Publications

Find at Harvard

September 1999 (Revised October 2000)
Case

Eggrock Partners, LLC (A)

By: Thomas J. DeLong, Myra M. Hart and Sharon Peyus

Explores the challenges of choosing how to grow a professional services firm (PSF). Before developing a growth strategy, the partners need to agree on what business(es) the company should be in. Each of the three partners has differing views of what the company should... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business or Company Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Model; Expansion; Business Processes; Industry Structures; Customer Focus and Relationships; Employees; Partners and Partnerships; Service Industry

Find at Harvard

March 2003 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Bertelsmann AG

By: Bharat N. Anand, Michael G. Rukstad and Christoph Kostring

On July 28, 2002, Bertelsmann announced the firing of its CEO, Thomas Middelhoff, in a move that surprised industry observers, analysts, and many employees. Bertelsmann, a privately held company headquartered in Germany, was one of the largest global media... View Details

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Corporate Strategy; Entertainment; Media; Change Management; Integration; Resignation and Termination; Private Ownership; Initial Public Offering; Business Units; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Publishing Industry; Music Industry; Germany

September 1997 (Revised October 2001)
Case

efficient market services: August 1993 (A)

By: Paul A. Gompers and Jeffrey A. Farrell

Penny Baron, vice president of efficient market services, must decide how to finance rapid expansion for a young market research company. Venture leasing is a possibility and terms are explored. View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Growth Management; Research; Marketing; Financing and Loans; Business Startups; Management Teams; Leasing; Service Industry; United States

Find at Harvard

March 2019
Supplement

Gender and Free Speech at Google (B)

By: Nien-hê Hsieh and Sarah Mehta

In November 2018, 20,000 Google employees participated in a walkout to protest the company’s decision to grant a $90 million exit package to a former executive accused of sexual misconduct. The case explores organizers’ demands and asks how the company’s senior leaders... View Details

Keywords: Free Speech; Ethnicity; Gender; Race; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Recruitment; Labor; Employment; Lawsuits and Litigation; Technology Industry; United States; California

29 May 2001
Research & Ideas

Race Does Matter in Mentoring

reached the executive level at his organization. Why did he make it when so many other minorities plateaued in middle management? First, Williams had the good fortune to be hired by Nathan Barrett, a white manager who continually expanded... View Details

Keywords: by David A. Thomas

23 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

The Gulf: It’s a Family Affair

time, those patriarchal systems tend to diminish initiative and entrepreneurship, discouraging individuals to take different stands, go out and do different businesses or take different paths. It is a curious feature of human psychology... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild & Andrea Schulman

September 2004
Case

Valhalla Partners Due Diligence

By: William A. Sahlman and Dan Heath

The Valhalla Partners venture capitial firm introduced a new approach to the due-diligence process. An internal due-diligence report analyzes Telco Exchange, a startup company in the IT software space. An extended excerpt examines the trade-offs involved in the new... View Details

Keywords: Communication Technology; Risk Management; Venture Capital; Business Plan; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Investment; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Corporate Finance; Financial Services Industry; Telecommunications Industry

March 1999 (Revised August 1999)
Case

SCORE! Educational Centers (D)

Describes Rob Waldron's actions upon assuming leadership of SCORE! Educational Centers, an after-school tutoring enterprise. Examines the issue of acquiring and growing a small, self-owned company into a professional organization. Focuses on the steps Waldron takes to... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Business Growth and Maturation; Employee Relationship Management; Teaching; Recruitment; Education Industry; United States

13 Mar 2005
Research & Ideas

Reinforcing Values: A Public Dressing Down

Faced with the need for massive change, most managers respond predictably. They revamp the organization's strategy, then round up the usual set of suspects—people, pay, and processes—shifting around staff, realigning incentives, and... View Details

Keywords: by David A. Garvin & Michael A. Roberto

21 Aug 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, August 21, 2018

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54887 forthcoming Production and Operations Management The Operational Value of Social Media Information By: Cui, Ruomeng, Santiago Gallino, Antonio Moreno, and Dennis J. Zhang... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

06 Nov 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, November 6, 2018

forthcoming Management Science Patent Trolls: Evidence from Targeted Firms By: Cohen, Lauren, Umit Gurun, and Scott Duke Kominers Abstract—We provide the first large-sample evidence on the behavior and impact of nonpracticing entities... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

20 Mar 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, March 20, 2018

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54214 forthcoming Operations Research Online Network Revenue Management Using Thompson Sampling: Demand Forecasting and Price Optimization By: Ferreira, Kris J., David Simchi-Levi, and He... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2000
Background Note

Transfer Pricing

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Discusses use of market prices, negotiated prices, variable costs, dual rate, and full costs for transfer prices. View Details

Keywords: Fair Value Accounting; Cost Accounting; Price; Price Bubble; Negotiation; Cost Management; Cost of Capital; Financial Markets; Strategic Planning; Accounting Industry

13 Jun 2017
Research & Ideas

Why Global Investments Are Still a Good Bet

are moving their money together based on the same sentiments. “Today, we have truly global asset managers that make it easy and cheap for any investor to invest in every market. This facilitates the transmission of investor sentiment... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Financial Services

October 2020 (Revised November 2023)
Case

COVID-19 Testing at Everlywell

By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Olivia Hull

In March 2020, as COVID-19 spreads rapidly across the U.S., Everlywell founder Julia Cheek considers how to respond as a small start-up specializing in at-home lab testing. After making dramatic budget cuts, she decides to pivot the organization to address the... View Details

25 Mar 2001
Research & Ideas

Who Wants to Be an Entrepreneur? [Part II]

being able to put the team in place," as she put it, Polished could not take root. But by last December, Polished seemed closer to its initial destination. Rhyne had secured a lease at Boston's Logan Airport, begun building the first Polished center, added an... View Details

Keywords: by John S. Rosenberg

January 2008
Supplement

Joe Bachelder: Reflections

By: Brian Hall and James K. Sebenius

After Charles Suarez's failed compensation negotiations with Victor, Suarez's attorney, Joe Batchelder, joined class discussions of the case in a course taught by Professor Brian Hall. Professor James Sebenius also interviewed Joe Bachelder at length on this case and... View Details

Keywords: Courts and Trials; Attorney and Client Relationships; Negotiation Deal; Executive Compensation; Knowledge Sharing; Talent and Talent Management; Perspective; Organizations

20 Nov 2007
First Look

First Look: November 20, 2007

Research Agenda Author:Roberto Verganti Periodical:Journal of Product Innovation Management (forthcoming) Abstract Recent studies on design management have helped us to better comprehend how companies can... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

August 2008
Case

Sloan & Harrison: The Associate Challenge

By: Boris Groysberg and Eliot Sherman

The law firm, Sloan & Harrison, was confronting issues pertaining to morale and turnover among its associate ranks. Annual surveys of associates revealed increasing dissatisfaction, particularly with respect to partner communication, work-life balance, and mentorship.... View Details

Keywords: Problems and Challenges; Employees; Human Resources; Leadership Development; Management Style; Performance; Work-Life Balance; Conflict Management; Legal Services Industry