. This was possible because of an earlier project to retrofit a... View Details

Keywords: Change; Globalization; Information Technology; Technology Adoption; Human Resources; Jobs and Positions; Operations; Education; Training; Manufacturing Industry

2020
Chapter

Team Reflexivity

By: Michaéla Schippers, Amy C. Edmondson and Michael A. West

Many teams face the problem of process loss, or suboptimal functioning, with sometimes serious consequences, such as medical errors. Team reflexivity—a deliberate process of discussing team goals, processes, or outcomes—can aid in optimizing team performance. In the... View Details

Keywords: Team Reflexivity; Groups and Teams; Performance Improvement; Information; Goals and Objectives; Learning

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2019
Working Paper

The Impact of the General Data Protection Regulation on Internet Interconnection

By: Ran Zhuo, Bradley Huffaker, KC Claffy and Shane Greenstein

The Internet comprises thousands of independently operated networks, where bilaterally negotiated interconnection agreements determine the flow of data between networks. The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) imposes strict restrictions on... View Details

Keywords: Personal Data; Privacy Regulation; GDPR; Interconnection Agreements; Internet and the Web; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; European Union

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1998
Book

Marketing Kakushin no Jidai 4: Eigyou Ryuutsuu Kakushin (The Age of Marketing Innovation 4: Sales and Distribution Innovation)

By: Mitsuaki Shimaguchi, Hirotaka Takeuchi, Hotaka Katahira and Junzou Ishii

Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Marketing; Sales; Distribution

27 Oct 2020
Blog Post

Creating the Minority Renaissance for Venture Capital: Interview with Henri Pierre-Jacques and Jarrid Tingle, Managing Partners at Harlem Capital

risks,” Tingle advised. “Being at HBS and having relevant experience beforehand means that you can do an operating role or work for a startup and still be very competitive in... View Details

25 Mar 2025
HBS Seminar

Lou Shipley, Harvard Business School

Michael W. Toffel

Professor Toffel is the Senator John Heinz Professor of Environmental Management. His research examines how companies are addressing climate change (especially decarbonization) and other environmental and working condition issues in their operations and supply... View Details

10 Dec 2020
News

Managing Diversity: A Conversation with Mellody Hobson, Co-CEO & President of Ariel Investments, and Hubert Joly

January 2021 (Revised April 2022)
Case

Best Buy's Corie Barry: Confronting the COVID-19 Pandemic

By: William W. George and Amram Migdal

This case examines the leadership of Corie Barry, the new CEO of Best Buy, with a focus on actions the company took in 2020 to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. The case includes a history of Best Buy’s strategy and leadership, including the transitions between the... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Change; Disruption; Volatility; Communication; Competency and Skills; Customers; Decision Making; Ethics; Fairness; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Finance; Cash Flow; Financial Condition; Financial Liquidity; Goods and Commodities; Corporate Governance; Health Pandemics; Human Resources; Executive Compensation; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Resignation and Termination; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Innovation and Invention; Jobs and Positions; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Job Design and Levels; Job Interviews; Job Offer; Labor; Employment; Human Capital; Working Conditions; Law; Leadership; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Management; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Practices and Processes; Management Style; Management Succession; Management Systems; Management Teams; Risk Management; Operations; Distribution; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Logistics; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Supply Chain; Organizations; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Outcome or Result; Personal Development and Career; Retirement; Work-Life Balance; Planning; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; Relationships; Business and Community Relations; Labor and Management Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Safety; Science; Strategy; Retail Industry; North and Central America; United States; Minnesota

February 2023 (Revised June 2023)
Case

Doing Business in Santiago, Chile

By: Willis Emmons, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Ruth Costas

The case uses the example of the opening of the first IKEA furniture store in Chile – which is operated by Chilean group Falabella – to discuss the opportunities and challenges of doing business in the country. It gives readers an overview of Chile’s economic... View Details

Keywords: Business Cycles; Development Economics; Developing Countries and Economies; Economic Growth; Economic Sectors; Economy; Macroeconomics; Business History; Chile; Latin America

June 2003 (Revised November 2003)
Case

Siemens Medical Solutions: Strategic Turnaround

By: D. Quinn Mills and Julian Kurz

Describes how Siemens Medical Solutions (MED) accomplished a remarkable turnaround from a money-losing operation to one of Siemens' most profitable divisions. By late 1996, a challenging market environment in the health care industry as well as inefficiencies in the... View Details

Keywords: Opportunities; Globalized Firms and Management; Health Care and Treatment; Transformation; Problems and Challenges; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

Web

Laying Down the Principles: Management - Railroads and the Transformation of Capitalism | Harvard Business School/title>

Railroads Finance Management Business Analysts Mass Distribution Mergers & Syndicates Research Links Laying Down the Principles: Management A system of centralized management was born from the need to direct the flow of capital and run... View Details

02 Nov 2006
Working Paper Summaries

Managing Functional Biases in Organizational Forecasts: A Case Study of Consensus Forecasting in Supply Chain Planning

Keywords: by Rogelio Oliva & Noel H. Watson

2015
Working Paper

Client Service, Compensation, and the Sell-Side Analyst Objective Function: An Empirical Analysis of Relational Incentives in the Investment-Research Industry

By: David A. Maber, Boris Groysberg and Paul M. Healy

This paper investigates how sell-side analysts build and sustain their client networks; the economic gains to successfully managing this challenge; and the metrics through which these incentives are delivered. In a typical semiannual period, the average analyst... View Details

Keywords: Networks; Measurement and Metrics; Operations; Customer Focus and Relationships; Jobs and Positions

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September 2013 (Revised February 2016)
Case

GlaxoSmithKline: Sourcing Complex Professional Services

By: Heidi K. Gardner and Silvia Hodges Silverstein

Pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) uses an innovative new approach to procuring outside legal counsel: it replaces relationship-based selection and law firms' traditional time-based billing with data-driven decision making and an online reverse auction. In... View Details

Keywords: Legal Industry; Procurement; Professional Service Firms; Pricing; Competition; Change Management; Supply Chain Management; Legal Liability; Business Processes; Legal Services Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

March 2006
Case

The Whitesides Lab

By: H. Kent Bowen and Francesca Gino

A significant part of the long-term economic growth in developed economies depends on the translation of scientific research into new products and processes. Focuses on the front end of this value creation stream. The laboratory of George Whitesides has a 30-year... View Details

Keywords: Research; Performance Productivity; Economic Growth; Infrastructure; Creativity; Groups and Teams; Value Creation; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Leadership; Resource Allocation