• Research Summary

Reflection

By: Joseph L. Badaracco

Corporations as Critical Social Institutions

My current research examines the extent to which corporations are emerging as critical social institutions. Over the past century, and especially in recent decades, firms have taken on... View Details

Keywords: Reflection

• October 2002 (Revised January 2003)
• Case

Hermitage Fund, The: Media and Corporate Governance in Russia

William Browder, the top executive of the Hermitage Fund, the best-performing international equity fund over the last five years, attributed much of his funds' strong returns to its focus on shareholder activism and corporate governance. In 2001, he was putting this... View Details

Keywords: Media; Corporate Governance; Investment Activism; Financial Services Industry; Russia

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Dyck, Alexander. "Hermitage Fund, The: Media and Corporate Governance in Russia." Harvard Business School Case 703-010, October 2002. (Revised January 2003.)

• January 2021
• Case

Saham Group: It's In the Genes

By: Christina R. Wing and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in August 2020 as Moulay Mhamed Elalamy (Mhamed), CEO of the Saham Group (the Group), a pan-African investment company that operates a variety of businesses out of Morocco, contemplates the Group’s identity, its investment strategy, and how to navigate... View Details

Keywords: Family and Family Relationships; Family Business; For-Profit Firms; Transformation; Transition; Emerging Markets; Change Management; Private Equity; Investment; Strategy; Insurance Industry; Real Estate Industry; Education Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Morocco; Africa

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Wing, Christina R., and Gamze Yucaoglu. "Saham Group: It's In the Genes." Harvard Business School Case 621-069, January 2021.

• May 2015
• Case

Venture Republic, 2011

By: W. Carl Kester and Mayuka Yamazaki

In December 2011, the founders of Venture Republic, a Japanese developer and operator of on-line search engines for shopping and travel, faced a decison about whether or not to take the company private in a management buyout transaction just three years after an... View Details

Keywords: Management Buyout; MBO; Valuation Methodologies; Financing Decisions; Conflicts Of Interest; Governance; Japan; Search Engines; Going Private; Conflict of Interests; Internet and the Web; Valuation; Privatization; Financing and Loans; Corporate Governance; Web Services Industry; Japan

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Kester, W. Carl, and Mayuka Yamazaki. "Venture Republic, 2011." Harvard Business School Case 215-076, May 2015.

• 2023
• Working Paper

How Wicked Problems Drive Business Performance: A Review of the Academic Literature

By: Caroline Adelson, Charlotte Kuller, Cate Tompkins, Ellora Sarkar, Samantha Price and Marco Iansiti

Recent years have seen a rise in the number of businesses engaged in the pursuit of “purposeful” activities – that is, activities that engage with the broader community in ways that expand beyond the pursuit of shareholder value. Many of these activities involve... View Details

Keywords: Wicked Problems; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Social Issues; Performance

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Adelson, Caroline, Charlotte Kuller, Cate Tompkins, Ellora Sarkar, Samantha Price, and Marco Iansiti. "How Wicked Problems Drive Business Performance: A Review of the Academic Literature." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 23-064, April 2023.

• February 2019 (Revised November 2023)
• Case

Rent-a-Center/Vintage Capital

By: Guhan Subramanian and Caeden Brynie

Christopher Korst, General Counsel for Rent-A-Center (RAC), looked at the time. It was late in the evening on December 17, 2018, yet no notice of extension had come from Vintage Capital. In June, Vintage had agreed to buy RAC for $15 per share in cash, amounting to... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Communication; Decision Making

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Subramanian, Guhan, and Caeden Brynie. "Rent-a-Center/Vintage Capital." Harvard Business School Case 919-031, February 2019. (Revised November 2023.)

• November 2011 (Revised September 2012)
• Case

Underwater Engineer at Intel Corporation

By: E. Scott Mayfield

Molly Miller, an Intel employee and shareholder, must decide whether to vote FOR or AGAINST Intel's proposed 2009 option exchange program. Given recent declines in Intel's stock price, more than 99% of Intel's outstanding employee stock options are "underwater," and... View Details

Keywords: Stock Options; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Semiconductor Industry

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Mayfield, E. Scott. "Underwater Engineer at Intel Corporation." Harvard Business School Case 212-047, November 2011. (Revised September 2012.)

