Publications

April 1995 (Revised September 1997)
Case

Frito-Lay, Inc.: A Strategic Transition, 1987-1992 (Abridged)

By: Lynda M. Applegate

A new CEO must take action to return the company to profitability, to clarify the vision, and then to build the infrastructure (human, capital, and information) needed to support the long-term change in strategy and organization. The case provides a rich description of... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Change Management; Leading Change; Information Technology; Adaptation; Technology Adoption; Manufacturing Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

April 2010
Article

Complex Business Models: Managing Strategic Paradoxes Simultaneously

By: Wendy K. Smith, Andrew Binns and Michael Tushman

As our world becomes more global, fast paced and hypercompetitive, competitive advantage may increasingly depend on success in managing paradoxical strategies - strategies associated with contradictory, yet integrated tensions. We identify several types of complex... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Management; Strategy

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Strategic Plan | Information Technology

who make a difference in the world. Our Vision IT is a nimble, innovative, and strategic partner, helping to distinguish HBS as the world‘s leader in business education. View Details

01 Sep 2016
News

Making Progress on Strategic Priorities

The Harvard Business School Campaign has played a critical role in advancing the School’s mission through the “Five I” strategic priorities. Selected highlights of new activities made possible by generous support from alumni and friends... View Details

May 2013 (Revised March 2014)
Case

Strategy and the Strategist

By: Eric Van den Steen

This short case presents a series of brief accounts, observations, and quotations that challenge students to think about the role of the CEO — and of the CEO's (possibly strong) beliefs and convictions — in strategy. It focuses in particular on three issues and their... View Details

Keywords: Belief Systems; Strategic Analysis; Competitive Advantage; Values; Vision; Strategy And Leadership; Strategy; Leadership; Values and Beliefs

April 2011 (Revised September 2011)
Case

BlackRock Solutions

By: Kenneth A. Froot and Scott Waggoner

The BlackRock Solutions case examines the different functions and economics of a global asset manager's value chain, with particular emphasis on the "money management" and the "investment systems platform" businesses. Students analyze why BlackRock decided to unbundle... View Details

Keywords: Investment Management; Strategic Vision; Organizational Behavior; Economies Of Scale And Scope; Unbundling Of Services; Strategic Planning; Risk Management; Financial Management; Asset Management; Competitive Advantage; Value; Corporate Strategy; Organizational Culture; Investment; Financial Strategy

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Baker Library Strategic Plan, 2024-2025 | Baker Library

Baker Library Strategic Plan, 2024-2025 Mission We deliver distinctive information expertise, services, and products so that our community excels. Vision The Harvard Business School community starts with... View Details

January 2014
Case

The Weather Company

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter

New CEO David Kenny transformed The Weather Company in less than two years from a primary identity as a cable television channel to a multi-platform digital company innovating in the uses of weather data. He assesses progress and considers strategic choices and... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Strategy; Strategic Change; Change Management; Expansion; Weather; Growth and Development Strategy; Innovation and Invention; Technology Industry

Web

Sharing a Strategic Perspective | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

Sharing a Strategic Perspective Stepping back from the day-to-day demands of leading Save the Children is an opportunity Carolyn Miles doesn’t get very often. “We are all incredibly immersed in our work here,” says Miles, who serves as... View Details

08 Jul 2024
Research & Ideas

The Critical Computer Science Principles Every Strategic Leader Needs to Know

In an AI-world, leaders who speak technology’s language gain an edge. But that doesn’t mean every manager needs a computer science degree. A handle on a handful of basics goes a long way toward preparing strategic leaders for today’s... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Technology; Information Technology

March 2014
Teaching Note

The Weather Company

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Ai-Ling Jamila Malone

New CEO David Kenny transformed The Weather Company in less than two years from a primary identity as a cable television channel to a multi-platform digital company innovating in the uses of weather data. He assesses progress and considers strategic choices and... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Strategic Change; Technology; Digital; Weather; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Digital Platforms; Change Management; Leading Change; Growth and Development Strategy; Information Industry; Service Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry

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

June 1991 (Revised February 1999)
Case

Willow Creek Community Church (A)

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger

Describes the historic evolution and current positioning of a Christian church which focuses on the attraction of "unchurched" individuals. Describes the church's strategic service vision and its current growth and leadership problems. View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Strategic Planning; Social Enterprise; Marketing Strategy; Growth Management; Religion; Service Industry

2008
Book

Execution Premium: Linking Strategy to Operations for Competitive Advantage

By: Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton

In a world of stiffening competition, business strategy is more crucial than ever. Yet most organizations struggle in this area--not with formulating strategy but with executing it, or putting their strategy into action. Owing to execution failures, companies realize... View Details

Keywords: Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Operations; Performance; Strategic Planning; Business Strategy

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23 Dec 2002
Research & Ideas

Partnering and the Balanced Scorecard

link improvements in their daily processes to achievement of high-level strategic objectives. The Balanced Scorecard framework describes strategy with strategic objectives, measures, targets, and... View Details

Keywords: by Robert S. Kaplan & David P. Norton

04 Feb 2020
Video

Rahul Bajaj

Rahul Bajaj, who was Chair of the diversified Bajaj Group in India, explains the different strategic visions of family managers and professional managers by considering the incentives and loyalty of each with... View Details

Article

Managing Alliances with the Balanced Scorecard

By: Robert S. Kaplan, David P. Norton and Bjarne Rugelsjoen

The article addresses failures in strategic alliances and illustrates, via a detailed description of the successful strategic alliance between Solvay Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Quintiles company how the creation of a strategy map and Balanced Scorecard helps align the... View Details

Keywords: Alliances; Balanced Scorecard; Employees; Alignment; Corporate Governance; Interests; Management Practices and Processes; Goals and Objectives; Partners and Partnerships

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June 2011 (Revised May 2012)
Case

Nestlé SA: Nutrition, Health and Wellness Strategy

By: Rebecca M. Henderson and Ryan Johnson

In 1997 Nestlé committed to a strategic vision of becoming the leading nutrition, health and wellness (NHW) company in the world. Over the next 13 years, the NHW strategy guided strategic decisions and choices at Nestlé including merger and acquisition choices,... View Details

Keywords: Nutrition; Health; Growth and Development Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Goals and Objectives; Value Creation; Food and Beverage Industry

March 2020 (Revised May 2020)
Case

Generation Investment Management

By: Vikram S. Gandhi and Sarah Mehta

By January 2020, sustainable investment firm Generation Investment Management (Generation), founded in London in 2004, had grown from a shared vision among seven founders to a 90-person firm managing $27 billion in public and private equity. Throughout its history,... View Details