Publications

03 Jul 2012
First Look

First Look: July 3

1990s to the 2000s and how the emergence of SecondMarket provided liquidity to privately held companies like iContact, an email and social marketing software-as-a-service (SaaS) company. Purchase this... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Nov 2024
In Practice

Layoffs Surging in a Strong Economy? Advice for Navigating Uncertain Times

situation many tech firms grapple with. His statement, “We do not do layoffs to cut costs,” is a clearer message for employees who see the staffing up as well as the laying off, especially in light of the vast sums tech companies are putting into their race for AI... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Technology; Information Technology

October 2011
Article

Fair Pricing

By: Julio J. Rotemberg

This paper explores the consequences of supposing that consumers see a firm as fair if they cannot reject the hypothesis that the firm is somewhat benevolent towards them. When consumers can reject this hypothesis, some become angry, which is costly to the firm. The... View Details

Keywords: Price; Income; Consumer Behavior; Fair Value Accounting; Outcome or Result

Find at Harvard

01 Aug 2006
First Look

First Look: August 1, 2006

of "organized" retailers such as Pantaloon. Pantaloon's management faced some exciting opportunities as well as some potential competition both from global retailers planning to enter the Indian market and from large Indian... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

04 Jun 2007
Research & Ideas

Is Health Care Making You Better—or Dead?

think in any of these cases I launched a revolution, but I think I was helpful. But the pace was so slow, and people were saying that these high deductibles represented consumer-driven health care. It's ridiculous. Consumer markets have... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Health

May 2020
Case

Trust Merchant Bank

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Pippa Tubman Armerding, Dilyana Karadzhova Botha and Salim Dewji

Trust Merchant Bank (TMB), a leading bank in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), needs to decide whether to enter the soon-to-be-liberalized insurance industry. Since its founding in 2004, TMB has played a pivotal role in reshaping the DRC banking landscape by... View Details

Keywords: Retail Banking; Financial Services; Financial Inclusion; Turnaround; Fintech; Banks and Banking; Financial Condition; Insurance; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Business Model; Family Business; Entrepreneurship; Information Technology; Monopoly; Banking Industry; Insurance Industry; Africa; Congo, Democratic Republic of the

September 2020 (Revised February 2023)
Teaching Note

Uber: Competing Globally

By: Alexander J. MacKay

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 720-404. View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Geography; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Global Strategy; Globalization; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governance; Governance Controls; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Innovation and Invention; Disruptive Innovation; Innovation Strategy; Law; Management; Growth and Development; Growth Management; Markets; Demand and Consumers; Consumer Behavior; Network Effects; Emerging Markets; Market Design; Market Entry and Exit; Market Participation; Supply and Industry; Industry Structures; Planning; Strategic Planning; Relationships; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Labor and Management Relations; Networks; Adaptation; Strategy; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Information Technology; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Digital Platforms; Transportation Networks; Transportation; Transportation Industry; Technology Industry; Africa; Ghana; Asia; China; Shanghai; Shanghai Shi; India; New Delhi; Europe; United Kingdom; London; England; Latin America; North and Central America; United States; New York (city, NY); New York (state, US); South America; Colombia

Article

The New Face of Chinese Industrial Policy: Making Sense of Anti-Dumping Cases in the Petrochemical and Steel Industries.

Why have China's petrochemical and steel industries behaved so differently in seeking trade protection through anti-dumping measures, especially given that both industries face the full force of the global economy? We argue that the patterning of anti-dumping actions... View Details

Keywords: Policy; Trade; Economy; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Motivation and Incentives; Marketing Channels; Industry Structures; System Shocks; Price; Restructuring; Interests; Energy Industry; Steel Industry; China

Find at Harvard

January 2011
Supplement

Matrix Capital Management (B)

By: Malcolm P. Baker and David Lane

Ben Balbale, a partner at hedge fund Matrix Capital, must decide whether to exit their investment in Rovi Corporation, a company with a diverse portfolio of patents used primarily for digital interactive guides. Rovi's shares are up over 50% from the time Balbale... View Details

Keywords: Public Ownership; Cash Flow; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Investment Funds; Financial Strategy; Valuation; Partners and Partnerships; Markets; Performance Efficiency; Patents; Stock Shares; Decisions; Financial Services Industry

19 Sep 2012
Research & Ideas

Funding Innovation: Is Your Firm Doing it Wrong?

But it also details VC's shortcomings: a narrow focus on certain industries and geographies, volatile feast-or-famine funding cycles, the expectation of quick returns, and a dependence on public markets for funds. “While the venture model... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

March 2011 (Revised January 2013)
Teaching Note

ProPublica (TN)

By: Michel Anteby and Ryan Johnson

Teaching Note for #410-140. View Details

Keywords: Markets; Finance; Competency and Skills; Knowledge; Nonprofit Organizations; Resource Allocation; Decision Choices and Conditions; Journalism and News Industry

November 1997 (Revised December 1999)
Case

Cinemex

By: James L. Heskett

The founders of Cinemex, the largest capitalized venture start-up in Mexican history, are debating several issues concerning the operations of their new chain of motion picture theatres in Mexico City. The first concerns whether some seats should be left unsold to... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Service Operations; Debates; Venture Capital; Customer Satisfaction; Advertising; Investment; Theater Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Mexico City

16 Dec 2008
First Look

First Look: December 16, 2008

whereby 1.7 million residents (or 70 percent of Finnish households) own 22 regional cooperatives. In turn, the regional cooperatives own SOK, a centralized company that provides services to the regional cooperatives. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, S Group lagged far... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

24 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 24, 2009

potential for embarrassment, and even religious conviction? Running Out of Numbers: Scarcity of IP Addresses and What to Do About It Author:Benjamin G. Edelman Publication:First Conference on Auctions, Market Mechanisms and Their... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

06 Nov 2013
What Do You Think?

Is Top-Down Resource Allocation on the Rise?

the unit level." Saravanan introduced the old/new, product-market 2X2 matrix to argue that top-down resource allocation is most appropriate when both products and markets are new. But he reminded us that "The decision on the... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

July 2010 (Revised March 2012)
Case

China 'Unbalanced'

By: Diego A. Comin and Richard H.K. Vietor

In 2010, Wen Jiabao looked back at the financial crisis with some satisfaction. Using aggressive fiscal and monetary policy, China had weathered the crisis successfully, growing 8.7% annually in 2010. Most of the unemployed workers had returned to work, often... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Financial Crisis; Trade; Currency Exchange Rate; Investment; Local Range; Growth and Development Strategy; Demand and Consumers; China