Publications

February 2003 (Revised March 2007)
Case

Safe to Say at Prudential Financial

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Corey B. Hajim

The CEO initiated a cultural change process at Prudential Financial to support a major business reorientation. Prudential, historically a privately held ("mutual") insurance company, went public in 2001. The cultural change was intended to prepare the organization to... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Risk and Uncertainty; Private Ownership; Going Public; Transformation; Organizational Culture

October 1999
Case

ZEFER: Building a Business at Hyperspeed

By: John T. Gourville and Joseph B. Lassiter III

In the past 18 months, ZEFER has gone from a several-person Internet consulting firm to a major player in the information-technology services industry. In particular, in the past six months, it has grown from 40 to 400 professionals, has hired a seasoned management... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development; Recruitment; Venture Capital; Acquisition; Organizational Culture; Managerial Roles; Growth Management; Information Technology Industry

In knowledge-based environments, teams must develop a systematic approach to integrating knowledge resources throughout the course of projects in order to perform effectively. Yet, many teams fail to do so. Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm, we examine... View Details

December 2006 (Revised September 2007)
Case

Ponsse: From Finland to Global

By: David E. Bell and Mary L. Shelman

Finland-based Ponsse Oyj, with 2005 turnover of $250 million, is the only dedicated forest equipment company of size that remained in a consolidating industry. Competitors included global giants such as John Deere and Komatsu. Since his arrival at Ponsse in 2004, CEO... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Growth and Development Strategy; Performance Capacity; Expansion; Forest Products Industry; Forestry Industry; Russia; Finland; United States; Brazil

October 2010
Case

CDG: Managing in China's Economic Transformation

By: Roy Y.J. Chua, Shaohui Chen and Lisa Kwan

China Data Group (CDG) is a leading business processes outsourcing company based in Beijing, China. Roc Yang, chairman of CDG, had to confront a dilemma when he discovered that one of his senior managers gave a gift to a potential client in an effort to win a large... View Details

Keywords: Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Management Practices and Processes; Emerging Markets; Negotiation Deal; Relationships; Networks; Societal Protocols; China

Journal of Accounting and Economics Vol. 55, No. 1 (February 2013), pp. 66–90.

We investigate the effect of standard setters in standard setting. We examine how certain professional and political characteristics of FASB members and SEC commissioners... View Details

October 2010 (Revised November 2010)
Supplement

DLA Piper and Christie's International (B)

By: Robert G. Eccles and Dilyana Karadzhova

Nigel Knowles, joint CEO and Managing Partner of international law firm DLA Piper, responds to Christie's complaint that the relationship between the two organizations has major shortcomings and needs to be improved or will otherwise be terminated. A number of actions... View Details

Keywords: Law; Leadership Style; Organizations; Relationships; Trust; Attorney and Client Relationships; Legal Services Industry

April 1998 (Revised November 1999)
Case

Hambrecht & Quist

By: Thomas J. DeLong and Nicole Tempest

Hambrecht & Quist (H&Q), an investment bank headquartered in San Francisco, has a very unique culture relative to its Wall Street counterparts. Firm members and even competitors describe the culture as entrepreneurial, team-driven, non-bureaucratic, and... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Investment Banking; Growth and Development Strategy; Emerging Markets; Organizational Culture; Competitive Advantage; Banking Industry; San Francisco

Forthcoming
Article

Mitigating the Negative Effects of Customer Anxiety Through Access to Human Contact

By: Michelle A. Kinch and Ryan W. Buell

Prior research in social psychology has shown that when people feel anxious, they seek advice from others. However, companies that operate in high-anxiety settings (like financial services, health care, and education) are increasingly deploying self-service... View Details

Keywords: Anxiety; Self-service; Empirical Operations; Behavioral Operations; Communication Technology; Behavior; Customer Focus and Relationships; Trust; Satisfaction; Financial Services Industry

26 Mar 2021
Blog Post

How to Build a Resume That Stands Above the Competition

their resume? HBS alumni have a variety of resources available to help in the process of writing or updating a resume. Ms. Huggett recommends working with a professional, such as an HBS career coach or a specialized firm like hers.... View Details

Research Summary

Financing New Business Formation

By: Paul A. Gompers

New business creation has become a potent force for economicdevelopment in the United States. Prior to 1980, large firms created the majority of new jobs in the American economy. While considerable debate rages over whether small firms are the source of recent job... View Details

July 2006 (Revised March 2010)
Case

Symantec vs. McAfee: Competing in the Consumer Anti-virus Industry

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Jordan Mitchell

Symantec and McAfee hold 53.6% and 18.8% respectively, of the anti-virus software market as of 2006. While the market is concentrated with five firms controlling over 90%, Microsoft is on the eve of releasing a consumer security subscription packed called OneCare Live.... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Market Entry and Exit; Competitive Strategy; Software; Information Technology Industry

Career Coach

Eileen Stephan

Development, Program Management); Harvard Business School, Associate Director of Career Services and Career & Professional Development Coach; Morgan Stanley, Head of Firmwide Recruiting; CareerLeader,... View Details

Keywords: Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All)

December 1987
Case

John Hancock Financial Services: Sports Sponsorship

By: Stephen A. Greyser

Senior corporate communications executives of a major financial services firm are reviewing the company's sports sponsorship program and are considering expanding it. Hancock already is the corporate sponsor of the Boston Marathon and has the opportunity to sponsor the... View Details

Keywords: Communication Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Performance Evaluation

31 Oct 2019
Video

Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala

Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Chair of the Philippines-based Ayala Group, with interests in real estate, public infrastructure, insurance, and banking, discusses how the government’s privatization program in... View Details

March 2016
Article

To Groupon or Not to Groupon: The Profitability of Deep Discounts

By: Benjamin Edelman, Sonia Jaffe and Scott Duke Kominers

We examine the profitability and implications of online discount vouchers, a relatively new marketing tool that offers consumers large discounts when they prepay for participating firms' goods and services. Within a model of repeat experience good purchase, we examine... View Details

Keywords: Voucher Discounts; Groupon; Experience Goods; Repeat Purchase; Internet and the Web; Marketing Strategy; Marketing Communications

2014
Working Paper

~To Groupon or Not to Groupon: The Profitability of Deep Discounts

By: Benjamin G. Edelman

We examine the profitability and implications of online discount vouchers, a relatively new marketing tool that offers consumers large discounts when they prepay for participating firms' goods and services. Within a model of repeat experience good purchase, we examine... View Details

Keywords: Voucher Discounts; Groupon; Experience Goods; Repeat Purchase; Online Advertising; Price; Profit; Marketing Strategy; Retail Industry

SSRN

2016
Working Paper

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-Family Narrative as a Social Defense Against the 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict women experience between family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is partial at best: men, too, experience... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems Psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

2022
Working Paper

E-commerce During COVID: Stylized Facts from 47 Economies

By: Joel Alcedo, Alberto Cavallo, Bricklin Dwyer, Prachi Mishra and Antonio Spilimbergo

We study e-commerce across 47 economies and 26 industries during the COVID-19 pandemic using aggregated and anonymized transaction-level data from Mastercard, scaled to represent total consumer spending. The share of online transactions in total consumption increased... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Health Pandemics; Spending; Internet and the Web; Global Range; Analysis; E-commerce