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- All HBS Web
(3,360)
- People (17)
- News (1,044)
- Research (1,641)
- Events (3)
- Multimedia (3)
- Faculty Publications (633)
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- December 2012
- Supplement
Home Essentials: Building a Global Service Business with Local Operations (CW)
By: Lynda M. Applegate and William R. Kerr
- April 2008
- Module Note
Improvement with Customer-Operators
By: Frances X. Frei and Dennis Campbell
Taught as the third module in a Harvard Business School course on Managing Service Operations: Understanding the Customer Operating Role (606-092). Explores how firms can systematically leverage their customer-operators in the organizational improvement process is... View Details
Keywords: Service Operations; Performance Improvement; Customer Focus and Relationships; Framework; Employees; Business Model; Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Design
Frei, Frances X., and Dennis Campbell. "Improvement with Customer-Operators." Harvard Business School Module Note 608-135, April 2008.
- July – August 2011
- Article
Deliberate Learning to Improve Performance in Dynamic Service Settings: Evidence from Hospital Intensive Care Units
By: I. M. Nembhard and A. L. Tucker
Dynamic service settings-characterized by workers who interact with customers to deliver services in a rapidly changing, uncertain, and complex environment (e.g., hospitals)-play an important role in the economy. Organizational learning studies in these settings have... View Details
Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Customer Focus and Relationships; Learning; Health Care and Treatment; Service Delivery; Performance Improvement; Quality; Groups and Teams; Cooperation; Health Industry
Nembhard, I. M., and A. L. Tucker. "Deliberate Learning to Improve Performance in Dynamic Service Settings: Evidence from Hospital Intensive Care Units." Organization Science 22, no. 4 (July–August 2011): 907–922.
- September 2007
- Case
Collaborating to Improve
By: Richard M.J. Bohmer and Ingrid M. Nembhard
Madison Memorial Hospital is deciding between a variety of quality improvement strategies. Highlights quality improvement collaborative—organized programs popularized by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in which teams from multiple institutions work together to... View Details
Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Service Delivery; Performance Improvement; Quality; Groups and Teams; Cooperation; Integration; Health Industry
Bohmer, Richard M.J., and Ingrid M. Nembhard. "Collaborating to Improve." Harvard Business School Case 608-054, September 2007.
- March 2008 (Revised March 2009)
- Case
The Home Depot, Inc.
For its first 20 years, Home Depot was known for its entrepreneurial spirit and focus on customer service. Merchandising, purchasing, and store operations were all decentralized. When the company hit $45 billion in sales, many believed that a more disciplined approach... View Details
Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Profit; Leading Change; Six Sigma; Service Operations; Business Processes; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Retail Industry
Ton, Zeynep, and Catherine Ross. "The Home Depot, Inc." Harvard Business School Case 608-093, March 2008. (Revised March 2009.)
- March 2009 (Revised December 2009)
- Case
Relational Investors and Home Depot (A)
By: Jay W. Lorsch and Kaitlyn Simpson
In 2006, amidst shareholder upset over CEO Robert Nardelli's compensation and Home Depot's declining stock price, Relational Investors decided to further investigate the situation. As experts in turning around underperforming and undervalued companies, Relational's... View Details
Keywords: Restructuring; Financial Management; Investment; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Ownership Stake; Business and Shareholder Relations; Corporate Strategy
Lorsch, Jay W., and Kaitlyn Simpson. "Relational Investors and Home Depot (A)." Harvard Business School Case 409-076, March 2009. (Revised December 2009.)
- 2017
- Working Paper
Inequality in Knowledge Repository Use in Scaling Service Operations
By: Melissa A. Valentine, Tom Fangyun Tan, Bradley R. Staats and Amy C. Edmondson
To scale service operations requires sharing knowledge across the organization. However, prior work highlights that individuals on the periphery of organizational knowledge sharing networks may struggle to access useful knowledge at work. A knowledge repository (KR)... View Details
Keywords: Knowledge Repository; Scaling Service Operations; Fluid Teams; Groups and Teams; Knowledge Management; Performance
Valentine, Melissa A., Tom Fangyun Tan, Bradley R. Staats, and Amy C. Edmondson. "Inequality in Knowledge Repository Use in Scaling Service Operations." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 13-001, July 2012. (Revised August 2017.)
