World War II - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Jun 2003
News

Leading the Charge

In the first days of military action in Iraq, with Americans unsure of what lay ahead, one commanding, symbolic image in this media–intensive war held sway: a U.S. Marine, ripping down a huge poster of Saddam Hussein in a town in southern... View Details

Keywords: National Security and International Affairs; Government

Paul V. Galvin

Creating the Motorola car radio, Galvin emerged as the premier producer of car radios in the 1930s. Galvin also invented the walkie-talkie, producing some 40,000 during World War II. In 1947, Galvin... View Details

Keywords: Computers & Electronics

John L. Collyer

In 1940, Collyer brought to market the first tire with a substantial man-made rubber content. Goodrich’s tire was 50% synthetic rubber at a time when man-made rubber was not yet cost competitive with crude rubber. However, shortly thereafter, with the outbreak of View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

23 Jun 2016
Op-Ed

Brexit: Should Britain Stay or Go?

reversal of European integration already underway. The EU was created by people who had seen World War II and never wanted to see Europeans go to View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey G. Jones & Dante Roscini

James S. Love

Beginning as a rayon producer, Love built the world’s largest textile mill by the mid-1950s. Love, the architect of the company’s growth, expanded the company to 22 plants by 1936 and bought six hosiery mills. After World View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

01 Dec 2018
News

Trade Off

started World War I, and it all collapsed. As percentages of GDP, we didn’t return to those earlier levels of global capital flows until the 1990s. Global free trade is not the natural order of things.... View Details

23 Jan 2008
Op-Ed

A House Divided: Investment or Shelter?

could finally afford to buy their domiciles. The definition of home shifted. A home became an anchor, a stake in the community. Veterans from World War II seized upon the FHA... View Details

Keywords: by Nicolas P. Retsinas; Banking; Construction; Real Estate

Elmer F. Pierson

Pierson founded the Vendo Company in 1937 after perfecting the development of the first truly workable vending system - a lid called “The Red Top.” Originally designed for Coca-Cola bottles, the new vending machines were quickly converted to handle a variety of... View Details

Keywords: Food & Tobacco

William L. Stewart

Assuming control of Union Oil from his father, William Stewart’s first task was to repair the company’s finances, which had suffered under his father’s huge waves of expansion. Stewart accomplished this without problems and guided Union to profitability, capitalizing... View Details

Keywords: Utilities & Energy

Haroldson L. Hunt

Hunt built the largest independent oil company in the U.S. During World War II, Hunt sold more oil to the Allies than the total German output, and supplied 85% of the natural gas piped into the eastern... View Details

Keywords: Utilities & Energy

20 Jun 2011
Lessons from the Classroom

Fame, Faith, and Social Activism: Business Lessons from Bono

escalating, high-profile campaign against Third World debt, poverty, war and disease. “Any CEO who thinks his or her job is about maximizing shareholder value is living in the past.” Koehn, a Harvard... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard; Entertainment & Recreation

Bernard M. Baruch

Intercontinental Rubber Company. During World War I, Baruch served as Chairman of the War Industries Board, where he helped to facilitate the military preparedness of the... View Details

Keywords: Finance

02 Jan 2001
Research & Ideas

Can Japan Compete? [Part One]

The puzzle, they explain, has to do with the explanation for Japan's extraordinary economic success in the post-World War II period. The country was heralded around the world... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace & Hilah Geer

17 Jun 2020
Blog Post

Black MBA Students Pen Letters to the HBS Community: Letter 2/5

shot to death in a police car in 1941 because he laughed while standing in line at a movie theatre with his girlfriend. Or how about the hate that led to Timothy Hood’s, murder in the back of a police car? He was a World View Details

John J. McCloy

McCloy orchestrated the merger between Chase and Manhattan, forming the second largest commercial bank in the United States. Educated as a lawyer, McCloy was very active and successful in a variety of fields. He pursued private law, served as an advisor to the... View Details

Keywords: Finance

09 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Five Questions for Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria

it evokes emotional memories that touch on all of our drives. Memories of a hot day when all you wanted to acquire was an ice-cold Coke; memories of your first date when you shared a Coke; memories of World View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Frederick J. Fisher

purchased a 60% interest in Fisher Body. After World War I, when the closed car became the industry standard, Fisher Body yielded especially high returns, emerging as Durant’s most profitable acquisition. View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Frank J. Fahey

marketing campaign, in which he provided 3.5 million razors and 36 million blades for servicemen departing for World War I. Fahey also led the “Shave and Save” marketing campaign, where banks across the U.S.... View Details

Keywords: Personal Care & Home Products

Daniel Willard

After reviving the battered B&O railway line with $60 million in investment funds he personally solicited from Wall Street, Willard was required to turn over control of the company to the government during World View Details

Keywords: Transportation

28 May 2019
News

Alumni Achievement Awards 2019

Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Rough start: “I remember coming home from the Naval Academy for Christmas leave as a freshman, and my GPA going into finals was a 0.91. But I loved the challenge, and I adapted.” Ahoy there: “My first command was a View Details

Publications