Publications

June 2004 (Revised September 2007)
Case

Zara: IT for Fast Fashion

In 2003, Zara's CIO must decide whether to upgrade the retailer's IT infrastructure and capabilities. At the time of the case, the company relies on an out-of-date operating system for its store terminals and has no full-time network in place across stores. Despite... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Customer Value and Value Chain; Information Management; Infrastructure; Supply Chain Management; Information Technology; Retail Industry

December 2014 (Revised February 2023)
Module Note

Legal Analysis: Customers

By: Lena G. Goldberg

This Note introduces the Module on Responsibilities to Customers taught in Leadership and Corporate Accountability, a required course in the Harvard Business School MBA program. The Note outlines the asymmetries inherent in the company-customer relationship and... View Details

Keywords: Customers; Corporate Accountability; Ethics; Legal Liability; Customer Relationship Management

28 Feb 2022
Blog Post

Making an Impact on the Media Industry with my MBA

you decide an MBA was the next step for you? I spent a solid amount of time building a real foundation and taking on new responsibilities at WME while witnessing a lot of change on an industry level. After such an incredible experience... View Details

May 2007 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Netflix

By: Willy C. Shih, Stephen P. Kaufman and David Spinola

Reed Hastings founded Netflix with a vision to provide a home movie service that would do a better job satisfying customers than the traditional retail rental model. But as it encouraged challenges it underwent several major strategy shifts, ultimately developing a... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Film Entertainment; Disruptive Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Distribution Channels; Service Delivery; Renting or Rental; Competitive Strategy; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

January 2004 (Revised June 2004)
Case

Friendly Fire

By: Scott A. Snook, Leslie J. Freeman, L. Jeffrey Norwalk and Bridget Gurtler

On April 14, 1994, two U.S. Air Force F-15 fighters accidentally shot down two U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopters over Northern Iraq, killing all 26 peacekeepers onboard. Describes the initial investigation and response to this accident and raises questions about the... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Style; Management Skills; Behavior; Spoken Communication; United States; Iraq

September 2017 (Revised November 2018)
Case

Marriott International: The Next 90 Years

By: Chiara Farronato and Gary Pisano

The case examines how Marriott should respond to the potential threats from new home-sharing platforms and the rise of online travel agencies. In 2017 Marriott was the largest hotel chain, with more than one million rooms and 7% of worldwide room supply. In the... View Details

01 Nov 2019
Video

José Alejandro Cortés

José Alejandro Cortés, President of the Colombia-based diversified business group Grupo Bolìvar, discusses the responsibilities of corporations beyond serving shareholders, especially serving the poor and the... View Details

April 2018
Case

Ferrari

By: Stefan Thomke, Elena Corsi and Ashok Nimgade

Ferrari is among the world’s most powerful brands, but how the company operates has remained mysterious. The case reveals the inner workings of the company—the Ferrari Way—from the way it designs, produces, and markets its cars, to how its leadership team is driving... View Details

Keywords: Growth; Innovation; Technology Adoption; Product Design; Business Strategy; Technological Innovation; Operations; Management; Growth and Development; Auto Industry

Research Summary

Research Assistant to Joshua D. Margolis, Harvard Business School, Organizational Behavior, 2006-2008

Speaking up and being heard in organizations
Experimental research on emotions and response to ethical feedback

View Details

August 2021
Case

Danone S.A.: Becoming a Mission-Driven Company (A)

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Emilie Billaud

Emmanuel Faber became CEO of Danone SA, the French food and beverage company, in 2014. Right from the start, he ran the company with a dual commitment to both profit and purpose (i.e., ESG objectives). In fact, in 2018, he said, “It’s time to make sustainable business... View Details

Keywords: Business and Stakeholder Relations; Corporate Governance; Leadership; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Environmental Sustainability; Goals and Objectives; Consumer Products Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; France; Europe

March 2001 (Revised August 2003)
Case

Wilkerson Company

By: Robert S. Kaplan

The president of Wilkerson, faced with declining profits, is struggling to understand why the company is encountering severe price competition on one product line while able to raise prices without competitive response on another product line. The controller proposes... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Competition; Profit; Product; Consumer Products Industry

2009
Working Paper

Corporate Social Entrepreneurship

By: James E. Austin and Ezequiel Reficco

Corporate Social Entrepreneurship (CSE) is a process aimed at enabling business to develop more advanced and powerful forms of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship

Read Now

19 Nov 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Lessons from IBM in Nazi Germany

Keywords: Re: Geoffrey G. Jones; Information Technology

January–February 2015
Article

The Truth about CSR

By: Kasturi Rangan, Lisa Chase and Sohel Karim

The article discusses corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. In the authors' view many of these programs consist of disparate, uncoordinated initiatives that fail to maximize their impact. They recommend a more coherent strategy that divides CSR efforts into... View Details