Publications

18 Jul 2014
News

Team Players

"We had 100 volunteers who worked almost around the clock," says Lehrer, who also helped host visits from HBS's Business of Sports Club and the annual Tech Trek. "There were lots of people answering questions from the same brand, so we... View Details

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

November 2013
Teaching Note

A.J. Washington: Retaining an NFL Star

By: Andrew Wasynczuk and Karen Huang

A.J. Washington explores the early phase of a contract negotiation between a professional football team and its star quarterback. This case illustrates the challenges associated with negotiation for human capital. Specifically, it explores the tension between... View Details

Keywords: Compensation; Human Capital; Negotiation; Sports; Compensation and Benefits; Sports Industry; United States

July 2010 (Revised April 2016)
Teaching Note

Major League Baseball Advanced Media: America's Pastime Goes Digital

By: Anita Elberse

Teaching Note for 510092. View Details

Keywords: Sports; Decisions; Marketing Strategy; Revenue; Price; Sports Industry; Sports Industry

01 Jun 2014
News

Net Gains

Having established a strong market in the world's most populous country, the NBA is making a hard push for number two. "We've really been focused on teaching the game of basketball in India," says Tatum. "The sport is not necessarily... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell

February 1999 (Revised August 2004)
Case

Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)

By: Stephen A. Greyser

Chronicles the background of the founding of the WNBA, its basic business concept, some of the key research information used by the NBA in launching it, and other related information. Students must analyze the "basic business model" involved and compare it to that of... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Research; Outcome or Result; Sports; Gender; Sports Industry

Find at Harvard

31 Oct 2018
News

Pitching In for Female Leaders

her path through international sports and investment banking to becoming a leading advocate for women in sports and business. “I ran and led a leading football club in Turkey for over a decade. Then I joined... View Details

August 2005 (Revised October 2005)
Case

Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots (A)

By: John R. Wells and Travis Haglock

What happens when an MBA buys a football team and hires a bunch of MBAs and a coach with an economics degree to run it? In this case, a historic three Super Bowls in five years. The end run Bob Kraft (HBS '65) used to acquire the New England Patriots. Why Kraft ignored... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Management Style; Motivation and Incentives; Leading Change; Management Practices and Processes; Leadership Style; Sports; Management Teams; Sports Industry; United States

01 Jun 2008
News

Linking Donors, Students

guests. “I am inspired and empowered by your philanthropy, and I am determined to offer a strong return on your investment,” she said, citing her future goal of launching a nonprofit arts and sports center in the Brooklyn neighborhood... View Details

Keywords: Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Arts, Entertainment; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services; Management

March 2004 (Revised April 2004)
Background Note

Seeing What's on Red Auerbach's Mind

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and John T. Gourville

Analysis of an interview with Red Auerbach, HBR No. 87201. Alan M. Webber, who conducted the interview, probed for the lessons that Auerbach has learned from a long and productive career coaching and managing the Boston Celtics, a professional basketball team in the... View Details

Keywords: Markets; Research; Sports; Product Development; Communication Intention and Meaning; Sports Industry

July 1995 (Revised September 1997)
Case

Baseball Strike, The

Describes structural conditions in the American baseball industry in 1995. Although this case covers conditions leading to the 1994-95 strike, it is designed primarily for analysis of the structural tensions that arise between suppliers, buyers, and rivals as industry... View Details

Keywords: Industry Structures; Sports; Labor and Management Relations; Sports Industry; United States

01 Jun 2016
News

3-Minute Briefing: Derek Bouchard-Hall (MBA 2004)

cycling. But to be perfectly frank, the sport was so deeply corrupted by doping, I ultimately concluded it was something I didn’t want to be a part of. I went a more traditional route: consulting. The sport... View Details

Keywords: April White; photographed by Scott Clark

01 Sep 2015
News

Case Study: Golden Ticket

$250,000 seed-funding round. Cofounder and consultant Jen Rottenberg (MBA 1996) estimates that the high-school athletics market alone is worth $2 billion in annual transactions. And the market hasn’t proved overly competitive: Other companies that work in the local... View Details

February 1999 (Revised July 2004)
Case

Life as a Minor League CEO Frank Burke and The Chattanooga Lookouts

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Kirk A. Goldman

A "slice of life" depiction of the range of issues and activities experienced by Frank Burke (HBS MBA 1987), the president of a minor league baseball team (the Chattanooga Lookouts). Raises questions of the applicability of MBA skills in this role and the "quotient of... View Details

Keywords: Happiness; Managerial Roles; Entrepreneurship; Business or Company Management; Marketing; Cost Management; Cost vs Benefits; Operations; Sports; Business Education; Sports Industry; Tennessee

August 2019 (Revised September 2019)
Case

Dirk Nowitzki: Changing the Game

By: Boris Groysberg, Sascha L. Schmidt and Evan M.S. Hecht

NBA Superstar Dirk Nowitzki was unsure whether the 2018–2019 season would be his last as an NBA player. He had not faced such uncertainty since 1998, when he had navigated a difficult decision regarding the timing of his move to the NBA. He also did not know what he... View Details

Keywords: Career Decisions; Career Journey; ＂Sports Organizations,; Mentoring; Retirement; Sports; Performance; Training; Personal Development and Career; Sports Industry; United States

January 2014 (Revised April 2025)
Supplement

The PGA Tour (D)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Cole Magrath

In 1994, the PGA Tour (the "Tour"), the dominant incumbent professional golf circuit, had created tremendous value for its players. In the 1974 season, players competed for $8 million in prize money; by the 1994 season, the total prize purse had increased to $56... View Details

Keywords: PGA Tour; Tim Finchem; Deane Beman; Golf; Professional Golf; Business Model; Value Creation; Adaptation; Sports; Business Strategy; Sports Industry; United States

January 2014 (Revised April 2025)
Supplement

The PGA Tour (B)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Cole Magrath

In 1994, the PGA Tour (the "Tour"), the dominant incumbent professional golf circuit, had created tremendous value for its players. In the 1974 season, players competed for $8 million in prize money; by the 1994 season, the total prize purse had increased to $56... View Details

Keywords: PGA Tour; Tim Finchem; Deane Beman; Golf; Professional Golf; Business Model; Value Creation; Adaptation; Sports; Business Strategy; Sports Industry; United States