Publications

April 2011
Case

Shimano: The Intel of the Bicycle Business

By: Hirotaka Takeuchi and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Shimano, known as the Intel of the bicycle business, is contemplating on investing in a new growth market, namely the comfort bicycle market. View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Interactive Communication; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Industry Growth; Expansion; Bicycle Industry

November 1999 (Revised June 2000)
Case

FairMarket: Managing Business Development

By: William A. Sahlman, Michael J. Roberts and Cathy Taylor

Describes the evolution of FairMarket, a provider of turnkey auction services to community and merchant Web sites. Describes several deals that the CEO must negotiate, requiring a view of the company's valuation. View Details

Keywords: Partners and Partnerships; Internet and the Web; Valuation; Negotiation Deal; Auctions; Growth and Development Strategy; Web Services Industry

Find at Harvard

February 2009 (Revised December 2009)
Case

eReading: Amazon's Kindle

By: Bharat N. Anand, Peter W. Olson Esq. and Mary Tripsas

In November 2007, Amazon introduced the Kindle, the first electronic reader with wireless functionality. The case describes the launch of the Kindle and provides information on representative players in the industry (or broader ecosystem) who are likely to be affected... View Details

Keywords: Books; Disruptive Innovation; Technological Innovation; Industry Structures; Standards; Distribution Channels; Competitive Strategy; Publishing Industry

03 Nov 2015
First Look

November 3, 2015

516-013 Vita: Cosmetics in the Nordics Vita is a Norwegian cosmetics retailer owned by FSN Capital, a Scandinavian private equity company. The company has a strong market position in Norway. The case focuses on two strategic issues: how... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

07 Oct 2002
Research & Ideas

What Leaders Need to Do To Restore Investor Confidence

Were equity markets highly efficient, these actions would be recognized; an immediate decline in share price would occur; and, anticipating this, managers would not be tempted toward misconduct or "short termism." Unfortunately,... View Details

Keywords: by Harvard Management Update

06 Sep 2016
First Look

September 6, 2016

continued success thereafter. Addressing ourselves to concepts in the management literature, we argue that strategy realized by the appeal of subordinates to the historical precedent of their superiors defies categorization as deliberate... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

August 2019 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Magrabi: Fulfilling the Vision for the Future

By: John Beshears, Alpana Thapar and Boris Tsimerinov

In 2018, Magrabi was the leading retailer of eyeglasses, sunglasses, and other optical products in the Middle East, and it was embarking on a major shift in strategy, transitioning from a brand focused on clinical expertise to a brand that combined technical excellence... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Transition; Luxury; Sales; Service Delivery; Strategy; Employees; Recruitment; Consumer Products Industry; Retail Industry; Middle East

March 2006 (Revised December 2009)
Compilation

Skype

By: Peter A. Coles and Thomas R. Eisenmann

Presents eBay's rationale for its $2.6 billion acquisition in late 2005 of Skype, a fast growing voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) provider. Describes Skype's history, technology, business model, and competition, as well as government regulation of VoIP services. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Model; Communication Technology; Growth and Development Strategy; Network Effects; Competitive Strategy; Internet and the Web; Information Infrastructure; Telecommunications Industry

03 Feb 2016
Research & Ideas

The State of Customer Service Leadership

today what business they are in, and you will still get too many answering in terms of products or services. This practice still exists more than five decades after the legendary Harvard Business School marketing professor Ted Levitt... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Aisner; Retail

06 Aug 2014
Research & Ideas

Climbing Down from the Ivory Tower

Ashraf, an associate professor in the Negotiations, Organizations, and Markets unit at Harvard Business School. “Asking them to apply something that's been generated somewhere else isn't involving them in the process” But there's a dearth... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Education; Health

23 Oct 2012
First Look

First Look: October 23

customer vehicles at higher rates and are more likely to lose customers whom they fail, suggesting that competition intensifies pressure on facilities to provide illegal leniency. We also show that, at least in markets in which pricing is... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2008
Supplement

Carlyle Japan (C)

By: David B. Godes, Masako Egawa and Mayuka Yamazaki

This is a supplement to the (A) and (B) cases. It documents the shift in Carlyle's networking strategy. The firm decreased its focus on building contacts in commercial banking an increased instead the focus on building more contacts with industry directly. View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Banks and Banking; Investment; Growth and Development Strategy; Supply and Industry; Networks; Japan