Publications

Pietro Satriano is a Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School. He sits on the boards of CarMax, the largest omni-channel used car retailer in the U.S. and Metro, a large regional grocery retailer in Canada. Pietro advises a number of food-tech startups and acts... View Details

January 2009 (Revised February 2013)
Case

Appellation Shanxi: Grace Vineyard

By: William C. Kirby, Michael Shih-ta Chen and Keith Chi-ho Wong

Grace Vineyard was a rare family-owned, private winery in China that was set on establishing itself as a world-renowned, quality vintner. Judy Leissner, the second-generation company leader, was at a crossroads in how she wanted to grow the business that her father... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Growth and Development Strategy; Family Ownership; State Ownership; Expansion; Food and Beverage Industry; China

12 Jun 2019
News

Business as Usual Will Not Save the Planet

July 2024
Supplement

Pacific Lake Partners (B)

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Pre-Abstract: Instructors should consider the timing of making videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details.

Abstract: In 2009, Coley Andrews and Jim Southern endeavored to raise a private equity fund for investment solely in search... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition; Search Fund; Entrepreneurship; Private Equity; Investment Funds; Organizational Structure; United States

14 Nov 2017
News

Can We Trust Our Government To Save The Planet?

John F. Batter

John Batter is a retired Litigation Partner in the Boston Office of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP where his practice focussed on on the defense of public and private companies and their directors and management against breach of fiduciary duty claims and... View Details

26 Sep 2023
Research & Ideas

Unpacking That Icky Feeling of 'Shopping' for Diverse Job Candidates

thousand-person company and then try to convince new employees that you care about DEI if you've never said anything about it before, and 90 percent of your employees are a single demographic,” she says. You Might Also Like: Who Gets the... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

November 2014
Case

Ardian—The Sale of Diana

By: Paul A. Gompers and Michael Roberts

The case focuses on a European private equity firm—Ardian—and the process it uses to sell one of its portfolio companies, and the decisions around that sale. Key issues include the choice of an auction or acceptance of a pre-emptive bid, and the role of the portfolio... View Details

Keywords: Spin-out; Exit; Sale; Private Equity; France

June 2014
Simulation

Balanced Scorecard Simulation

By: V.G. Narayanan

In this multi-player simulation, students experience the benefits and challenges of using a scorecard to implement strategic initiatives and monitor firm performance. Small teams of students work together to choose a strategy for their company, create a strategy map,... View Details

June 12, 2019
Article

Business as Usual Will Not Save the Planet

By: Mark R. Kramer, Rishi Agarwal and Aditi Srivinas

The United Nations’ 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) were explicitly designed to engage the private sector in addressing the world’s most pressing challenges. Four years into the UN’s 15-year timeline, the question is whether companies are advancing serious... View Details

Keywords: Sustainable Development; Environmental Sustainability; Goals and Objectives; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Planning

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October 1998
Case

CRA Managed Care, Inc. (A)

By: Myra M. Hart and Jennifer Starr

Silverman and her co-founder, Don Larson, own the largest privately held injury-management and cost-containment services firm in the United States. When their $80+ million company attracts substantial interest of investment bankers and venture capitalists, the two must... View Details

Keywords: Transition; Leadership Development; Venture Capital; Business Exit or Shutdown; Investment; Business or Company Management; Nonprofit Organizations; Personal Development and Career; Entrepreneurship; Service Industry; United States

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20 Jun 2023
Cold Call Podcast

Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover: Lessons in Strategic Change

Keywords: Re: Andy Wu; Technology

November 2006 (Revised October 2007)
Case

Artisan Entertainment Inc.

Geoff Rehnert and Marc Wolpow have left Bain Capital to launch Audax Group. As part of their separation, they have been granted 90-day options to purchase Bain Capital's stake in a number of portfolio companies at Fair Market Value. As they conside whether to exercise... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Private Equity; Financing and Loans; Investment Funds

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October 2019 (Revised January 2020)
Case

NewView Capital and Venture Capital Secondaries

By: Shai Bernstein, Ramana Nanda and Allison Ciechanover

While still a general partner at Silicon Valley–based New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Ravi Viswanathan considered the challenges presented by evolving market dynamics in the venture capital space. Startups were staying private longer, which led to limited partners... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Capital Markets; Private Equity; Strategy

July 2024
Supplement

Pacific Lake Partners (A)

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Pre-Abstract: Instructors should consider the timing of making videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details.

Abstract: In 2009, Coley Andrews and Jim Southern endeavored to raise a private equity fund for investment solely in search... View Details

Keywords: Search Fund; Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition; Entrepreneurship; Private Equity; Investment; North America

16 Jun 2003
Research & Ideas

Surveying the VC Landscape

technology firms, whether privately held units or (more typically) dysfunctional publicly traded entities. These investments may keep some companies with promising technology afloat when they would otherwise... View Details

Keywords: by Ann Cullen; Financial Services

January 2022
Supplement

Kornit Digital: The Amazon Warrants (C)

By: Benjamin C. Esty, E. Scott Mayfield and Daniel Fisher

As of 12/31/21, Amazon held $22 billion of equity and warrants in related companies. In fact, it often requests a free grant of warrants when it enters into a new commercial agreement with a supplier. Over the past 20 years, Amazon has gotten warrants almost 20... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Value Creation; Consumer Behavior; Negotiation; Distribution; Ownership; Partners and Partnerships; Business Strategy; Equity; Distribution Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

January 2018
Case

Environmental Technology Fund Partners and E-Leather

By: Vikram S. Gandhi and Aldo Sesia

It is 2014 and Environmental Technologies Fund (ETF) Partners, a UK-based venture capital firm, has an opportunity to invest in a privately held UK company that manufactured engineered composition leather extracted from waste leather using an environmentally friendly... View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Venture Capital; Investment Strategy; Investment; Strategy; Ownership; Valuation; Energy Conservation; Equity; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Performance Efficiency; Manufacturing Industry; Financial Services Industry; United Kingdom

August 2019
Background Note

Note on Shared Ownership

By: Ethan Bernstein and Nick Rekenthaler

While several tactics can drive company performance by instilling a sense of shared ownership among employees, perhaps the most direct is to actually share ownership with employees. Many public and private companies across industries have done just that, and studies... View Details

Keywords: Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Human Resources; Employees; Human Capital; Ownership; Cooperative Ownership; Employee Ownership; Customer Ownership; Governance