Publications

12 Oct 1999
Research & Ideas

What It Takes: Minorities in the Executive Suite

In the early years of a career, for instance, mentors contributed several other kinds of support. "First, they opened the door to challenging assignments and expanded responsibilities that allowed these... View Details

Keywords: by Judith A. Ross

Feb 2014
Case

Finding the Money: An Overview of Infrastructure Finance Challenges and Opportunities

This overview describes how the United States funds and finances infrastructure investment to maintain its economic competitiveness. It considers the roles of taxpayers, users, government allocators and lenders, and private View Details

05 May 2009
First Look

First Look: May 5, 2009

the response of U.S. multinational firms to the formation of the ASEAN free trade agreement. Observed patterns guide the development of a model in which heterogeneous firms from a source country decide how... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

05 Feb 2009
Research & Ideas

In Praise of Marketing

most countries, there are strong local brands reflecting local tastes that coexist alongside global brands.” Marketing by producers to consumers is as old as the bazaar. But modern marketing is more than just selling. It involves the... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch; Advertising

March 2021 (Revised October 2021)
Case

Aligning Mission and Margin at Southern Bancorp

By: Rebecca M. Henderson, Brian Trelstad and Eren Kuzucu

In October 2020, after spending almost a decade to turnaround Southern Bancorp, an Arkansan bank founded with the mission to provide financial services to rural, underserved communities, CEO Darrin Williams is wondering how Southern Bancorp should continue to grow.... View Details

Keywords: Racial Wealth Gap; Banks and Banking; Growth and Development; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Going Public; Investment Return; Social Issues; Wealth and Poverty; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; United States; Arkansas

November 2006 (Revised December 2012)
Background Note

Strategies Beyond the Market

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Dennis Yao

Strategists are not alone in finding failing markets irresistible. Governments and social groups ranging from unions to the World Wildlife Fund also respond to market failures. Governments typically seek to fix failing markets, often with prescriptions of what... View Details

Keywords: Markets; Failure; Strategy; Situation or Environment; Social Issues; Government and Politics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact

Teaching Interest

Overview

By: Benjamin C. Esty

I created and teach a course called Strategies for Value Creation (SVC). It is designed to be a capstone course in the Elective Curriculum (EC or second year of the MBA program) that integrates and further develops concepts developed in several Required Curriculum (RC... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Corporate Finance; Value Creation; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Financial Management

October 2010 (Revised October 2011)
Case

Polyface: The Farm of Many Faces

By: Deishin Lee and Stephanie van Sice

This case explores a method of value creation through exploiting synergies that exist in an environment where there is diversity. The context of the case is a farm where biodiversity is leveraged to create value. This is contrasted to industrial farming, which operates... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Product Development; Production; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Value Creation; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry

04 Jan 2021
Blog Post

The First Alumni of the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program

alumni “Startup Spotlights.” Sent to both recent graduates and the alumni advisors, the newsletter invited alumni to host office hours and content sessions to bolster... View Details

November 1990 (Revised June 2004)
Case

McDonald's and the Environment

McDonald's decides to withdraw its polystyrene plastic packaging for sandwiches and hamburgers after years of defending itself against environmental critics. The decision occurs in the midst of a six-month Joint Task Force study, with the nonprofit Environmental... View Details

Keywords: Announcements; Change Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

03 Jul 2018
What Do You Think?

Should CEO Satya Nadella Cancel Microsoft’s Contract with ICE?

its contracts with ICE, and with other clients who directly enable ICE,” the message said. “As the people who build the technologies that Microsoft profits from, we refuse to be complicit. We are part of a growing movement, comprised of... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Computer; Technology

January 2014
Case

Anglo American: Implementing a 'Social Way' for Global Mining

By: Christopher Marquis, David Plumb, Tom Blathwayt and Zoe Yang

The mining giant Anglo American attempts to differentiate itself through its social performance, yet public expectations are still growing. Maintaining a "social license" to operate was increasingly challenging and critical to business success.

The case... View Details

Keywords: Global Mining; Localization; Socioeconomic Issues; Procurement; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Supply Chain Management; Globalization; Reputation; Emerging Markets; Mining Industry; South Africa

Keywords: Engineering Manufacturing

Profile

Oliver Bladek

however, HBS has made me consider opportunities that I previously shunned. While I'm still keenly interested in general management (trying to get P+L and people responsibility sooner rather than later), I... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Consulting

January 1998 (Revised February 2002)
Case

Funai Consulting Company, Ltd. (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Tomoya Nakamura

In the summer of 1997, a consultant at Japan's Funai Consulting Co. Ltd., must decide how to respond to a client's proposal to offer "open pricing" (based on willingness to pay) to customers unable to pay the standard price for the client's product. The client, Akita... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Price; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Decisions; Agribusiness; Management Practices and Processes; Business Ventures; Consulting Industry; Japan