Publications

Livia is a development economist whose research focuses on labor market frictions and determinants of labor market participation in low-income settings, with a particular emphasis on barriers to youth employment and female labor market participation. In a separate line... View Details

September 2013 (Revised June 2014)
Case

Rana Plaza: Workplace Safety In Bangladesh (A)

By: John A. Quelch and Margaret L. Rodriguez

On April 24, 2013 the Rana Plaza factory building collapsed in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Over 1,100 people were killed in the worst industrial accident since the Union Carbide plant gas leak in Bhopal, India. Most of the victims worked for garment factories,... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Public Health; Safety; Workplace; Human Rights; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Bangladesh

January 2015 (Revised October 2018)
Case

Nasty Gals Do It Better

By: David Collis, Diane Chang, Matthew Shaffer and Ashley Hartman

In 2006, Sophia Amoruso started Nasty Gal, an eBay boutique selling vintage clothes. With a strong sense of style and personality, Amoruso poured herself into building the brand and developing relationships with her customers—typically the slightly edgy 18–24 year old.... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth; Brand Management; Online Retail; Clothing; Apparel; Expansion; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Management; Marketing Strategy; Strategic Planning; Social Media; E-commerce; Digital Marketing; Retail Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

January 2021
Supplement

E-Commerce Analytics for CPG Firms (B): Optimizing Assortment for a New Retailer

By: Ayelet Israeli and Fedor (Ted) Lisitsyn

The E-Commerce Analytics group at the traditional CPG firm was in charge of compiling various online sales reports, as well as making data-driven recommendations for sales and marketing tactics. In a series of exercises, students address different data challenges for... View Details

Keywords: Data Analysis; Data Analytics; CPG; Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG); Online Channel; Retail; Retail Analytics; Retailing Industry; Data; Data Sharing; Ecommerce; Assortment Optimization; Assortment Planning; Analytics and Data Science; Retention; Retail Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States

January 2021 (Revised March 2021)
Exercise

E-Commerce Analytics for CPG Firms (C): Free Delivery Terms

By: Ayelet Israeli and Fedor (Ted) Lisitsyn

The E-Commerce Analytics group at the traditional CPG firm was in charge of compiling various online sales reports, as well as making data-driven recommendations for sales and marketing tactics. In a series of exercises, students address different data challenges for... View Details

Research Summary

Overview

Dr. Lurtz researches the history of agricultural economies in Latin America. She has a particular interest in export agriculture and attendant state- and locally-driven modernization projects. Her current work looks to the coffee economy of southern Mexico in the 19th... View Details

January 2021
Exercise

E-Commerce Analytics for CPG Firms (B): Optimizing Assortment for a New Retailer

By: Ayelet Israeli and Fedor (Ted) Lisitsyn

The E-Commerce Analytics group at the traditional CPG firm was in charge of compiling various online sales reports, as well as making data-driven recommendations for sales and marketing tactics. In a series of exercises, students address different data challenges for... View Details

October 2015
Case

BandPage (A)

By: Karim R. Lakhani, Colin Maclay and Greta Friar

BandPage CEO James "J" Sider is about to receive results from BandPage's targeted advertising campaign on music streaming service Rhapsody and learn whether BandPage's strategy to improve ad click through rates and generate revenue has succeeded. BandPage, which began... View Details

Keywords: Digital Innovation; Digital Music; Digital Marketing; Mobile Marketing; Technological Innovation; Marketing Communications; Music Entertainment; Mobile Technology; Music Industry

15 Jun 2021
News

Elevator Pitch: Dress Code

Video Embed Animation by Drue Wagner and Troubadour Image + Sound The Yes Julie Bornstein (MBA 1997), cofounder and CEO; former COO, Stitch Fix Jennifer Koen-Horowitz (MBA 1997), head of brand marketing and PR Vision: The Spotify of... View Details

Keywords: online shopping; fashion; mobile technology; entrepreneurship; startup; Nonstore Retailers; Retail Trade

January 2021 (Revised March 2021)
Supplement

E-Commerce Analytics for CPG Firms (C): Free Delivery Terms

By: Ayelet Israeli and Fedor (Ted) Lisitsyn

The E-Commerce Analytics group at the traditional CPG firm was in charge of compiling various online sales reports, as well as making data-driven recommendations for sales and marketing tactics. In a series of exercises, students address different data challenges for... View Details

