Publications

July 2008 (Revised April 2009)
Background Note

Horizontal Specialization and Modularity in the Semiconductor Industry

By: Willy C. Shih, Chintay Shih and Chen-Fu Chien

Well-codified interfaces have enabled horizontal specialization in the global semiconductor industry. This Technical Note describes the modern integrated circuit value chain, and the motivation for the reuse of blocks of intellectual property in modern IC designs. It... View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Intellectual Property; Industry Structures; Horizontal Integration; Semiconductor Industry

Program

Strategic Marketing for Driving Growth

marketing principles and strategies that enable you to build and sustain a leading edge in your industry—and catapult your business to the next level. You will emerge with the advanced skills needed to generate more value for customers,... View Details

15 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Businesses Beware: The World Is Not Flat

view of such differences, to figure out the ones that matter the most in your industry, and to look at them not just as difficulties to be overcome but also as potential sources of value creation. Q: You say Toyota is an example of a... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

August 2017 (Revised May 2019)
Case

Hilti (A): Fleet Management?

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Oliver Gassmann and Roman Sauer

This case explores the strategic decision-making process of premium power tools manufacturer Hilti in 1999, when the company was considering implementing a fleet management system in the construction industry. Fleet management would involve a shift from selling power... View Details

June 2008
Case

System on a Chip 2008: Global Unichip Corp.

By: Willy C. Shih, Chintay Shih, Chen-Fu Chien and Yuan-Chieh Chang

Though much of the semiconductor industry has shifted to a horizontal model, complexity driven by technological evolution is driving a shift in the perceived boundaries in the value chain. Global Unichip sees itself as a "virtual integrated device manufacturer," a... View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Boundaries; Semiconductor Industry

Find at Harvard

02 May 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research: May 2, 2017

April 14, 2017 Harvard Business Review Companies Like United Need to Cultivate Good Judgment, and Free Their Employees to Use It By: Deighton, John A. Abstract—United Airlines has pledged to improve its training programs and empower its employees to put View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

06 Dec 2016
First Look

December 6, 2016

cultural values (perceived social mobility) and differences among cultures (North America vs. Europe) to demonstrate moderators and boundary conditions of the positive associations derived from signals of busyness. Publisher's link:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

Marketing - Doctoral

De Freitas Jacqueline Ng Lane George Serafeim Isamar Troncoso Shunyuan Zhang Big data Alberto F. Cavallo Business marketing Das Narayandas V. Kasturi Rangan Consumer behavior Leslie K. John Michael I. Norton Consumer psychology Julian De Freitas Michael I. Norton View Details

29 Oct 2008
Research & Ideas

The Next Marketing Challenge: Selling to ’Simplifiers’

sales depend on two things: the launch of new, higher-priced, higher-featured, often customized products that persuade consumers to trade in their existing appliances before they break down (think cellphones), as well as household... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch; Retail; Consumer Products; Entertainment & Recreation

January 2025
Case

Driving Efficiency and Sustainability at P&G China

By: Feng Zhu, Philip Kuai and Billy Chan

P&G China’s business had reached new heights thanks to the explosive growth of e-commerce in the country, but the rapidly increasing volume of shipments to customers had created operational and environmental challenges in terms of packaging waste, shipping damage, and... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Customer Value and Value Chain; Environmental Sustainability; E-commerce; Logistics; Product Design; Value Creation; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Supply Chain Management; Consumer Products Industry; China

April 2025
Case

Thrivent: From Insurance Agents to Financial Advisors

By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Tom Quinn

Thrivent, a midwestern financial services company with a centuries-long history rooted in Lutheranism, had reached $10 billion in revenue mostly by selling life insurance. In the 2020s, however, CEO Terry Rasmussen began a transformation process centered around the... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Talent and Talent Management; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Value and Value Chain; Forecasting and Prediction; Employee Relationship Management; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Job Design and Levels; Human Capital; Leading Change; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Insurance Industry; Financial Services Industry; United States; Minneapolis

March 2015
Teaching Note

CVS Health: Promoting Drug Adherence

By: Leslie John, John Quelch and Robert Huckman

Email mking@hbs.edu for a courtesy copy.

This Teaching Note explains the theory of the case and teaching plan for the case: CVS Health: Promoting Drug Adherence (515010). The case finds Helena Foulkes, Executive... View Details

October 2020 (Revised March 2021)
Supplement

Migros Turkey: Scaling Online Operations During COVID-19 (C)

By: Antonio Moreno and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in August 2020 as Ozgur Tort and Mustafa Bartin, CEO and chief large-format and online retail officer of Migros Ticaret A.S. (Migros), Turkey’s oldest and one of its largest supermarket chains, are navigating Migros through COVID-19 and the unprecedented... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Strategy; Digital Platforms; Information Technology; Technology Adoption; Value Creation; Globalization; Competition; Expansion; Logistics; Profit; Resource Allocation; Diversification; Corporate Strategy; Crisis Management; Health Pandemics; Strategic Planning; Food and Beverage Industry; Turkey

13 Jan 2003
Research & Ideas

The Subconscious Mind of the Consumer (And How To Reach It)

Harvard Business School professor Gerald Zaltman's latest book, How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market, delves into the subconscious mind of the consumer—the place where most purchasing decisions are made. The... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Mahoney

08 Sep 2015
First Look

September 8, 2015

the need for increased upfront financing, but this protection lowers the real option value of the new venture. In equilibrium, financing risk disproportionately impacts innovative ventures with the greatest real option value. We propose... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

December 2014
Article

The Discipline of Business Experimentation

By: Stefan Thomke and Jim Manzi

The data you already have can't tell you how customers will react to innovations. To discover if a truly novel concept will succeed, you must subject it to a rigorous experiment. In most companies, tests do not adhere to scientific and statistical principles. As a... View Details

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Register to Read

17 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 17, 2018

economy. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54694 in press Journal of Social and Personal Relationships Valuing Time Over Money Is Associated with Greater Social Connection By: Whillans, A.V., and Elizabeth... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

September 2021 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Bühler: Mobilizing Industry around a Common Purpose

By: Ranjay Gulati, Franz Wohlgezogen and Malini Sen

Bühler Group, a Swiss multinational processing technology provider, started by selling machines for processing grains and later transitioned into selling food processing solutions. A family-owned business in the fifth generation, Bühler’s high-end milling, grinding,... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Customer Focus and Relationships; Machinery and Machining; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Innovation Leadership; Switzerland