Publications

January 1981
Case

Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc.

By: John P. Kotter

Introduces the student to Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc., its business, its strategy, and its organization. Provides the necessary background for understanding the contributions of Mary Kay Ash, the company's founder and chairman. View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Business Strategy; Organizations; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

2009
Working Paper

Goals Gone Wild: The Systematic Side Effects of Over-Prescribing Goal Setting

By: Lisa D. Ordonez, Maurice E. Schweitzer, Adam D. Galinsky and Max H. Bazerman

Goal setting is one of the most replicated and influential paradigms in the management literature. Hundreds of studies conducted in numerous countries and contexts have consistently demonstrated that setting specific, challenging goals can powerfully drive behavior and... View Details

Keywords: Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Behavior; Motivation and Incentives

Read Now

16 May 2005
Research & Ideas

Nonprofit Networking: The New Way to Grow

Whether their mission is to protect wildlife, help disabled people, or offer financial services in developing countries, nonprofit organizations often believe they need to grow big before they can achieve significant social impact. HBS... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

11 May 2023
News

How FOMO Became a Fixture

is commercial, creative, and way more organized than me, she was instrumental in guiding me through this process. "When I called Suzann for advice on what to do with FOMO, I knew it might be tricky since my original article was not a... View Details

fall 1997
Article

Motivating Creativity in Organizations: On Doing What You Love and Loving What You Do

By: T. M. Amabile

Creativity in all fields, including business, flourishes under intrinsic motivation- the drive to do something because it is interesting, involving, exciting, satisfying, or personally challenging. This article presents the Componential Theory of Organizational... View Details

Keywords: Creativity; Motivation and Incentives; Situation or Environment; Organizational Culture

Find at Harvard

22 Mar 2017
HBS Seminar

Gerald C. Kane, Boston College

29 May 2012
First Look

First Look: May 29

PublicationsOvercoming Resistance to Organizational Change: Strong Ties and Affective Cooptation Authors:Julie Battilana and Tiziana Casciaro Publication:Management Science (forthcoming) Abstract We propose a relational theory of how change agents in View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

11 May 2009
Research & Ideas

The IT Leader’s Hero Quest

twentieth-century industrial organization structures to twenty-first-century information-based organization structures. Q: In your novel, though Barton had been willing to critique his predecessor for... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

October 1990 (Revised September 1993)
Case

Changing the Culture at British Airways

By: John P. Kotter

In just 10 years, 1980-1990, British Airways turned around both its declining image and financial situation. Focusing on the paramount importance of customer service, British Airways went from "bloody awful" to "bloody awesome." Experiencing a financial crisis in 1981... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Problems and Challenges; Customer Relationship Management; Corporate Strategy; Privatization; Air Transportation Industry; United Kingdom

August 2011
Case

Martha Rinaldi: Should She Stay or Should She Go?

By: Linda A. Hill and Mark Renella

Martha Rinaldi has been an assistant product manager at leading beverage company Potomac Waters since graduating from business school. Rinaldi is frustrated by her relationships with her boss and a close co-worker. Even though she works hard to please her manager, she... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Relations; Management Styles; Managing Up; Career Planning; Conflict; Management Style; Interpersonal Communication; Personal Development and Career; Organizational Culture; Relationships; Performance Evaluation; Conflict and Resolution; Power and Influence; Food and Beverage Industry

Blog

The Harvard Business School Faculty Summer Reader 2023

research on leading complex organizations and scaling businesses, I've chosen Unleash Your Transformation by Marco Van Kalleveen and Peter Koijen. This book offers valuable insights and practical strategies for leaders who are driving... View Details

25 Jul 2016
Research & Ideas

Who is to Blame for 'The Great Training Robbery'?

the context matters. Corporate training is most effective when leadership has prepared the organization for change. Source: MonkeyBusinessImages Take the example of Swedish industrial conglomerate Cardo. The CEO commissioned a training... View Details

Keywords: by Roberta Holland; Education

01 Dec 2022
News

Singing to the Corn

stuck with him. He talked to local organic farmers to learn more about the nuts and bolts of planting, watering, and harvesting. Hundreds of miles to the northwest, at the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron, Nebraska, he found indigenous... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; photographed by Vance Jacobs; Agriculture

Web

Health Care Curriculum - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

professional education programs for health professionals around the world, consists of conceptual frameworks and actual in-depth case studies of numerous health care provider organizations, health plans, and employers offering health benefits. Such leading View Details

April 2009 (Revised May 2009)
Case

Oprah Winfrey

By: Nancy F. Koehn, Erica Helms, Katherine Miller and Rachel Wilcox

The case explores the entrepreneurial journey of Oprah Winfrey, examining how she built an audience for one of the most successful television shows in history; how she created the company, Harpo Productions, that produces that show as well as other media offerings; how... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Entrepreneurship; Leadership; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Personal Development and Career; Strategy; Media and Broadcasting Industry; United States