Publications

09 Sep 2008
First Look

First Look: September 9, 2008

new community was faced with how best to construct the vertical and attract a sufficiently large audience. While the model seemed highly scalable because each vertical used the same core technology, every sector had its unique features.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2003
Module Note

Control in Inter-organizational Settings

By: V.G. Narayanan

Describes the main themes of the module on control in interorganizational settings, which instructors can teach as part of a second-year MBA course on control. Identifies the root causes of control problems in interorganizational settings and identifies principles for... View Details

Keywords: Curriculum and Courses; Governance Controls; Policy; Organizational Design; Problems and Challenges

August 1990
Case

Legacy Fund, Inc.

By: Jeffry A. Timmons and James Weber

Two young HBS graduates propose to create a new venture capital fund in 1989. The case focuses on: 1) evaluation of the venture capital industry; 2) whether there is an opportunity for a new specialized fund; 3) the structuring of risks and rewards in the fund; 4)... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Product Design; Investment Funds; Financial Services Industry

25 Apr 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research, April 25

providers. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=50817 December 2016 Harvard Law Review Deal Process Design in Management Buyouts By: Subramanian, Guhan Abstract—Management buyouts (MBOs) are an economically and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

February 2011
Supplement

Carbon Trading Simulation: Brown Cement Inc.

By: Peter A. Coles

This simulation presents students the opportunity to experience firsthand the economics of carbon markets and permit trading. Each student has private role information about a company he or she manages. The student must make decisions about pollution-reducing... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Economics; Investment; Business or Company Management; Market Design; Pollutants

April 1993
Background Note

Note on High-Commitment Work Systems

By: David A. Garvin and Norman Klein

Describes the history, theory, and practice of high-commitment work systems. The history reviews classical approaches (i.e. Frederick Taylor), the human relations movement, the human resources approach, quality of work life, and empowerment. The theory examines the... View Details

Keywords: Design; Human Resources; Innovation and Invention; Managerial Roles; Work-Life Balance; Problems and Challenges; Strategy

September 2005 (Revised June 2012)
Case

New Songdo City

By: Arthur I Segel, Brandon Blaser, Gerardo Garza, Albert Kim, John Richard and Andrew Murphy

The government of South Korea has chosen John Hynes and Gale International to construct New Songdo City. This is an entirely new city, about the size of Boston, between the new Incheon airport and the capital of Seoul. The proposed city is the government's attempt to... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Urban Development; Construction; Design; Climate Change; South Korea

October 2018 (Revised August 2023)
Case

Safecast: Bootstrapping Human Capital to Big Data

By: Ethan Bernstein and Stephanie Marton

On March 11, 2011, at 2:46pm, a 9.1-on-the-Richter-scale, six-minute long earthquake unleashed a tsunami that ravaged the Tohoku region of Japan, damaging the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power facility and releasing sufficient radioactive material into the air and ocean... View Details

07 Oct 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Specific Knowledge and Divisional Performance Measurement

Keywords: by Michael C. Jensen & William H. Meckling

April 2006 (Revised July 2006)
Case

Managing National Intelligence (A): Before 9/11

By: Jan W. Rivkin, Michael Roberto and Erika Ferlins

Examines the management of national intelligence prior to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Describes the actions taken by a variety of government agencies, including the FBI, the CIA, the FAA, and the Department of Defense, to detect and deter such attacks. View Details

Keywords: War; National Security; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Crisis Management; Management Systems; Public Administration Industry; United States

September 1989 (Revised July 1992)
Case

Pepsi-Cola U.S. Beverages (A)

Responding to changes in Pepsi-Cola's competitive environment, Roger Enrico, president and CEO of PepsiCo Worldwide Beverages, formed a task force to investigate a possible reorganization of Pepsi's domestic soft drink business. The task force recommends reorganizing... View Details

Keywords: Business Organization; Organizational Design; Food and Beverage Industry

08 Aug 2024
Blog Post

Leading With Curiosity: Mayowa Kuyoro (MBA 2015)

returned home to Nigeria for a year of National Youth Service, a program designed to engage young people in the development of the country. During her year in Nigeria, Kuyoro... View Details

01 Dec 2014
News

Customizing Couture Online

East—can drop the hemline on a Barbara Tfank pencil skirt, for example, add sleeves to a Martin Grant swing dress, or design their own Tinker Tailor–branded wares. The customers have embraced choice: “In a lot View Details

Keywords: April White; fashion; Professional Services

2024
Working Paper

Digital Platforms 2.0: Learnings, Opportunities, and Challenges

By: Shrabastee Banerjee, Ishita Chakraborty, Hana Choi, Hannes Datta, Remi Daviet, Chiara Farronato, Minkyung Kim, Anja Lambrecht, Puneet Manchanda, Aniko Oery, Ananya Sen, Marshall W Van Alstyne, Prasad Vana, Kenneth C Wilbur, Xu Zhang and Bobby Zhou

Platform-based digital ecosystems form the backbone of our interactions with the Internet. Over the past decade, digital ecosystems have witnessed significant growth, both in terms of industry footprint and academic research. Yet, the challenges associated with their... View Details

Keywords: Digital Platforms; Technology Adoption; E-commerce; Market Design

SSRN

Read Now

October 1996 (Revised January 1997)
Case

AT&T Resource Link: Revisioning the Managerial Workforce

Resource Link is an in-house temporary firm, supplying managers and technical workers to the 26 business units of AT&T on a contract basis. The challenge facing Resource Link is how to grow, since an increasing number of managers are eager to use variable workers to... View Details

Keywords: Selection and Staffing; Organizational Design; Personal Development and Career; Employment Industry; Telecommunications Industry

February 1998
Case

Lyondell Petrochemical Company

By: Jay W. Lorsch and Daniel P. Erikson

In August 1994, Lyondell Petrochemical Co.'s corporate parent and largest single shareholder effectively shed its stock, resulting in the resignation of 5 of its 11 directors. The remaining outside directors immediately acted to overhaul the executive compensation plan... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Executive Compensation; Design; Business or Company Management; Management Teams; Mining Industry

2008
Working Paper

Performance and Control across Multiple Markets

By: Tatiana Sandino, Dennis Campbell and Shelby Yu

Chain organizations typically operate units across different types of markets, with significantly diverging customer bases. Such market-type dispersion potentially influences performance through two channels: it makes performance a noisier indicator of store manager... View Details

Keywords: Governance Controls; Organizational Design; Markets; Franchise Ownership; Performance; Retail Industry