Publications

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May 1994 (Revised October 1994)
Case

Motorola Corp.: The View from the CEO Office

By: Shoshana Zuboff and Janis Lee Gogan

Motorola, a leader in semiconductors and telecommunications, embarked on an ambitious program of renewal beginning in the early 1980s, leading to dramatic improvements in the company's quality, cycle time, and growth. Much of this progress was attributed to a major... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Leading Change; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Corporate Strategy; Telecommunications Industry

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June 2001 (Revised November 2004)
Case

Kingsley Management

By: Richard G. Hamermesh

Includes a brief overview of key challenges facing recent HBS graduates seeking funding for a business, followed by a 22-page excerpt from the Kingsley Management business plan. Describes Matthew Lieb and Chris Jones, two of the partners who developed the business plan... View Details

Keywords: Business Organization; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Business Plan; Opportunities; Investment Return; Organizational Structure

January 2017
Case

Where Should Pat Gelsinger's Time Go?

By: Raffaella Sadun

Pat Gelsinger, CEO of VMware, is deciding how to structure the firm presence in cloud computing. He can pursue the opportunity in multiple ways: doubling down the investments in an internal and nascent cloud offering, partnering with established third parties, or... View Details

Keywords: CEO Time Use; Corporate Strategy; Time Management

November 2000 (Revised December 2000)
Case

Loewen Group Inc., The

By: Stuart C. Gilson and Jose Camacho

A publiclytraded funeral home and cemetery consolidator faces imminent financial distress. The company has aggressively grown through use of debt. Restructuring the debt is potentially very costly to creditors, shareholders, suppliers, and other corporate stakeholders.... View Details

Keywords: International Accounting; Restructuring; Capital Structure; Cost of Capital; Debt Securities; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Crisis Management; Business and Shareholder Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Service Industry

23 Apr 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, April 23, 2019

process of learning from experience. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=55991 forthcoming Organization & Environment Assessing the Impact of CEO Activism By: Chatterji, Aaron K., and Michael W. Toffel Abstract—CEO activism refers to... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Program

Finance for Senior Executives

Summary When you can speak the language of finance, you have the power to build stronger strategies, expand your influence, and make better business decisions. Finance for Senior Executives delivers a foundation in corporate finance that... View Details

15 Aug 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, August 15, 2017

bankrupt the company. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=53093 2017 The Moral Responsibility of Firms Corporate Moral Agency, Positive Duties, and Purpose By: Hsieh, Nien-hê Abstract—A long-standing question... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

May 2022
Case

Rawbank's Illico Cash: Can 'Fast Money' Overcome Cash Dependency in the DRC?

By: Lauren Cohen and Grace Headinger

Thomas de Dreux-Brézé, the Head of Strategy and Project Management at Rawbank Congo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), was perplexed as he reviewed annual adoption rates for the bank’s launch of Illico Cash 2.0. As the bank’s mobile money app, Illico Cash... View Details

07 Apr 2008
Research & Ideas

The Debate over Taxing Foreign Profits

Congress and the next president of the United States will be under pressure to make major changes to U.S. corporate tax policy, the consequences of which could have significant impact on profit and competitiveness of American companies on... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

March 2023
Case

Roche: ESG and Access to Healthcare

By: George Serafeim, Susanna Gallani and Benjamin Maletta

In May 2022, Roche Group, one of the largest healthcare companies in the world, hosted its first ESG investor event focused exclusively on its efforts to impact access to healthcare. While Roche had recently set an ambitious goal to double the number of patients that... View Details

February 1999 (Revised June 1999)
Case

Bloomberg L.P.

By: Clayton M. Christensen, Richard G. Hamermesh and Jeremy Dann

Michael Bloomberg founded his company to provide customers quick access to financial market data and analytical tools for understanding that data. As Bloomberg L.P. grew quickly,entered the ranks of "large, established companies," it grappled with a whole new range of... View Details

Keywords: Human Resources; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Problems and Challenges

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January 2024 (Revised February 2024)
Case

OpenAI: Idealism Meets Capitalism

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Shweta Bagai

In November 2023, the board of OpenAI, one of the most successful companies in the history of technology, decided to fire Sam Altman, its charismatic and influential CEO. Their decision shocked the corporate world and had people wondering why OpenAI had designed a... View Details

Keywords: AI; AI and Machine Learning; Governing and Advisory Boards; Ethics; Strategy; Technological Innovation; Leadership

Web

Browse All Articles, Research, & Case Studies - HBS Working Knowledge

Case What Wartime Service Taught These Historic Leaders by Avery Forman What can corporate leaders learn from executives who served their country during wartime conflicts? Drawing on a series of case studies, Robert Simons shares... View Details

17 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

Money Isn’t Everything: The Dos and Don’ts of Motivating Employees

In a post-pandemic business world of hybrid work and quiet quitting, companies must rethink how they motivate employees. Good incentive plans and reward structures require a careful analysis of a company’s objectives, culture, and... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

02 Jan 2024
Research & Ideas

10 Trends to Watch in 2024

The lightning-fast ascent of generative AI isn’t the only sea change on the horizon for businesses in the new year. The global economy is in flux as war, climate change, trade issues, and infrastructure problems demand attention. Many companies continue to struggle to... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

2015
Working Paper

Business Groups Exist in Developed Markets Also: Britain Since 1850

By: Geoffrey Jones

Diversified business groups are well-known phenomena in emerging markets, both today and historically. This is often explained by the prevalence of institutional voids or the nature of government-business relations. It is typically assumed that such groups were much... View Details

Keywords: Business Groups; Business History; Economic History; Conglomerates; Entrepreneurship; Globalization; Management; Organizations; United Kingdom

SSRN

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08 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

The Death of the Global Manager

ears around the world is critical” Nearly 20 years later and in its sixth edition, Bartlett's case-filled textbook (which he describes as a "continuing passion") offers the opportunity to reexamine the ever-changing nature of multinational View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

December 1991 (Revised October 1998)
Case

Eli Lilly and Co.: Manufacturing Process Technology Strategy--1991

By: Gary P. Pisano, Steven C. Wheelwright and Jonathan West

Outlines the evolution of Lilly's corporate manufacturing strategy over the past decade. The corporate vice president of manufacturing must decide on the next phase of Lilly's strategy for the early 1990s, as well as to what extent and what role process development... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Management Practices and Processes; Industry Structures; Product Development; Production; Research and Development; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

February 2009 (Revised December 2010)
Case

Upgrading the Economy: Industrial Policy and Taiwan's Semiconductor Industry

By: Willy C. Shih and Jyun-Cheng Wang

The government-led creation and incubation of the semiconductor industry in Taiwan is a striking success for advocates of strong industrial policy. It has led to the island nation's domination of the global "foundry" business in which firms like Taiwan Semiconductor... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Industry Structures; State Ownership; Business and Government Relations; Competition; Semiconductor Industry; Taiwan