• October 2009 (Revised November 2009)
• Case

Acciona and the Battle for Control of Endesa

Acciona, S.A. is a global infrastructure and renewable energy conglomerate that is publicly traded in Spain and controlled by the Entrecanales family. In 2006, the company joined the highly politicized cross-border takeover battle for Spain's largest electric utility,... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Renewable Energy; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Ownership Stake; Business and Government Relations; Business Strategy; Energy Industry; Utilities Industry; Spain

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Villalonga, Belen, and Rachelle Silverberg. "Acciona and the Battle for Control of Endesa." Harvard Business School Case 210-029, October 2009. (Revised November 2009.)

• December 1999 (Revised October 2006)
• Case

Praedium Corporation

By: Henry B. Reiling and Catherine M. Conneely

George Hicks and Patricia Ferrey, primary shareholders of the Praedium Corp., faced a dilemma that could dissolve their real estate management company. Praedium received an attractive offer to lease one of its properties, however, Hicks did not want to terminate the... View Details

Keywords: Leasing; Property; Taxation; Investment Return; Real Estate Industry; Construction Industry

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Reiling, Henry B., and Catherine M. Conneely. "Praedium Corporation." Harvard Business School Case 200-029, December 1999. (Revised October 2006.)

• June 2015
• Supplement

Generating Higher Value at IBM (A): EPS Forecasting Model

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Scott Mayfield

This case analyzes IBM's financial performance and its capital allocation decisions over a 10-year period from 2004-2013, during which IBM returned more than $140B to shareholders through a combination of dividends and share repurchases. During this time, CEO Sam... View Details

Keywords: Dividends; Share Repurchases; Earnings Guidance; Financial Statement Analysis; Financial Ratios; Payout Policy; Earnings Per Share (EPS); Earnings Management; Change Management; Leadership; Transformation; Financial Strategy

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Esty, Benjamin C., and Scott Mayfield. "Generating Higher Value at IBM (A): EPS Forecasting Model." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 215-711, June 2015.

• 09 Jun 2009
• First Look

First Look: June 9

hypothesize that shareholder actions and regulatory threats are likely to prime firms to adopt practices consistent with the aims of a broader social movement. We find empirical evidence of direct and spillover effects. In the domain of... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

• 05 Feb 2024
• Research & Ideas

The Middle Manager of the Future: More Coaching, Less Commanding

on middle management During the 1980s and 1990s, middle managers became prime targets of large-scale downsizing at the behest of shareholder activists—yet the ranks of middle managers never really declined. Zhang’s data helps explain why.... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand

• September 2024
• Article

Activist Directors: Determinants and Consequences

By: Ian D. Gow, Sa-Pyung Sean Shin and Suraj Srinivasan

This paper examines determinants and consequences of hedge fund activism, focusing on activist directors, i.e., directors appointed in response to activist demands. Using a sample of 3,259 activism events from 2004 to 2016, we identify 1,623 activist directors.... View Details

Keywords: Governing and Advisory Boards; Investment Activism; Business and Shareholder Relations

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Gow, Ian D., Sa-Pyung Sean Shin, and Suraj Srinivasan. "Activist Directors: Determinants and Consequences." Review of Accounting Studies 29, no. 3 (September 2024): 2578–2616.

• December 2014
• Case

Groupon: A New CEO Takes Charge

By: Lynda M. Applegate and Arnold B. Peinado

On August 7, 2013, Eric Lefkofsky, the chairman and largest shareholder of Groupon was named CEO, replacing founder Andrew Mason, who had run the company since its inception in 2009. When Groupon had its initial public offering (IPO) in November 2011, the company's... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Management; Disruptive Technologies; Growth Strategy; Customer Relations; Service Management; International Business; Business Models; Strategy Execution; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Model; United States

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Applegate, Lynda M., and Arnold B. Peinado. "Groupon: A New CEO Takes Charge." Harvard Business School Case 815-083, December 2014.

• January 2005 (Revised March 2008)
• Case

Kohler Co. (A)

Kohler Co., best known for its plumbing fixtures, is a large, private family firm. As part of a recapitalization aimed at preserving family ownership of Kohler Co., nonfamily shareholders, who held 4% of common stock, were required to sell their shares to the company.... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Capital Structure; Cash Flow; Stocks; Price; Family Ownership; Business and Shareholder Relations; Valuation

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Villalonga, Belen, and Raphael Amit. "Kohler Co. (A)." Harvard Business School Case 205-034, January 2005. (Revised March 2008.)