Publications

July 2009 (Revised September 2009)
Case

The Blackstone Group: Merlin Entertainment

The Blackstone Group had conducted a roll-up of theme parks and attractions business in Europe. It was considering how to generate liquidity for its investors. Blackstone entered the theme parks and attractions business in Europe by acquiring a majority stake in... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Cost vs Benefits; Private Equity; Financial Liquidity; Investment Return; Risk Management; Leasing; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Europe

December 2005 (Revised January 2007)
Case

Ben & Jerry's: Preserving Mission & Brand within Unilever

By: James E. Austin and James Quinn

In the months after Ben & Jerry's was acquired by Unilever, Ben & Jerry's head social mission faces challenges and opportunities unique in the company's history, including: how to manage employee morale; whether to include synthetic ingredients to meet consumer... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Problems and Challenges; Mergers and Acquisitions; Mission and Purpose; Social Enterprise; Management Teams; Governing and Advisory Boards; Value Creation; Corporate Governance; Employee Relationship Management; Food and Beverage Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Retail Industry; United States

May 2010 (Revised May 2011)
Case

Kent Thiry: "Mayor" of DaVita

By: William W. George and Natalie Kindred

Kent Thiry, CEO of dialysis provider DaVita, is considering how to integrate employees from recently acquired Gambro Healthcare without damaging DaVita's robust, unconventional internal culture. When Thiry joined DaVita in 1999, breaking an important promise to his... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Experience and Expertise; Employee Relationship Management; Leadership Style; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Personal Development and Career; Integration; Health Industry

Web

Harvard Business School

corporations such as ADT, American Express, Amgen, Owens Corning, Procter & Gamble, Silver Lake Partners, and Xerox. Between 1994 and 2004, Lewis was head or co-head of the Global Banking Department, the Global Mergers & View Details

15 Dec 2003
Research & Ideas

The New Global Business Manager

constraining, and therefore strategic resource is no longer capital. The world is awash in funding. Most companies have got more financial capital than they've got great ideas to invest in. The main driver of the merger and View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia Churchwell

March 2017 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Facebook Fake News in the Post-Truth World

By: John R. Wells and Carole A. Winkler

In January 2017, Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, was surrounded by controversy. The election of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States in November 2016 had triggered a national storm of protests, and many attributed Trump’s victory to... View Details

Keywords: Facebook; Fake News; Mark Zuckerberg; Donald Trump; Algorithms; Social Networks; Partisanship; Social Media; App Development; Instagram; WhatsApp; Smartphone; Silicon Valley; Office Space; Digital Strategy; Democracy; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Controversy; Tencent; Agility; Social Networking; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Messaging; Monetization Strategy; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Headquarters; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Trends; Communication; Communication Technology; Forms of Communication; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Talent and Talent Management; Crime and Corruption; Voting; Demographics; Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Initial Public Offering; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Location; Global Range; Local Range; Country; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Government and Politics; International Relations; National Security; Political Elections; Business History; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Information Management; Information Publishing; News; Newspapers; Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Dissemination; Human Capital; Law; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Practices and Processes; Management Style; Management Systems; Management Teams; Managerial Roles; Marketing Channels; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Marketplace Matching; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Monopoly; Media; Product Development; Service Delivery; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Rank and Position; Opportunities; Behavior; Emotions; Identity; Power and Influence; Prejudice and Bias; Reputation; Social and Collaborative Networks; Status and Position; Trust; Society; Civil Society or Community; Culture; Public Opinion; Social Issues; Societal Protocols; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Customization and Personalization; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Valuation; Advertising Industry; Communications Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Journalism and News Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; United States; California; Sunnyvale; Russia

15 Dec 2008
Research & Ideas

The Surprisingly Successful Marriages of Multinationals and Social Brands

to managers and stimulating reflection among scholars, a new working paper by HBS professors James E. Austin and Herman B. "Dutch" Leonard looks at how and why such acquisitions occur and how to manage the new combinations most... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

01 Jun 1997
News

Blockbuster Deals

industry) will ultimately be successful. Those associated with growth and so-called synergies - such as the Time Warner acquisition of Turner - will ultimately be viewed as unwise. Today's activity, he notes, is more like the "disastrous"... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons and Nancy O. Perry

September 2017
Case

Tencent

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Tencent had undergone many transformations since it was founded in 1998 as a simple messaging service. In 2017, it was the largest online games provider in China with a wide range of game types, China’s largest social networking service provider with several of the... View Details

Keywords: Tencent; Tencent Holdings; WeChat; Social Networking; Social Networks; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Video Games; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Portals; Payments; Mobile Payments; O2O; Online-to-offline; E-commerce; Messaging; Subscription Model; Freemium; Mobile App Industry; Smartphone; PC; Monetization Strategy; Antitrust; Streaming; Cloud Computing; Artificial Intelligence; Big Data; Alibaba; Facebook; JD.com; Tesla; Bundling; Synergies; Digital Strategy; Imitation; Licensing; Agility; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Units; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Joint Ventures; Restructuring; Communication; Communication Technology; Blogs; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Investment; Investment Portfolio; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Emerging Markets; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Industry Growth; Monopoly; Media; Distribution Channels; Product Development; Service Delivery; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Opportunities; Social and Collaborative Networks; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Cooperation; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Value Creation; Communications Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Financial Services Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Music Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; Web Services Industry; Asia; China; Canton (province, China)

01 Oct 1996
News

Starting Now — Bruce Wasserstein (MBA 1971)

position in the mergers and acquisitions business. In addition, the firm has had some notable successes in its merchant banking business, having participated in the buyouts of IMAX, Maybelline, and Collins &... View Details

Keywords: Marguerite Rigoglioso, with Elizabeth McNair

01 Jan 2014
News

To Spot Financial Trouble Early, Use Three Circles: A conversation with Blythe McGarvie of Harvard Business School

05 Jun 2019
Research & Ideas

If Your Customers Don't Care What You Charge, What Should You Charge?

decision. But consumer inertia can keep motorists coming back to fuel up, despite more appealing offerings by competitors. “Many people, including economists, are surprised by our result, which shows that when you account for consumer inertia, View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Energy

03 Sep 2009
What Do You Think?

Are Retention Bonuses Worth the Investment?

merger activity of the 1980s when it made sense to encourage key employees to remain in place for some time after an organization, whose value was based in part on their presence, was sold. Recently, though, they have become more common... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

06 Dec 2017
News

Puzzle Master

Photo via Black Enterprise Photo via Black Enterprise When kitchen goods and home furnishings retailer Williams-Sonoma announced its acquisition of Outward, Inc.—a leading 3-D imaging and augmented reality platform—the $112 million deal... View Details

18 Jul 2006
First Look

First Look: July 18, 2006

http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=206108 The Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions Author:William E. Fruhan Jr. Harvard Business... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Sanford I. Weill

At Travelers, Weill focused on growing the company’s assets with a particular emphasis on global expansion, a mission that led to the creation of Citigroup Inc., following the acquisition of Salomon Brothers in 1997 and the famous... View Details

Keywords: Finance

fourth quarter 2006
Article

Making the Best of M&A

By: Jay W. Lorsch

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions

Find at Harvard

February 1994
Case

Merging Asea and Brown Boveri

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Dwight B. Crane

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions