Publications

September 2024 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Aramco: Navigating the Energy Transition

By: Tarun Khanna and Gizem Cihan Dincsoy

In March 2024, Amin Nasser, president, and CEO of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco), had just delivered a speech about the future of energy at a global energy conference. The world was behind schedule in meeting long-term climate change goals. The global shift... View Details

Keywords: Energy Transmission; Oil ＆ Gas; Economic Diversification; Corporate Strategy; Leadership; Business Strategy; Goals and Objectives; Transition; Environmental Sustainability; Diversification; Energy Industry; Saudi Arabia

January 2022 (Revised December 2022)
Case

TotalEnergies’ Investment in Hyzon Motors

By: Vikram S. Gandhi and David Lane

In November 2021, Girish Nadkarni, the head of TotalEnergies’ corporate venture capital arm (TEV) was considering whether, and on what terms, to exit an investment in Hyzon Motors, a start-up supplier of hydrogen-powered trucks. TEV had invested $4 million in Hyzon,... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Communication Intention and Meaning; Renewable Energy; Venture Capital; Growth and Development Strategy; Market Design; Standards; Commercialization; Investment Portfolio; Market Transactions; Energy Industry; Financial Services Industry; Transportation Industry; Europe; New York (city, NY)

Web

Strategy Explained - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

the other hand, is the basis of a sound business strategy that leads to a positive-sum competition with multiple winners. Setting the Right Financial Goals Managers should also think about setting proper... View Details

Program

Driving Digital Strategy

leaders must strike a delicate balance between strengthening the core of their business and boldly building for the future. Through a series of real-life case studies and thought-provoking discussions, we will explore the ever-evolving... View Details

Web

Value-Based Health Care - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

Porter, Value-Based Health Care is a framework for restructuring health care systems around the globe with the overarching goal of value for patients. Key Concepts Value-based health care is one of the most important topics in health care... View Details

26 Nov 2001
Op-Ed

Why Corporate Budgeting Needs To Be Fixed

truth. It turns business decisions into elaborate exercises in gaming. It sets colleague against colleague, creating distrust and ill will. And it distorts incentives, motivating people to act in ways that run counter to the best... View Details

Keywords: by Michael C. Jensen

April 2008
Case

Engstrom Auto Mirror Plant: Motivating in Good Times and Bad

By: Michael Beer and Elizabeth Collins

In May 2007, the Engstrom Auto Mirrors plant, a relatively small supplier based in Indiana, faces a crisis. The business was in the second year of a downturn. Sales had started to decline in 2005; a year later, plant manager Ron Bent had been forced to lay off more... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Behavior; Human Resource Management; Incentives; Motivation; Manufacturing; Leadership; Change Management; Employees; Motivation and Incentives; Goals and Objectives; Manufacturing Industry; Indiana

15 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

What You Don’t Know About Making Decisions

specify goals up front and revisit them repeatedly during the decision-making process. These goals can be complex and multifaceted, quantitative and qualitative, but whatever form they take, they must remain... View Details

Keywords: by David A. Garvin & Michael A. Roberto

Program

Disruptive Innovation

Summary More than 20 years ago, late HBS professor Clayton Christensen introduced a revolutionary concept that transformed the business world and is still widely applied today: disruptive innovation. In this program, Christensen's team... View Details

12 Mar 2024
Research & Ideas

Publish or Perish: What the Research Says About Productivity in Academia

on things like the publication record and grant databases, which are not designed for us to see how science is operating.” Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Kyle Myers and seven colleagues surveyed professor-level researchers at... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Education

28 Feb 2011
Research & Ideas

The Importance of ‘Don’t’ in Inducing Ethical Employee Behavior

to the Ten Commandments, the vast majority (eight) of which dictate what thou shalt not do. Meanwhile, in virtually every other aspect of business there is a focus on what to do. Do meet sales projections. Do outperform competitors. Do... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

01 Aug 2023
What Do You Think?

As Leaders, Why Do We Continue to Reward A, While Hoping for B?

so-called “operative level.” So, politicians are rewarded for campaigning on low-quality goals and avoiding the details. Then, as citizens, we complain about the quality of elected officials when the issues later get down to the operative... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

Web

CSV Explained - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

Explained Creating shared value is a framework for creating economic value while simultaneously addressing societal needs and challenges. When businesses act as businesses —not as charitable donors—they can... View Details

31 Jul 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, July 31, 2018

integrating global market and local technical knowledge. We refer to this type of firm as a Knowledge Integrator and discuss how its strategy supports the competitiveness of localized suppliers. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54762... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

01 Nov 2017
What Do You Think?

What Are the Real Lessons of the Wells Fargo Case?

has “serious questions regarding the oversight responsibilities within all levels of management, especially the Board of Directors!” Arie Goldshlager labels this “a classic case of Goals Gone Wild, referring to a paper by Harvard View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Banking

20 Aug 2013
First Look

First Look: August 20

http://www.people.hbs.edu/rgreenwood/shipsIA.pdf Cases & Course Materials Harvard Business School Case 513-703 Tyra Banks: Personal Branding No abstract available. Purchase this case: http://hbr.org/search/513703-PDF-ENG Harvard View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

June 2010
Case

FoldRite Furniture Company: Planning to Meet a Surge in Demand

By: Steven C. Wheelwright and Afarin Bellisario

Demand for folding and stackable chairs and tables at FoldRite Furniture Co. is unexpectedly strong. The company spent the previous two years improving manufacturing quality and efficiency, dropping poor-performing product lines, developing new products that are... View Details

Keywords: Manufacturing; Production Capacity; Production Scheduling; Risk Management; Growth Management; Production; Logistics; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Business Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States; Europe