Publications

February 2017 (Revised August 2018)
Case

Sarah Powers at Automated Precision Products

By: Jeffrey T. Polzer, Michael Norris, Julia Kelley and Kristina Tobio

In 2017, Sarah Powers, VP of Sales at an automation hardware firm, is trying to understand why some members of her sales team have been underperforming. She is tasked with analyzing her firm’s email and calendar data to try to find relationships between communications... View Details

Keywords: People Analytics; Sales Attainment; Communication Networks; Data; Human Resources; Business Processes; Sales; Communication; Analytics and Data Science; Analysis; Manufacturing Industry; Manufacturing Industry; United States

September 2005 (Revised June 2012)
Case

New Songdo City

By: Arthur I Segel, Brandon Blaser, Gerardo Garza, Albert Kim, John Richard and Andrew Murphy

The government of South Korea has chosen John Hynes and Gale International to construct New Songdo City. This is an entirely new city, about the size of Boston, between the new Incheon airport and the capital of Seoul. The proposed city is the government's attempt to... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Urban Development; Construction; Design; Climate Change; South Korea

Research Summary

Overview

By: Andy Wu

How can technology entrepreneurs build competitive advantage from the ground up? Professor Andy Wu conducts scholarly research and develops course materials that document how technology entrepreneurs can (1) organize for innovation to create new market opportunities... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Growth Management; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Technology Platform; Technological Innovation; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; United States; China; Southeast Asia; South Asia

January 1998
Case

Transformation at Ernst & Young, United Kingdom

By: John J. Gabarro and Samantha Graff

Describes a major organizational transformation process at Ernst & Young, United Kingdom, and the events leading up to the first deal since its introduction. Raises questions of leadership, organizational design, and organizational change. View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Change Management; Leadership; Organizational Design; Restructuring; Accounting Industry; United Kingdom

Find at Harvard

January 1980 (Revised August 1986)
Case

General Electric vs. Westinghouse in Large Turbine Generators (A)

By: Michael E. Porter

Describes the U.S. large turbine generator industry in early 1963, a period of severe price cutting and depressed industry conditions. Presents data to allow a structural analysis of the industry and an analysis of the strategies of the major players since 1946. The... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Customer Focus and Relationships; Machinery and Machining; Cost Management; Price; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Marketing Strategy; Industry Structures; Competition; Manufacturing Industry; United States

16 Jun 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Does Diversification Create Value in the Presence of External Financing Constraints? Evidence from the 2008-2009 Financial Crisis

Keywords: by Venkat Kuppuswamy & Belén Villalonga

October 2019 (Revised April 2020)
Background Note

Note on Funding Deep Tech Startups

By: Karim Lakhani, Peter Barrett and Noubar Afeyan

This Background Note provides essential information on funding deep technologies—those technologies that were inherently capital intensive, time consuming, risky, and potentially disruptive. Both dilutive and non-dilutive sources of investment are highlighted, along... View Details

01 Sep 2020
News

Good Odds

manufactured goods go to waste in the production process, Philip Behn says, because items come out too thick, too thin, or otherwise not perfect. “So we put our own private label on them and now we sell... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; food industry; Food Manufacturing; Food Manufacturing

21 Jun 2011
First Look

First Look: June 21

Design in Online Businesses Peter A. ColesHarvard Business School Note 911-066 "Market Design in Online Businesses" characterizes the challenges entrepreneurs may face in creating a... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2008
Supplement

Ti-Tech (B)

By: Benson P. Shapiro and John T. Gourville

This case concerns the selection and scheduling of orders by a small industrial titanium fabricator that recently has been plagued by poor deliveries and a lack of capacity. At the time of the case, Ti-Tech must decide which of four orders to accept, with capacity... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Production; Performance Capacity; Marketing Strategy; Bids and Bidding; Manufacturing Industry; Manufacturing Industry; United States

Research Summary

Overview

By: Ethan S. Bernstein

I have spent my career studying novel talent management practices and their effect on collaboration and performance. My core research focuses on two interrelated organizational trends that have become salient in the 21st century: workplace transparency (who gets to... View Details

August 1997 (Revised March 1998)
Case

Unilever's Butter-Beater: Innovation for Global Diversity

By: Clayton M. Christensen and Jorg Zobel

Unilever, one of the world's largest food product manufacturers, has achieved impressive growth in Europe, primarily by acquiring local food companies. Initially Unilever allowed each acquired company to manage its own product development in a way that was tailored to... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Brands and Branding; Product Development; Mergers and Acquisitions; Local Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Marketing Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Innovation and Management; Food; Conflict Management; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Europe

October 2002 (Revised February 2003)
Case

Joe Smith's Closing Analysis (A)

By: Lynda M. Applegate and Rakesh Khurana

Highlights giving and receiving feedback in an MBA classroom setting. View Details

Keywords: Design; System; Performance Evaluation

June 2021 (Revised October 2021)
Supplement

CFM International (B): LEAPing Into the Future

By: Ranjay Gulati, Yves Doz and Kerry Herman

By 2017, after a long and highly successful run, the joint venture CFM’s and its parent firms’ leadership faces new challenges and must once again reconsider their commitment to the JV. CFM’s engines have come to dominate the narrow body aircraft market, but technology... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Partners and Partnerships; Competitive Strategy; Decision Making; Technological Innovation; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Manufacturing Industry

22 May 2007
First Look

First Look: May 22, 2007

explore the use of more distributed institutional forms. In this article, we review the emerging scholarship on the formation and function of self-regulatory institutions. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/07-089.pdf... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

February 2023 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Doing Business in Boston, Massachusetts

By: Laura Alfaro, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Zeke Gillman

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Boston, Massachusetts while giving a broad history of the city and surrounding area. View Details

Keywords: Business History; Business and Government Relations; Technological Innovation; Economic Growth; Manufacturing Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Boston; Massachusetts