- June 2007 (Revised December 2007)
- Case
AFL-CIO: Office of Investment and Home Depot
By: Rakesh Khurana and James Weber
Describes the AFL-CIO: Office of Investments activities in their campaign to improve governance at Home Depot by calling attention to Home Depot CEO Robert Nardelli's compensation package and the company's poor performance. The AFL-CIO Office of Investments advocates... View Details
Keywords: Investment; Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Executive Compensation; Labor Unions; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business and Shareholder Relations
Khurana, Rakesh, and James Weber. "AFL-CIO: Office of Investment and Home Depot." Harvard Business School Case 407-097, June 2007. (Revised December 2007.)
- March 1993 (Revised April 1995)
- Case
IBM After-Sales Service
IBM has established a service delivery system to provide service and maintenance parts for its installed base of computers. The case outlines the competitive pressures IBM faces from alternative providers of maintenance services (e.g. other OEMs, third-party... View Details
Keywords: Service Delivery; Service Operations; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Logistics; Operations; Distribution; Customer Focus and Relationships; Competitive Strategy; Computer Industry
Hammond, Janice H. "IBM After-Sales Service." Harvard Business School Case 693-001, March 1993. (Revised April 1995.)
- 25 Apr 2005
- Research & Ideas
New Learning at American Home Products
The success of American Home Products reflects a unique path of learning. The company originated with the merger of several companies in related businesses. During the seventy years following its formation in 1926, the company's senior... View Details
- April 1984 (Revised November 1988)
- Background Note
Statistical Quality Control for Process Improvement
Describes systematic methods for process debugging and improvement, based on statistical quality control. Examples are from manufacturing settings, but techniques are also useful for services and sales, and to quantity improvement as well as quality improvement. View Details
Bohn, Roger E. "Statistical Quality Control for Process Improvement." Harvard Business School Background Note 684-068, April 1984. (Revised November 1988.)
- 2016
- Article
Does volunteering improve well-being?
By: A.V. Whillans, Scott C. Seider, Lihan Chen, Ryan J. Dwyer, Sarah Novick, Kathryn J. Gramigna, Brittany A. Mitchell, Victoria Savalei, Sally S. Dickerson and Elizabeth W. Dunn
Does volunteering causally improve well-being? To empirically test this question, we examined one instantiation of volunteering that is common at post-secondary institutions across North America: community service learning (CSL). CSL is a form of experiential learning... View Details
Whillans, A.V., Scott C. Seider, Lihan Chen, Ryan J. Dwyer, Sarah Novick, Kathryn J. Gramigna, Brittany A. Mitchell, Victoria Savalei, Sally S. Dickerson, and Elizabeth W. Dunn. "Does volunteering improve well-being?" Comprehensive Results in Social Psychology 1, nos. 1-3 (2016): 35–50.
- February 2016 (Revised March 2022)
- Case
Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (B)
By: John Beshears, Patrick Rooney and Jenny Sanford
The pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) sector processes prescription drug claims on behalf of companies that offer a prescription drug benefit to their employees. This case follows Bob Nease, Chief Scientist at Express Scripts, as he considers methods to promote home... View Details
Keywords: Pharmaceuticals; Prescription Drugs; Pharmacy Benefit Manager; PBM; Healthcare; Behavioral Economics; Choice Architecture; Active Choice; Health Care and Treatment; Service Delivery; Decision Choices and Conditions; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Compensation and Benefits
Beshears, John, Patrick Rooney, and Jenny Sanford. "Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (B)." Harvard Business School Case 916-040, February 2016. (Revised March 2022.)
