Process Improvement - Publications - Faculty & Research

24 Jun 2014
First Look

First Look: June 24

decreases participants' short-term debt by about 20%. In addition, participants who experience an economic shock have less need to reduce consumption, and subjective well-being improves significantly. Precautionary savings and credit... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2011
Working Paper

Management Practices Across Firms and Countries

By: Nicholas Bloom, Christos Genakos, Raffaella Sadun and John Van Reenen

For the last decade we have been using double-blind survey techniques and randomized sampling to construct management data on over 10,000 organizations across 20 countries. On average, we find that in manufacturing, American, Japanese, and German firms are the best... View Details

Keywords: Management Practices and Processes; Business Ventures; Public Sector; Private Sector; Country; Performance; Motivation and Incentives

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Online Management Course | HBS Online

process and evaluate potential drivers and pitfalls. Utilize a range of managerial levers to improve individual and group decision-making. Highlights Evaluate the Process, Not the Outcome The Bay of Pigs... View Details

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Online Finance & Accounting Courses | HBS Online

decision-making. We recommend beginning this pathway with Financial Accounting. Financial Accounting Leading with Finance Strategic Financial Analysis Capital Markets: For professionals looking to improve their understanding of the... View Details

W. Earl Sasser

Earl Sasser is a Baker Foundation Professor at Harvard Business School and has been a member of the faculty there since 1969. He received a B.A. in Mathematics from Duke University in 1965, an MBA from the University of North Carolina in 1967, and a Ph.D. in... View Details

09 Mar 2003
Research & Ideas

Six Keys to Building New Markets by Unleashing Disruptive Innovation

can't seem to get innovation right. When companies keep improving their existing products and services to meet their best customers' needs, they eventually run into the "innovator's dilemma." By doing everything right, they... View Details

Keywords: by Clayton M. Christensen, Michael E. Raynor & Scott D. Anthony

27 Mar 2007
First Look

First Look: March 27, 2007

with Abernathy, Rebecca Henderson and Carliss Baldwin, Clark placed product and process designs at the center of his explanation of how innovation determines the structure and evolution of industries. Download the paper:... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

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Financial Accounting Online Course | HBS Online

accounting that I learned helps me in understanding where the business may head in the future. I’ve also been tracking a few other companies for investment purposes, and I’ve realized that I can make more informed decisions with my View Details

03 Mar 2009
First Look

First Look: March 3, 2009

differentiated exploratory subunits and meta-routines that modify underlying processes. Ambidexterity requires operational processes that combine high levels of efficiency with the flexibility to evolve and View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Program

Public Education Leadership Project

Summary Improved student performance depends on strong leadership, a culture of collaboration, and a dedication to accountability across a school district. This program helps leaders from U.S.-based urban school systems apply proven... View Details

31 Mar 2022
Op-Ed

Navigating the ‘Bermuda Triangle’ in Professional Services

easy. Small firms operate informally. Continuing an informal approach to management strains performance as a firm grows. Costs begin to increase and errors in operations and service delivery begin to cumulate. Formal systems and processes... View Details

Keywords: by Ashish Nanda

30 May 2018
Research & Ideas

Should Retailers Match Their Own Prices Online and in Stores?

undecided consumers who start their purchasing process with a visit to the store. “Webroomers”—the decided consumers who research online first—receive the lower online price by asking the store to self-match, while undecided consumers who... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail

14 Apr 2015
First Look

First Look: April 14

the process of decoupling. Decoupling is the separation of two or more activities ordinarily done in conjunction by consumers-think of watching TV shows and sitting through the ads. These new digital disruptors allow consumers to benefit... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

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Innovation & Innovative Capacity - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

Innovation also holds the key to solving many of the world’s most pressing social challenges such as health care and improving the quality of the physical environment. The institute works with U.S. and international leaders to assess... View Details

2009
Working Paper

Goals Gone Wild: The Systematic Side Effects of Over-Prescribing Goal Setting

By: Lisa D. Ordonez, Maurice E. Schweitzer, Adam D. Galinsky and Max H. Bazerman

Goal setting is one of the most replicated and influential paradigms in the management literature. Hundreds of studies conducted in numerous countries and contexts have consistently demonstrated that setting specific, challenging goals can powerfully drive behavior and... View Details

Keywords: Goals and Objectives; Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Behavior; Motivation and Incentives

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10 Aug 2009
Research & Ideas

High Commitment, High Performance Management

skill. Here are some essential elements in a change strategy: Embrace "the" and "also." Leaders must embrace the paradox of people and profits. They must improve profits, of course, yet be consistent with the values and precepts discussed... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

01 Nov 1999
Research & Ideas

John H. Patterson and the Sales Strategy of the National Cash Register Company, 1884 to 1922

could not, of course, guarantee a smooth sale. The process of selling remained a cat and mouse game. When A. T. Webb, the agent for Portland, Oregon, set out to sell a machine, he began, as the Primer advised, by studying the prospect and... View Details

Keywords: by Walter A. Friedman

01 Mar 2024
News

Vital Signs

Image by Edmon De Haro Illustration by Edmon De Haro The signs of strain were there long before the pandemic: Health care workers had been managing under tremendous pressures while working long hours in understaffed hospitals. Then COVID unleashed an unprecedented... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; Hospitals; Health, Social Assistance

13 May 2024
Research & Ideas

Picture This: Why Online Image Searches Drive Purchases

their purchase positively and less likely to return it. In fact, both star ratings and return rates improved by over 3 percent. “It takes time for the search tool to actually increase search effectiveness in a way that allows both... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Information Technology; Technology; Consumer Products; Retail

24 Feb 2021
Lessons from the Classroom

What History's Biggest Wars Teach Us About Leading in Peace

understanding to the unique challenges you confront. The process is crucial in business as well as war and diplomacy because, as Malhotra says in his course syllabus, “being smart and well-intentioned is not enough.” For Malhotra, who has... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

Publications