Publications

January 2016 (Revised May 2016)
Case

IKEA in Saudi Arabia (A)

By: Karthik Ramanna, Jérôme Lenhardt and Marc Homsy

A Swedish newspaper reveals that IKEA has erased all images of women from its catalog for Saudi Arabia. The article sparks criticism of IKEA from the Swedish government and its customers in the West. Critics contend that IKEA is not living up to its own commitments to... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Values; Islam; Multinationals; Globalization; Leadership; Equality and Inequality; Multinational Firms and Management; Religion; Organizational Culture; Gender; Consumer Products Industry; Saudi Arabia; Sweden

12 Dec 2005
Research & Ideas

Using the Law to Strategic Advantage

create value and manage risk. Q: Most managers don't have law degrees, so who do they turn to get the legal background they will need to work with legal staff on the issues you identify? Will they need... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Legal Services

18 Apr 2011
Research & Ideas

It’s Not Nagging: Why Persistent, Redundant Communication Works

is a name to what I do. I do this all day'” While managers with power did use e-mail, the same sense of urgency and persuasion wasn't there in the follow-up, the researchers found. These managers typically... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard

December 2015
Article

What Is Disruptive Innovation?

By: Clayton M. Christensen, Michael Raynor and Rory McDonald

For the past 20 years, the theory of disruptive innovation has been enormously influential in business circles and a powerful tool for predicting which industry entrants will succeed. Unfortunately, the theory has also been widely misunderstood, and the "disruptive"... View Details

Keywords: Disruptive Innovation; Theory

Find at Harvard

Read Now

October 1991 (Revised December 1993)
Case

Ben & Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream, Inc.: Keeping the Mission(s) Alive

Ben & Jerry's is an anti-establishment, values-driven company that has become a successful venture. The dominant founder, Ben Cohen, is not an effective manager, but he brings creative marketing and product skills that have been important to the company's success. He... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Organizational Culture; Entrepreneurship; Compensation and Benefits; Manufacturing Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

27 Apr 2022
News

Rolling Back Degree Requirements Expands the Pipeline for Tech

2003
Working Paper

The Flattening Firm: Evidence from Panel Data on the Changing Nature of Corporate Hierarchies

By: Raghuram G. Rajan and Julie Wulf

Using a detailed database of managerial job descriptions, reporting relationships, and compensation structures in over 300 large U.S. firms, we find that firm hierarchies are becoming flatter. The number of positions reporting directly to the CEO has gone up... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Structure; Managerial Roles; Jobs and Positions; United States

Read Now

26 Mar 2013
First Look

First Look: March 26

negatively related to the profitability of both Japanese and American firms, although the effect is less negative in Japan. We finally find that the adoption of cost orientation does not have an impact on the profitability of both Japanese and American firms. Academy... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

February 2008 (Revised May 2009)
Case

INSEAD

By: Srikant M. Datar, David A. Garvin and Carin-Isabel Knoop

In the spring of 2008, INSEAD offered a one-year MBA, PhD, executive MBA, and non-degree management education programs to nearly 900 MBA students, 64 PhD candidates, and over 8,500 executive education students. With two campuses, one in Europe and one in Asia, INSEAD... View Details

Keywords: Curriculum and Courses; Geographic Location; Business Education; Globalization; Diversity; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues

03 Jun 2012
News

Harvard B-School Prof: Stop Sleeping With Your Smartphone!

Apr 12 2017
Testimonial

Driving Daily Change

August 2015 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Shareholder Activists and Corporate Strategy

By: David Collis and Ashley Hartman

By 2015, there had been an upsurge in activist shareholders arguing for radical changes in companies' corporate strategies. Personalities like Carl Icahn, Bill Ackman, and Daniel Loeb were feared and loathed in some quarters, celebrated in others. With nearly $120... View Details

Keywords: Scope; Activist Investors; Spin-offs; Synergy; Diversification; Consolidation; Hedge Fund; Corporate Strategy

01 Feb 2012
What Do You Think?

Is Support for Small Business Misplaced?

Summing Up Do Concerns About Job Creation By Small Businesses Miss The Point? Judging from responses to this month's column, there appears to be a visceral reaction to any suggestion that small business fails to live View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

01 Aug 2012
What Do You Think?

Should CEOs Worry About ‘Too Big to Succeed?’

Summing Up Is There a "Right Size" for a Company? This month's question of whether "too big to succeed" should be a larger worry of CEOs than "too big to fail" as usual produced more questions than answers... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Manufacturing; Financial Services

January 2019 (Revised October 2019)
Case

Commercial Sales Transformation at Microsoft

By: Doug J. Chung

Industry leaders should adapt to changes in the business context and consider different ways to grow. Advances in technology had shifted software demand to the cloud. As a result, Microsoft announced a strategic shift in direction from its existing ‘Windows first’... View Details

Keywords: Sales; Strategy; Transformation

24 Mar 2020
Research & Ideas

These Coronavirus Heroes Show Us How Crisis Leadership Works

of Walmart, faces a different set of challenges. While other retailers are rapidly cutting staff, he and his team need 150,000 temporary workers to keep up with the near-term demand for basic food, beverages, and supplies. With suppliers... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Health

December 2022 (Revised May 2023)
Case

Iberdrola: Leading the Energy Revolution

By: Juan Alcácer and Emer Moloney

At the end of 2019, Ignacio Galán, the Chairman and CEO of the world's third largest utility, Iberdrola, reflected on his almost 20 years at the company. He managed a portfolio of three very different businesses, each with their own specific opportunities and... View Details