Publications

September 2004 (Revised January 2005)
Case

IBM: Ordering Midrange Computers in Europe

IBM Europe is trying to expand business-to-business (B2B) efforts with its large distributors of midrange systems. These efforts aim to automate many transactions and business processes, removing the need for human involvement. IBM has completed an initial project with... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Information Technology; Information Infrastructure; Marketing Channels; Distribution Channels; Information Technology Industry; Computer Industry; Germany; United States

01 Dec 1998
News

Novartis AG Establishes Global Research Fund

to strengthen our global research capabilities. We are grateful to Novartis for supporting this significant goal." The gift, which funds a four-year program that will include additional fellows, stems from a decade-long relationship... View Details

Keywords: Anne Kavanagh

01 Oct 1996
News

Uhlmann Award Winners Focus on French Retailer

(Belarus), all members of the MBA Class of 1996 and students in Professor Ray A. Goldberg's Agribusiness Management Research elective, conducted a study of Carrefour, the French mass-market food retailing giant. Founded in 1959 by two... View Details

January 2014 (Revised February 2014)
Teaching Note

Rana Plaza: Workplace Safety In Bangladesh (A) and (B)

By: John A. Quelch and Margaret L. Rodriguez

On April 24, 2013 the Rana Plaza factory building collapsed in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Over 1,100 people were killed in the worst industrial accident since the Union Carbide plant gas leak in Bhopal, India. Most of the victims worked for garment factories,... View Details

Keywords: Safety; Multinational Firms and Management; Labor Unions; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Working Conditions; Corporate Accountability; Crisis Management; Manufacturing Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Bangladesh

23 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 23

fairness for marriage markets in a similar fashion. We prove that there are marriage markets where no amount of money can guarantee the existence of a fair allocation. Checking Your Identities at the Door? Positive Relationships Between... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

19 Jun 2014
Blog Post

Exploring the World of Retail as an Intern at Walmart

on-campus recruiting. After going through the joy that is HBS Dedicated Interview Period for 1st year students, where over 100 organizations interview students over a three day period in Boston, I ended up with the choice between a finance & strategy role at... View Details

17 Dec 2015
News

Conducting Research That Influences Practice

Tami Kim, a doctoral student at HBS, is conducting research into how the restaurant business could benefit from transparency—literally—by making it possible for chefs and diners to see one another. Her findings on employee and customer... View Details

2011
Working Paper

Inside the Black Box of the Corporate Staff: An Exploratory Analysis Through the Lens of E-Mail Networks

The corporate staff is central in theories of the multi-business firm, but empirical evidence on its function is limited. In this paper, we examine the high-level role of two units of a corporate staff through analysis of electronic communications. We find sharp... View Details

Keywords: Theory; Business Ventures; Internet and the Web; Communication; Employment; Management Teams; Networks

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14 Jun 2023
News

The Labor-Savvy Leader

09 Dec 2022
News

US Railroads and the Pitfalls of Systematic Understaffing

02 Dec 2020
News

Havas New York CEO Laura Maness: Listen, Learn, and Lead

2019
Article

The Social Desirability of Offshoring: A Swiss Consensus (1945–1975)

By: Sabine Pitteloud

This article focuses on the evolution of the rhetoric and practice of corporate offshoring in Switzerland from the post-war economic boom to the industrial crisis in the mid-seventies. The virtue of a historical perspective on the issue of offshoring is to show how... View Details

Keywords: Multinationals; Offshoring And Outsourcing; Relocation; Labor Relations; Multinational Firms and Management; Labor and Management Relations; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Switzerland

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01 Dec 2003
News

Flex Time

Lauri Union (MBA 1992) manages Union Corrugating Company (UCC) from Boston, where she lives with her husband and two young children. While her early years at the company required more time on-site in North Carolina, she’s View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing

Web

Classroom and Field Work: Methods of Instruction | Baker Library

Classroom and Field Work: Methods of Instruction Management Training Program student Jean Buckley completing field work in market research at J. Walter Thompson, New York, 1954. Radcliffe College Archives, Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe... View Details

September 2022
Background Note

On CUE: The Quest for Optimal Customer Unit Economics

By: Elie Ofek, Barak Libai and Eitan Muller

Startups are often evaluated by how well they perform on unit economics, defined as the ratio of a customer’s lifetime value (LTV) to acquisition costs (CAC). A common target for unit economics, advocated by many VCs and analysts, is 3:1 (i.e., LTV/CAC=3). While there... View Details

Keywords: Unit Economics; Business Startups; Performance Evaluation; Customer Value and Value Chain; Customer Relationship Management; Analysis

March 2013
Case

First Green Bank: Bringing Bloom to Desert Landscapes

By: Christopher Marquis and Juan Almandoz

First Green Bank is a bank start-up in the midst of the financial crisis which aims to promote sustainability while making money as a bank. The case presents an ethical dilemma as it considers a loan to an arms manufacturer. View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Financial Crisis; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Business and Community Relations; Environmental Sustainability; Ethics; Banking Industry; United States; Florida

October 2000 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Hilton HHonors Worldwide: Loyalty Wars

By: John A. Deighton and Stowe Shoemaker

Hilton Hotels regards the frequent guest program as the industry's most important marketing tool, directing marketing efforts at the heavy user. What is Hilton to do then, when a competitor ups the ante? This case illustrates the economics of frequency marketing in... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Brands and Branding; Competitive Strategy; Accommodations Industry

March 2024
Article

How Foes Become Allies: The Shifting Role of Business in Climate Politics

By: Irja Vormedal and Jonas Meckling

Firms often oppose costly public policy reforms—but under what conditions may they come to support such reforms? Previous scholarship has taken a predominantly static approach to the analysis of business positions. Here, we advance a dynamic theory of change in... View Details

Keywords: Policy; Environmental Regulation; Business and Government Relations