Publications

01 Oct 2015
News

Banking on Trust

priorities and the challenges to achieving them—the better your chances of having a positive impact.” Based in Zambia from 2005-11, Sheppard spearheaded a joint venture that brought together government, business, and civic leaders to identify and address constraints to... View Details

15 Jun 2021
News

Case Study: Inside Story

that group. This is particularly important when building for busy parents, because they don’t have time for so-so products. But give them a product that five friends have said is incredible, and it will take off like wildfire. Lastly,... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries; Information

31 Mar 2011
News

Building an Online Swap Shop

Silicon Valley. Homer joined the thredUP team after HBS, but he worked closely with Reinhart, a sectionmate, during their RC year. The trust built that year was key to thredUP’s success, said Homer. “One of the things that’s really hard when you’re building a new View Details

Keywords: Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores; Retail Trade

15 Apr 2019
Research & Ideas

Infographic: Can I Please Speak to an Actual Person?

Based on the Working Paper, Mitigating the Negative Effects of Customer Anxiety through Access to Human Contact (pdf) by Michelle A. Shell and Ryan W. Buell. Shell is a doctoral student at Harvard Business School, and Buell is the UPS... View Details

Keywords: by Katherine Vizcardo and Danielle Kost; Service

March 2004 (Revised June 2004)
Case

Blackout: August 14, 2003

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Ryland Matthew Willis

On August 14, 2003, an electricity blackout cascaded throughout the northeastern United States and Canada. Describes the structure, technology, and economics of the electric utility industry and how gradual deregulation beginning in the 1970s placed unprecedented, and... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Performance Improvement; Infrastructure; Energy Sources; Business and Government Relations; Networks; Emerging Markets; Failure; Economics; Utilities Industry; Canada; Northeastern United States

01 Mar 2011
News

Faculty Books

Blind Spots: Why We Fail to Do What’s Right and What to Do about It by Max H. Bazerman and Ann E. Tenbrunsel (Princeton University Press) Max Bazerman, the Jesse Isidor Straus Professor of Business Administration, and his coauthor examine... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

01 Dec 2011
News

Faculty Books

organizational performance is substantial and quantifiable. An effective business culture can account for up to half of the performance differential between organizations in the same business. Drawing on field research and case studies,... View Details

Keywords: Utilities

01 Dec 2002
News

Mary Callahan Erdoes

questions early and often. Are bonds a good bet for those who want to reduce their reliance on equities? I have a lot of sympathy for those who are just getting into bonds now, but I still believe they should have a position in investors' portfolios in every View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg

28 Sep 2022
News

SAP's Sabine Bendiek on workforce strategy

01 Dec 2017
News

2017 in Retail: Voice-Activated, One-Hour-Delivery Shopping

building. The losers have been the middle-of-the-road retail strategies—JCPenney, Kohl’s, Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch—and the shopping malls they occupy. Their business models are completely outdated. Customers want convenience, they want... View Details

Keywords: Ron Johnson (MBA 1984), founder and CEO, Enjoy

July 2011
Teaching Note

Addleshaw Goddard LLP (TN)

By: Robert G. Eccles and Penelope Rossano

Teaching Note for 409056. View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Corporate Strategy; Leadership Development; Business Units; Price; Contracts; Training; Competency and Skills; Partners and Partnerships; Competitive Advantage; Mission and Purpose; Legal Services Industry; United Kingdom

December 1999 (Revised July 2000)
Case

Cimetrics Technology (B): Russian Perspectives

By: Lynn S. Paine

Presents the perspectives of two Russian software developers working for Cimetrics in Moscow. A central issue from the Russian perspective is whether a more structured and formal arrangement is needed for managing the Russian team. View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Applications and Software; Business or Company Management; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Human Resources; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Labor and Management Relations; Product Development; Performance Evaluation; Information Technology Industry; Russia; Canada; United States

January 2011 (Revised November 2014)
Case

Mochi Media

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Amit Jain

In late 2009, the management of Mochi Media, a venture-backed startup, must decide how to invest scarce resources to achieve continued growth. Mochi has developed a three-sided platform, connecting Flash game developers, sites that aggregate these games, and... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Business Startups; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Network Effects; Multi-Sided Platforms; Partners and Partnerships; Competition

December 2001
Case

Qwest Communications International Inc.

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Christopher Hackett

Describes the evolution of Qwest from a small fiber-optic construction firm in 1996 to a global telecommunications giant in 2001. Focuses on Qwest's pivotal acquisition of "Baby Bell" US West, a regional Bell operating company many times Qwest's size. Discusses the... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Asset Pricing; Business History; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Organizational Culture; Partners and Partnerships; Vertical Integration; Telecommunications Industry

August 2009 (Revised March 2011)
Case

Shenzhen Development Bank

By: Li Jin, Yuhai Xuan and Xiaobing Bai

Weijian Shan, Managing Partner of Newbridge Capital, faces a tough call in regard to his firm's investment in Shenzhen Development Bank, China's fifteenth-largest commercial bank listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Due to the aggressive lobby of the existing... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Private Equity; Commercial Banking; Investment; Emerging Markets; Business and Government Relations; Banking Industry; China