Publications

May 2011 (Revised July 2011)
Case

Fiat-Chrysler Alliance: Launching the Cinquecento in North America

By: Gary P. Pisano, Phillip Andrews and Alessandro Di Fiore

Fiat ended its 27-year absence in the North American automobile market when the first Cinquecento (500)—a very small, iconic Italian car that had strong sales in Europe—was delivered on March 10, 2011. The Italian automaker re-entered the market through an alliance... View Details

Keywords: Product Launch; Product Positioning; Mergers and Acquisitions; Partners and Partnerships; Globalization; Operations; Growth and Development Strategy; Integration; Auto Industry; North America; Europe

08 Jul 2019
Research & Ideas

Are Paywalls Saving Newspapers?

newspaper companies, Chung says, major broadcast news networks could use the study’s findings to inform strategy decisions. “Similar to the newspapers, they also have their websites, and I don’t think CNN or Fox News has a digital paywall... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Journalism & News; Media & Broadcasting

February 2008 (Revised August 2008)
Case

Quanta Computer and the One Laptop Per Child Initiative

By: Willy Shih, Chintay Shih and Jyun-Chen Wang

When Quanta Computer, Inc., the world's largest manufacturer of laptop computers, first joined the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative, it faced a challenge trying to balance the cost objectives of a laptop computer targeted at children of the developing world with... View Details

Keywords: For-Profit Firms; Disruptive Innovation; Demand and Consumers; Supply Chain; Partners and Partnerships; Nonprofit Organizations; Hardware

Research Summary

Simultaneous Distinction, Democratization and Omnivorism Effects: A Longitudinal Analysis of Dynamic Symbolic Boundaries in Counterfeit Consumption Networks

Sociologists have long examined the interactive relationship between social structure, taste and power. This literature has overwhelmingly fallen into three, ostensibly competing, theoretical “camps”: Distinction, where high-status consumers use... View Details

February 2021
Case

Threadless: The Renewal of an Online Community

By: Shane Greenstein, Karim Lakhani and Christian Godwin

Threadless, an online apparel company and artist community which Jake Nickell founded in 2000, continued to maintain its status as a top company in the online apparel industry during its second decade. From 2010 to 2020, Threadless continued to operate its... View Details

August 2019
Case

Walmart's Omnichannel Strategy: Revolution or Miscalculation?

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Karen Elterman

This case describes Walmart's omnichannel strategy in 2018 as it battled Amazon for online retail market share. The case discusses Walmart's early forays into online retail, as well as its 2018 strategy, which aimed to integrate Walmart's enormous brick and mortar... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Strategy; Internet and the Web; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Competition; Retail Industry; Bentonville; Arkansas; New Jersey; Seattle; United States

February 2011 (Revised December 2012)
Case

Porsche: The Cayenne Launch

By: John Deighton, Jill Avery and Jeffrey Fear

Can an online discussion forum supply insight into the evolution of brand meaning? In 2003 Porsche launched a sport utility vehicle, dividing Porsche purists from newcomers to the brand. Vocal members of online and offline Porsche communities ridiculed the Cayenne SUV... View Details

Keywords: Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Risk Management; Brands and Branding; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Social and Collaborative Networks; Auto Industry

April 2019
Case

Afterpay U.S.: The Omnichannel Dilemma

By: Antonio Moreno, Donald Ngwe and George Gonzalez

In 2018, Nick Molnar, the founder of the Australia-based online payment service Afterpay began its expansion to the U.S. market. The service had gained a loyal following in Australia by enabling customers to pay for online purchases through four interest-free... View Details

March 2022
Case

BTS & ARMY

By: Doug J. Chung and Kay R. Koo

The South Korean K-pop band, BTS, is shattering linguistic boundaries and reshaping the global music industry. BTS became the first band in Billboard history to simultaneously top the Billboard Artist 100, Billboard Hot 100, and Billboard 200; and the sixth act to have... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Music Entertainment; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Social and Collaborative Networks; Social Enterprise; Consumer Behavior; Music Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

March–April 2017
Article

What's the Value of a Like?: Social Media Endorsements Don't Work the Way You Might Think

By: Leslie John, Daniel Mochon, Oliver Emrich and Janet Schwartz

Brands spend billions of dollars a year on lavish efforts to establish and maintain a social media presence. But do those campaigns actually increase revenue? New research provides an answer to this question, which has vexed marketers ever since social media burst upon... View Details

Keywords: Social and Collaborative Networks; Consumer Behavior; Marketing Strategy; Digital Marketing; Social Media

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Career Coach

Michele Biamonte

Michele (HGSE, Adult Development '05) combines her professional experience in finance, talent management and higher ed admin to help students and alumni optimize their self-assessment, career exploration and personal branding process. She... View Details

Keywords: Education; Commercial Banking; Financial Services (All); Investment Banking; Financial Services (All); Investment Management; Financial Services (All)

05 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Can Putin Score Olympic Gold?

merchandise sales, with sales so far topping only $30 million, compared to Vancouver's $51 million. Such lackluster performance spells trouble not only for the Games themselves, but also for all of the brands that hope to ride its bobsled... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Sports; Advertising

18 Dec 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, December 18, 2018

Effective Spaces Twenty-four-year old Ritesh Agarwal, founder and CEO of India-based online hotel branding network OYO Rooms, has tackled the issue of unreliability in India's highly fragmented budget hotel... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

March 2000 (Revised September 2000)
Case

yesmail.com

David Tolmie wants yesmail.com to become a leader in "permission marketing." Yesmail sends clients promotional e-mail messages to targeted consumers who said "yes" when asked whether they wished to receive promotional offers in a set of categories of interest. Tolmie... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Communications

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16 Aug 2006
Research & Ideas

Is MySpace.com Your Space?

Social networking sites such as MySpace.com are some of the most trafficked on the Web—MySpace had 46 million unique users in June and features nearly 100 million personal profiles posted by users, many of whom are in their teens and... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Advertising; Information; Publishing

02 Aug 2022
Blog Post

From HBS to Cutting-Edge Tech

internationally-recognized brand was a deciding factor too. HBS was the only one that fit the bill. A lot of schools prepare you for your first post-MBA job, but the HBS case method goes further. HBS classroom discussions simulate the... View Details

Career Coach

Nicola Pugliese

Nicola Pugliese (Wharton ’93) leverages her experience in global marketing and brand management to support students and alumni pursuing careers in marketing, product management, business development, general management and sales across a... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products; Entrepreneurship; Publishing / Communications / Advertising; Retail

March 2021 (Revised February 2025)
Teaching Note

Afterpay U.S.: The Omnichannel Dilemma

By: Antonio Moreno and Anibha Singh

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 519-086. In 2018, Nick Molnar, the founder of the Australia-based online payment service Afterpay began its expansion to the U.S. market. The service had gained a loyal following in Australia by enabling customers to pay for online... View Details