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January 2014 (Revised March 2014)
Teaching Note

The LEGO Group: Envisioning Risks in Asia (A) and (B)

By: Anette Mikes

Keywords: Enterprise Risk Management; LEGO; LEGO Group; Scenario Planning; Risk Management

September 2021 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Tesla in 2023: 'Electrified' Competition

By: Eric Van den Steen, Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Karen Elterman

Over its 17 years in existence, Tesla had redefined people’s view of electric cars, and in 2020, the company saw its stock rise by more than 700% to became the most valuable carmaker in the world. In December 2020, Tesla celebrated its fifth consecutive quarter of... View Details

Keywords: Barrier To Entry; Competitive Advantage; Innovation; Tesla; Automotive Industry; Sustainable Competitive Advantage; Values; Vision; Learning By Doing; Economies Of Scale; Electric Vehicle; Scenario Planning; Batteries; Competitive Strategy; Product Positioning; Profit; Competition; Industry Growth; Auto Industry

11 Apr 2024
In Practice

Why Progress on Immigration Might Soften Labor Pains

Business Administration at HBS and co-director of Harvard’s Managing the Future of Work initiative. Marco Tabellini: One negative scenario and one positive for firms Given the current political climate, it’s unlikely the US Congress will... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

31 Oct 2023
HBS Case

Checking Your Ethics: Would You Speak Up in These 3 Sticky Situations?

Imagine you’re a consultant and you notice a few eyebrow-raising behaviors, such as a colleague who misuses a client’s meal stipend or an executive who screams inappropriately at his staff. Should you step in and speak up? For consultants, especially those starting... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Consulting

August 2007 (Revised April 2012)
Technical Note

Technical Note on Financial Leverage in Real Estate

By: Charles F. Wu and Arthur I Segel

Demonstrates the accelerating impact of leverage on returns under differing scenarios of property performance. The performance scenarios represent two points in time: the inception of the investment and the liquidation. View Details

Keywords: Property; Investment; Real Estate Industry

02 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Not All M&As Are Alike—and That Matters

people to lay off. If, on the other hand, you acquire a company because it is developing a hot technology, your challenge is to hold on to the acquisition's best engineers. These two scenarios require the acquiring company to engage in... View Details

Keywords: by Joseph L. Bower

December 2013 (Revised March 2014)
Supplement

The LEGO Group: Envisioning Risks in Asia (B)

By: Anette Mikes and Amram Migdal

This brief follow-up complements the case on The LEGO Group: Stepping Up in Asia (9-113-054), and discusses the aftermath of the scenario planning session, in which LEGO managers contemplated the risks of their new Asian strategy. The scenario planning exercise played... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Global Strategy; Planning; Retail Industry; Asia

July 2005
Exercise

Insider Trading Quiz

By: Lynn S. Paine and Christopher Bruner

Designed to test understanding of basic theories of insider trading under U.S. law. Presents six scenarios based on actual situations in which insider trading was alleged to have violated U.S. law, as well as a seventh scenario that took place in Italy, permitting... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Stock Shares; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Law; Theory; Europe; Italy; United States

28 May 2013
Research & Ideas

Can LEGO Snap Together a Future in Asia?

sharpen its "Stepping Up in Asia" strategy, LEGO executives employed scenario planning as a key tool to weigh potential outcomes. The technique, which has been around since the 1960s, fell out of favor in recent decades. In his... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard; Entertainment & Recreation

August 1997 (Revised December 1997)
Case

Harassment at Work?

By: Lynn S. Paine and Dale Coxe

Presents three scenarios involving behavior that could arguably be called sexual harassment. The first scenario is set in a medical supply company in an unnamed emerging market region. The second is set in a New York-based securities firm. The third is set in a U.S.... View Details

Keywords: Working Conditions; Organizational Culture; Problems and Challenges; Ethics; Moral Sensibility; Groups and Teams; Crime and Corruption; Attitudes; Behavior; Labor and Management Relations; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Financial Services Industry; New York (city, NY); United States

April 1991 (Revised April 1993)
Background Note

Strategic Response to Uncertainty

Managers often ignore uncertainty and plan as if the world were certain. Frequently, strategy is formulated based on an extrapolation of current trends into the future, or the best guess scenario of the manager involved. This note discusses four approaches to shaping... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Risk Management

28 May 2013
News

Can LEGO Snap Together a Future in Asia?

November 2012 (Revised January 2014)
Case

The LEGO Group: Envisioning Risks in Asia (A)

By: Anette Mikes and Dominique Hamel

On January 1, 2012, the LEGO Group announced a major new initiative to enhance its market penetration in Asia. Later in the year, a cross-functional group of senior managers gathered at company headquarters to discuss the status of the Asian initiative and the risks... View Details

Keywords: LEGO; Toy Industry; Fashion And Creative Industries; Organizational Structure; Risk Management; Supply Chain Management; Organizational Design; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Denmark; Asia

12 Sep 2016
News

Celebrities high on marijuana businesses

April 2010 (Revised November 2010)
Background Note

Moral Decision-Making: Reason, Emotion & Luck

By: Michael A. Wheeler and Julianna Pillemer

This extensive note synthesizes current psychological and neuroscientific research on how people make decisions with moral implications. Research summaries and scenarios illustrate critical issues. View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Moral Sensibility; Leadership; Science; Emotions