Publications

10 Feb 2003
Research & Ideas

Women at Work

"Work/Life Balance: Are We Comfortable with the Choices We Make?" moderated by HBS professor Robin Ely, discussed their work/life decisions and the repercussions of those decisions at the 12th... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild

Web

Faculty & Research

officer decrease. These effects are more pronounced when OSHA officers have more discretion. In turn, the effect of mood on oversight and enforcement decisions can be mitigated by increased monitoring by the regional OSHA office.... View Details

February 1999 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Car Wash Partners, Inc.

By: Paul A. Gompers

Examines the investment decision of Cabot Brown and Bill Burgin, two venture capitalists, to finance Car Wash Partners (CWP). CWP intends to purchase automatic car washes around the country. Investment strategy and deal structuring are discussed. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Financial Strategy; Auto Industry; Service Industry

9 AM – 9 AM EDT, 16 Oct 2018

HBX CORe

Gain business skills and confidence in this three - course program on business fundamentals covering Business Analytics, Economics, and Financial Accounting. Program Dates: October 16, 2018 - February 28, 2019 View Details

October 2018
Supplement

JetBlue: Relevant Sustainability Leadership (B)

By: George Serafeim and David Freiberg

The case outlines JetBlue's decision to disclose according to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) standards and the ESG metrics they began reporting. Data on resulting changes in institutional ownership are also provided. View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Metrics; Leadership And Change Management; Airlines; Innovation; Purpose; ESG; ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance; Sustainability Reporting; Change Management; Leadership; Mission and Purpose; Financial Reporting

02 Aug 2016
First Look

August 2, 2016

forthcoming Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes Don't Stop Believing: Rituals Improve Performance by Decreasing Anxiety By: Brooks, Alison Wood, Julianna Schroeder, Jane Risen, Francesca Gino, Adam D. Galinsky, Michael I.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

November 1974 (Revised May 1994)
Case

Science Technology Co.

By: Thomas R. Piper

The president of a medium-sized electronics company is evaluating the financial forecasts and proposed financing program submitted by the chief financial officer. The forecasts are prepared in constant dollars, on which basis the proposed financing plan seems... View Details

Keywords: Currency; Financial Strategy; Forecasting and Prediction; Inflation and Deflation; Risk and Uncertainty; Outcome or Result; Technology Industry; Electronics Industry

January 2000 (Revised March 2000)
Case

Cachet Technologies

By: Paul A. Gompers and Howard Reitz

Describes the decision facing Danny Lewin, Jonathan Seelig, and Tom Leighton, the founders of Cachet Technologies, an MIT spin-out. The firm has done poorly in the annual MIT business plan competition and the founders have to decide whether to continue. View Details

Keywords: Decision Making; Business Startups; Business Plan; Failure; Cooperative Ownership; Business Strategy; Financial Services Industry

January 1986 (Revised December 1986)
Case

Smartfood

By: William A. Sahlman

Contains a description of a major financing decision confronting the management and advisors of Smartfood, Inc., a company which hopes to market a cheese flavored popcorn product. The primary pedagogic objective is to teach students about matching the financing plan... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Financing and Loans; Financial Strategy; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Market Entry and Exit; Decision Choices and Conditions; Financial Management; Food and Beverage Industry

February 1998 (Revised January 1999)
Case

Rob Parson at Morgan Stanley (C) (Abridged)

A year after Rob Parson's manager decided to postpone Parson's promotion, Parson's new manager Gary Stuart faces the decision of promotion again. Stuart considers whether the efforts Parson had made were sufficient. View Details

Keywords: Management; Personal Development and Career; Performance Evaluation; Financial Services Industry

April 2002 (Revised September 2002)
Background Note

Capital Controls

By: Rawi E. Abdelal and Laura Alfaro

Only in the waning years of the 20th century did international financial markets begin to enjoy the freedom from government regulation that they had experienced before the first world war. By 2002, international capital markets had grown to be enormous--$1.2 trillion... View Details

Keywords: History; Policy; Business and Government Relations; Change Management; Cost vs Benefits; Governance Controls; Governance Compliance; Emerging Markets; Financial Markets; Network Effects; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry

September 2001 (Revised July 2002)
Case

Fraud Prevention at Omni Bank

By: Frances X. Frei and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar

Omni Bank is undergoing a merger and has two important decisions ahead. First, should it enforce the use of its model-driven approach to interacting with customers at the recently acquired Friends Savings and Loan branches. Friends has a culture of personal touch with... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Model; Crime and Corruption; Customer Relationship Management; Decisions; Banks and Banking; Banking Industry

February 2001 (Revised March 2004)
Case

Ducati & Texas Pacific Group - A "Wild Ride" Leveraged Buyout

Describes the attempt of Texas Pacific Group (TPG), a buyout firm, to purchase a controlling stake in Ducati Motor, the world's leading high-performance motorcycle company, based in Bologna, Italy. Ducati is part of Cagiva Group, a family-controlled industrial group.... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Leveraged Buyouts; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Manufacturing Industry; Motorcycle Industry; Texas; Italy

August 1998 (Revised February 1999)
Case

Product Development at Dell Computer Corporation

By: Stefan H. Thomke, Vish V. Krishnan and Ashok Nimgade

Describes how Dell redesigned its new product development process after experiencing a major product setback and a significant decline in firm profits in 1993. Dell's new process is challenged during the development of a new line of portable computers when the incoming... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Profit; Managerial Roles; Risk Management; Product Development; Business Processes; Problems and Challenges; Risk and Uncertainty; Hardware; Computer Industry

"A spectacular achievement" - Library Journal

From the financial fraudsters of Enron, to the embezzlers at Tyco, to the Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff, the failings of corporate titans are regular fixtures in the news. But what drives wealthy and... View Details

August 2010
Case

Flash Memory, Inc.

By: William E. Fruhan and Craig Stephenson

The CFO of Flash Memory, Inc. prepares the company's investing and financing plans for the next three years. Flash Memory is a small firm that specializes in the design and manufacture of solid state drives (SSDs) and memory modules for the computer and electronics... View Details

Keywords: Forecasting; Financial Management; Cash Flow; Forecasting and Prediction; Capital Budgeting; Computer Industry; Electronics Industry; United States

April 2011 (Revised January 2013)
Supplement

Felipe Calderón: Leading with Light and Power (C)

By: J. Bruce Harreld and David Lane

This sequence of cases explores how leaders get their team focused on framing, analyzing, and ultimately acting upon complex decisions. The A case provides an inside look as President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, works with his cabinet ministers to decide how to... View Details

Keywords: Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Decision Choices and Conditions; Cases; Leadership Style; Crime and Corruption; State Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Risk and Uncertainty; Economics; Finance; Performance; Management Teams; Energy Industry; Mexico City

January 1995
Case

Keller Fund's Option Investment Strategies, The

By: W. Carl Kester

A closed-end mutual fund's decision to study option trading provides an opportunity to study the profit profile and pricing of multiple option investment strategies (e.g., buy a call, buy a put, write a call, buy stock-write call, etc.). This case is designed to... View Details

Keywords: Investment Funds; Stock Options; Profit; Price; Strategy; Financial Services Industry