Publications

20 Jan 2021
News

Mission possible: How start-up thinking can help public projects

January 2008 (Revised December 2008)
Case

Codman Academy: Beyond the Start-up Phase

By: Stacey Childress and Tiffany K. Cheng

As it entered its seventh academic year, Codman Academy, an expeditionary learning charter school located in Dorchester, Massachusetts, was reflecting on its successes and challenges. The school had succeeded in placing every member of its most recent graduating class... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Leadership; Performance Improvement; Partners and Partnerships; Education Industry; Boston

18 Aug 2014
News

Delivery Start-Ups Are Back Like It’s 1999

March 2000 (Revised October 2004)
Background Note

Adding Voice to the Web: A Note on Start-ups

By: Clayton M. Christensen and Tara Donovan

A study of start-up companies that have leveraged the technology of Internet Protocol (IP) telephony to develop applications that are positioned to have an impact on the offerings of traditional telecommunications organizations. View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Internet and the Web; Communication Technology; Technological Innovation; Innovation Strategy; Telecommunications Industry; Information Technology Industry

01 Jun 2009
News

Entrepreneur’s Rwandan Start-Up Gets HBS Support

(SHE), and its first business, a Rwandan start-up that employs sixty women to manufacture and distribute low-cost sanitary pads. In recognition of her achievements, Scharpf in March was named the first HBS Social Entrepreneurship Fellow... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Social Assistance; Health, Social Assistance

January 2007 (Revised December 2008)
Case

The Challenges of Launching a Start-Up in China: Dorm99.com

By: William C. Kirby, F. Warren McFarlan and Tracy Manty

After graduating from Harvard Business School in June 2006, Ken Pao and Bill Li were ready to fully commit to the Internet start-up they had been working on since they first stepped foot on the business school campus. They moved to Beijing, rounded out their management... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Joint Ventures; Entrepreneurship; Product Launch; Business and Government Relations; Internet; China

September 2014
Teaching Note

Entrepreneurial Finance Lab: Scaling an Innovative Start-up Financing Venture

By: Joan Farre-Mensa

The Entrepreneurial Finance Lab (EFL) is a financial technology start-up that has developed a new tool that uses psychometric tests to aid banks in developing markets with credit scoring of business loan applicants. EFL's ultimate goal is to solve the financing gap... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurship; Financial Services Industry

17 Aug 2018
News

How your peers can help your start-up

March 2021 (Revised October 2023)
Case

Mary Kay Ash: Changing the World

By: Robert Simons and Shirley Sun

This case describes the rise of Mary Kay, the founder of the worldwide cosmetics company. As a young single mother, Mary Kay had to overcome many obstacles to start her business and guide it to success. Today, there are more than 3.5 million Mary Kay beauty consultants... View Details

Keywords: Business Start-ups; Entrepreneurship; Values and Beliefs; Business Startups; Work-Life Balance; Success; Religion; Family Business; Personal Development and Career; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

April 2000 (Revised April 2004)
Case

Infosys: Financing an Indian Software Start-Up

Describes the financing and growth of Infosys, an Indian software start-up. Infosys defies a number of stereotypes about barriers to entrepreneurship in India. The company was founded by a small group of entrepreneurs with little equity and without backing from a large... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Applications and Software; Financing and Loans; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Information Technology Industry; India

February 2004 (Revised April 2004)
Case

Orchid Partners: A Venture Capital Start-up

By: Myra M. Hart and Kristin Lieb

The development of a new venture partnership and the challenges associated with raising its first fund are chronicled. The decision to focus on early-stage investments, the determination of the appropriate size of the fund, the fund-raising process, and the steps in... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; Problems and Challenges; Partners and Partnerships; Investment; Motivation and Incentives; Financing and Loans; Personal Development and Career

December 2016 (Revised December 2018)
Case

From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem

By: Elie Ofek and Margot Eiran

In June 2016, Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, wrestled with how to sustain Israel’s strong innovation track record and the country’s reputation as the “startup nation.” Despite the economic miracle the country had wrought since its founding, he... View Details

May 2014
Article

Making 'Freemium' Work: Many Start-ups Fail to Recognize the Challenges of This Popular Business Model

By: Vineet Kumar

The article discusses the "freemium" business model, which is used by some Internet businesses and smartphone application developers to give users free basic features of a digital product and access to premium functionality for a subscription fee. The discussion topics... View Details

Keywords: Freemium; Startups; Product Design; Business Model; Marketing; Business Startups