Publications

December 2019 (Revised January 2021)
Supplement

The Leveraged Buyout of TXU: (B) Energy Future Holdings

By: Trevor Fetter, Erik Snowberg and Rebecca M. Henderson

This case is designed to support a lively discussion about the relative merits of shareholder vs. stakeholder perspectives in the context of a company that provides a vital public service that has important environmental implications. The 2007 purchase of TXU, the... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Transformation; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Environmental Sustainability; Business and Shareholder Relations; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Energy Generation; Utilities Industry; Energy Industry; Texas

April 2002
Background Note

Consolidation of Highly Fragmented Service Industries, The

Designed to familiarize students with the consolidation of highly fragmented labor-dependent service industries, offering insights into service firm growth and the ways services can, and cannot, increase their efficiency and effectiveness. Two frameworks are presented... View Details

Keywords: Consolidation; Acquisition; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry

24 Nov 2003
Research & Ideas

Boards and Corporate Governance: A Balanced Scorecard Approach

A board's most important function is approval and oversight of strategy and of major strategic decisions, such as acquisitions and large capital expenditures. Boards are responsible for selecting (or... View Details

Keywords: Re: Robert S. Kaplan & Krishna G. Palepu

18 Mar 2014
First Look

First Look: March 18

may need "hot" financial markets to get through the initial period of discovery or diffusion. Download working paper: http://www.people.hbs.edu/mrhodeskropf/FinancingRiskandInnovation.pdf Cases & Course Materials Harvard Business School Case 114-049... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

08 Feb 2011
First Look

First Look: Feb. 8

Srikant M. Datar, and Madhav Rajan Publication:14th ed. Prentice Hall, forthcoming (2012) Abstract Emphasizing the "different costs for different purposes," this text focuses on strategy and the decision-making process.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

22 Feb 2022
News

Breaking News

the profession. Journalists are asking, Whom do we serve? How do we know what people think is important? Any good reader-revenue strategy has to be built around a real understanding of the audience and what motivates people to consume... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; illustration by Dana Smith; News, Library, Internet, and Other Services; Information

2015
Working Paper

Corporate Sponsorship in Culture—A Case of Partnership in Relationship Building and Collaborative Marketing by a Global Financial Institution and a Major Art Museum

By: Ragnar Lund and Stephen A. Greyser

Purpose: This paper examines cultural sponsorship from a partnership and relationship marketing perspective. It studies a case of how a partnership between two international institutions, a bank and a museum, adds value to both in terms of interaction with... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Partners and Partnerships; Marketing Strategy; Culture; Banks and Banking

Read Now

January 2025
Case

Redwood & Strong: The Value of a Consulting Engagement

By: David G. Fubini and Patrick Sanguineti

The board of Redwood & Strong LLP (R&S), the American branch of a large global law firm, is meeting to review the findings of a recent strategic initiative designed to identify potential merger candidates. The request for the engagement originated from Daniel Crawford,... View Details

Keywords: Client Service; Professional Service Firm; Professional Services; Consulting; Mergers and Acquisitions; Governing and Advisory Boards; Reports; Strategic Planning; Value; Consulting Industry; Legal Services Industry; United States

2009
Working Paper

Virtual Team Learning: Reflecting and Acting, Alone or With Others

By: Deborah L. Soule and Lynda M. Applegate

This paper examines virtual team learning in new product development situations. New product development activities manifest novelty, uncertainty and complexity, presenting an extreme need for learning in the course of the work. We present data from an exploratory... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Learning; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Product Development; Groups and Teams; Behavior

Read Now

23 May 2018
News

Carla A. Harris, MBA 1987

talking about great things,” says Harris, who, two years later, enrolled at HBS as a first-year student. Harris thrived at HBS, and the experience launched her career at Morgan Stanley. She joined in 1987 and worked her way up, holding positions in mergers and View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

April 2001 (Revised March 2002)
Case

Seagate Technology Buyout

By: Gregor M. Andrade, Stuart C. Gilson and Todd C. Pulvino

In March 2000, a group of private investors and senior managers were negotiating a deal to acquire the disk drive operations of Seagate Technology. The motivating factor for the buyout was the apparently anomalous market value of Seagate's equity: Seagate's equity... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Leveraged Buyouts; Financial Strategy; Computer Industry

August 2019
Case

The Allstate Corporation, 2019

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In July 2019, Allstate, the United States’ number-three property and casualty (P/C) insurer, released its second-quarter earnings, which reported first-half revenues of $22.1 billion, up 11.4% year-over-year. Shareholders cheered the top-line growth, but P/C premiums... View Details

Keywords: Insurance Companies; Strategic Analysis; Strategic Change; Insurance; Strategy; Strategic Planning; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Competitive Strategy; Insurance Industry; North America