Publications

Teaching

Overview

Through the Tuck School's MBA and executive education programs, VG offers cutting-edge ideas for people who are leading organizations and those who are preparing to do so. VG's stimulating, thought-provoking style has helped to make Tuck one of the top business schools... View Details

February 2016 (Revised August 2020)
Case

InsightSquared: Developing the Sales and Marketing Plan

By: Mark Roberge, Tom Eisenmann and Frank Cespedes

Fred Shilmover and Sam Clemens prepared for their fourth quarter board meeting. They were excited to have scaled their software startup, InsightSquared, to $2 million in revenue and secured an $8 million round of venture capital. However, they disagreed on the path... View Details

Keywords: Sales Planning; Applications and Software; Marketing; Sales; Planning; Growth and Development Strategy

November 2004 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Musimundo

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez and James Robert Dillon

Mario Quintana, managing partner of Pegasus Capital, was preparing for the upcoming Musimundo board of directors meeting. He was satisfied with the investment decisions of the entertainment retailer, as actual performance surpassed the initial budget. However, given a... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Governing and Advisory Boards; Partners and Partnerships; Performance Evaluation; Budgets and Budgeting; Retail Industry; Spain

October 1998 (Revised August 1999)
Case

Amazon.com--Going Public

By: William A. Sahlman and Laurence E. Katz

Amazon.com, an early pioneer in electronic commerce, prepares its initial public offering in the face of turbulent market conditions. Joy Covey, Amazon.com's CFO and the case protagonist, discusses the risks and opportunities of going public and the nature of... View Details

Keywords: Going Public; Risk and Uncertainty; Business Model; Financial Strategy; Business Strategy; Initial Public Offering; Electronics Industry; Retail Industry

29 Sep 2016
News

On Pointe with Leslie John

September 1986 (Revised July 2001)
Case

Eastern Electric Apparatus Repair Company (A)

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin and Harry Gruner

As principals engaged in structuring leveraged buyouts for a well-capitalized risk arbitrage firm, Bob Meehan and George Schwartz are preparing to bid for the business and assets of a Westinghouse subsidiary. The case focuses on the value of the opportunity, methods of... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Bids and Bidding; Opportunities; Business Subsidiaries; Strategy; Valuation; Equity; Electronics Industry

Find at Harvard

February 2014
Supplement

Pixability: Managing a Corporate Board

By: Noam Wasserman

"Bettina’s Board Walk" examines the board management methods of Bettina Hein, Founder-CEO of Pixability, Inc., as she prepares for and conducts a standard board meeting. The case is designed to give students an understanding of the delicate dynamics inherent in board... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurs; Entrepreneurial Management; Board Of Directors; Entrepreneurship

April 2009 (Revised March 2011)
Case

Dave and Millie: A Tale of Two Entrepreneurs

By: G. Felda Hardymon and Ann Leamon

Two entrepreneurs have just been told by their venture capital backer to prepare a list of possible cuts to help them weather the 2008–2009 economic downturn. The impact on each firm is very different: one is a later-stage company with revenues in excess of $100... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Startups; Decision Choices and Conditions; Financial Crisis; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Cost Management; Growth and Development Strategy

12 PM – 1 PM EDT, 15 Apr 2020
Webinars: Career

Is Your Career Recession-Ready?

Dick Vietor, Baker Foundation Professor, and former Unit Head of Business, Government and the International Economy (BGIE), and Lauren Murphy, Director, HBS Career & Professional Development (CPD), address what's likely ahead in the global economy and how best to... View Details

Article

The Electrification Accelerator: Understanding the Implications of Autonomous Vehicles for Electric Utilities

By: Jurgen Weiss, Ryan Hledik, Roger Lueken, Tony Lee and Will Gorman

The intersection of autonomous vehicles, ride sharing and transportation electrification could have significant implications for electric utilities. This paper analyses how the development of shared autonomous electric vehicles may make electrified transportation more... View Details

Keywords: Electrification; Autonomous Vehicle; Electric Vehicle; Electric Utility; Rate Design; Regulation; Energy; Transportation; Energy Industry; Transportation Industry; Auto Industry

October 1989
Case

Dennis Hightower and the Walt Disney Co. in Europe

Describes the initial entry challenges faced by Dennis Hightower after being assigned the task to revitalize and reposition Walt Disney Co. of Europe in preparation for 1992. Allows students to consider the challenges of cultural heterogeneity, Disney traditions, and... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States; Europe

11 Nov 2021
News

How to Increase Prices Without Losing Customers, According to a Harvard Lecturer

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

June 2023 (Revised January 2024)
Case

Siemens AG: A Private Equity Approach within an Industrial Corporation?

By: David J. Collis and Haisley Wert

In July 2022, Horst Kayser, Chairman of Siemens AG Portfolio Companies (POC), was reflecting on the advice he could offer Roland Busch, Chief Executive Officer of the parent company Siemens AG, about whether and how to operate a private equity-like approach inside the... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Management; Value Creation; Private Equity; Corporate Strategy

January 2021 (Revised May 2021)
Case

Delta Air Lines: Navigating the COVID-19 Storm

By: Ted Berk and Ryan Flamerich

This case examines Delta Air Lines’ response as demand for its services plummeted in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on the company’s funding needs and capital structure. Following a series of initial actions, the company’s cash “burn” had reduced from... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19; Health Pandemics; Financial Condition; Capital Structure; Crisis Management; Risk Management; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Air Transportation Industry

8:30 AM – 6:45 PM EDT, 20 Oct 2020
Virtual Programming

The Future of Work - and Managing the Impact of COVID-19

Forces such as automation, demographics, and globalization were already changing how and where we work at a bewildering pace, then COVID happened. In the months ahead, companies need to prepare for three areas where their decisions and actions will play out in... View Details

February 2016 (Revised July 2017)
Case

An Australian Ballot for California?

By: David Moss, Marc Campasano and Dean Grodzins

In early 1891, California lawmakers were considering a plan to reform the state's elections through the introduction of an “Australian” ballot. Under this new system, candidates from all qualifying parties would appear on official ballots, which would be printed by... View Details

Keywords: Voting; Ethics; Political Elections; Laws and Statutes; Change; California