Publications

2019
Working Paper

Collusive Investments in Technological Compatibility: Lessons from U.S. Railroads in the Late 19th Century

By: Daniel P. Gross

Collusion is widely condemned for its negative effects on consumer welfare and market efficiency. In this paper, I show that collusion may also in some cases facilitate the creation of unexpected new sources of value. I bring this possibility into focus through the... View Details

Keywords: Collusion; Compatibility; Railroads; Rail Transportation; Standards; Integration; Trade; History; United States

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October 2021 (Revised May 2023)
Case

Engine No.1: An Impact Investing Firm Engages with ExxonMobil

By: Mark Kramer, Shawn Cole, Vikram S. Gandhi and T. Robert Zochowski

ExxonMobil, the world's fifth largest source of carbon emissions, remained committed to aggressively expanding its oil & gas business despite global warming. During the COVID pandemic this strategy resulted in massive losses as the price and demand for oil declined. ... View Details

Keywords: Carbon Emissions; Global Warming; Impact Investment Funds; Hedge Fund Activism; Leadership Development; Business Model; Renewable Energy; Resource Allocation; Decision Choices and Conditions; Governing and Advisory Boards

Article

Divide and Conquer: Competing with Free Technology under Network Effects

By: Deishin Lee and Haim Mendelson

We study how a commercial firm competes with a free open source product. The market consists of two customer segments with different preferences and is characterized by positive network effects. The commercial firm makes product and pricing decisions to maximize its... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Product Launch; Network Effects; Open Source Distribution; Adoption; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage

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Jeremy Yang is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration in the Marketing Unit at Harvard Business School. He teaches Marketing in the MBA required curriculum. He develops data products for... View Details

Keywords: consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products; consumer products

April 2016 (Revised March 2019)
Case

Moleskine (A)

By: Ryan Raffaelli, Raffaella Sadun and Kathy Qu

Describes the founding and growth challenges facing Moleskine, an Italian-based consumer products company known for its oilcloth-covered notebooks once used by Ernest Hemingway and Vincent van Gogh. CEO Arrigo Berni and co-founder Maria Sebregondi aim to transform the... View Details

Keywords: Creative Industries; Brand Building; Digital Innovation; Digital Services And Strategy; Process Improvement; Culture; Identity Construction; Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Leadership; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Innovation Strategy; Consumer Products Industry

March 2005
Case

Henkel Iberica (A)

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez, V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem

In 2002, Esteban Garriga, customer service director at Henkel Iberica, questions whether Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment (CPFR) would help manage retail promotions and limit their impact on the stock-outs and obsolete inventory. Describes the... View Details

Keywords: Business Subsidiaries; Forecasting and Prediction; Price; Distribution Channels; Strategic Planning; Commercialization; Valuation; Rail Industry; Germany; Spain

26 Nov 2018
Working Paper Summaries

Demand Estimation in Models of Imperfect Competition

Keywords: by Alexander MacKay and Nathan H. Miller

05 Jun 2019
Research & Ideas

If Your Customers Don't Care What You Charge, What Should You Charge?

motorists represent the prevalence of “consumer inertia” in the retail gas market. Consumer inertia is the tendency of some customers to buy or continue buying a product, even when superior options exist. Companies that can accurately... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Energy

29 Nov 2005
News

It's the Purpose Brand, Stupid

19 May 2014
Research & Ideas

Why Companies Should Compete for Your Privacy

Consumers are increasingly wary about sharing personal information with firms. Yet when they benefit from providing information in exchange for lower prices or better services, many View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Consumer Products

March – April 2009
Article

Market Research and Innovation Strategy in a Duopoly

By: Dominique Lauga and Elie Ofek

We model a duopoly in which ex-ante identical firms must decide where to direct their innovation efforts. The firms face market uncertainty about consumers' preferences for innovation on two product attributes and technology uncertainty about the success of their R&D... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Innovation and Management; Demand and Consumers; Duopoly and Oligopoly; Research and Development; Competitive Strategy

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February 2016 (Revised September 2020)
Case

T-Mobile in 2013: The Un-Carrier

By: John Beshears, Francesca Gino, Jonathan Lee and Sean (Yixiang) Wang

By 2013, the U.S. wireless industry was in the midst of a costly transition. As consumers began to embrace more sophisticated mobile devices, the industry's four main players spent heavily to improve their infrastructures for providing reliable high-speed data... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Product Positioning; Competition; Wireless Technology; Telecommunications Industry; United States

January – February 2011
Article

'Bricks and Clicks': The Impact of Product Returns on the Strategies of Multichannel Retailers

By: Elie Ofek, Zsolt Katona and Miklos Sarvary

The Internet has increased the flexibility of retailers, allowing them to operate an online arm in addition to their physical stores. The online channel offers potential benefits in selling to customer segments that value the convenience of online shopping, but it also... View Details

Keywords: Price; Profit; Marketing Channels; Consumer Behavior; Online Technology; Retail Industry

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October 2004 (Revised August 2007)
Case

Alibris in 2004

Alibris, an online marketplace for rare, used, and out-of-print books, is trying to communicate to the professional book dealers who are its main suppliers that they are in the middle of a crisis. Supply is flooding the market, in part from individuals who simply want... View Details

Keywords: Price; Books; Crisis Management; Supply and Industry; Service Operations; Online Technology; Consumer Products Industry

March 2016 (Revised May 2018)
Case

ASOS PLC

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Launched in 2000, ASOS was one of the world’s largest online fashion specialists in 2018. Focusing on young consumers aged 16–25 years, the company offered over 85,000 items on its websites, many times more than the largest fashion stores, and added several thousand... View Details

Keywords: ASOS; AsSeenOnScreen; Online Fashion; Online Apparel; Nick Beighton; Nick Robertson; E-commerce; E-Commerce Strategy; Online Retail; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Social Media; Marketplaces; Shipping; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Startups; For-Profit Firms; Customer Focus and Relationships; Age; Gender; Currency Exchange Rate; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Scope; Global Range; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Selection and Staffing; Journals and Magazines; Human Capital; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Communications; Marketing Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Media; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; United Kingdom; England; London

June 2012
Case

GlaxoSmithKline in Brazil: Public-Private Vaccine Partnerships

By: Arthur A. Daemmrich and Ian McKown Cornell

Three years into a major public-private partnership between GlaxoSmithKline and Fiocuz, Brazil's principal health institute, the company assesses technology transfer and joint research under the agreement. GSK was selling its Synflorix vaccine (against pediatric... View Details

Keywords: Public-Private Partnerships; Business and Government Relations; Foreign Direct Investment; Health Care and Treatment; Globalized Firms and Management; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; Brazil

May 2010
Case

Flare Fragrances Company, Inc: Analyzing Growth Opportunities

By: John A. Quelch and Lisa D. Donovan

Flare Fragrances, a manufacturer of perfumes for women, faces a growth challenge in a difficult economic environment. CEO Joely Patterson outlines two growth opportunities for her marketing staff to evaluate. One involves launching a new scent -- and possibly... View Details

Keywords: Quantitative Analysis; Market Segmentation; Product Introduction; New Product Marketing; Product Lines; Product Positioning; Distribution; Product Launch; Segmentation; Growth and Development Strategy; Consumer Products Industry