- November 2016 (Revised August 2020)
- Case
Improving Access at VA
By: Ryan W. Buell, Robert S. Huckman and Sam Travers
In 2015, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ran the largest healthcare system in the United States, with over 1,700 sites of care that served nearly 9 million veterans. One year earlier, a scandal had erupted over a cover-up of the excessive wait times veterans... View Details
Keywords: Service Operations; Service Delivery; Social Issues; Health Care and Treatment; Government Administration; Performance Improvement; Public Administration Industry; Health Industry; United States
Buell, Ryan W., Robert S. Huckman, and Sam Travers. "Improving Access at VA." Harvard Business School Case 617-012, November 2016. (Revised August 2020.)
- February 2016
- Case
Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (A)
By: John Beshears, Patrick Rooney and Jenny Sanford
The pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) sector processes prescription drug claims on behalf of companies that offer a prescription drug benefit to their employees. This case follows Bob Nease, Chief Scientist at Express Scripts, as he considers methods to promote home... View Details
Keywords: Pharmaceuticals; Prescription Drugs; Pharmacy Benefit Manager; PBM; Healthcare; Behavioral Economics; Choice Architecture; Active Choice; Service Delivery; Decision Choices and Conditions; Health Care and Treatment; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Compensation and Benefits; Pharmaceutical Industry
Beshears, John, Patrick Rooney, and Jenny Sanford. "Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (A)." Harvard Business School Case 916-026, February 2016.
- March 2018 (Revised February 2020)
- Teaching Note
Improving Access at VA
By: Ryan W. Buell and Robert S. Huckman
In 2015, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ran the largest healthcare system in the United States, with over 1,700 sites of care that served nearly 9 million veterans. One year earlier, a scandal had erupted over a cover-up of the excessive wait times veterans... View Details
- March 2016 (Revised February 2017)
- Case
Hello Alfred: Come Home Happy
By: Joseph B. Fuller and Carin-Isabel Knoop
On a mission to "automate the on-demand economy," Harvard Business School classmates Marcela Sapone and Jessica Beck launched Hello Alfred in 2013 to provide subscribers with an "Alfred" to complete various chores for a monthly fee. In early 2016, the company has built... View Details
Keywords: On-demand Economy; Sharing Economy; Technology Startup; Technology; Growth Strategy; Business Startups; Business Growth and Maturation; Entrepreneurship; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Strategic Planning; Service Industry; United States; Boston; Cambridge; New York (city, NY); California
Fuller, Joseph B., and Carin-Isabel Knoop. "Hello Alfred: Come Home Happy." Harvard Business School Case 316-154, March 2016. (Revised February 2017.)
- May 2003
- Module Note
Product Development Process Design and Improvement
By: Stefan H. Thomke
Describes the conceptual foundations and pedagogy for a module on the design and improvement of processes for the development of products and services. Can also be used as part of a more general course on Managing Technology and Innovation. Central to Managing Product... View Details
- March 2018
- Supplement
Improving Access at VA
By: Ryan W. Buell and Robert S. Huckman
In 2015, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ran the largest healthcare system in the United States, with over 1,700 sites of care that served nearly 9 million veterans. One year earlier, a scandal had erupted over a cover-up of the excessive wait times veterans... View Details
Keywords: Service Operations; Service Delivery; Social Issues; Health Care and Treatment; Government Administration; Performance Improvement; Public Administration Industry; Health Industry; United States
Buell, Ryan W., and Robert S. Huckman. "Improving Access at VA." Harvard Business School Multimedia/Video Supplement 618-709, March 2018.
- February 2024
- Case
Best Buy Health: Enabling Care at Home
This case explores retailer Best Buy’s decision to enter health care. Best Buy Health aims to enable care at home across three prongs: consumer health, active aging, and virtual care. A key pillar of Best Buy Health's strategy is leveraging the Geek Squad—the company's... View Details
Keywords: Business Ventures; Health Care and Treatment; Innovation and Invention; Business Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Electronics Industry; Health Industry; Retail Industry; United States; Minnesota
Huckman, Robert S., Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Antonio Moreno, Bradley Staats, and Sarah Mehta. "Best Buy Health: Enabling Care at Home." Harvard Business School Case 624-009, February 2024.