Publications

18 Oct 2021
Blog Post

Embracing Activism for Social Change

much of her first post-HBS year managing the pilot. Resolving Crisis Situations Mendu and other members of the partnership developed a three-part initiative informed by the best practices they gathered from... View Details

February 2025
Case

Luca de Meo at Renault Group (A)

By: Emily Truelove, Linda A. Hill and Lydia Begag

When Luca de Meo became CEO of Renault Group in 2020, the 122-year-old French automaker faced financial challenges and the double technological disruption of the automotive industry: the shift to electric vehicles (EVs) and the rise of software-defined vehicles (SDVs).... View Details

May 1998 (Revised February 1999)
Case

Diamond in the Rough (A)

By: Thomas J. DeLong and Catherine M. Conneely

Diamond Technology Partners, a consulting firm based in Chicago, was founded in 1994 by Mel Bergstein and Chris Moffitt, with investment from founding partners and Safeguard Scientifics. In April 1996, just after fiscal year-end, the two largest clients withdrew from... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Entrepreneurship; Going Public; Crisis Management; Finance; Consulting Industry; Chicago

08 Mar 2021
In Practice

COVID Killed the Traditional Workplace. What Should Companies Do Now?

A year ago, COVID-19 forced many companies to send employees home—often with a laptop and a prayer. Now, with COVID cases subsiding and vaccinations rising, the prospect of returning to old office routines appears more possible. But will employees want to flock back to... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

30 Jun 2003
Research & Ideas

Computer Security is For Managers, Too

help you decide how much protection to buy. Rehearse your response. When security is breached, the whole organization goes into crisis mode, and managers have to make difficult decisions fast. It helps to... View Details

Keywords: by Robert D. Austin & Christopher A.R. Darby

09 Jun 2020
News

It won’t be business as usual in the post-COVID world

March 2023
Teaching Note

Ransomware Attack at Colonial Pipeline Company

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Li-Kuan Ni

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 123-069. On the morning of May 7, 2021, Colonial Pipeline Company became aware that the company had been the victim of a malicious ransomware attack that had stolen and locked up company data. The extortionists demanded 75 bitcoins (worth... View Details

31 Oct 2014
Op-Ed

Ebola’s Call To Arms About Disaster Preparedness

lesson in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The risk-management tools and safety margins needed to manage normal disruptions in the market were completely inadequate to handle a major catastrophe. We got rid of the buffers against... View Details

Keywords: by Gautam Mukunda; Health

11 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

Doing Well by Doing Good? One Industry’s Struggle to Balance Values and Profits

in an uncertain economy. Navigating an industry in crisis Working in the field of journalism has never been financially rewarding or secure. But the field enjoyed a “golden age” from the mid-to-late 20th century, with newspapers,... View Details

Keywords: by Scott Van Voorhis

September 1985
Case

H.J. Heinz Co.: Plastic Bottle Ketchup (B)

By: John A. Quelch

The Heinz Ketchup product manager discovers she does not have sufficient finished inventory and production capacity to meet trade demand for a new plastic bottle ketchup. Alternatives include cancelling promotion events and putting the trade on allocation. View Details

Keywords: Distribution; Crisis Management; Innovation and Invention; Product Marketing; Food and Beverage Industry

2022
Book

Democratize Work: The Case for Reorganizing the Economy

By: Isabelle Ferreras, Julie Battilana and Dominique Méda

What happens to a society—and a planet—when capitalism outgrows democracy? The tensions between democracy and capitalism are longstanding, and they have been laid bare by the social effects of COVID-19. The narrative of “essential workers” has provided thin cover for... View Details

Keywords: Democratic Capitalism; Essential Workers; Sustainability; Equality and Inequality; Climate Change; Social Issues

Find at Harvard

March 2024 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Governing OpenAI (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Suraj Srinivasan and Will Hurwitz

In late November 2023, OpenAI’s new board of directors took stock of the situation. The company, which sought to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI)—computer systems with capabilities exceeding human abilities—was looking to regain its footing after a chaotic... View Details