Publications

January 1983 (Revised July 2007)
Case

Mat MacGregor (A)

Mat MacGregor took charge of a failing project but failed to turn it around because of a variety of personal, technical, cultural, and political reasons. The purpose of the case is to understand the underlying dynamics and their implications. View Details

Keywords: Management Skills; Management Style; Organizational Culture; Failure; Projects; Personal Characteristics

October 2002 (Revised May 2003)
Case

Dynatrol Corporation: Andover Assembly Division

By: H. Kent Bowen, Janice H. Hammond and Ramchandran Jaikumar

While grappling with glitches in the design and operation of its production system, Andover Assembly must also launch a new sensor product line to meet ultimatums issued by frustrated Signatron vice presidents. The financial returns of the division are not meeting... View Details

Keywords: Production; Product Development; Product; Performance Productivity; Problems and Challenges; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Manufacturing Industry; United States

February 2010
Case

Applied Research Technologies, Inc.: Global Innovation's Challenges

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Heather Beckham

Applied Research Technologies, Inc. (ART) is a diversified technology company which has used its entrepreneurial culture and encouragement of innovation as an ongoing competitive advantage. The case concentrates on the challenges faced by Peter Vyas, the Filtration... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Managerial Roles; Management Practices and Processes; Reputation; Organizational Culture; Innovation and Management; Competitive Advantage; Entrepreneurship; Management Systems; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Technology Industry

14 Jun 2013
Talk

Why Business Can Be Good at Solving Social Problems

By: Michael E. Porter

Why do we turn to nonprofits, NGOs and governments to solve society's biggest problems? Michael Porter admits he's biased, as a business school professor, but he wants you to hear his case for letting business try to solve massive problems like climate change and... View Details

Keywords: Creating Shared Value; Strategy; Value Creation; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Profit; Scotland

20 Oct 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Flight to Safety: How Economic Downturns Affect Talent Flows to Startups

Keywords: by Shai Benjamin Bernstein, Richard Townsend, and Ting Xu

02 Feb 2012
Op-Ed

Once a Castle, Home is Now a Debtors’ Prison

We have created a housing hybrid in America, refashioning the single-family home into a mini debtors' prison. Almost 11 million dot the landscape. In Las Vegas and Phoenix, over 50 percent of homeowners live in one. “Understandably, most [underwater] owners live... View Details

Keywords: by Nicolas P. Retsinas; Financial Services; Construction; Real Estate

July 1980 (Revised November 1981)
Case

Strike in Space

A three-man skylab crew, after repeatedly unsuccessful attempts to influence Houston Mission Control to slow down the work pace, turns off radio communication and refuses to talk. Questions for the class: What leads up to this break? How does one repair it? View Details

Keywords: Working Conditions; Conflict and Resolution; Aerospace Industry; Houston

27 Jun 2011
News

Recovering from the Need to Achieve

September 2016
Case

Hewlett Packard Enterprise: The Dandelion Program

By: Gary P. Pisano and Robert D. Austin

This case describes Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s “Dandelion Program," which has developed a new service offering for the company’s clients by drawing on the special talents of people with autism. The company has deployed “pods” organized around 8 or 9 employees with... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Behavior; Information Technology; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership; Talent and Talent Management; Service Operations; Training; Diversity; Innovation and Invention; Technology Industry

03 Mar 2010
What Do You Think?

To What Degree Does “Identity” Affect Economic Performance?

the commitment and loyalty of employees who perceive themselves as the most disposable of corporate assets ." What will it take to turn around negative trends in "identity"? Ajay Kumar Gupta suggests that "creation of... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

Profile

Angela R. Hicks Bowman

“and be very picky who you take money from because they are going to end up helping to drive your business.” Not many founders are as quick to turn over the controls to someone, even a co-founder, as Hicks did with Oesterle.... View Details

22 Jun 2017
News

The next CEO of Uber: Here’s who should be on the short list

November 2005 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Leading Change at Simmons (A)

By: Tiziana E. Casciaro, Amy C. Edmondson, Stacy McManus and Kate Roloff

Explores the challenge of managing large-scale organizational change at Simmons, an old and established company that manufactures and distributes mattresses. The new CEO, Charlie Eitel, hired to turn the organization's performance around, considers whether to implement... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Motivation and Incentives; Leading Change; Employee Relationship Management; Manufacturing Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States

16 Jan 2020
News

12 Books on Diversity and Inclusion Coming Out in the First Half of 2020 That Every Leader Should Have on Their Radar

30 Jan 2018
News

The erosion of worker compensation

April 1993 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW)

By: Robert J. Dolan

In 1992, BMW attempts to revive its position in the United States market. In 1991, unit sales had fallen to 53,000 from 88,000 in 1987. The new CEO of North America considers a multifaceted plan to turn around the situation. View Details

Keywords: Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Market Entry and Exit; Sales; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry; Germany; North America

29 Jun 2020
News

How Do Other People Experience You? These 4 Things Determine Your Leadership Profile

April 2009
Article

Sovereign Wealth in Abu Dhabi

By: Rawi Abdelal

By the turn of the century, oil had already made the tiny emirate of Abu Dhabi rich beyond anyone's wildest dreams. A sovereign wealth fund, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), has invested extra oil revenues abroad for more than thirty years and amassed a... View Details

Keywords: Development Economics; Financial Management; Investment Funds; Sovereign Finance; Wealth; Diversification; Abu Dhabi

Find at Harvard

July–August 2021
Article

Why Do So Many Strategies Fail?

By: David J. Collis

THE PROBLEM: Seemingly successful new companies struggle to turn a healthy profit. Established firms get disrupted by upstarts. Companies that excel at serving their markets can’t adapt when customers’ tastes shift. THE ROOT CAUSE: All too often, business leaders focus... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Strategic Planning; Business Model; Value; Value Creation; Opportunities