Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(9,119)
- Faculty Publications (782)
- Article
Perceptions and the Politics of Finance: Junk Bonds and the Regulatory Seizure of First Capital Life
By: S. C. Gilson, H. DeAngelo and L. DeAngelo
In May 1991, one month after seizing Executive Life, California regulators seized First Capital Life (FCLIC). Both insurers were Drexel clients with large junk bond holdings, and both had experienced 'bank runs.' FCLIC's run followed regulators' televised comments that... View Details
- May 1996
- Case
First Capital Holdings Corp.
By: Stuart C. Gilson, Harry DeAngelo and Linda DeAngelo
The manager of a money-management firm considers whether to invest in the securities of a large, financially troubled, California-based life insurance holding company that holds 40% of its assets in high-yield junk bonds. Over the past year, the value of its portfolio... View Details
- May–June 1996
- Article
Ruling the Net
By: D. L. Spar and Jeffrey J. Bussgang
The Internet promises a radical new world of business. But for many companies, it has yet to deliver. Although doing business in cyberspace may be novel and exhilarating, it can also be frustrating, confusing, and even unprofitable. Debora Spar and Jeffrey Bussgang... View Details
- April 1995 (Revised June 1996)
- Case
Choice Hotels International, 1995
By: Tarun Khanna and Israel Yellen Ganot
Illustrates the various ways in which Choice Hotels, the franchiser for seven mid-market hotel chains, can realize economies of scope across its multiple products. Also provides an opportunity to discuss the benefits and limitations of various organizational forms... View Details
- April 1995
- Case
Phelps Dodge Corporation
By: W. Carl Kester and Kendall Backstrand
A prolonged decline in copper prices prompts Phelps Dodge, one of the world's largest independent copper companies, to consider corporate diversification as a means of protecting itself from copper price volatility. View Details
Keywords: Diversification; Price; Volatility; Risk Management; Mining Industry; Arizona; United States
- 1995
- Article
The Positive Impact of Creative Activity: Effects of Creative Task Engagement and Motivational Focus on College Student's Learning
By: R. Conti, T. M. Amabile and S. Pollack
This study assessed the effectiveness of engaging students in a creative activity on a topic as a means of encouraging an active cognitive set toward learning that topic area. This technique was examined in three motivational contexts. Before reading a short... View Details
- September 1994
- Case
Bob Fifer
By: David A. Thomas and Doug Cohen
Explores the life and concerns of Bob Fifer, HBS class of 1979 and CEO of Kaiser Associates. Explores the many influences on Bob's development and his subsequent career choices. It is written as a biography with extensive quotes from interviews with Bob. He describes... View Details
- June 1994
- Background Note
Scope and Challenge of Business-to-Business Marketing
Identifies six key linkages that distinguish business-to-business marketing; three with respect to the external environment (i.e., derived demand, complex buying process, and concentrated customer base) and three with respect to the internal organization (emphasis on... View Details
- January 1994 (Revised March 1995)
- Background Note
Power Dynamics in Organizations
By: Linda A. Hill
Designed to introduce the concepts of power and power dynamics to students in the MBA second-year elective course Power and Influence. Defines "power" and "influence," and explores the role of power dynamics in managerial work and in the life of organizations. Combats... View Details
- October 1993 (Revised February 1995)
- Case
Dendrite International
By: Frank V. Cespedes and Marie Bell
Dendrite International is a $23 million (1992 revenues) supplier of sales automation software to pharmaceuticals companies in Europe, Japan, and the United States. The firm's strategy has depended on being a full-service supplier to multinational firms. Impending... View Details
- June 1993 (Revised December 1994)
- Case
Milkpak Limited.: International Joint Venture
By: John A. Quelch
Considers a Pakistani company's decision to conduct a joint venture with a foreign multinational. In 1987, Milkpak Ltd. had successfully developed a market for sterilized milk and wanted to produce other value-added food products. The company was evaluating the best... View Details
- April 1993
- Case
Sumiko Ito
By: David A. Thomas
Describes the life and career of the first Japanese female investment banker at Nomura Securities, Sumiko Ito, who later became a partner at Alex Brown, a U.S. investment bank. Organized around the major life events and career transitions Ms. Ito experienced. Set in... View Details
- April 1993 (Revised October 1995)
- Case
ALZA and Bio-Electro Systems (A): Technological and Financial Innovation
By: Josh Lerner and Peter Tufano
To develop the next generation of risky products, ALZA, a mature and profitable biotechnology firm specializing in drug delivery systems, must raise $40 million. Organizational constraints and competitive concerns demand that the work be done inside the firm. However,... View Details
- November 1991 (Revised April 2002)
- Background Note
Note on Foreign Currency Swaps
By: W. Carl Kester
Provides descriptive background about the development of an international market for currency swaps and, by means of a detailed example, instructs readers in the determination of swap flows and all-in costs of financing using market swap rates. A rewritten version of... View Details
Keywords: Currency
- March 1991 (Revised May 1991)
- Case
New York Life Insurance Co.: Pension Department
By: Robert J. Dolan
Analyzes competition in the pension fund industry. In particular, New York Life must decide whether to compete head-to-head with mutual fund giants by offering record-keeping services or to just continue to focus on selling investment products. Presents the results of... View Details
- February 1991 (Revised August 2001)
- Case
Ann Hopkins (A)
By: Joseph L. Badaracco Jr. and Ilyse Barkan
Intended to help students understand the many barriers organizations face as their members and their management ranks grow more diverse. As a case on business ethics, it encourages students to discuss what "fairness" and "diversity" mean when an organization is also... View Details
- November 1990 (Revised August 1996)
- Background Note
Sampling and Statistical Inference
An introduction to sampling and statistical inference that covers the main concepts (confidence intervals, tests of statistical significance, choice of sample size) that are needed in making inferences about a population mean or percent. Includes discussion of problems... View Details
- August 1989 (Revised May 1991)
- Case
Grosvenor Park
By: William J. Poorvu and Katherine Sweetman
Dick Dublin believes he has designed a townhouse development which will appeal to mobile young professionals. Dublin has removed some market risk by locking in a forward commitment for low interest rate loans for future purchasers at Grosvenor Park. The pricing... View Details
- January 1989
- Background Note
Managing Information Technology: System Development
By: James I. Cash Jr. and Thomas H. Davenport
Provides an overview of the system development process in large organizations. Describes traditional life cycle approaches as well as more recent methods, e.g., prototyping. The objective is to familiarize students with the terminology and issues involving system... View Details