Publications

2012
Case

ChemChina

By: F. Warren McFarlan, Donghong Li, Lei Li and Hong Zhang

ChemChina is China's largest basic chemical manufacturing firm. It was included in Fortune Global 500 in 2011 and 2012, ranked No. 475 and 402. Its sales revenue in 2011 was 179 billion yuan, and profit was 600 million yuan. The year-end total assets were 254.2 billion... View Details

Keywords: Reorganization; Strategy; China; China

2012
Teaching Note

ChemChina (TN)

By: F. Warren McFarlan, Donghong Li, Lei Li and Hong Zhang

ChemChina is China's largest basic chemical manufacturing firm. It was included in Fortune Global 500 in 2011 and 2012, ranked No. 475 and 402. Its sales revenue in 2011 was 179 billion yuan, and profit was 600 million yuan. The year-end total assets were 254.2 billion... View Details

Keywords: Reorganization; Strategy; China; China

February 2018 (Revised March 2018)
Case

Kickstarting Tomato Jos in Nigeria

By: Sophus A. Reinert and Risa Kavalercik

In the spring of 2016, Mira Mehta (HBS 2014), faced a difficult decision. Following a successful Kickstarter campaign and winning the second place in the HBS New Venture Competition—Social Enterprise Track, she had moved to Northern Nigeria, where she founded the... View Details

Keywords: Nigeria; Entrepreneurs; Import Substitution; China In Africa; Killer Tomato Paste; Mira Mehta; Tomato Jos; Developing Countries and Economies; Social Entrepreneurship; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Government Legislation; Business History; Emerging Markets; Business and Government Relations; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Nigeria

17 Aug 2006
Working Paper Summaries

Corporate Governance and Networks: Bankers in the Corporate Networks of Brazil, Mexico, and the United States circa 1910

Keywords: by Aldo Musacchio

1999
Chapter

Multinational Cross-Investment between Switzerland and Britain 1914-1945

By: G. Jones

This chapter examines multinational cross-investment between Switzerland and Great Britain between 1914 and 1945. While Great Britain and Switzerland were both major home economies for multinationals,few companies from either country were interested in investing in the... View Details

Keywords: History; Multinational Firms and Management; International Relations; Investment; Great Britain; Switzerland

22 Aug 2005
Research & Ideas

Restoring a Global Economy, 1950–1980

balance of trade in the 1960s, and the devaluation of the U.S. dollar and the end of its convertibility into gold in 1971, provided symbolic signs of the ending of an era. There remained many restrictions on the flow of capital, trade, and people across borders.... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones

09 Mar 2010
First Look

First Look: March 9

the Panama Canal to make use of both conventional historical methods and the tools of quantitative analysis, The Big Ditch examines the impact of the Panama Canal on the Republic of Panama, the United States, and the world. Noel Maurer and Carlos Yu deftly chronicle... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

January 2002 (Revised May 2003)
Case

ProfitLogic

By: Richard G. Hamermesh, Michael J. Roberts and Taslim Pirmohamed

Describes an "application software" company that has been through several evolutions--from consulting firm to applications service provider (ASP). The firm has received significant venture funding to pursue the ASP model but this has not worked, at least at the time... View Details

Keywords: History; Business Model; Venture Capital; Cash Flow; Decision Choices and Conditions; Balanced Scorecard; Information Technology Industry; Service Industry

09 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 9

restrictions. Furthermore, we draw on qualitative accounts of the matching process recorded in oral histories of the career choices of the scientists in our data. All three methods—qualitative description, propensity score estimators, and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

18 Mar 2013
HBS Case

HBS Cases: LEGO

market. Green bricks, for instance, appeared in play sets only after a decadelong decision-making process-and the idea to include them came from Godtfred's son (and third-generation toymaker), Kjeld. The snail's pace served the company... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Entertainment & Recreation

01 Jun 2023
HBS Case

A Nike Executive Hid His Criminal Past to Turn His Life Around. What If He Didn't Have To?

have been very difficult for Larry to even get a foot in the corporate door, let alone rise to the top,” Gino says. “Back then, there was a lot of stigma around people who have criminal records—and that stigma still exists today.” While a growing number of View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Apparel & Accessories

24 Oct 2024
Research & Ideas

With Millions of Workers Juggling Caregiving, Employers Need to Rethink Support

the workforce. Companies also pay a price, both directly and indirectly, often in ways they don’t fully understand, the report found. The Gazette spoke with its author Joseph B. Fuller, professor of management practice and co-chair of the... View Details

Keywords: by Christine Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette

02 Sep 2008
First Look

First Look: September 3, 2008

according to regulatory definitions. We explore a subset of independent directors for whom we have detailed, micro-level data on their views regarding the firm prior to being appointed to the board: sell-side analysts who end up serving on the board of View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2005
Case

Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (A)

By: Michael Y. Yoshino and Yukihiko Endo

The company, once an outstanding Japan-based global leader in electronics and major appliances, suffered poor performance during the 1990s. Kunio Nakamura became CEO in 2001 and sought to transform the company in a fundamental way. Examines the company's history,... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Business History; Leading Change; Management Systems; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Electronics Industry; Japan

26 Sep 2023
Book

Digital Strategy: A Handbook for Managing a Moving Target

While most companies have embarked on some sort of digital transformation, many leaders still feel overwhelmed by the challenges of doing digital right. The new Research Handbook on Digital Strategy not only takes stock of current digital... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Information Technology; Technology

23 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 23

High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships Harvard Business School Case 709-411 The case describes the history and business model of Cirque du Soleil (CdS). The case allows for a rich discussion and analysis of Cirque du Soleil's... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

January 2007 (Revised July 2007)
Case

Clear Channel Communications, Inc.

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Carole Winkler

Discusses the rise of Clear Channel Communications, Inc. (CC) as the most important radio broadcasting company in the United States. While CC can look back on a glorious past, it faces a multitude of business issues: radio listenership is in decline, media deregulation... View Details

Keywords: History; Media; Performance Effectiveness; Public Opinion; Business and Government Relations; Media and Broadcasting Industry; United States