Noble - Publications - Faculty & Research

03 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 3, 2018

investments from overlapping funds, left the Berkshire team in a difficult situation. Purchase this case:https://hbsp.harvard.edu/product/218028-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 118-034 Fair Value Accounting Controversy at Noble Group... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

Fall 2021
Article

When to Go and How to Go? Founder and Leader Transitions in Private Equity Firms

By: Josh Lerner and Diana Noble

Leadership transition in private equity firms is an understudied field, despite the important, albeit controversial, role such firms play in developed economies. We analyzed 260 firms in an empirical study, supplemented by qualitative interviews with a small sample of... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Transition; Private Equity; Leadership; Management Succession; Analysis

Citation

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11 Sep 2000
Research & Ideas

Riding the Internet Fast Track

companies with widely recognized brands. Eisenmann cites Barnes & Noble as a clear example of the latter. "It took Barnes & Noble 18 months to wake up to the threat posed by Amazon.com," he... View Details

Keywords: by Peter Jacobs

07 Dec 1999
Research & Ideas

Henry Heinz and Brand Creation in the Late Nineteenth Century

working to expand a fledgling business operating in a new, as yet largely undefined, market. Heinz and Noble believed that they had no time to lose. To make the most of the opportunity they saw before them, they would have to use their... View Details

Keywords: by Nancy F. Koehn

01 Jul 2002
Research & Ideas

What it Takes to Lead Through Turmoil

building a better car. When Amazon.com bested Barnes & Noble on the Internet, among B&N's responses was to sue Amazon, alleging fraudulent advertising. Then the laggard company enters phase three: Cosmetic change. Executives... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

12 Aug 2013
Research & Ideas

‘Hybrid’ Organizations a Difficult Bet for Entrepreneurs

Consider two organizations with the same noble purpose: to solve the problem of poor eyesight in developing countries. The first, the Centre for Vision in the Developing World, follows a traditional nonprofit model, soliciting donations... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

December 2012 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Plastiq

By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Gaurav Jain, Liroy Haddad, Luke Langford and Matt Noble

The young CEO of a venture-backed startup needs to figure out his go to market strategy and the right profile for his first key sales hires. Should he develop partnerships with channels that would provide leverage or build out a direct sales force? And should the sales... View Details

Keywords: Payments; Sales; Channels; Credit Cards; Digital Platforms; Selection and Staffing; Cost vs Benefits; Salesforce Management; Marketing Channels; Business Startups; Business Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Partners and Partnerships; Management Systems

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17 Nov 2009
First Look

First Look: Nov. 17

inventions and IP (by selling it to IV) and then using its scale and aggregate IP portfolio to extract revenues from potential licensees (usually technology companies). Purchase this case: http://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cb/product/710423-PDF-ENG View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

09 Jul 2014
Research & Ideas

How Business Leaders Can Strengthen American Schools

point to some form of business engagement in their districts. But on closer examination, much of that engagement can be characterized as "checkbook philanthropy" in the form of donated money, goods, and scholarships. "These are View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Education

21 Jan 2020
Research & Ideas

Lessons for Retailers from the Rebirth of Indie Bookstores

As big box bookstores Barnes & Noble and Borders spread across the landscape in the 1990s, retail observers sounded the death knell for small, independent booksellers. But they had no idea of the onslaught that was coming. Amazon.com... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Entertainment & Recreation

16 Jul 2012
Research & Ideas

Book Excerpt: ‘The Strategist’

matter how hard you and your people work, no matter how wonderful your culture, no matter how good your products, or how noble your motives, if you don't get strategy right, everything else you do is at risk. My goal in this book is to... View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia A. Montgomery

16 Sep 2015
Research & Ideas

Can Applied Economics Save Homeless Puppies?

matching system for New England, correcting public school choice programs in New York and Boston, and tackling markets for new medical residents, economists, and lawyers. That same year, Christine L. Exley and Elena Battles launched a startup called Wagaroo in another... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail

27 Oct 2014
Research & Ideas

The Coffee Economy That Bloomed Out of Nowhere

Swiss man who met a tragic end—but died with noble intentions. "In a letter to Romero he wrote that he just wanted to be remembered for having contributed something to this place," Lurtz says. "It was a lovely sentiment. He ended up being... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Food & Beverage; Agriculture & Agribusiness

11 Jan 2016
Research & Ideas

Is Group Loyalty a Force for Good or Evil?

be a better person. Max disagreed, suggesting instead that loyalty has a dark side, since it causes people to make bad decisions.” In Hildreth’s view, a strong sense of loyalty within individuals makes them more ethical, by sparking more View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

17 May 2004
Research & Ideas

Why We Don’t Study Corporate Responsibility

responsible activities is not what companies do best and, according to critics, is thus a poor allocation of corporate resources. The third criticism has to do with due process and democratic institutions. Even laudable and noble actions... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls

26 May 2003
Research & Ideas

What Your Competition is Telling You

employees is "a competitive world, in which you come to work every day just a little bit scared." Making The Pie Bigger If you're an independent operator and an industry giant like Wal-Mart or Barnes & Noble enters your... View Details

Keywords: by David Stauffer

26 Feb 2007
Research & Ideas

The Power of the Noncompete Clause

even those with the most noble intent of upholding their NDAs will "inevitably disclose" what they know in the course of everyday work. As I noted earlier, states differ in their enforcement of noncompetes. California has quite... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

10 Mar 2015
Research & Ideas

The Surprising Winners and Losers in the Retail Revolution

at risk? Alvarez: In the worst shape are the stores that said: I can fix that. Maybe it's not fixable—maybe 80 percent of your products are now going to be sold online or in a digital format, like books. Barnes & Noble and Staples are... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Retail

20 Jan 2003
Research & Ideas

Fixing Corporate Governance: A Roundtable Discussion at Harvard Business School

to be part of something great, to be inspired by what is great and noble in business. We can do more to tap into this desire. Palepu: We could keep going for several more hours, but unfortunately, we're out of time. I'd just like to... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons

24 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Busting Six Myths About Customer Loyalty Programs

and Noble in books, Best Buy in electronics—offer similar rewards. Boots, the UK-based pharmacy and beauty supply retailer, offers a substantial reward of 4 percent, but that rate is more exception than rule. This type of reward is... View Details

Keywords: by Marcel Corstjens & Rajiv Lal; Retail; Consumer Products

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