Publications

Feb 23 2017
Testimonial

Leading, Learning, and Growing—Together

September 2019 (Revised May 2021)
Case

pymetrics: Early Days

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In 2013, CEO Frida Polli was contemplating the next steps for her start-up business, pymetrics. After receiving her PhD in neuropsychology and MBA from HBS, she was determined to put her scientific and academic knowledge to work to build a business solving real world... View Details

June 2013
Supplement

Union Corrugating Co. (A) (Spreadsheet Supplement)

This is the spreadsheet supplement for HBS Case 803065, containing Exhibit 3 as an Excel document. View Details

June 2013
Supplement

Montague Corporation: Unfolding the Future in Cycling (Video Supplement)

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Video Supplement for Montague Corporation: Unfolding the Future in Cycling (HBS Case #808087). View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurs; Consumer Products; Innovation ＆ Entrepreneurship; Innovation; General Managers; Growth; Growth Management; International; Consumer Behavior; Marketing Channels; Founding; Channels Of Distribution; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Leadership; Bicycle Industry; United States

19 Oct 2022
News

Cofounder Courtship: How to Find the Right Mate—for Your Startup

September 2019 (Revised May 2021)
Case

pymetrics: International Expansion

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In August 2018, pymetrics, a solution offering neuroscience-based recruiting tests, closed a $40 million funding round that valued the business at $160 million. Over 60 companies around the globe were using pymetrics tests in their recruiting process, including... View Details

June 2013
Supplement

Union Corrugating Co. (Video Supplement)

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Video Supplement for Union Corrugating Company(A) and (B) (HBS Cases 803065 and 804003). View Details

13 Mar 2023
Research & Ideas

What Would It Take to Unlock Microfinance's Full Potential?

where these entrepreneurs live, forming them into groups, and asking people which of their neighbors have the most potential to grow their business. Roth: About 10 years ago, Natalia and I did a randomized experiment in western India,... View Details

Keywords: by Jen McFarland Flint; Financial Services

June 2013
Supplement

To JV or Not To JV? That is the Question (for XTech in China) - Video Supplement

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Video Supplement for To JV or Not To JV? That is the Question (for XTech in China) HBS Case 807118. View Details

11 Aug 2011
Lessons from the Classroom

Perfecting the Project Pitch

new venture. Getting other people interested enough to either invest their money or buy the product is the really difficult part, and it's often the spot where even the most experienced executives and entrepreneurs stumble. “An idea isn't... View Details

Keywords: by Dennis Fisher

September 2020
Teaching Plan

Harlem Capital: Changing the Face of Entrepreneurship

By: George Serafeim

Jarrid Tingle and Henri Pierre-Jacques had spent the summer between their first and second years of their MBA program fund raising for their start-up venture capital (VC) firm, Harlem Capital Partners. Harlem Capital was founded upon the principle that addressing the... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital Firm Compensation; Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurial Financing; Black Entrepreneurs; Black Leadership; Black Inventors; Inclusion; Minority-owned Businesses; Race And Ethnicity; Race Characteristics; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Diversity; Race; Gender; Mission and Purpose; Social Enterprise; Financial Services Industry; United States

29 Nov 2006
Research & Ideas

Rich or Royal: What Do Founders Want?

What motivates entrepreneurs? Money? Control? In truth, some entrepreneurs are expecting to get rich. Others want to grow and control a new venture. But most would probably answer: "both." The problem, as Harvard Business School... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Financial Services

June 2013
Supplement

Walker Insurance: Paul Thomson (Video Supplement)

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Video Supplement for Walker Insurance: Paul Thomson (HBS Case 813057). View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Organizations; Entrepreneurs; Entrepreneurship; Search; Search Funds; Sales Force Management; Sales; Sales Channels; Insurance And Reinsurance; Insurance Companies; Acquisitions; Hiring; Service Management; Service; Insurance; Salesforce Management; Selection and Staffing; Insurance Industry; United States

June 2013
Supplement

Montague Corporation: Unfolding the Future in Cycling (Spreadsheet Supplement)

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Spreadsheet Supplement for Montague Corporation: Unfolding the Future in Cycling (Case #808087). Includes Exhibit 3, Exhibit 5, Exhibit 6, and Exhibit 8. View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurs; Consumer Products; Innovation ＆ Entrepreneurship; Innovation; General Managers; Growth; Growth Management; International; Consumer Behavior; Marketing Channels; Founding; Channels Of Distribution; Bicycles; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Leadership; Bicycle Industry; United States

14 Dec 2017
Working Paper Summaries

Personality Traits of Entrepreneurs: A Review of Recent Literature

Keywords: by Sari Pekkala Kerr, William R. Kerr, and Tina Xu

December 2011 (Revised July 2013)
Background Note

Hypothesis-Driven Entrepreneurship: The Lean Startup

By: Thomas Eisenmann, Eric Ries and Sarah Dillard

Firms that follow a hypothesis-driven approach to evaluating entrepreneurial opportunity are called "lean startups." Entrepreneurs in these startups translate their vision into falsifiable business model hypotheses, then test the hypotheses using a series of "minimum... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business Startups

29 Sep 2021
News

For Entrepreneurs, Blown Deadlines Can Crush Big Ideas

January 2015 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Omar Selim: Building a Values-Based Asset Management Firm (A)

By: George Serafeim, Rebecca Henderson and Shannon Gombos

The sustainable investing market was a recent phenomenon in the first decade of the 21st century. However, an increasing number of investors began to integrated Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues in investment decisions. At Barclays Capital, Omar Selim... View Details

June 2014
Teaching Note

Lit Motors

By: Thomas Eisenmann

In mid-2012 Lit Motors had created both engineering and design prototypes and conducted initial customer tests on less than $750,000 of investment. Lit Motors' founder, Daniel Kim, had started the company to design and manufacture an efficient electric 2-wheeled... View Details

Keywords: Lean Startup; Prototyping; Electric Vehicle; Urban Vehicle; Customer Test; Gyroscope; Entrepreneurs; Development Stage Enterprises; Creativity; Disruptive Technologies; Consumer Surveys; Market Segmentation; Manufacturing Costs; Entrepreneurship; Auto Industry; United States; California