Publications

April 2007 (Revised April 2010)
Teaching Note

Leading the Josie Esquivel Franchise (TN) (A), (B), & (C)

By: Laura Morgan Roberts and Boris Groysberg

Keywords: Business Ventures

01 Dec 2000
News

A Latin American Vision: New HBS Research Center Opens

freedom." A multifaceted research conference titled "Partnering for Knowledge Creation" was held to celebrate the center's opening last August 3-4. Prominent university academics and top business leaders from ten countries were among the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace; Educational Support Services; Educational Services

September – October 1999
Article

Creating Breakthroughs at 3M

By: E. Von Hippel, S. Thomke and M. Sonnack

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Consumer Products Industry

May 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

MStudio and Djoli: Accelerating Startup Growth in Francophone Africa

By: Paul A. Gompers, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Temitayo Lawal

Djoli, a procurement platform, was one of the startups launched and supported by MStudio, a startup studio in Côte d'Ivoire, in 2023. After a year of operations, Djoli must look beyond MStudio, which had supported them financially and in kind in exchange for equity,... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Distribution Industry; Technology Industry; Africa; Côte d'Ivoire

May 2015
Case

Shareholder Issues over Ten Generations at De Kuyper

By: John A. Davis and Courtney Collette

Keywords: Family Business

January 2012 (Revised November 2014)
Background Note

Scaling a Startup: People and Organizational Issues

By: Thomas Eisenmann and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Keywords: Business Startups

January 1989 (Revised March 2009)
Supplement

General Electric: Valley Forge (F)

By: Robert L. Simons

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Pennsylvania

December 2000
Background Note

Networked Utility Providers

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Alastair Brown

Defines and describes ways to categorize networked utilities, software "applets" such as RealNetwork's RealPlayer, Macromedia's Shockwave, and AOL's ICQ that are downloaded via the Internet. Networked utilities extend basic Web browser capability to allow users to... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Software; Web Services Industry

April 1987 (Revised July 1989)
Case

Lockheed-Georgia Co.: Executive Information Systems

By: Lynda M. Applegate

Keywords: Business Divisions; Information Technology Industry

May 1993
Teaching Note

Becton Dickinson: Advanced Diagnostics Division TN

By: Marco Iansiti

Keywords: Business Divisions

October 1996 (Revised January 1997)
Case

DJF Farms 1996

By: Ray A. Goldberg and David Ehlis

Keywords: Family Business; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

December 1983 (Revised August 1988)
Background Note

The Start-Up Process

By: Howard H. Stevenson and Michael J. Roberts

Describes the various stages in the start-up process and describes in detail the questions that can be asked and the analysis that can be performed to help deal with the issues that arise at each stage. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups

01 Dec 2018
News

Ready, Set, Launch

Launching Technology Ventures explore an alternative path, one designed to sidestep many of the missteps: the lean startup methodology. The idea is to launch as quickly as possible with a minimum viable product (MVP). With only the barest... View Details

23 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

The Gulf: It’s a Family Affair

A conversation with John Davis, author of "Challenges Facing Family Companies in the Gulf Region" Family Business Review, vol XIII, no. 3, September 2000. Q: Where does family business take you?... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild & Andrea Schulman

July 2015 (Revised April 2016)
Case

Launching Yelp Reservations (A)

By: Michael Luca, Kevin Mohan and Patrick Rooney

This case presents a multi-party negotiation among Yelp, current partner OpenTable, and two startups in the online restaurant reservation industry. View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Negotiation; Business Startups; Acquisition; Technology Industry; United States

01 Dec 2010
News

Clubs Assist Start-Ups

Got a great start-up idea? Enter it in this year’s Alumni New Venture Contest. Fourteen HBS alumni clubs in twelve host regions — Boston, Brazil, Chicago, Germany, India, Mexico, New York, Northern California, Southern California,... View Details

Keywords: contests

May 1990 (Revised October 1993)
Case

Nova Chemical Corporation

A diversified chemical company must decide whether to sell its basic chemicals division and expand the specialty chemicals division. View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Business Divisions; Decision Making; Chemical Industry

July 2024
Supplement

Fail Safe Testing, Inc. (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: Fail Safe Testing, Inc., founded in 1988, was the leading provider of fire hose pressure testing, ground ladder and pump... View Details

Keywords: Customers; Acquisition; Business Plan; Marketing Strategy

June 1994 (Revised December 1997)
Case

Safeway, Inc.'s Leveraged Buyout (A)

After years of deteriorating financial performance and eroding market position, Safeway, Inc., the largest public grocery store chain in the United States, found itself the target of a hostile takeover offer. Management decided to take the company private in a $4.3... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Restructuring; Retail Industry; United States