Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(2,893)
- Faculty Publications (441)
- 1991
- Book
Competitiveness and the State: Government and Business in Twentieth-Century Britain
By: G. Jones and M. W. Kirby
This book looks at the relationship between the British government and business since 1900, and examines the impact of government policies on business, productivity and competitiveness. The authors argue that government has a legitimate role to play in improving... View Details
- January 1991
- Article
A Model to Evaluate Variables Impacting the Productivity of Software Maintenance Projects
By: R. Banker, S. Datar and C. Kemerer
- February 1990 (Revised August 2001)
- Case
Merloni Elettrodomestici SpA: The Transit Point Experiment
By: Janice H. Hammond and Maura G Kelly
Merloni Elettrodomestici is a leading Italian manufacturer of domestic appliances. In 1986, an exposition for Merloni customers is scheduled at its Milano regional warehouse. During the two-month period preceding the event, when the warehouse must be free of inventory,... View Details
- September 1989
- Background Note
Performance Curves: Costs, Prices, and Value
By: Robert J. Dolan and Benson P. Shapiro
Explains the concept of a family of performance curves. The most well known is the price/performance curve relating the prices of items in a product line to their performance. Also discusses the cost/performance curve and its impact on product positioning, product line... View Details
- November 1988
- Case
Honeywell Residential Division: New Product Development
Describes three different product development efforts at the Residential Controls division of Honeywell, Inc. Each of the three projects was for a different market and competitive environment. Each was tackled in a somewhat different way within the Honeywell... View Details
- Article
Beyond the Reach of the Invisible Hand: Impediments to Economic Activity, Market Failures, and Profitability
By: Dennis Yao
In this paper it is argued that failures of the competitive market are necessary conditions for supranormal profitability. Three fundamental causes of these market failures-production economies and sunk costs, transactions costs, and imperfect information-are developed... View Details
Keywords: Economics; Markets; Failure; Profit; Cost; Information; Market Transactions; Competition; Strategy; Production
- January 1987 (Revised January 2002)
- Case
Baker Precision Instruments, Inc.
By: Ramchandran Jaikumar, Roy Shapiro, Donald Rosenfield and Kathryn E. Stecke
A rapidly growing machine parts manufacturer is trying to decide whether to acquire an advanced Flexible Manufacturing System or Systems. The selection decisions must address the impact of new technology, the effect of setup times on production planning and capacity,... View Details
- December 1986 (Revised March 1991)
- Supplement
Caterpillar-Komatsu in 1986
Provides an update to the global competitive interaction between Caterpillar and Komatsu described in companion cases Caterpillar Tractor and Komatsu Ltd. Caterpillar's response to Komatsu's growing market share is outlined, then the impact of rapidly changing... View Details
- November 1986 (Revised October 1995)
- Case
Suzanne de Passe at Motown Productions (A)
By: Linda A. Hill
Illustrates: 1) the impact of a manager's leadership style on corporate culture, direction, and performance; 2) the concept of fit between leadership style and the requirements of situations in which managers find themselves; and 3) the need for managers to adapt their... View Details
- February 1985 (Revised September 1988)
- Case
Komatsu Ltd.
Reviews and updates the structure and characteristics of the earth-moving equipment industry presented in the companion case, Caterpillar Tractor Co. After revealing that CAT has suffered major financial losses during the period from 1981 through 1984, the case... View Details
- February 1979 (Revised December 1983)
- Case
Allied Chemical Corp. (A)
Describes Allied, the chemical industry, and the effects of the Kepone problem (a toxic pesticide dumped into the James River) as of 1976. The executive in the case must decide whether the company should support the passage of the Toxic Substances Control Act and an... View Details
- Research Summary
By: Ashish Nanda
Ashish Nanda's research focuses on ethics and economics of managing
professional service firms.
Nanda is working on a project that studies how management of conflict of interest influences professional identity, the role of professional associations, and the... View Details
- Teaching Interest
Agribusiness Seminar - Executive Education
By: David E. Bell
In the agribusiness industry, every year brings new trends and challenges. While demand continues to grow, consumer needs shift, production challenges increase, and evolving technology impacts every part of the value chain. The complex... View Details
- Research Summary
Consumer Decision Making and Behavioral Research
John Gourville’s research focuses on consumer behavior, especially in the areas of pricing and consumer decision making. In the area of pricing, for instance, he has looked at the role of time on how consumers interpret and react to product costs and prices.... View Details
- Research Summary
Designing Productive Zones of Privacy
A common theme that integrates my research and course development is how increasingly transparent workplaces can improve productivity and performance by putting up certain boundaries to observation. While the research above empirically and theoretically explores the... View Details
- Research Summary
Distributed Innovation in Open Systems—The Role of Modularity
Distributed innovation in open systems is an important trend in the modern global economy. As education levels rise and communication costs fall, more people have the means and motivation to innovate. Supply chains now stretch around the world as firms outsource... View Details
- Research Summary
Do Prices Determine Vertical Integration?*
By: Laura Alfaro
What is the relationship between product prices and vertical integration? While the literature has focused on how integration affects prices, this paper provides evidence that prices can affect integration. Many theories in organizational economics and industrial... View Details
- 2025
- Article
Educating Students and Professionals on the Business Implications of Climate Change
As climate change poses unprecedented challenges and opportunities, the private sector must play a pivotal role in both adaptation and mitigation efforts. This article discusses the new Harvard Business School Online course, Business and Climate Change, designed to... View Details
- Forthcoming
- Article
Engaging Customers with AI in Online Chats: Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment
By: Shunyuan Zhang and Das Narayandas
We examine how artificial intelligence (AI) affected the productivity of customer service agents and customer sentiment in online interactions. Collaborating with a meal delivery company, we conducted a randomized field experiment that exploited exogenous variation in... View Details