Publications

April 2010
Case

Metabical: Pricing, Packaging, and Demand Forecasting Recommendations for a New Weight Loss Drug

By: John A. Quelch and Heather Beckham

Metabical is a new weight loss drug from Cambridge Sciences Pharmaceuticals intended for moderately overweight individuals. In anticipation of final FDA approval, the senior director of marketing, Barbara Printup, prepares for the product launch and must make several... View Details

Keywords: Return On Investment; Forecasting; Pricing Policies; Demand Planning; Marketing Strategy; Price; Consumer Behavior; Investment Return; Forecasting and Prediction; Product Launch; Planning; Brands and Branding; Pharmaceutical Industry

2012
Article

The Excess Burden of Government Indecision

By: Francisco J. Gomes, Laurence J. Kotlikoff and Luis M. Viceira

Governments are known for procrastinating when it comes to resolving painful policy problems. Whatever the political motives for waiting to decide, procrastination distorts economic decisions relative to what would arise with early policy resolution. In so doing, it... View Details

Keywords: Saving; Risk and Uncertainty; Investment Portfolio; Decision Choices and Conditions; Retirement; Policy; Government and Politics

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August 2021
Article

Anger Damns the Innocent

By: Katherine DeCelles, Gabrielle Adams, Holly S. Howe and Leslie K. John

False accusations of wrongdoing are common and can have grave consequences. In six studies, we document a worrisome paradox in perceivers’ subjective judgments of a suspect’s guilt. Specifically, we find that laypeople (online panelists; N = 4,983) use suspects’ angry... View Details

Keywords: Morality; Accusations; Deception; Guilt; Affect; Emotions; Behavior; Perception; Judgments; Decision Making

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05 Jul 2006
What Do You Think?

How Important Is “Executive Intelligence” for Leaders?

information that produces decisions Execution is the basic ingredient that makes a great leader." On the other hand, Philip Derrow argued, "Executive intelligence, particularly as Mr. Menkes defines it, is, I believe, the most... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

28 Nov 2005
Research & Ideas

Unilever: Transformation and Tradition

demonstrated that Unilever could make a hostile acquisition, while the acquisition of Chesebrough-Pond's two years later showed that Unilever could move quickly and decisively if it wished. Effective procedures were put in place to absorb... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones; Consumer Products

17 Oct 2023
Blog Post

HBS Section I Celebrates Parents, Mentors, and Partners Day

last fall, with a video showing the protagonist sharing what decision he made and what the aftermath looked like. He also gave the parents a sneak peek of what went into preparing for a case, including showing his discussion outline and a... View Details

July 2003 (Revised March 2004)
Case

XM Satellite Radio (A)

By: David B. Godes and Elie Ofek

XM Satellite Radio is a radically new way to listen to radio. Management must develop a marketing strategy to launch the firm and the category. A crucial aspect of the strategy is to determine which of two business models the company will pursue. Should it focus... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Business Model; Decision Choices and Conditions; Cost Management; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Problems and Challenges; Partners and Partnerships; Sales; Competitive Strategy; Communications Industry

13 Feb 2020
Book

Open Your Organization to Honest Conversations

and know-it-all, they won’t get anywhere,” Beer says. “People at the top have more decision rights, and that gives them a sense of distance and sometimes a false sense of confidence that they have the answers to everything. But they... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

09 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Driven: How Human Nature Shapes Organizations

In Driven: How Human Nature Shapes Our Choices, the authors combine the latest thinking from the biological and social sciences to lay out a new theory on human nature. The idea: We are all influenced and guided by four drives: acquiring, bonding, learning, and... View Details

Keywords: by Paul Lawrence & Nitin Nohria

27 Jun 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Social Norms Versus Social Responsibility: Punishing Transgressions Under Conflicting Obligations

Keywords: by Francesca Gino, Celia Moore & Lamar Pierce

Research Summary

Why Do Consumers Contribute to Connected Goods? A Dynamic Game of Competition and Cooperation in Social Networks

Social network platforms and media rely on the voluntary contributions of individual users to stay relevant. Consumers (users) contribute content such as photographs, videos, tweets etc.: these are available to any of their friends or peers, but not... View Details

Web

Dean Srikant Datar Statements & Speeches | About

October 10, 2023 Statement on Supreme Court Decision Harvard University leadership, including Dean Srikant Datar, address the Harvard community after the Supreme Court delivered its decision in Students for... View Details

12 May 2022
News

Why Digital Is a State of Mind, Not Just a Skill Set

01 Jun 2000
News

Going Public: Margaret M. Crotty

Twenty-four hours after almost drowning in a ferryboat disaster in Indonesia, Margaret Crotty agreed to a telephone interview with the Today show to discuss how she survived -- and helped save others as well. Her decision to be on... View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

21 Sep 2020
Research & Ideas

Are You Sabotaging Your Own Company?

hamper productivity through “human obstruction” tactics, by purposely and surreptitiously making poor decisions and being uncooperative. “Making a faulty decision may be simply a matter of placing tools in... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

February 2025
Case

Luca de Meo at Renault Group (A)

By: Emily Truelove, Linda A. Hill and Lydia Begag

When Luca de Meo became CEO of Renault Group in 2020, the 122-year-old French automaker faced financial challenges and the double technological disruption of the automotive industry: the shift to electric vehicles (EVs) and the rise of software-defined vehicles (SDVs).... View Details

01 Jun 2023
News

Pet Project

for subscription options (with tracking). And Maev should keep in mind that the purchase decision is made at the shelf, so include key conversion claims right on the packaging. Success in DTC will make for a strong pitch to retail,... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; Miscellaneous Store Retailers; Retail Trade; Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, and Book Stores; Retail Trade

Web

Building Iconic Brands and Brighter Futures: Interview with Glossier CEO, Kyle Leahy - Recruiting

having a certain background or certain skin color. It's about coming as you are, and that to us is what ‘You look good’ is all about.” Leahy is proud of the business results she and her team are driving and knows they stem from financial and strategy decisions, but... View Details

May 2017 (Revised September 2018)
Case

Hilti Fleet Management (A): Turning a Successful Business Model on Its Head

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Oliver Gassmann and Roman Sauer

This case explores the introduction of fleet management in the construction industry by the premium power tools manufacturer Hilti in 2000. Following its customers’ needs, Hilti moved from selling power tools to leasing them as a service. The introduction of the new... View Details