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- October 2024
- Article
Racial Inequality in Organizations: A Systems Psychodynamic Perspective
By: Sanaz Mobasseri, William A. Kahn and Robin J. Ely
This paper uses systems psychodynamic concepts to develop theory about the persistence of racial inequality in U.S. organizations and to inform an approach for disrupting it. We treat White men as the dominant group and Black people as the archetypal subordinate group... View Details
- Fall 2024
- Article
The Three Traps That Stymie Reinvention: Organizational Identity, Architecture, and Collaboration Can Be Either Assets or Liabilities to Pursuing Growth in New Sectors
By: Ryan Raffaelli
In more than a decade of researching innovation, I have observed how organizations respond to new opportunities, technological changes, or unexpected market shifts that threaten to upend their current business model. This process, which I call reinvention, may occur... View Details
- September 2024
- Case
Faena: Magic in Mid-Miami Beach
By: Robin Greenwood, Denise Han, Dave Habeeb and Ruth Page
The link to this multimedia case should be provided to students in advance as preparation for classroom case discussion.
This multimedia case follows real estate developer Alan Faena as he expanded his luxury development business from Argentina to the... View Details
This multimedia case follows real estate developer Alan Faena as he expanded his luxury development business from Argentina to the... View Details
Keywords: Development; Real Estate; Hotels; Luxury; Urban Development; Sustainable Cities; Design; Markets; Transformation; Cost vs Benefits; Economic Growth; Private Sector; Public Sector; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Cultural Entrepreneurship; Financial Strategy; Investment Return; Geographic Location; Urban Scope; Corporate Accountability; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Opportunities; Culture; Value Creation; Real Estate Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Florida; Miami; Argentina; Buenos Aires
- September 2024
- Case
Xendit: Hiring for Growth
By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Steve Castano, Quoc Anh Nguyen and Claire Wu
In 2019, Xendit, a growth-stage Southeast Asia (SEA) fintech venture based in Jakarta, was looking to hire a Head of Sales and Head of Product to lead its next phase of growth. Founded by Moses Lo and Tessa Wijaya, Xendit provided payment infrastructure, modeling... View Details
- September 24, 2024
- Article
4 Steps That Can Optimize Your Sales Process
By: Frank V. Cespedes, Scott Peterson and Daniel Weinfurter
Sales is a performance art where outcomes matter, so most advice here focuses on closing the sale. But a close is the result of actions and choices that occur earlier in the process: how much time and effort to spend on customer discovery (understanding what and to... View Details
- September 2024 (Revised November 2024)
- Case
Moss & Associates: 'Empower to Create the Exceptional'
By: Boris Groysberg and Sarah L. Abbott
In 2023, Moss & Associates, a Fort Lauderdale-based general contractor, celebrated its 20th anniversary. The business was founded by Bob Moss and his sons, Chad and Scott. The company had grown to 3,800 employees generating over $3 billion in revenues via two business... View Details
- September 2024 (Revised January 2025)
- Teaching Note
Leading Culture Change at SEB
By: Amy Edmondson and Cat Huang
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 621-074. The Risk organization at SEB, a leading Nordic financial services group founded in 1856, undertook a culture change program focused on psychological safety, empathic listening, and strategic framing. The program enabled risk... View Details
- September 2024
- Case
Navigating Digital Transformation at Carrefour
By: Sunil Gupta and Emilie Billaud
In 2023, Elodie Perthuisot, Carrefour’s Executive Director for e-commerce and digital transformation, met with CEO Alexandre Bompard to discuss strategies for the company’s digital initiatives. Carrefour, a global retail giant with over 14,300 stores across 40... View Details
Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Talent and Talent Management; Decisions; Digital Strategy; Technology Adoption; Leading Change; Goals and Objectives; Resource Allocation; Digital Marketing; E-commerce; Operations; Logistics; Business Processes; Organizational Culture; Strategic Planning; Alliances; Partners and Partnerships; Competitive Advantage; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Europe
- September 2024 (Revised March 2025)
- Case
Burn the Gondolas? Venice, the Ghetto, and the Seasons of Capitalism
By: Sophus A. Reinert, Charlotte Robertson and Robert Fredona
