Publications

October 2003 (Revised February 2004)
Case

Strategic Inflection: TiVo in 2003 (A)

By: David B. Yoffie, Pai-Ling Yin and Christina L. Darwall

Mike Ramsey, TiVo's CEO, must decide on which direction to build the company. Facing an onslaught of new competitors, a huge opportunity in the cable industry, and the possibility of becoming the new "user interface" for TV entertainment, Ramsey must balance the... View Details

Keywords: Television Entertainment; Profit; Product Positioning; Standards; Opportunities; Commercialization; Competition; Technology Adoption; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

09 Nov 2007
Working Paper Summaries

Recognizing the New: A Multi-Agent Model of Analogy in Strategic Decision-Making

Keywords: by Giovanni M. Gavetti & Massimo Warglien

Firm-Induced Migration Paths and Strategic Human-Capital Outcomes

Firm-induced migration typically entails firms relocating workers to fill value-creating positions at destination locations. But such relocated workers are often exposed to external employment opportunities at their destinations, possibly triggering turnover. We... View Details

26 Jul 2006
Research & Ideas

The Strategic Way to Go to Market

Sales. But it could well be the CMO position by itself, as long as the sales division reports to the CMO. One should not jump to the conclusion that because the Internet appears cheaper it can solve a company's go-to-market problem. It... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

July 2006 (Revised December 2007)
Case

Strategic Outsourcing at Bharti Airtel Limited

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez, V.G. Narayanan and Michele Jurgens

Faced with exponential growth and a competitive telecom environment, Bharti looks for ways to better manage its capital expenditures for telecommunications and information technology. One option is to hand over management of its telecom and IT networks to its vendors.... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Competitive Advantage; Technology Networks; Telecommunications Industry; India

June 2012
Class Lecture

Why You're Not Buying Venezuelan Chocolate: The Provenance Paradox

By: Rohit Deshpandé

A product's country of origin establishes its authenticity. This is the provenance paradox. Consumers associate certain geographies with the best products: French wine, Italian sports cars, Swiss watches. Competing products from other countries - especially developing... View Details

Keywords: Global Business; Branding; Strategic Planning; Strategic Positioning; Emergent Countries; Consumer Perception; Developing Markets; Brands and Branding; Geographic Location; Globalized Markets and Industries; Perception; Emerging Markets; Product Positioning; Global Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Venezuela

Article

Strategic Disclosure: The Case of Business School Rankings

By: Michael Luca and Jonathan Smith

We empirically analyze disclosure decisions made by 240 MBA programs about which rankings to display on their websites. We present three main findings. First, consistent with theories of countersignaling, top schools are least likely to disclose their rankings, whereas... View Details

Keywords: Voluntary Disclosure; Shrouded Attributes; Information Unraveling; Rankings; Higher Education; Corporate Disclosure; Rank and Position

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September 2013
Teaching Note

Trader Joe's

By: David L. Ager and Michael A. Roberto

Based on a variety of metrics, Trader Joe's ranked as one of the most successful grocers in the United States in 2013. Experts estimated that the company had the highest sales per square foot of any major grocery chain, even significantly higher than top performer... View Details

Keywords: Comparative Advantage; Core Competencies; Growth Strategy; Strategic Positioning; Industry Analysis; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Organizational Culture; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

January 2023
Article

Firm-Induced Migration Paths and Strategic Human-Capital Outcomes

By: Prithwiraj (Raj) Choudhury, Tarun Khanna and Victoria Sevcenko

Firm-induced migration typically entails firms relocating workers to fill value-creating positions at destination locations. But such relocated workers are often exposed to external employment opportunities at their destinations, possibly triggering turnover. We... View Details

Keywords: Worker Relocation; Turnover; Firm-induced Migration; Smaller Towns; Employee Mobility; Geographic Mobility; Migration; Clusters; Employees; Geographic Location; Performance; Opportunities; Retention; Human Capital; Talent and Talent Management

October 2006 (Revised April 2011)
Teaching Note

Strategic Outsourcing at Bharti Airtel Limited (TN)

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez

Teaching Note to (107-003) and (107-004). View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing

28 Dec 2010
Working Paper Summaries

The Psychological Costs of Pay-for-Performance: Implications for Strategic Compensation

Keywords: by Ian Larkin, Lamar Pierce & Francesca Gino

2008
Article

Market Leadership and Strategic Investments in Innovation: The Adoption of E-Business Capabilities

By: Kristina Steffenson McElheran

This study focuses on whether more-productive firms are more likely to adopt process innovations and why. The empirical context is the adoption of e-business practices among U.S. manufacturing plants in early 2000. Based on detailed data from the U.S. Census of... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Innovation Strategy; Leadership; Motivation and Incentives; Competitive Advantage; Technology Adoption; Manufacturing Industry; United States

Web

Making Strategic Trade-offs - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

customers. In every major value-adding step in the process of creating and selling home furnishing, IKEA has made different choices from the “traditional” home furnishings retailer. IKEA vs. Traditional Furniture Retailers IKEA, Sweden Choosing what not to do A View Details

2016
Article

Cloaked Trading

By: Lauren Cohen, Dong Lou and Christopher J. Malloy

Using a novel, proprietary database of micro-level trading activities by asset managers, we show strong evidence of asset managers engaging in strategic trading in order to “cloak” their most valuable trades. This takes the form, for instance, of a manager who sells... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Trading; Information; Asset Management; Investment

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20 Jun 2023
Cold Call Podcast

Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover: Lessons in Strategic Change

Keywords: Re: Andy Wu; Technology

2023
Working Paper

Too Many Managers: The Strategic Use of Titles to Avoid Overtime Payments

By: Lauren Cohen, Umit Gurun and N. Bugra Ozel

We find widespread evidence of firms appearing to avoid paying overtime wages by exploiting a federal law that allows them to do so for employees termed as “managers” and paid a salary above a pre-defined dollar threshold. We show that listings for salaried positions... View Details

Keywords: Wages; Organizational Design; Job Design and Levels; Compensation and Benefits

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Web

Continuity of Strategic Direction - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

a strategic position involves making the company’s activities more distinctive, strengthening fit, and communicating the strategy better to those customers who should value it—not chasing after “easy” growth... View Details

July 2006 (Revised December 2007)
Supplement

Strategic Outsourcing at Bharti Airtel Limited: One Year Later.

By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez, V.G. Narayanan and Michele Jurgens

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing

May 2012 (Revised August 2012)
Case

Apple Inc. in 2012

By: David B. Yoffie and Penelope Rossano

On October 5, 2011, Steve Jobs tragically died of cancer. The recently retired CEO of Apple Inc. was a legend: he had changed Apple from a company near bankruptcy to one of the largest and most profitable companies in the world. Moreover, he had revolutionized several... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Market Positioning; Strategic Planning; Technology; Computer Industry; Strategy Implementation; Consumer Electronics; Telecommunications; Information Infrastructure; Innovation and Invention; Competitive Strategy; Leadership; Product Positioning; Telecommunications Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Electronics Industry