Publications

March 2006
Course Overview Note

International Finance: A Course Overview Note

By: Mihir A. Desai

Describes the International Finance course at Harvard Business School, which argues that the forces of globalization have fundamentally changed the scope and activities of firms, thereby altering the practice of finance within these firms. As a consequence of an... View Details

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Business Ventures; Integration; Change Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Investment; Risk Management; Competitive Advantage; Motivation and Incentives; International Finance; Capital Markets

05 Jul 2023
Cold Call Podcast

How Unilever Is Preparing for the Future of Work

Keywords: Re: William R. Kerr; Retail; Consumer Products

December 2016 (Revised December 2018)
Case

From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem

By: Elie Ofek and Margot Eiran

In June 2016, Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, wrestled with how to sustain Israel’s strong innovation track record and the country’s reputation as the “startup nation.” Despite the economic miracle the country had wrought since its founding, he... View Details

October 2012
Case

GSK's Acquisition of Sirtris: Independence or Integration? (Abridged)

By: Toby Stuart and James Weber

An executive from pharmaceutical company GSK must choose how much to integrate a recently acquired biotechnology firm, Sirtris. Moncef Slaoui, GSK's global head of R&D, championed the acquisition of Sirtris to gain access to its potentially revolutionary science.... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Resource Allocation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Research and Development; Science-Based Business; Integration

October 1996 (Revised March 1998)
Case

Schroder Ventures: Launch of the Euro Fund

By: Josh Lerner, Kate Bringham and Nick Ferguson

Schroder Ventures is considering launching a pan-European fund in response to investor demand. This will lead to changes in the interactions between the parent organization and the national affiliates. A related question is the extent to which the private equity model... View Details

Keywords: Change; Private Equity; Investment Funds; Multinational Firms and Management; Product Launch; Europe

Keywords: Diversified

William C. Vrattos

Bill Vrattos is a Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Business School, where he teaches Investment Strategies, a course on public market investing in the elective curriculum. He also co-teaches Private Equity Projects and Ecosystems, where he mentors student groups on... View Details

July 2022 (Revised September 2022)
Case

Birla Carbon Egypt: Building Soft Power in a Foreign Country

By: Jeremy Friedman and Malini Sen

Birla Carbon, a flagship business of the nearly $60-billion global conglomerate and India-headquartered Aditya Birla Group (ABG), is one of the world's top manufacturers and suppliers of high-quality carbon black. The largest among its 16 manufacturing plants is Birla... View Details

02 Aug 2006
Research & Ideas

Investor Protection: The Czech Experience

victory from the Czech Republic. Železný somehow managed to turn the loss to his advantage and ended up a member of the European Parliament. For business managers and investors, the story of TV Nova and the joint venture that spawned it... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Media & Broadcasting; Entertainment & Recreation

21 Jan 2021
Video

José Alejandro Cortés

José Alejandro Cortés, President of the Colombia-based diversified business group Grupo Bolìvar, explains that he began the group’s international process by moving into countries that spoke the same language. He describes first venturing into Venezuela due to its... View Details

July 2009 (Revised August 2011)
Case

What Happened at Citigroup? (A)

By: Clayton S. Rose and Aldo Sesia

What went wrong at Citigroup? In 1998, the Travelers Group and Citicorp merged to create Citigroup Inc., considered the first true global "financial supermarket" and a business model to be envied, feared, and emulated. By year-end 2006 the firm had a market... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Model; Decision Choices and Conditions; Globalized Firms and Management; Leadership; Risk Management; Failure; Financial Services Industry

September 2016 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Zalora Philippines: From Growth to Profitability

By: Donald Ngwe and Thales Teixeira

In May 2015 Paulo Campos, co-founder and CEO of Zalora Philippines, found himself at a crucial turning point in his young company’s development. In just three years, Zalora had come from entering the Philippine fashion retail industry as an unknown quantity to becoming... View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Business Subsidiaries; Business Growth and Maturation; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; Sweden; Southeast Asia; Philippines

15 May 2012
First Look

First Look: May 15

failure resulting from asymmetric information. However, if platforms can impose exclusive dealing, then they will do so, which results in market inefficiency. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/11-080.pdf Creating a View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

October 1981 (Revised June 1982)
Case

Concept Devices, Inc.: International Market Entry

Concept is a highly touted startup venture in distributed data processing computers. The company has only made one sale to date, but has an order backlog for its unique product and expects an almost vertical growth curve. The company has been courted seriously by... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Business Startups; Computer Industry; France; United Kingdom

Web

Publications - Faculty & Research

Citation Find at Harvard Register to Read Related De Freitas, Julian. "Don’t Let an AI Failure Harm Your Brand." Harvard Business Review 103, no. 4 (July–August 2025): 126–133. June 2025 Case Bessemer Venture Partners (2025) By: Jo Tango... View Details

November 2008 (Revised January 2009)
Case

Arcapita - 2002

In 2002, Arcapita Bank, B.S.C., then known as First Islamic Investment Bank, or FIIB, faced a liquidity crunch. Aracapita offered Islamic-compliant private equity, real estate, and venture capital products. In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attack, however, Islamic... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Private Equity; Financial Liquidity; Investment; Globalized Firms and Management; National Security; Religion; Financial Services Industry

03 Aug 2010
First Look

First Look: August 3

instability, and a global economic slowdown? Purchase this case:http://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cb/product/710046-PDF-ENG The Precautionary Principle Michael W. Toffel and Nazli Z. Uludere AragonHarvard Business School Note 610-043 This note... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 1995
Case

Northern Telecom and Tong Guang Electronics (B): Building Success

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Pamela A. Yatsko

This case continues the story of the joint venture in China between Northern Telecom (Nortel) of Canada and Tong Guang Electronics of China. It shows how North Americans learned to operate in a very different cultural environment in China and provides an opportunity to... View Details

Keywords: Mobile and Wireless Technology; Joint Ventures; Change Management; Organizational Culture; Leadership; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Culture; Telecommunications Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Canada; China