Publications

August 2004 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Allianz (A1): An Insurer Acquiring a Bank?

By: Joseph L. Bower, Marc L. Bertoneche, Anders Sjoman and Sonja Ellingson Hout

The deal of the year in 2002, was the acquisition of Dresdner Bank by Allianz. Written from the perspectives of Allianz's CEO, Henning Schulte-Noelle, before and after the deal and a regional manager implementing the concept of a full-line financial service provider.... View Details

Keywords: Management; Corporate Strategy; Problems and Challenges; Acquisition; Financial Institutions; Corporate Finance; Banking Industry; Germany

February 1998
Teaching Note

Aladdin Knowledge Systems TN

By: Das Narayandas

Teaching Note for (9-598-018). View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Competition; Marketing; Sales; Distribution; Safety; Globalization; Integration; Information Technology Industry; Europe; United States

April 1986 (Revised May 1988)
Case

Sun Microsystems, Inc. (B)

By: Kim B. Clark

Dissects the manufacturing process and procedures of a high-end computer manufacturer. The main issue is how to introduce new products and ramp them up quickly in a competitive environment where time-to-market is crucial. Focuses on engineering change orders--how they... View Details

Keywords: Factories, Labs, and Plants; Time Management; Product Launch; Production; Business Processes; Competitive Strategy; Computer Industry

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14 Apr 2021
News

Eliminate Strategic Overload

13 Dec 2021
News

Great Leaders Embody These 4 Principles, According to Best Buy's Former CEO

Alan L. Wurtzel

superstore concept in electronics retailing) and a smaller, portable brand-name electronics storefront. Wurtzel perfected this merchandising strategy as his chain expanded throughout the United States, and under his direction, the firm’s... View Details

Keywords: Retail

March 1991 (Revised December 1994)
Case

Marks and Spencer Ltd. (B)

By: Cynthia A. Montgomery

Describes the firm's 1988 expansion into the United States through the acquisition of Brooks Brothers, a specialty up-market men's clothing chain and Kings Super Markets, a high quality New Jersey grocer. View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Expansion; Business Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Globalization; Retail Industry; United States

17 May 2011
First Look

First Look: May 17

http://papers.nber.org/papers/w16922 Historical Trajectories and Corporate Competences in Wind Energy Authors:Geoffrey Jones and Loubna Bouamane Abstract This working paper surveys the business history of the global wind energy turbine... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Mar 2017
News

Case Study: Moment in the Sun

business development in the medical field, which is much more complicated, does not mean that Brian should take his focus away from hospitality. One should make use of the opportunities one is getting and consider every... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell

01 Sep 2009
News

New Executive Education Programs

and the economy. Among the new offerings are Building Businesses in Turbulent Times, Opportunities in Mortgage Markets, the Global Energy Seminar, Business Strategy for... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

08 Apr 2015
What Do You Think?

Are Technology Companies Ripe for Disruption?

competitors locked into a product development strategy calling for growth through product obsolescence and more and more largely unused but expensive bells and whistles. We're told that the typical user of information technology today... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Computer; Technology

Web

Lead with Research | Working Knowledge

Lead with Research Harness emerging faculty research insights to empower your leadership and spark innovation. Navigating Tariffs Harvard Business School faculty explain how U.S. tariffs affect SMEs, supply chains, and prices—and offer... View Details

28 Jan 2015
Research & Ideas

Ground Game, Air Wars, and Other Marketing Lessons From Presidential Elections

New research from Harvard Business School shows that mass advertising is better at swaying undecided consumers while face-to-face personal selling is more suited at closing the deal for those already leaning toward a particular product.... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

18 Jul 2014
News

Team Players

acquired at HBS turned out to be critical in the position," says Lehrer, "and with both of us having been through the case study method, Amy and I often approached things from the same point of view." The core marketing strategy that... View Details

Keywords: Robert S. Benchley; Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Arts, Entertainment; Management of Companies and Enterprises; Management

November 1996 (Revised December 1996)
Case

SAP America

By: David A. Garvin and Artemis March

SAP America has grown at an explosive rate. This case describes the company's strategy, organization, and culture, with special attention to its approach to partnering and its sales and consulting process, which have been instrumental in allowing growth to proceed. Now... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Change Management; Entrepreneurship; Growth Management; Demand and Consumers; Organizational Culture; Alliances; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; United States

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October 1998 (Revised September 1999)
Case

Mercedes-Benz in Alabama: Lessons from the Field

By: William J. Bruns Jr., Carin-Isabel Knoop and Anthony St. George

Details the establishment of the Mercedes Benz M-Class plant in Vance, AL. The plant was established as an independent "teaching field" for parent company Daimler Benz. The case reviews the different lessons from the plant and looks at issues going forward,... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Banks and Banking; Integration; Horizontal Integration; Business Ventures; Teaching; Organizational Structure; Auto Industry; Alabama

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May 2008 (Revised March 2010)
Supplement

Palm (B): 2001

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Kevin Boudreau and Jordan Mitchell

This case series looks at three important inflection points in Palm's history that relate to decisions about its platform: when the company was debating whether to open its operating system (OS) for licensing to third-party hardware manufacturers; 2001, when the... View Details

Keywords: History; Decisions; Business Model; Technological Innovation; Strategy; Value Creation; Digital Platforms; Rights; Competition; Computer Industry

May 1997 (Revised July 1997)
Case

Vermeer Technologies (C): Negotiating the Future

By: Ashish Nanda

The success of the Vermeer software offering suddenly transforms the start-up into a sought after company. After arduous negotiations, Vermeer management is faced with the choice of continuing as an independent company or being acquired by Microsoft or Netscape. View Details

Keywords: Negotiation; Applications and Software; Decision Making; Acquisition; Business Startups; Business Strategy; Information Technology Industry