Filter Results:
(1,368)
Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(2,383)
- People (4)
- News (639)
- Research (1,368)
- Events (8)
- Multimedia (3)
- Faculty Publications (611)
Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(2,383)
- People (4)
- News (639)
- Research (1,368)
- Events (8)
- Multimedia (3)
- Faculty Publications (611)
Sort by
- 1978
- Chapter
Changing Organizational Constraints: Toward Promoting Equal Opportunity and Treatment for Women in Public Service Systems
By: R. M. Kanter
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Equality and Inequality; Public Sector; Service Operations; Gender
Kanter, R. M. "Changing Organizational Constraints: Toward Promoting Equal Opportunity and Treatment for Women in Public Service Systems." In The United Nations and Decision-Making: The Role of Women. Vol. 2, edited by D. Nicol and M. Croke. New York: United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), 1978.
- 22 Oct 2007
- Research & Ideas
Bringing ‘Lean’ Principles to Service Industries
Wipro Technologies, an Indian outsource provider of software services, launches its own lean initiative. "In terms of operations and improvements, the service industries in general are a long way behind... View Details
- December 1992 (Revised June 1993)
- Case
ACTC Customer Service Department
Focuses on the young general manager of a new cable TV system and on its customer service department. Jeanne LaFrance, the general manager, has an uneasy feeling about the way in which the department is being managed. She sees symptoms of what she suspects are serious... View Details
Keywords: Management; Problems and Challenges; Planning; Customer Focus and Relationships; Performance Evaluation; Telecommunications Industry
Roberts, Michael J. "ACTC Customer Service Department." Harvard Business School Case 393-056, December 1992. (Revised June 1993.)
- April 2004 (Revised November 2004)
- Background Note
Why Complex Systems Fail
Operationally excellent organizations create competitive opportunities for themselves that are not available to their peers. One view of the manager's competitive dilemma is to pick the right position for his organization, differentiating it, for example, as a... View Details
Spear, Steven J., and Bryce LaPierre. "Why Complex Systems Fail." Harvard Business School Background Note 604-083, April 2004. (Revised November 2004.)
- 2017
- Working Paper
Digital Agility: The Impact of Software Portfolio Architecture on IT System Evolution
By: Alan MacCormack, Robert Lagerström, Martin Mocker and Carliss Y. Baldwin
The modern industrial firm increasingly relies on software to support its competitive position. However, the uncertain and dynamic nature of today’s global marketplace dictates that this software be continually evolved and adapted to meet new business challenges. This... View Details
Keywords: Information Systems; Software; Architecture; Modularity; Agility; Coupling; Applications and Software; Design; Decisions; Performance
MacCormack, Alan, Robert Lagerström, Martin Mocker, and Carliss Y. Baldwin. "Digital Agility: The Impact of Software Portfolio Architecture on IT System Evolution." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 17-105, May 2017. (Revised October 2017.)
- 2013
- Working Paper
The Appeal of the Appropriate: Accounting, Risk Management, and the Competition for the Supply of Control Systems
By: Anette Mikes
How do certain risk measurements in organizations come to be seen as more reliable and acceptable than others? Taking a multiple-control perspective, I investigate the aftermath of a control debacle at a financial services company (MultiBank), focusing on its insurance... View Details
Keywords: Management Control Systems; Multiple Control Systems; Interactive Control Systems; Performance Measurement; Risk Measurement; Financialization Of Accounting; Institutional Logics; Banking; Risk Management; Fair Value Accounting; Insurance; Financial Services Industry
Mikes, Anette. "The Appeal of the Appropriate: Accounting, Risk Management, and the Competition for the Supply of Control Systems." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 12-115, June 2012. (Revised January 2013.)
- October 1982 (Revised January 1985)
- Supplement
Federal Express: Customer Service Department -- Cosmos System and Interview with Heinz Adam, Video
Lovelock, Christopher H. "Federal Express: Customer Service Department -- Cosmos System and Interview with Heinz Adam, Video." Harvard Business School Video Supplement 883-501, October 1982. (Revised January 1985.)
