Publications

September 2001 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Stevenson Industries (A)

By: John A. Davis and Kacie LaChapelle

Simon Carlson, chairman of the board of his family's fourth-generation industrial company, must decide how to deal with his conflict with the company's nonfamily CEO. Hired by the board just 15 months earlier to pursue growth more aggressively, CEO Paul Steel has upset... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Management Succession; Management Style; Governing and Advisory Boards; Management Teams; Rank and Position; Organizational Culture; Decision Making; Manufacturing Industry

December 1986 (Revised November 1990)
Case

Club Med (B)

Highlights the issue of high employee turnover in a multi-site, international subsidiary of a large resort company. Also described are service-quality problems the company has because the amount of value added through employee interaction with customers is high.... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Retention; Recruitment; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Tourism Industry; United States

January 1976 (Revised June 1984)
Case

Megalith, Inc. -- Hay Associates (A)

By: John P. Kotter

In 1969, Megalith centralized its financial and control functions. John Boyd, senior vice president for finance, hired four brilliant young managers to "bring the group out of the stone age." By 1975, this management team had created a near-perfect finance office of... View Details

Keywords: Management Teams; Compensation and Benefits; Motivation and Incentives; Problems and Challenges

04 Dec 2019
News

Alphabet Turns a Page and a Brin

Research Summary

Transportation Security Officers’ Work, Motivations, and Practices Study

Because of its unique history, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is a strategic setting to explore employees' possible distinct and evolving relation to their work. Since its inception in the wake of 9/11, the TSA has... View Details

July 11, 2024
Article

Research: New Hires’ Psychological Safety Erodes Quickly

By: Derrick P. Bransby, Michael J. Kerrissey and Amy C. Edmondson

Across industries, from manufacturing to health care, the luxury of waiting years to benefit from new talent is long gone. Thriving in today’s dynamic economy means bringing new hires up the learning curve faster than ever. Yet, the authors’ latest research suggests... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Learning; Interpersonal Communication; Employees

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20 Mar 2020
News

How grocery stores restock shelves in the age of coronavirus

October 2019 (Revised August 2020)
Case

The Predictive Index

By: Lynda M. Applegate and James Weber

Mike Zani and Daniel Muzquiz needed to decide next steps to create a new category in the human resources consulting industry and scale their company.
Zani and Muzquiz, serial entrepreneurs, acquired Predictive Index in 2014. Previously, as clients of the... View Details

Keywords: Human Resources; Selection and Staffing; Talent and Talent Management; Recruitment; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Change Management; Disruptive Innovation; Digital Platforms; Growth and Development Strategy; Consulting Industry; Service Industry; United States

July 2022
Case

David Crane’s Clean(er) Energy Strategy at NRG

By: George Serafeim, Michael W. Toffel and Tom Quinn

In 2015, David Crane was the CEO of NRG, the second-largest energy producer in the United States. NRG got most of its power from fossil fuels, but Crane – hired as CEO in 2003 as NRG emerged from bankruptcy – had invested heavily in alternative energy, loudly... View Details

Keywords: Energy; Leadership; Corporate Governance; Transformation; Alternative Energy; Energy Generation; Climate Change; Corporate Accountability; Renewable Energy; Energy Industry; United States

June 11, 2014
Article

Keep Learning Once You Hit the C-Suite

By: Boris Groysberg

What skills do companies prize in C-level executives? To answer these questions, we surveyed 32 senior search consultants at a top global executive-placement firm. Experienced search consultants typically interview hundreds and even thousands of senior executives; they... View Details

Keywords: Executive Ability; Management Skills; Learning

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October 1987 (Revised March 1992)
Case

United Parcel Service (A)

United Parcel Service (UPS) in 1987 faced serious challenges to its long-standing policies of on-the-job training and promotion from within. Increased competition in its traditional business of ground transport found UPS lagging in computerization and in need of... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Information Technology; Organizational Culture; Human Resources; Service Industry; United States

23 Dec 2019
News

The gender gap in self-promotion

20 Mar 2013
News

Leveraging Female Talent

03 May 2021
News

Why Being Promoted from within Gives You a Key Advantage

08 Sep 2016
Video

Monitoring global supply chains

July 2011
Case

Shifting the Diversity Climate: The Sodexo Solution

By: David A. Thomas and Stephanie J. Creary

This case profiles the evolution of Sodexo's diversity initiative. Diversity became a key priority for Sodexo, North America in 2001 after a class-action lawsuit was filed and certified in Washington, D.C. against Sodexo Marriot Services, Inc., the food services... View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Business Strategy; Globalization; Management Teams; Gender; Race; Ethnicity; Age; Food and Beverage Industry; North America; Washington (state, US)

18 Oct 2012
HBS Seminar

Julie Battilana, Harvard Business School

2010
Working Paper

Marketplace Institutions Related to the Timing of Transactions

By: Alvin E. Roth

This paper describes the unraveling of transaction dates in several markets, including the labor markets for new lawyers hired by large law firms and for gastroenterology fellows, and the market for post-season college football bowls. Together these will illustrate... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Market Timing; Market Transactions; Marketplace Matching; Competitive Strategy