Processing Costs - Publications - Faculty & Research

08 Jul 2013
Research & Ideas

Everything Must Go: A Strategy for Store Liquidation

even if it leads to leftover merchandise, can result in an increase in net recovery on the cost value of the inventory sold. Their approach also recommends higher markdowns at the beginning of the liquidation View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail

11 Aug 2003
Research & Ideas

Cheap, Fast, and In Control: How Tech Aids Innovation

Harvard Business School, discusses how businesses can sidestep the often prohibitive costs and time-consuming trials of experimentation by implementing new technologies. Wendy Guild: We've all heard the old saw, "If it ain't broke,... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild

13 May 2019
Research & Ideas

The Unexpected Way Whistleblowers Reduce Government Fraud

contracts.” In fixed-price contracts, the supplier provides a product or service to the government at a fixed price. In cost-plus contracts, the supplier bills the government based on reported production costs and profit margin, making it... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Service; Construction

December 1999
Case

Sun Microsystems, Inc. (A6): Enterprise 250: Mark Canepa on the Newcomer as Change Agent

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Jane Roessner

Coming to Sun Microsystems after 20 years with Hewlett-Packard (HP), Mark Canepa brought a highly organized leadership style more characteristic of HP than Sun. His goal was to use the development of a new workstation product to build a disciplined, process-oriented,... View Details

Keywords: Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Cost Management; Leadership Style; Product Development; Technology Industry; Computer Industry

Citation

Educators

10 Mar 2002
Research & Ideas

Breakthrough Negotiation: Don’t Leave It On the Table

cognizant of the potential benefits and costs of setting up a secret channel. They understand that details as small as the timing of a meeting or the size and shape of the negotiating table can make a difference. Above all, they are... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Watkins

06 Aug 2018
Research & Ideas

Supersmart Manufacturing Tools are Lowering Prices on TVs, Bulbs, and Solar Panels

knowledge, is now being embedded into the tools and building blocks used to make products? Willy Shih: Knowledge is one of the core resources in a company, and translating that knowledge into processes that produce products and services... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Manufacturing; Electronics

16 May 2005
Research & Ideas

Confronting the Reality of Web Services

access it? Who gets to update it? What's the last day for bookings in each quarter? Is it the same all around the world? Do we have to do a credit check before scheduling every order for production? Who gets to certify approved vendors? What's the View Details

Keywords: by Sara Grant

23 Jul 2001
Research & Ideas

How One Center of Innovation Lost its Spark

tacit knowledge flows. These knowledge flows, in turn, contribute to cumulative incremental innovations in both product and process technology among firms embedded in the cluster. I use the term 'active inertia' to describe the tendency... View Details

Keywords: by Donald Sull; Manufacturing; Transportation; Auto

13 Jul 2009
Research & Ideas

Diagnosing the Public Health Care Alternative

think the chances of a government plan supplanting private options are slim," he writes. But the existence of both public and private insurance plans might provide enough competition to improve overall value for patients. Professor Michael Porter cautions that a public... View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Health

30 Aug 2004
Research & Ideas

Mapping Your Board’s Effectiveness

corporate strategy—create value by becoming known for better governance and greater transparency to external providers? Can they lower their cost of capital and perhaps get a valuation premium based on the reputation and performance of... View Details

Keywords: by Robert S. Kaplan

24 Feb 2015
First Look

First Look: February 24

resistance to their lobbying activities from the general public. These areas are known as "thin political markets" to distinguish them from more vibrant and competitive "thick" political processes (e.g., healthcare... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 May 2006
Research & Ideas

Why CEOs Are Not Plug-and-Play

and the needs of his or her new employer.Not all managers are equally suited to all business situations. The strategic skills required to control costs in the face of fierce price competition are not the same as those required to improve... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg, Andrew N. McLean & Nitin Nohria; Employment

15 Nov 2010
Lessons from the Classroom

Connecting Goals and Go-To-Market Initiatives

indicates that while production efficiencies have enabled an average S&P 500 company to reduce the cost of goods sold by about 250 basis points over the past decade, SG&A (selling, general and administrative costs) as a percentage... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Retail

21 Nov 2016
Research & Ideas

It Matters That Your CEO Doesn't Know Much About Sales

CEOs need to roll up their sleeves and learn more about the customer-facing sides of their businesses, like sales. Source: AlexBrylov Let’s face it: To most C-suite executives, sales processes are often an afterthought or a somewhat... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

09 Jan 2006
Research & Ideas

What Really Drives Your Strategy?

Professor Bower, since 1970 you have articulated views on the resource allocation process and how it fundamentally shapes corporate strategy. Could you give us a brief overview of the resource allocation process? Bower: Organizations of... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

23 Dec 2002
Research & Ideas

Partnering and the Balanced Scorecard

purchasing departments. The process transforms these from functionally oriented cost centers into strategic partners with the line-operating units and the company. This alignment is often accomplished with a... View Details

Keywords: by Robert S. Kaplan & David P. Norton

05 Sep 2006
Research & Ideas

HBS Cases: Porsche’s Risky Roll on an SUV

shareholders' meeting in 2004 in Leipzig. While rival carmakers such as Ferrari, Aston Martin, Alfa Romeo, and Lamborghini have been happy to locate where labor costs are cheaper, Porsche wanted to ensure its "Made in Germany"... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Auto; Manufacturing

26 Mar 2014
Research & Ideas

How Electronic Patient Records Can Slow Doctor Productivity

that you might be changing existing communication patterns among staff” One likely reason for the decline: processing electronic records can change the way staff members communicate with one another, clogging up what had been a well-oiled... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Health

March 1985 (Revised November 1988)
Case

Precision Parts, Inc. (A)

By: William A. Sahlman

Contains a description of a decision confronting two entrepreneurs in mid-1981. They are considering purchasing a small manufacturer of precision electromechanical parts. Among the issues in the case are the following: 1) Should Taylor and Grayson buy Precision Parts,... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Venture Capital; Financing and Loans; Cost vs Benefits; Investment Return; Strategy; Management Practices and Processes; Risk and Uncertainty; Outcome or Result; Manufacturing Industry

Citation

Educators

Purchase

February 1997
Case

Enron Development Corp.: The Dabhol Power Project in Maharashtra, India (B) (Abridged)

By: Louis T. Wells Jr.

A new administration takes power in a state in India and cancels a power project agreed upon by the previous state government and a U.S.-based energy company. The project cancellation is based on allegations of irregularities, exorbitant costs, and political pressures. View Details