This case uses the history of Venice—from the driving of the first pylons in the lagoon to the abdication of the city’s last doge, across the ages of Marco Polo and Vivaldi—to explore the invention and global diffusion of capitalism, as well as the cyclical rise and... View Details
- September 2024
- Case
Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel (Abridged)
The 2023 release of live-action film Barbie, and its accompanying marketing blitz, incited a worldwide Barbie craze. Suddenly Barbie was everywhere, a celebrated icon reinstated at the forefront of cultural conversation. This goodwill stood in contrast to decades of... View Details
- September 2024
- Article
Backstage Matters: Collective Energy and Information Sharing on Global Teams
By: Wenjie Ma, Leslie A. Perlow and Eunice Eun
It is well documented that information sharing – which is central to team effectiveness – is complicated by cultural and geographical factors. However, little is known about the process of information sharing between subgroups within global teams. Building on Goffman’s... View Details
- 2024
- Working Paper
Determinants of Top-Down Sabotage
By: Hashim Zaman and Karim R. Lakhani
We investigate the conditions that motivate managers to impede the growth of talented subordinates due to fears of future competition for their own positions. Our research expands on existing tournament and contest theory literature that considers peer-to-peer sabotage... View Details
- August 2024 (Revised September 2024)
- Case
Dishoom: From Bombay with Love
By: Anjali M. Bhatt and Thomas J. DeLong
Shamil and Kavi Thakrar, co-founders of Dishoom, faced critical decisions as they looked to expand the UK-based restaurant group. Shamil, the CEO, was confident in Dishoom's potential for growth but he was concerned about preserving the culture and values centered... View Details
- August 2024 (Revised January 2025)
- Case
Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel
The 2023 release of the live-action film Barbie, and its accompanying marketing blitz, incited a worldwide Barbie craze. Suddenly Barbie was everywhere, a celebrated icon reinstated at the forefront of cultural conversation. This goodwill stood in contrast to... View Details
- Winter 2024
- Article
Return to Office Decisions: A Culture Question?
By: Yo-Jud Cheng and Boris Groysberg
Company culture is an important source of competitive advantage and differentiation. Even in times of
crisis, leaders must attend to their company’s culture, designing it in alignment with their strategy and
priorities. One of the most consequential decisions
that... View Details
- July 2024 (Revised September 2024)
- Case
Shell’s Balancing Act: Resource Allocation and the Green Transition (Abridged)
By: David Collis and Haisley Wert
In mid-2023, amid pressure from climate change activists, shareholder activists, and confronting enormous uncertainty about the future demand for and price of fossil fuels, new Shell CEO Wael Sawan (Harvard MBA 2003) announced a change in strategy for the U.K. oil... View Details
- July 2024
- Case
ZEISS: Commercializing Science
By: Maria P. Roche, Carlota Moniz and Daniela Beyersdorfer
Karl Lamprecht, President and CEO of the ZEISS AG Group, mused on how far ZEISS had come in 175 years of being a pioneer in optics, and how the course he had charted since taking the helm of the company could keep it on track. In his role, he oversaw the four core... View Details
Keywords: Business Model; Business Organization; Decisions; Business Strategy; Competition; Business History; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Independent Innovation and Invention; Disruptive Innovation; Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Knowledge Sharing; Industry Growth; Monopoly; Organizational Culture; Supply Chain Management; Partners and Partnerships; Risk and Uncertainty; Adaptation; Commercialization; Resource Allocation; Corporate Strategy; Semiconductor Industry; Technology Industry; Germany; Europe
- July 2024
- Case
Living up to Purpose and Performance at Parker Hannifin
By: Hubert Joly, Alicia Dadlani and Martha Hostetter
In 2019, Parker Hannifin, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of motion and control technologies, did something unusual for an industrial company: it created a purpose statement. Even though it already had a clear business strategy and longstanding culture of... View Details
- July 2024
- Case
Board Director Dilemmas: Strategic Leadership
By: David G. Fubini and Patrick Sanguineti
Professor John Michaels, a distinguished scholar of corporate strategy, has served on the Board of OmniCo, a diversified industrial giant, for four years. Three months ago, the Board appointed a new CEO, Andrew Bennett, to lead growth, develop a more cooperative... View Details