Publications

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April 2010
Case

Bill Nichol Negotiates with Walmart: Hard Bargains over Soft Goods (A)

By: James K. Sebenius and Ellen Knebel

CEO Bill Nichol must somehow negotiate a surprise ultimatum from Walmart, his largest customer, about his largest and most profitable product line: “We're dropping it.” Among its hosiery products, the Kentucky Derby Hosiery Co. produces and sells a branded line of... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Crisis Management; Negotiation Tactics; Conflict Management; Apparel and Accessories Industry; North America

July 1989 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Kanthal (A)

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Multinational company needs an improved cost system to determine the profitability of individual customer orders. Its strategy is to have significant sales and profitability growth without adding additional administrative and support people. The new cost system... View Details

Keywords: Cost Accounting; Earnings Management; Cost Management; Financial Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Business or Company Management; Customer Relationship Management; Sales; Business Strategy; Profit; Electronics Industry

13 Oct 2015
Research & Ideas

Does Business Get Done the Same Way in Emerging and Developed Countries?

Administration in the Strategy unit at Harvard Business School. “No one had relationships with the parliamentarians—he built his business in part around this opportunity.” “No one had relationships with the... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

01 Sep 2009
News

E Ink’s Wild Ride

Chappell Russ Wilcox (MBA ’95) was two years out of HBS, married to classmate Gina Wilcox and working as a strategy consultant following a stint as a product manager at a Boston-area technology firm. But he had always wanted to launch and... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; e-books; e-reading; News, Library, Internet, and Other Services; Information; Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing; Manufacturing

Profile

Jake Flomenberg

startups and companies who are leaders in various technology fields and build relationships that I maintain to this day. How has HBS prepared you for your current role & your long term career? As a product manager, I leverage my HBS... View Details

Keywords: Technology

September 1996 (Revised June 1997)
Case

QVC, Inc.

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport

Illustrates the "Service Profit Chain" in action. QVC, whose initials stand for Quality, Value,, and Convenience, demonstrates clearly how a strong customer focus can lead to establishing a strong franchise in the retail sector and a highly profitable business whose... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Service Delivery; Retail Industry; United States

November 2006
Article

CRM Implementation: Effectiveness Issues and Insights

By: Timothy Bohling, Douglas Bowman, Steve LaValle, Vikas Mittal, Das Narayandas, Girish Ramani and Rajan Varadarajan

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Performance Effectiveness

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25 Feb 2020
Research & Ideas

For Migrant Workers, Homesickness Can Reduce Productivity

Freedom to use vacation time to attend celebrations with family and friends helps improve performance for employees who work far away from their hometowns, new research by Prithwiraj Choudhury suggests. When View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

16 Dec 2021
News

Avoid a One-Size-Fits-All Approach to Sales Coaching

March 2024
Supplement

Madrigal: Conducting a Customer-Base Audit

By: Eva Ascarza, Bruce Hardie, Peter S. Fader and Michael Ross

This case presents a scenario where Madrigal, a U.S. retailer with a rich 20-year history and a solid loyalty program, faces a turning point with the arrival of a new CEO. This leadership change reveals a critical gap in understanding the customer base, prompting an... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Analytics and Data Science; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; United States

24 Apr 2014
News

A wild ride from adventure travel to social media marketing

business world took social networking seriously, she cofounded Wildfire—all while pursuing her MBA at HBS. The company grew from six to 400 employees in two-and-a-half years. Ransom’s idea quickly changed how companies use social media to... View Details

04 Aug 2003
What Do You Think?

Are We Facing an Attitude Shortage?

trick is to make sure your employees are happy." Taking issue with this, Zbigniew Becker suggested, "Educational programs do have a crucial role to play in installing/strengthening in future View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

April 2019
Supplement

C3: Driven to Succeed

By: Robert L. Simons

This video series, which is intended to be used with C3: Driven to Succeed (119-004), shows founder and CEO Tom Siebel addressing a class of MBA students. In eight short video clips, he discusses how he selects customers and employees, creates a high-energy culture,... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Customers; Employees; Selection and Staffing; Organizational Culture; Performance; Success

July 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Background Note

Hiring Professionals in China: A Practitioner's Guide

By: Heidi K. Gardner

This note outlines how leading professional service firms operating in China revise their standard hiring practices to fit local challenges and customs. Based on interviews with professionals in a number of established accounting, strategy consulting, and executive... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Globalized Firms and Management; Employees; Selection and Staffing; Service Industry; China

November 2010
Article

Stress-Test Your Strategy: The 7 Questions to Ask

By: Robert Simons

An economic downturn can quickly expose the shortcomings of your business strategy. But can you identify its weak points in good times as well? And can you focus on those weak points that really matter? I identify seven questions all executives should ask in order to... View Details

Keywords: Business Strategy; Creativity; Success; Customers; Employees; Business and Shareholder Relations; Performance; Risk and Uncertainty; Decision Choices and Conditions

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