Publications

Educators

23 Apr 2015
News

The unusual and kind of brilliant way Pret A Manger thanks its customers

8 Aug 1990 - 12 Aug 1990
Conference Presentation

Multidimensional Scaling of DSM-III Personality Disorders in Two Populations

By: W. B. Simpson, M. J. Lyons, L. Young and M. T. Tsuang

Keywords: Health; Health Disorders; Demographics

Web

Using Personal Devices for HBS Business | Information Technology

Personal Device Requirements Any device which will be used for HBS business or connect to HBS systems, data must adhere to the requirements listed in the Minimum Security Responsibilities: Computers and... View Details

Forthcoming
Article

Engaging Customers with AI in Online Chats: Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment

By: Shunyuan Zhang and Das Narayandas

We examine how artificial intelligence (AI) affected the productivity of customer service agents and customer sentiment in online interactions. Collaborating with a meal delivery company, we conducted a randomized field experiment that exploited exogenous variation in... View Details

Keywords: AI and Machine Learning; Customer Focus and Relationships; Performance Efficiency

24 Apr 2014
News

Finding a cure for cancer became a personal mission

Thai Lee (MBA 1985), president and CEO of SHI International, talks about how a family crisis led her to funding cancer research. (Published April 2014) View Details

27 Mar 2015
News

Company Thinks It Has Answer for Lower Health Costs: Customer Service

Article

Put the Customer Back in the Boardroom

By: John A. Quelch and Gail J. McGovern

Web

Buy Now, Pay Later: A History of Personal Credit

HBS Quick Links MBA Executive Education Doctoral Programs Faculty and Research Alumni HBS Publishing Site Index HBS Home Contact Us Map/Directions Introduction Credit in Pre-Industrial Society Credit and the... View Details

2012
Book

Uncommon Service: How to Win by Putting Customers at the Core of Your Business

By: Frances Frei and Anne Morriss

Most companies treat service as a low-priority business operation, keeping it out of the spotlight until a customer complains. Then service gets to make a brief appearance—for as long as it takes to calm the customer down and fix whatever foul-up jeopardized the... View Details

Keywords: Customers; Business Ventures

March 2015
Teaching Note

Cynthia Carroll at Anglo American (A), (B), and (C)

By: Gautam Mukunda

This is a teaching note for the Cynthia Carroll at Anglo American case. It describes how to teach the case to demonstrate theories of leading change and Leader Filtration Theory. The case is a dramatic story of organizational transformation as Carroll attempts to... View Details

Keywords: Leadership And Change Management; Leadership, Personal Strategy ＆ Style; Change Management; Change; Safety; Organizational Culture; Leadership; Leadership Style; Mining Industry; South Africa

05 Jun 2019
News

When Customers Want to See the Human Behind the Product

24 Oct 2023
Research & Ideas

When Tech Platforms Identify Black-Owned Businesses, White Customers Buy

Democratic-leaning areas. And new customers of Black-owned businesses were more likely to be white, based on an analysis of reviewers’ profile photos, relative to prior customers. Luca View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Food & Beverage

August 1977
Article

The Effects of Communication and Information Availability in an Experimental Study of a Three Person Game

By: J. K. Murnighan and A. E. Roth

Keywords: Communication; Information; Games, Gaming, and Gambling

November 2004
Article

The Persistence of Customer Profitability: Empirical Evidence and Implications from a Financial Services Firm

By: Dennis Campbell and Frances X. Frei

Keywords: Customers; Markets; Information; Finance; Business Ventures; Profit; Financial Services Industry

Read Now

01 Mar 2019
News

Required Reading: The Keys for Unlocking the Customer Value Chain

September 2018 (Revised March 2019)
Case

National Australia Bank: Looking Out for the Customer

By: Mark R. Kramer and Hugh Foley

After learning that most defaults were due to health, job or marital problems, National Australia Bank revised its debt collection department to shift from penalizing people in default to assisting them in developing a work-out plan, enabling more than 90% to meet... View Details

Keywords: Banks and Banking; Borrowing and Debt; Customer Focus and Relationships; Success; Australia

Educators

December 1985
Article

Gender and Sex-Role Attributes as Predictors of Utilization of Natural Support Systems During Personal Stress Events

By: Timothy Butler, Steven Giordano and Steven Neren

Keywords: System; Health; Gender

Research Summary

Overview

By: Ryan W. Buell

From creating flight itineraries online, to interacting with tellers to complete complex banking transactions, to engaging with the government to address civic problems, customers are playing an increasingly vital role in the performance of operations in a broadening... View Details

Forthcoming
Article

Mitigating the Negative Effects of Customer Anxiety Through Access to Human Contact

By: Michelle A. Kinch and Ryan W. Buell

Prior research in social psychology has shown that when people feel anxious, they seek advice from others. However, companies that operate in high-anxiety settings (like financial services, health care, and education) are increasingly deploying self-service... View Details

Keywords: Anxiety; Self-service; Empirical Operations; Behavioral Operations; Communication Technology; Behavior; Customer Focus and Relationships; Trust; Satisfaction; Financial Services Industry