Publications

March 2020 (Revised March 2022)
Case

Wachtell Lipton: Focused Excellence

By: Ashish Nanda and Margaret Cross

For years, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz—a small, New York City law firm—has consistently boasted the highest profits per partner and one of the highest “prestige” ratings among U.S.-based law firms. The firm has remained loyal to a distinctive strategy ever since its... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Law; Mergers and Acquisitions; Legal Services Industry; New York (city, NY)

David Thomas is H. Naylor Fitzhugh Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. His research addresses issues related to executive development, cultural diversity in organizations, leadership and organizational change. He recently served as a... View Details

Keywords: biotechnology; consulting; consumer products; education industry; financial services; media

Web

Business Finance Course Online | HBS Online

Featured Exercises Market-to-book ratios exercises Match companies to their cost of debt and industries to their betas 6-7 hrs Module 5 Valuation Determine how the future affects value today, compare various valuation methods, and discuss potential risks involved in... View Details

June 2022 (Revised November 2023)
Case

Individual FoodService, Kelso, and Ken Sweder

By: Jo Tango and Alys Ferragamo

When and how much risk to take? In October 2020, Ken Sweder, CEO of Individual FoodService (“IFS”), contemplated this question as he evaluated a proposal to acquire Brady Industries, a distributor of janitorial and sanitation products. Sweder and his private equity... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Risk Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Value Creation; Business Divisions

08 Jul 2019
Research & Ideas

Are Paywalls Saving Newspapers?

jobs across the country and a slew of mergers and acquisitions as companies struggle to regain financial footing. As of 2015, 78 percent of US print media firms with a daily circulation of over 50,000 were using a digital subscription... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Journalism & News; Media & Broadcasting

Web

Morgan Hall | About

and restoring troubled businesses to profitability became widely known, and investors were eager to support his ventures. J.P. Morgan & Company organized and financed some of the largest corporate mergers of the early 20th century,... View Details

Web

The 20th Century Zeitgeist - Leadership

Rationing Influence: Medium-Low 50 1950 s 19 Military spending shifts to nuclear deterrents Small Business Administration created Influence: Medium 60 1960 s 19 Great Society Consumer and environmental protection movements strengthen Vehicle Safety Act and Highway... View Details

15 Jul 2019
Book

Many Executives Are Afraid of Finance. Here's How They Can Gain Confidence

and how investors can disagree so sharply on controversial companies ranging from Netflix to Uber to Tesla. Gerdeman: When a company has a lot of cash, a CEO can choose to grow the company organically—through expansion—or inorganically—through View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

23 May 2018
News

Carla A. Harris, MBA 1987

talking about great things,” says Harris, who, two years later, enrolled at HBS as a first-year student. Harris thrived at HBS, and the experience launched her career at Morgan Stanley. She joined in 1987 and worked her way up, holding positions in View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

February 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Case

Roche's Acquisition of Genentech

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin, Bo Becker and Vincent Marie Dessain

Franz Humer, CEO of the Roche Group, must decide whether to mount a hostile tender offer for the publicly-owned shares of Roche's biotechnology subsidiary, Genentech. The case provides opportunities to analyze Roche's strategy with respect to Genentech, the pros and... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Subsidiaries; Negotiation Offer; Organizational Culture; Corporate Strategy; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; Switzerland

April 2006 (Revised September 2009)
Case

BYD Company, Ltd.

By: Robert S. Huckman and Alan D. MacCormack

Considers whether BYD Co., Ltd., the largest Chinese maker of rechargeable batteries, should enter the Chinese automobile industry by acquiring Qinchuan Auto, a state-owned car manufacturer. Set just after BYD's initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Labor; Production; Competitive Advantage; Diversification; Auto Industry; Battery Industry; Manufacturing Industry; China

01 Feb 1999
News

Too Much of a Good Thing?

solve overcapacity dilemmas elsewhere in the world. Jensen, arguing for the salutary effects of the financial markets, says that merger and takeover activity - "the market for corporate control" - can, if it is permitted to, perform this... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons

Web

Poor’s Manual: The Rise of Business Analysts - Railroads and the Transformation of Capitalism | Harvard Business School

Railroads Finance Management Business Analysts Mass Distribution Mergers & Syndicates Research Links Poor’s Manual: The Rise of Business Analysts New systems of accounting facilitated the oversight of complex financial transactions and... View Details

November 2023
Case

Tata Group in 2021: Pursuing Profits through Purpose

By: Tarun Khanna, Krishna G. Palepu and Vidhya Muthuram

October 8, 2021: Tata Sons won a bid to acquire India’s national carrier Air India, marking the airline's return to its original owners after 68 long years. The winning bid of $2.4 billion gave Tata Sons full ownership of the airline and its coveted network of 6,200... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Mission and Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Emerging Markets; Mergers and Acquisitions; Ownership; Air Transportation; Air Transportation Industry; India

Web

New Levels of Capitalism: Finance - Railroads and the Transformation of Capitalism | Harvard Business School

Railroads Finance Management Business Analysts Mass Distribution Mergers & Syndicates Research Links New Levels of Capitalism: Finance The rapidly growing industry required an extraordinary amount of capital for construction and... View Details

09 Feb 2021
News

Investing in Entrepreneurship

that gave Venrock 10 percent of the company—his reputation for integrity, hard work, and picking people is what he finds most satisfying. “No Venrock company ever went bankrupt,” he noted in the Computer History Museum interview. “However, we had some ‘respectable... View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

October 2020 (Revised July 2023)
Case

The Walt Disney Company: The 21st Century Fox Acquisition and Digital Distribution

By: David J. Collis

This case describes the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by the Walt Disney Company and the subsequent launch by Disney of three streaming channels to compete with Netflix. View Details

Keywords: Disney; Streaming; Corporate Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Distribution; Competitive Strategy; Vertical Integration; Media and Broadcasting Industry