May 2016
Case

The Inexorable Rise of Walmart? 1988—2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In October 2015, Walmart surprised investors by announcing that it expected flat sales growth for 2015 and growth of only 3% to 4% over the coming three years. Profits would also fall due to significant investments in people and technology. The company’s stock price... View Details

Keywords: Asda; Costco; David Glass; Convenience Stores; Discount Retailing; Dollar Stores; Doug McMillon; E-commerce; Online Retail; General Merchandise; Grocery; Lee Scott; Mike Duke; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Neighborhood Market; Sam Walton; Sam's Club; Store Formats; Supercenter; Supermarket; Warehouse Clubs; Merchandising; Walmart; Wal-Mart; Globalized Firms and Management; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Units; Business Divisions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Banks and Banking; Price; Profit; Revenue; Food; Global Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Business History; Compensation and Benefits; Employees; Human Capital; Labor Unions; Wages; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Distribution; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Labor and Management Relations; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Diversification; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet; Mobile Technology; Online Technology; Web; Web Sites; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Distribution Industry; Banking Industry; United States; Arkansas; Bentonville

25 Aug 2020
News

He's Seen It Before

Keywords: stock market; investment banking; bear markets; market timing; Securities, Commodities, and Other Financial Investments; Finance

April 2011
Case

Designs by Kate: The Power of Direct Sales

By: John A. Deighton and Sarah Abbott

The sales representatives at Designs by Kate (DBK) sell private label jewelry at hosted parties and through online social media channels. They are also responsible for recruiting, training, and managing new sales reps. CEO and founder Kate Creevey designed the... View Details

Keywords: Direct Sales; Consumer Marketing; Marketing Management; Personal Selling; Sales Compensation; Sales Organization; Motivation and Incentives; Marketing Strategy; Salesforce Management; Performance; Compensation and Benefits; Apparel and Accessories Industry

November–December 2021
Article

Does Gender Matter? The Effect of Management Responses on Reviewing Behavior

By: Davide Proserpio, Isamar Troncoso and Francesca Valsesia

We study the effect of management responses on the reviewing behavior of self-identified female and male reviewers. Using data from Tripadvisor, we show that after hotels begin to respond to reviews, the probability that a negative review comes from a self-identified... View Details

Keywords: Word Of Mouth; Online Reviews; Management Responses; E-commerce; Gender; Prejudice and Bias; Digital Platforms; Customers

SSRN

Find at Harvard

September 2014 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Doing Business in Morocco

By: Jill Avery, Tonia Junker and Daniela Beyersdorfer

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Morocco. It highlights Morocco's ongoing economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2014 in the context of its historical, political, and cultural background. The case summarizes some of... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market; Emerging Economies; Africa; Global Strategy; Operations Management; Development Economics; Geographic Scope; Globalization; Business History; Emerging Markets; Market Entry and Exit; Operations; Strategy; Auto Industry; Africa; Morocco

14 Apr 2020
News

COVID-19, Global Markets, and Global Macroeconomic Policy Responses: Financial Markets and the Fed in the COVID-19 Pandemic

April 2013 (Revised November 2013)
Case

Microsoft in Korea

By: Jordan I. Siegel and Lynn Pyun

Microsoft Korea sees a potential opportunity to dramatically improve its subsidiary's performance by actively recruiting and promoting female senior managers in South Korea. The question is to what extent multinationals can gain competitive advantage by actively... View Details

Keywords: Global; International Business; Multinational Management; Human Resource Management; Labor Market; Global Human Resource Management; Microsoft; South Korea; Asia; East Asia; Human Resources; Strategy; Global Strategy; Computer Industry; South Korea; East Asia

Research Summary

Overview

Professor MacKay combines theory and measurement to deliver new insights about price competition and consumer preferences. In current and published papers, his research addresses how strategic pricing decisions may be influenced by algorithms, long-term contracts,... View Details

Keywords: Price Effects; Competition Policy; Algorithms; Online Competition; Dynamic Pricing; Beliefs; Preferences; Preference Heterogeneity; Preference Measurement; Competition; Microeconomics; Strategy; Integration; Cooperation

November 2017 (Revised October 2018)
Case

Brandless: Disrupting Consumer Packaged Goods

By: Jill Avery

Brandless, an online direct-to-consumer seller of upscale private-label consumer packaged goods, offered consumers a limited assortment of values-conscious products delivered directly to their homes with the simplicity of one fixed $3 price point that promised an... View Details