Publications

03 Feb 2022
Video

Professor Debora Spar: Symphonic

04 Sep 2001
Research & Ideas

Governing the Family-Run Business

right people in a timely way to discuss and decide the big issues facing your organization—then your governance system is flawed, should be improved, and probably needs to be made more formal. Given how difficult it is for most people to... View Details

October 1998 (Revised January 1999)
Case

Echlin vs. SPX

By: Paul M. Healy, Bjorn N. Jorgensen and Penny Joseph

Echlin has received a hostile takeover offer from SPX. Both companies have been undertaking major restructurings, and Echlin's shareholders face a difficult decision of whether to support current management or sell out to SPX. Students are asked to analyze the two... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Financial Statements; Business and Shareholder Relations

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January 4, 2019
Article

How Companies Can Balance Social Impact and Financial Goals

By: Marya L. Besharov, Wendy K. Smith and Michael Tushman

It’s notoriously difficult for a business to manage two separate-but-equal goals—making money and creating social value at the same time, for example, or managing an existing business at the same time that you invent a new one. Most attempts at managing these... View Details

Keywords: Goals and Objectives; Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Profit; Decision Making

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30 May 2018
Research & Ideas

Should Retailers Match Their Own Prices Online and in Stores?

they were in their decision to purchase a product. “Pricing is a big decision,” Ofek observes. If the retailer decides to offer every consumer the same price, the result can drag down the store price and lower profit. “But when you talk... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail

17 Jan 2023
Cold Call Podcast

Nestlé’s KitKat Diplomacy: Neutrality vs. Shared Value

Keywords: Re: Geoffrey G. Jones; Consumer Products

February 2003 (Revised August 2004)
Case

Flextronics: Deciding on a Shop Floor System for Producing the Microsoft Xbox

By: Jeffrey T. Polzer and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Jim McCusker must guide a group decision-making process aimed at getting input and buy-in from key people in California, Mexico, and Austria to choose a shop floor IT system for Flextronics. McCusker is Flextronics' account manager for the Microsoft Xbox project.... View Details

Keywords: Groups and Teams; Decision Making; Power and Influence; Geographic Location; Problems and Challenges; Leadership; California; Mexico; Austria

07 Jun 2023
News

My One Case: MBA Class of 2023 Looks Back

21 Oct 2015
Research & Ideas

How to Predict if a New Business Idea is Any Good

innovation and entrepreneurship. When dealing with something truly innovative, it’s difficult to compare it to anything that came before. That uncertainty makes the line between a tremendous success and a phenomenal flop a thin one.... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Accommodations; Financial Services

24 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

The Yelp Factor: Are Consumer Reviews Good for Business?

reviews. “Restaurants are a classic example in economics where the consumer has to make a decision based on very little information” Most would agree these sites do influence consumers' decisions. In the paper Reviews, Reputation, and... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Food & Beverage

September 1994 (Revised January 1997)
Case

This Case Sucks: Beavis, Butt-head, and TV Content (A)

By: Joseph L. Badaracco Jr. and Jerry Useem

Beginning in 1992, "Beavis and Butt-head," an animated series on MTV about two uncivilized teenaged misfits, became both a runaway popular sensation and the symbol of a heated national debate about violent and inappropriate programming on television. Especially after... View Details

Keywords: Debates; Decision Choices and Conditions; Animation Entertainment; Fairness; Governance Controls; Media; Outcome or Result; Social Issues; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

November 2007
Case

Antegren: A Beacon of Hope

By: Joshua D. Margolis, Thomas J. DeLong and Terence Heymann

The CEO of Biogen Idec faces a set of difficult decisions regarding a promising drug for Multiple Sclerosis that is headed for early approval by the FDA. The first in a series focuses on operational decisions triggered by the drive for early approval. Sparks discussion... View Details

Keywords: Demand and Consumers; Leadership; Ethics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Decision Choices and Conditions; Crisis Management; Health Testing and Trials; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

06 Oct 2020
News

Covid-19 Is Rewriting the Rules of Corporate Governance

12 May 2021
News

When Should CEOs Speak Out on Public Issues?

August 2010 (Revised September 2010)
Case

Paul Bremer at the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq

By: Robert Steven Kaplan and Nicholas Henri Taranto

Since becoming the President's envoy responsible for post-war Iraq, Paul Bremer endured many sleepless nights, struggling with the decision of how to hand over sovereignty to the Iraqi people. Despite daily assassination attempts, tribal warfare, growing violence, and... View Details

Keywords: Government Administration; International Relations; National Security; Leadership; Crisis Management; Iraq; District of Columbia

28 May 2019
Research & Ideas

Investor Lawsuits Against Auditors Are Falling, and That's Bad News for Capital Markets

Why did you follow up on Tellabs and Janus? Srinivasan: When there are big changes like Supreme Court decisions it becomes important to assess whether they have changed the landscape or not. These two lawsuits are important for their... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Financial Services; Accounting

December 1999
Case

Sendwine.com

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann, Charmaine C Ess and Ann A. O'Hara

Sendwine.com, an online retailer of premium gifts of wine by the bottle, faced decisions about its growth strategy in mid-1999. Mike Lannon, president and founder, had established his company as a prominent player in an increasingly crowded field. But with success came... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Venture Capital; Financial Strategy; Problems and Challenges; Luxury; Diversification; Internet; Web Services Industry

March 2020
Case

Forbidden City: Launching a Craft Beer in China

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Carole Carlson

This case describes a difficult choice faced by Victor Wang, Managing Director of Singapore-based Eurasian Brewing Company (EBC), concerning the competing product launch plans of Le Jie, Vice President of EBC's China and East Asian operations, and Vivian Chin, EBC's... View Details

Keywords: Subsidiary Management; Craft Brewing; Strategy; Decision Making; Organizational Structure; Business Model; Growth and Development Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Management Style; Food and Beverage Industry; China; East Asia