Publications

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December 2011 (Revised May 2016)
Case

Marine Harvest: Leading Salmon Aquaculture

By: David E. Bell and Ryan Johnson

Marine Harvest has the leading position in salmon aquaculture. Aquaculture is very much a growth business, many believing it could play a major role in solving the world's growing need for protein. The CEO is considering three alternatives for taking advantage of his... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

September 2006 (Revised April 2008)
Case

Wild Oats Markets, Inc.

By: John R. Wells and Travis Haglock

Ever since ex-Ben and Jerry's CEO Perry Odak took over as CEO of Wild Oats in 2001, he has been trying to turn the company around. After some apparent false starts, profits now seem to be on the rise in 2005 and 2006. Has he finally done it? View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Change Management; Profit; Retail Industry; United States

03 Dec 2001
What Do You Think?

What Happens When the Sumo Master Learns Judo?

the greater the likelihood that it will not be a major player in future competitions in rapidly changing environments. —Professor James Heskett Both Dennis Crane and Richard Eckel suggested that a broader view of the View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

01 Jun 2015
News

Fever Pitch

This year’s New Venture Competition saw heavy alumni participation on both sides of the judging. More than 160 graduates critiqued student startups during April’s on-campus event, weighing everything from team chemistry to financials. The... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell; Nonstore Retailers; Retail Trade; Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles; Finance; Personal Services

12 PM – 1 PM EDT, 29 Oct 2014
Webinars: Trending@HBS

Transforming America's Schools: How Business Leaders Can Help

The time has come for Americas business leaders to reconsider how they work with educators to support public schools. Trends are converging to create fresh opportunities, greater need, and a unique moment for business involvement. In this session, Jan Rivkin will... View Details

February 1995 (Revised April 1997)
Case

EG&G Rotron Division

Rotron has recently entered the commercial motor market, after many years of servicing government military contracts. Faced with fierce commercial competition, Rotron has attacked its costs and reduced its delivery times and its plants. A new crisis, however, is... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Production; Expansion; Manufacturing Industry

May 2003
Article

The Utilization of Competing Technologies within the Firm: Evidence from Cardiac Procedures

By: Robert S. Huckman

Keywords: Competition; Information Technology; Business Ventures

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15 Sep 2015
News

Are corporate ethics sliding again?

13 Jan 2016
News

Winning GE: Better than the Olympics

July 2010 (Revised December 2010)
Case

AdMob (A)

By: Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Samuel Cohen and Nithya Vaduganathan

AdMob's CEO is deciding between international expansion and increasing the number of publishers to strengthen the company's advantage in the mobile advertising industry. AdMob displayed advertising on global devices, powered 6,000 websites and 1,000 applications, and... View Details

Keywords: Digital Marketing; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Advertising Industry

May 2002 (Revised October 2002)
Case

Telewest Communications plc

By: Lynda M. Applegate and Laure Mougeot Stroock

Created in 1992, Telewest has become the second largest broadband communication provider in the United Kingdom, offering telephone, cable television, and cable Internet services, as well as television and online content to the U.K. entertainment market. The first to... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Industry Structures; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Telecommunications Industry; Europe; United Kingdom

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September 1998 (Revised August 1999)
Case

IBM's Lotus Development in 1999

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Kelley Porter

Describes Lotus' acquisition by IBM, its movement from proprietary standards to open standards, and its current market position. Microsoft is gaining ground with its Exchange Server, and Lotus has received unfavorable press. View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Product Marketing; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Information Technology Industry; Web Services Industry

1986
Chapter

The Capital Factor: Competing for Capital in a Global Environment

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

Keywords: Capital; Competitive Advantage

28 Aug 2017
Research & Ideas

Should Industry Competitors Cooperate More to Solve World Problems?

Source: Cecilie_Arcurs George Serafeim has a startling suggestion to fix the world’s biggest environmental, social, and governance (ESG) problems such as water pollution, deforestation, and wealth inequality: encourage companies within industries to do less competing... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Financial Services; Manufacturing; Agriculture & Agribusiness; Mining

01 Mar 2012
News

Cracks in the Foundation

I couldn't help but feel a sense of gloom as I read the results of the recent HBS alumni survey on US competitiveness. It revealed that alumni overwhelmingly believe the United States is losing its competitive edge, particularly when... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

August 2020 (Revised January 2021)
Supplement

Facelift at Olay (B)

By: Sunil Gupta, Rajiv Lal and Olivia Hull

This supplement to Facelift at Olay (A) explains the major steps Procter & Gamble’s skincare brand Olay took to reverse several years of declining sales. View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Demographics; Age; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Digital Marketing; Transformation; Marketing Strategy; Social Marketing; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; United States; Ohio

September 2020
Teaching Note

TransDigm in 2017: The Beginning of the End or the End of the Beginning?

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 720-422. TransDigm was a highly acquisitive company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and commercial customers. Over the ten years ending in 2016, its stock price had increase ten times,... View Details

05 Apr 2016
First Look

April 5, 2016

politicians in the years after its publication. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=50916 Creativity Under Fire: The Effects of Competition on Creative Production By: Gross, Daniel P. Abstract—Though... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthlorne

September 2020
Case

The Reinvention of Kodak (A) Multimedia Case

By: Ryan Raffaelli

This case includes links to case supplement videos for students to view with the written case before class, and also supplement videos for faculty to use exclusively during class. View Details

Keywords: CEO; Leadership; Asset Management; Transformation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Competitive Strategy