Publications

09 Jun 2022
HBS Case

From Truck Driver to Manager: US Foods’ Novel Approach to Staff Shortages

Foods was having was caused partly by COVID-19, partly by competition for workers from Amazon, and partly by changes in lifestyle,” says David Bell, Baker Foundation Professor and George M. Moffett Professor of Agriculture and Business,... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

02 Dec 2002
Research & Ideas

The Secret of How Microsoft Stays on Top

off by disruptive technologies. Critics often argue that Microsoft can't innovate its way out of a paper bag—instead it has used its monopoly position to stamp out competition and force an industry to bend... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

November 2006
Case

The Pine Street Initiative at Goldman Sachs

By: Boris Groysberg, Scott A. Snook and David Lane

Almost five years had passed since Goldman Sachs launched its innovative leadership development initiative called Pine Street. Focused primarily on developing Goldman's most senior managers, Pine Street had evolved significantly since its inception in November of 1999.... View Details

Keywords: Executive Education; Personal Development and Career; Leadership Development; Business Education; Financial Services Industry

Teaching Interest

Competing in the Age of Digital Platforms

By: Andy Wu

Without exception, the most valuable companies in the world today are platforms: Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, and many other firms have built their fortunes by facilitating innovation across global ecosystems or enabling the broad exchange of goods... View Details

November 2024
Case

Dr. Bombay Ice Cream

By: William R. Kerr, Alexis Brownell and Michael Liu

This case examines the creation, launch, and rapid growth of Dr. Bombay Ice Cream, a joint venture between Happi Co., a consumer packaged goods incubator, and entertainment mogul Snoop Dogg, with his son, Cordell Broadus. The brand was inspired by a Bored Ape Yacht... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Growth Management; Brands and Branding; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Market Entry and Exit; Distribution Channels; Disruptive Innovation; Food and Beverage Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States

January 2012 (Revised March 2012)
Case

Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA)'s Entry into the Retirement Market

By: Lauren Cohen and Christopher Malloy

This case examines Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA)'s decision to enter the retirement market with their new "Dimensional Managed DC" product, a complete retirement solution that aimed to provide investors with what they really wanted: the same standard of living in... View Details

Keywords: Retirement; Asset Management

10 Apr 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research, April 10, 2018

was a vertically integrated food company with a management system that allowed it to innovate and grow systematically. With sales of $2 billion in 2016, the firm not only produced flour, vegetable oil, and packaged food products, it also... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Thomas R. Eisenmann

Thomas R. Eisenmann is the Howard H. Stevenson Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School; Peter O. Crisp Faculty Chair, Harvard Innovation Labs; and Unit Head of the HBS Entrepreneurial... View Details

08 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

The Death of the Global Manager

while confirming and further exploring some basic challenges that have, more or less, remained the same. "There are three core strategies that any MNC has to pursue to build layers of competitive advantage," Bartlett says.... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

May–June 2021
Article

Eliminate Strategic Overload

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee

As companies respond to intensifying competitive pressures and challenges, they ask more and more of their employees. But organizations often have very little to show for the efforts of their talented and engaged workers. By selecting fewer initiatives with greater... View Details

Keywords: Strategic Initiatives; Value-based Strategy; Organizational Effectiveness; Strategy; Value Creation

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November 2000 (Revised May 2002)
Case

FleetBoston Financial: Online Banking

By: Frances X. Frei and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar

As the ninth largest bank holding company in the United States in 2000, FleetBoston Financial Corp. provided a myriad of financial services, including retail banking, loan origination, and brokerage accounts. This case explores how FleetBoston responded to the Internet... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Borrowing and Debt; Cost Management; Banks and Banking; Consumer Behavior; Service Operations; Competition; Online Technology; Banking Industry; United States

20 Feb 2020
Blog Post

Black Visionary Leadership and Redefining What's Possible

“Uncharted: Black Visionary Leadership and Redefining What’s Possible,” February 28-29, combines two new events with the African American Student Union’s (AASU) 47th Annual H. Naylor Fitzhugh Conference: the Black Tech Master Series and a View Details

May 2012 (Revised September 2012)
Case

HTC Corp. in 2012

By: David B. Yoffie, Juan Alcacer and Renee Kim

After 15 years of remarkable achievements, Taiwan-based HTC Corp. faced difficult times by 2012. CEO Peter Chou, who drove HTC's transformation from an unknown manufacturer of PDAs for other companies to a well-known global player in smartphones, faced an uncertain and... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility; Telecommunications; Brand Management; Economies Of Scale And Scope; Market Positioning; Intellectual Property Management; Technological Innovation; Information Infrastructure; Competitive Strategy; Innovation and Invention; Patents; Product Positioning; Telecommunications Industry; Taiwan

22 May 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

A Luxury Industry Veteran Teaches the Importance of Aesthetics to Budding Business Leaders

compelling answer in an unintentional haiku. “Their work is flawless,” she says. “Their quality control is tighter than NASA’s.” The Aesthetic Idol competition The final assignment in “The Business of Aesthetics” requires both an... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Beauty & Cosmetics; Apparel & Accessories; Auto; Tourism

January 2011
Case

Clean Edge Razor: Splitting Hairs in Product Positioning

By: John A. Quelch and Heather Beckham

After three years of development, Paramount Health and Beauty Company is preparing to launch a new technologically advanced vibrating razor called Clean Edge. The innovative new design of Clean Edge provides superior performance by stimulating the hair follicles to... View Details

Keywords: Project Management; Interdepartmental Relations; Organizational Change; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership; Conflict Management; Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Relationships; Product Development; Consumer Products Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

Research Summary

Overview

By: Joshua Lev Krieger

In examining the competitive dynamics of R&D strategy, Josh has become particularly interested in how the introduction of new knowledge generated by rivals impacts the direction of R&D efforts. Understanding how new information alters project portfolio decisions is... View Details

20 Oct 2010
Op-Ed

Export Competitiveness: Reversing the Logic

Editor's Note: Christian Ketels wrote this paper for the World Bank's Development Debate, "What Do We Mean by Export Competitiveness and How Do Countries Achieve it in an Uncertain World?" held March 29, 2010. Ketels is... View Details

Keywords: by Christian Ketels

2020
Book

Experimentation Works: The Surprising Power of Business Experiments

By: Stefan Thomke

Don’t fly blind. See how the power of experiments works for you. When it comes to improving customer experiences, trying out new business models, or developing new products, even the most experienced managers often get it wrong. They discover that intuition,... View Details

Keywords: Experimentation; Experiments; Market Research; Innovation and Invention; Innovation and Management; Customers; Research

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