Publications

April 2022 (Revised August 2022)
Case

Restaurant Brands International: Version 2.0

By: Boris Groysberg and Sarah L. Abbott

In 2010, 3G Capital acquired Burger King, the second largest burger chain globally. 3G expanded Burger King’s operations via acquisitions into a multi-brand business, renamed Restaurant Brands International. The acquisition had been a financial success story for 3G.... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Growth and Development; Performance Evaluation; Private Equity; Franchise Ownership; Culture; Change Management; Strategy; Human Resources; Information Technology; Competition; Retail Industry; United States

11 May 2016
Research & Ideas

Fix This! Why is it so Painful to Buy a New Car?

had booked 400,000 pre-orders for its Model 3 sedan—a $35,000 vehicle that won’t even go into production until 2017. None of those sales were made through franchised dealerships; Tesla uses only direct-to-consumer sales. Meanwhile, car... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Auto

February 1998 (Revised July 2003)
Case

ICEDELIGHTS

Three second-year students at the Harvard Business School decide to buy a company. The case focuses on their thoughts about an entrepreneurial career, their search process, and the evaluation of an Icedelights (an ice cream/cafe) franchise. This is a rewritten version... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Franchise Ownership

October 1979 (Revised May 1980)
Case

Dunkin' Donuts (B): Field Management

By: Hirotaka Takeuchi

Keywords: Performance Evaluation; Franchise Ownership; Food and Beverage Industry

Find at Harvard

March 2005 (Revised May 2005)
Case

Noodles & Company (Abridged)

By: Linda A. Cyr

Aaron Kennedy has successfully grown Noodles & Co. from a single global noodle shop to a chain of 58 restaurants spanning six states in seven years. In the face of increasing competition, Kennedy has plans to roll out 240 new stores in the next four years. He must... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Entrepreneurship; Franchise Ownership; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

Article

Enfranchisement of Service Workers

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and James Heskett

Enfranchisement is achieved through an integration of empowerment with methods of pay for performance. Evidence from Ito Yokado Group in Japan and Nordstrom in the US demonstrates the positive effects of enfranchisement. Successful efforts to enfranchise employees: 1.... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Franchise Ownership; Employees; Compensation and Benefits; Service Industry; Japan; United States

Read Now

10 Jul 2000
Research & Ideas

Cable TV: From Community Antennas to Wired Cities

provide to municipalities free of charge, as a condition of franchise approval. "Narrowcasting" would supplement broadcasting with an array of arts and educational programming. Jeffersonian democracy would bloom as cable... View Details

Keywords: by Thomas R. Eisenmann; Media & Broadcasting; Consumer Products; Entertainment & Recreation

March 2010 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Boston Scientific Corporation (A)

By: Regina E. Herzlinger and Charlie Attlan

Boston Scientific Corporation just bought Guidant at a record breaking price to expand their cardiovascular franchise. They need to rationalize their product portfolio to make the acquisition work. What should they sell and why? View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Decision Choices and Conditions; Growth and Development; Product Marketing; Product Development; Franchise Ownership; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

December 2000 (Revised February 2007)
Case

Achieving Customer Satisfaction at Pizza Hut (A)

By: V.G. Narayanan and Preeti Choudhary

Describes how Pizza Hut measures and monitors customer satisfaction, customer complaints, and the quality of its retail locations. View Details

Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Management Systems; Risk Management; Franchise Ownership; Performance Evaluation; Problems and Challenges; Quality; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry

March 2003 (Revised March 2004)
Case

Noodles & Company

Aaron Kennedy has successfully grown Noodles & Co. from a single global noodle shop to a chain of 58 restaurants spanning six states in seven years. In the face of increasing competition, Kennedy has plans to roll out 240 new stores in the next four years. He must... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Expansion; Business Growth and Maturation; Organizational Culture; Franchise Ownership; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

24 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 24, 2009

activities. Organizational Design and Control across Multiple Markets: The Case of Franchising in the Convenience Store Industry Authors:Dennis Campbell, Srikant M. Datar, and Tatiana Sandino Periodical:The Accounting Review (forthcoming)... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 15, 2008

Working PapersOrganizational Design and Control across Multiple Markets: The Case of Franchising in the Convenience Store Industry Authors:Dennis Campbell, Srikant M. Datar, and Tatiana Sandino Abstract Many companies operate units... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 Feb 2011
First Look

First Look: Feb. 15

consider supporting deposit insurance schemes and undertaking subsidised recapitalisations. Working PapersTrade Policy and Firm Boundaries Authors:Laura Alfaro, Paola Conconi, Harald Fadinger, and Andrew F. Newman Abstract We study how trade policy affects firms'... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

19 Jan 2022
In Practice

7 Trends to Watch in 2022

Kominers: NFTs go mainstream Last year saw a huge spike in the creation and sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), digital ownership records stored on distributed ledgers called blockchains. People bought and traded NFTs of everything from... View Details

Keywords: by HBS News

22 Aug 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, August 23

requiring commitment mechanisms. I suggest that a small set of large institutional investors, importantly, but not exclusively, index investors, could provide this commitment mechanism. Common ownership of competitors within industries... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2009 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Urbi and the City Licensee Managers

By: John D. Macomber and Regina Garcia-Cuellar

A leading low income housing builder in Mexico decides which prospective new local partner best extends its advantages in managing twin production lines of homes and clients. URBI has built substantial competitive advantage in the technology and culture that matches... View Details

Keywords: Mortgages; Government and Politics; Housing; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Market Entry and Exit; Production; Supply Chain; Organizational Culture; Franchise Ownership; Partners and Partnerships; Competitive Advantage; Real Estate Industry; China; India; Mexico; United States