- August 2020 (Revised August 2023)
- Case
Nubank: Democratizing Financial Services
By: Michael Chu, Carla Larangeira and Pedro Levindo
Nubank, a wholly-digital solution created to disrupt Brazilian banking, with 6 million clients and a $4 billion valuation after five years, must decide whether to expand to Mexico. The company was founded in São Paulo in 2013 by Colombian-born David Vélez to seize what... View Details
Keywords: Fintech; Financial Inclusion; Digital Banking; Credit Cards; Banks and Banking; Disruption; Expansion; Growth and Development Strategy; Financial Services Industry; South America; Brazil; North America; Mexico
Chu, Michael, Carla Larangeira, and Pedro Levindo. "Nubank: Democratizing Financial Services." Harvard Business School Case 321-068, August 2020. (Revised August 2023.)
- March 2020 (Revised January 2022)
- Case
Michelin: Building a Digital Service Platform
By: Sunil Gupta and Christian Godwin
Michelin, a tire company with over a century of experience, attempts to develop a digital service platform for its fleet and dealer customers. The case focuses on the challenges of bringing a large, well-established company into the digital age. Concerned about the... View Details
Keywords: Change; Transformation; Customer Focus and Relationships; Decision Making; Leading Change; Growth and Development; Strategy; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Auto Industry; Travel Industry; Transportation Industry; United States; France
Gupta, Sunil, and Christian Godwin. "Michelin: Building a Digital Service Platform." Harvard Business School Case 520-061, March 2020. (Revised January 2022.)
- 02 May 2000
- Research & Ideas
Leading Professional Service Firms
The HBS Executive Education course Leading Professional Service Firms (LPSF) is an intensive, one-week program that focuses on management issues unique to these firms. It provides a forum for participants from around the world to apply... View Details
- August 2004 (Revised April 2005)
- Case
MK Taxi: Private Chauffeur Service
MK Taxi Tokyo has developed a system to allow customers to use their mobile phones to find and contact the cab closest to them, bypassing the dispatch center. The system, called the Private Chauffeur Service (PCS), makes use of NTT's i-mode service, which essentially... View Details
Keywords: Information Technology; Entrepreneurship; Customer Focus and Relationships; Transportation; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Service Industry; Service Industry; Tokyo
McAfee, Andrew P. "MK Taxi: Private Chauffeur Service." Harvard Business School Case 605-029, August 2004. (Revised April 2005.)
- October 2002 (Revised April 2007)
- Case
Dell Computers (A): Field Service for Corporate Clients
By: Frances X. Frei, Amy C. Edmondson and Corey B. Hajim
Explores the highly successful PC and low-end server manufacturer's entry into the large-scale server market in the United States. A key difference of this new market is the intense service element required to support the larger hardware. Specifically, the industry... View Details
Keywords: Information Infrastructure; Customer Relationship Management; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Service Operations; Business or Company Management; Emerging Markets; Problems and Challenges; Service Delivery; Computer Industry; United States
Frei, Frances X., Amy C. Edmondson, and Corey B. Hajim. "Dell Computers (A): Field Service for Corporate Clients." Harvard Business School Case 603-067, October 2002. (Revised April 2007.)
- November 1989 (Revised April 2018)
- Case
Automation Consulting Services
By: Robert Simons and Hilary Weston
Illustrates the management control challenges that are associated with rapid growth and geographic expansion. Situated at an offsite Executive Committee Retreat. The three founding partners of a specialized consulting firm are grappling with several difficult questions... View Details
Keywords: Geographic Location; Governance Controls; Policy; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Teams; Expansion; Consulting Industry
Simons, Robert, and Hilary Weston. "Automation Consulting Services." Harvard Business School Case 190-053, November 1989. (Revised April 2018.)
