Publications

31 Jan 2019
News

A Global Mission

Art DeFehr (MBA 1967) didn’t plan to become a businessman. The Canadian-born DeFehr always imagined life as a diplomat—until he ran afoul of the FBI. View Details

Keywords: April White; human rights

August 2001 (Revised October 2001)
Case

What a Great Idea

By: Myra M. Hart and Susan Harmeling

Charles "Chic" Thompson has created a successful business as a professional speaker, consultant, and author of two books on creativity. He is challenged to institutionalize his knowledge and brand in an organization that will outlive his involvement. This case examines... View Details

Keywords: Knowledge Management; Entrepreneurship; Management Teams; Organizational Design; Technological Innovation; Technology Adoption; Service Industry; Service Industry

11 Apr 2023
Research & Ideas

Is Amazon a Retailer, a Tech Firm, or a Media Company? How AI Can Help Investors Decide

methodology, it could be 300 of them that really represent the market. “I feel the S&P 500 could have a challenge down the road as an index, in my opinion.” If you look at Europe, the stock or the index... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Financial Services; Financial Services; Financial Services; Financial Services

February 2000 (Revised March 2001)
Case

Tata Consultancy Services: High Technology in a Low-Income Country

Explores the development of the software services industry in India and the challenges facing the market leader as domestic competition intensifies and new countries attempt to replicate India's success. View Details

Keywords: Competition; Software; Information Technology Industry; India

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January 2000 (Revised April 2000)
Case

AsiaMail.com: What's in a Name?

By: Myra M. Hart and Sharon Peyus

Three founders of an international Internet company (e-mail-based marketing) struggle with naming the company. As they prepare to invest more than $10 million of first-round venture funding in advertising and marketing, they search for a name that will have power and... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Venture Capital; Brands and Branding; Internet and the Web; Entrepreneurship; Advertising; Marketing; Service Industry; Service Industry; Asia

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31 Jul 2021
News

Is a Four-Day Week the Future of Work?

September 2023 (Revised December 2023)
Case

Twiddy & Company: Trust in a Chaotic Environment

By: Sandra J. Sucher, Shalene Gupta and Tom Quinn

Twiddy & Company, known for Southern hospitality rooted in personal interactions, needed to adjust to contactless remote customer service as fear of the contagious virus prevented person-to-person contact. Local elected officials, in a bid to stop tourists from... View Details

Keywords: Trust; Health Pandemics; Organizational Culture; Disruption; Government Legislation; Transportation; Tourism Industry; North Carolina; United States

2014
Other Teaching and Training Material

Marketing Reading: Creating Customer Value

By: Sunil Gupta

This Reading explores how firms can create value for their customers. The goal of any business is to delight customers by understanding its customers' needs and to provide products and services to meet those needs. As a result, it is critical to understand what... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Behavior; Consumer Marketing; Customer Experience; Network Effects; Service Profit Chain; Total Customer Value

05 Oct 2021
Blog Post

First-Gen Voices: Eric Westphal on Tapping into the Global Alumni Network & Making a Difference Across Borders

alumni-founded e-commerce startup for his HBS internship. Yet what might seem like a direct entrepreneurial path was anything but. Westphal’s life and career have crossed country lines, cultures, and... View Details

20 Dec 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

How to Design a Better Customer Experience

discovering design principles that can act as building blocks to a great product or service experience. The teaching note outlines three examples, using real stories from... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Health; Entertainment & Recreation

December 2007 (Revised July 2008)
Case

MINI USA: Finding a New Advertising Agency (A)

Selling an intangible like advertising services is a difficult task. The first step is to understand how brands buy these services. What are they looking for? What do they need to learn? How do they go about assessing things like creativity, trust, and loyalty? This... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Advertising; Sales; Advertising Industry

10 Sep 2014
Blog Post

A Summer Reflection

allowing them to take on some very exciting projects. One HBS intern was on the clinics team, seeking to roll out basic primary care health services in stores- this has been in the news a bit lately View Details

Keywords: Technology; Consumer Products / Retail

28 May 2012
Research & Ideas

A Pragmatic Alternative for Creating a Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy

Associates. A social responsibility strategy should fulfill two goals: create a positive social impact, and enhance the company's brand, reputation, employee morale, and/or its bottom line, Rangan says. "But... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

September 2008 (Revised February 2009)
Case

Ocean Tomo: Building a Market for Intellectual Property

By: Peter A. Coles, Andrei Hagiu and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Ocean Tomo's management team sought to turn the company into the leading intermediary for intellectual property. Despite its increasingly important role in the global marketplace, IP remained a notoriously illiquid asset—difficult to value, harder to trade, and often... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Markets and Industries; Intellectual Property; Resource Allocation; Auctions; Market Design; Service Operations