Publications

February 1990 (Revised July 1992)
Case

Whistler Corp. (A)

By: Gary P. Pisano

Describes the circumstances surrounding Whistler Corp.'s decision whether or not to continue manufacturing operations in the United States. The company had been experiencing severe problems in its domestic manufacturing operations and was thus unable to compete with... View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Production; Problems and Challenges; Competitive Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

March 1985 (Revised November 1985)
Case

Wilmington Tap and Die

By: Robert S. Kaplan

The general manager of a division manufacturing taps and dies must decide whether to continue a major capital investment program. The program was designed to replace aging mechanical machines with modern, electronically controlled equipment. A post-audit, after an... View Details

Keywords: Capital Budgeting; Investment; Accounting Audits; Cost Management; Technological Innovation; Information Technology; Performance Productivity; Production; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Manufacturing Industry

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23 May 2019
News

Harvard Business School, BCG Researchers: Workers Optimistic While Business Leaders Struggle to Grasp Forces Changing the Workforce

February 2004 (Revised March 2006)
Case

Pratt & Whitney: Engineering Standard Work

By: H. Kent Bowen and Courtney Purrington

As the engineering of state-of-the-art jet engines becomes more and more complex, Pratt & Whitney leaders face major competitive problems. Product development projects are not meeting the cost, quality, and lead-time targets. The leadership develops a design,... View Details

Keywords: Design; Engineering; Cost; Knowledge Management; Time Management; Product Launch; Standards; Product Development; Problems and Challenges; Quality; Creativity; Competitive Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

26 Oct 2020
News

Great promise but potential for peril

July 2004 (Revised July 2020)
Case

Hines Goes to Rio

By: Arthur I Segel and Ricardo Reisen De Pinho

The Torre Almirante office tower, Hines' newest project in Rio de Janeiro, was a 36-story, Class AA office tower with an adjoining 420-stall parking structure and a preserved 14-story historic facade. It was completely different from anything that had previously been... View Details

Keywords: Property; Design; Construction; Buildings and Facilities; Risk Management; Problems and Challenges; Real Estate Industry; Brazil; New York (city, NY)

Bill Vrattos is a Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Business School, where he teaches Investment Strategies, a course on public market investing in the elective curriculum. He also co-teaches Private Equity Projects and Ecosystems, where he mentors student groups on... View Details

September 2015 (Revised March 2016)
Case

Intuit: Turbo Tax PersonalPro - A Tale of Two Entrepreneurs

By: Shikhar Ghosh, Joseph Fuller and Michael Roberts

The case provides a vehicle for teaching about both corporate intrapreneurship and the use of lean startup methods. It tells the story of a product manager within Intuit who develops an idea for a new product that spans two of the company's existing business... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Business or Company Management; Applications and Software; Accounting; Product Development; Financial Services Industry

May 2020
Case

M-Lab: Enabling Innovation at Mitsubishi Corporation

By: Krishna Palepu and Allison M. Ciechanover

M-Lab’s founding goals were to infuse an innovation mindset into Mitsubishi Corporation; to catalyze new business opportunities; and to enable a dialogue between Japanese business and Silicon Valley. M-Lab housed representatives from each of Mitsubishi Corporation’s... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Disruption; Transformation; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Multinational Firms and Management; Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Japan; United States

January 2009 (Revised June 2014)
Case

CityCenter (A): Vision and Design

By: A. Eugene Kohn, John D. Macomber and Ben Creo

CityCenter is a $9 billion project for MGM MIRAGE. The project's star architects have a major disagreement about a critical design issue. Bill Smith, head of the MGM MIRAGE Design Group, must resolve this issue to the satisfaction of all the project's stakeholders.... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Cost vs Benefits; Design; Construction; Projects; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Conflict Management; Value Creation

May 2007
Article

The Governance of Open Source Initiatives: What Does it Mean to be Community Managed?

The concept of 'open source' software initially referred to software projects managed by grassroots communities in public forums. Since 1998, the concept has been adapted and diffused to new settings that extend beyond software. While the open source community has... View Details

Keywords: Governance; Open Source Distribution

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03 Jun 2002
Research & Ideas

How to Succeed With Your New Boss

your mandate and negotiate for resources is a clear early priority. Defining Your Goals When you think about working with your new boss, keep the following goals in mind: Clarify mutual expectations early. Begin managing expectations... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Watkins

2013
Working Paper

Helping You Help Me: The Role of Diagnostic (In)congruence in the Helping Process within Organizations

By: Colin M. Fisher, Julianna Pillemer and Teresa M. Amabile

Through an inductive, multi-method field study at a major design firm, we investigated the helping process in project work and how that process affects the success of a helping episode, as perceived by help-givers and/or -receivers. We used daily diary entries and... View Details

Keywords: Groups and Teams; Knowledge Management; Performance; Cooperation