- June 1995
- Case
Polaroid Corporation: European Distribution System
By: Janice H. Hammond and Afroze A Mohammed
Describes distribution operations in Polaroid Europe. In the late 1980s, Polaroid senior management in the United States proposed moving from a system of 12 decentralized warehouses to a centralized distribution system in which all inventory for European retailers... View Details
Keywords: Distribution; Operations; Risk Management; Distribution Channels; Logistics; Transition; Strategy; Problems and Challenges; Industry Structures; Consumer Products Industry; Europe; European Union; United States
Hammond, Janice H., and Afroze A Mohammed. "Polaroid Corporation: European Distribution System." Harvard Business School Case 695-038, June 1995.
- March 2000
- Case
Aspect Medical Systems
By: Richard M.J. Bohmer and Naomi Atkins
Entrepreneur Nassib Chamoun has created an innovative anesthesiology device that monitors patients' consciousness levels during surgery. This case tracks how Chamoun and his executive team built the infrastructure of the company and actively managed the adoption... View Details
Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Entrepreneurship; Independent Innovation and Invention; Infrastructure; Product Design; Product Development; Problems and Challenges; Adoption; Competitive Strategy; Technology Industry
Bohmer, Richard M.J., and Naomi Atkins. "Aspect Medical Systems." Harvard Business School Case 600-076, March 2000.
- March 1988 (Revised September 1993)
- Case
United Services Automobile Association (USAA)
Under the leadership of Robert F. McDermott, USAA has been transformed from a property and casualty insurance company with $200 million in assets in the late 1960s to a $11 billion financial services empire in 1988. The case illustrates the value of having a CEO drive... View Details
Keywords: Business or Company Management; Leadership; Information Technology; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; United States
Vitale, Michael R. "United Services Automobile Association (USAA)." Harvard Business School Case 188-102, March 1988. (Revised September 1993.)
- December 2005 (Revised October 2006)
- Case
Pharmacy Service Improvement at CVS (A)
CVS's retail pharmacy operations are functioning poorly and dissatisfying customers. Many customers are defecting as a result. A pharmacy service improvement team has documented the current prescription fulfillment process, its exception rates, and the problems... View Details
Keywords: Information Technology; Performance Improvement; Business Processes; Retail Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; United States
McAfee, Andrew P. "Pharmacy Service Improvement at CVS (A)." Harvard Business School Case 606-015, December 2005. (Revised October 2006.)
- July 2021
- Article
Outsourcing Tasks Online: Matching Supply and Demand on Peer-to-Peer Internet Platforms
By: Zoë Cullen and Chiara Farronato
We study the growth of online peer-to-peer markets. Using data from TaskRabbit, an expanding marketplace for domestic tasks at the time of our study, we show that growth varies considerably across cities. To disentangle the potential drivers of growth, we look... View Details
Keywords: Two-sided Market; Two-sided Platforms; Peer-to-peer Markets; Platform Strategy; Sharing Economy; Platform Growth; Internet and the Web; Digital Platforms; Strategy; Market Design; Network Effects
Cullen, Zoë, and Chiara Farronato. "Outsourcing Tasks Online: Matching Supply and Demand on Peer-to-Peer Internet Platforms." Management Science 67, no. 7 (July 2021): 3985–4003.
- Research Summary
Management Control Systems in Multiunit Companies
By: Tatiana Sandino
Professor Sandino conducts research on early-stage multiunit companies that introduce management control systems to help maintain operations, as well as company culture, as they grow, but also to enable adaptation to the different markets that they serve. Building... View Details
- January 1999 (Revised April 2004)
- Case
Infox System GmbH
Apax, a private equity firm, has an opportunity to invest in a travel-related print-materials distribution business in Germany. Infox is typical of many buyout opportunities. One of the founders seeks to exit the business, and recently hired managers will have to... View Details
Keywords: Private Equity; Leveraged Buyouts; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Financial Services Industry; Germany
Kuemmerle, Walter, M. Frederick Paul, and Chad S Ellis. "Infox System GmbH." Harvard Business School Case 899-061, January 1999. (Revised April 2004.)