Publications

March 2011
Case

Terror at the Taj Bombay: Customer-Centric Leadership

By: Rohit Deshpande

On November 26, 2008, heavily armed terrorists launched a series of attacks throughout the western-Indian city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay). One of the locations attacked was the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, which was occupied by the terrorists for over three days,... View Details

Keywords: Safety; Leadership; National Security; Service Delivery; Organizational Culture; Crisis Management; Customer Focus and Relationships; Brands and Branding; Accommodations Industry; Mumbai

October 2023
Article

Speedy Activists: Firm Response Time to Sociopolitical Events Influences Consumer Behavior

By: Jimin Nam, Maya Balakrishnan, Julian De Freitas and Alison Wood Brooks

Organizations face growing pressure from their consumers and stakeholders to take public stances on sociopolitical issues. However, many are hesitant to do so lest they make missteps, promises they cannot keep, appear inauthentic, or alienate consumers, employees, or... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Public Opinion; Social Media; Social Issues

17 Oct 2024
Research & Ideas

The Reputation Risks of Sharing Fake News

party, regardless of whether they are true—or even especially because they are untrue. “The theory is that the best way to signal your loyalty to your political party is to show that you’re willing to take outlandish stances that will... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

20 Jan 2017
Research & Ideas

Here’s How Businessman Trump Is Likely to Approach the Presidency

Donald J. Trump brings business experience to the White House. Source: BasSlabbers Donald John Trump, the 45th president of the United States, will be the first to go straight from the boardroom to the Oval Office without any political... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese

20 May 2019
Research & Ideas

Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening

Trump. However, there was one key difference separating his potential candidacy from the others: brand awareness. Because of the public’s close identification of him with Starbucks, Schultz’s run could lead to blowback to the coffee... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

November 2018 (Revised May 2019)
Case

Almarai Company: Milk and Modernization in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

By: Kristin Fabbe, Safwan Al-Amin, Esel Cekin and Natalie Kindred

With SAR 14 billion ($3.7 billion) in 2017 revenues, Almarai was Saudi Arabia’s largest dairy producer, distributor, and marketer, with a large portfolio of branded dairy products, juices, bakery goods, and infant formula and a sales presence across the Gulf region,... View Details

04 Dec 2014
Working Paper Summaries

The Air War versus The Ground Game: An Analysis of Multi-Channel Marketing in US Presidential Elections

Keywords: by Doug J. Chung & Lingling Zhang

04 Jun 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Israel Turns 70: Does it Need a Rebrand?

Keywords: Re: Elie Ofek

July 2004 (Revised January 2007)
Case

H&R Block and "Everyday Financial Services"

By: Peter Tufano and Daniel Schneider

H&R Block, the U.S. market leader in tax preparation services, must decide whether to offer financial services to its low-income clients. H&R Block is facing increased competition from branded and nonbranded tax preparers, and the number of returns prepared by the... View Details

Keywords: Financial Management; Income; Taxation; Product Development; Financial Services Industry; United States

Article

Making 'Green Giants': Environment Sustainability in the German Chemical Industry, 1950s–1980s

By: Geoffrey Jones and Christina Lubinski

This article examines the evolution of corporate environmentalism in the West German chemical industry between the 1950s and the 1980s. It focuses on two companies, Bayer and Henkel, that have been identified as "green giants," and traces the evolution of their... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Green Business; Regional Strategy; Pollution; Henkel; Bayer; Globalization; History; Chemical Industry; Germany; United States

Find at Harvard

April 2023 (Revised April 2025)
Case

Eike Batista: Making or Breaking Brazil

By: Geoffrey Jones, Pedro Magalhães, Daniel Tong and Marcel Anduiza

This case explores the meteoric rise and fall of Eike Batista, once Brazil’s richest person and the world’s seventh wealthiest in 2012. Batista began his career by investing in gold mining in the Amazon, using the network his father had built after years serving as... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Energy Industry; Mining Industry; Brazil

15 Nov 2016
First Look

November 15, 2016

modified to incorporate quasi-hyperbolic preferences. For reasons of political economy or aggregation of citizens’ preferences, government preferences are present biased, resulting in an over-accumulation of debt. Calibrating this... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

10 May 2011
First Look

First Look: May 10

PublicationsNonsimultaneous Chains and Dominos in Kidney Paired Donation—Revisited Authors:Itai Ashlagi, Duncan S. Gilchrist, Alvin E. Roth, and Michael A. Rees Publication:American Journal of Transplantation 11, no. 5 (May 2011) Abstract Since 2008 kidney exchange... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

05 Feb 2013
First Look

First Look: Feb. 5

results suggest that board of director networks provide economic benefits that are not immediately reflected in stock prices. Paper: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1651407 Leading in Crises: Observations on the View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

18 Apr 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, April 18, 2018

forthcoming Academy of Management Journal Ideological Misfit? Political Affiliation and Employee Departure in the Private-Equity Industry By: Bermiss, Y. Sekou, and Rory McDonald Abstract—Though organizations are increasingly active... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

February 2003 (Revised April 2004)
Case

Pharmaceutical Industry, The: Challenges in the New Century

By: Stephen P. Bradley and James Weber

Provides a broad overview of the numerous internal and external forces that were driving change in the global pharmaceutical industry in 2003. These forces--including downward price pressures, political and social pressures, increased development costs, new... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Change; Cost; Price; Globalization; Government and Politics; Brands and Branding; Industry Growth; Society; Competition; Consolidation; Technology; Pharmaceutical Industry