Publications

October 2003
Case

Henry Tam and the MGI Team

By: Jeffrey T. Polzer, Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein

Within a short time frame, seven diverse team members assemble to write a business plan for a new company and struggle to define their roles, make decisions together, and resolve conflict. Henry Tam, a second-year Harvard MBA student, who joins an aspiring start-up... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Communication; Business Plan; Groups and Teams; Decision Making; Jobs and Positions; Leadership Style; Human Resources; Management Teams; Conflict and Resolution; Diversity

08 Mar 2017
Book

Why American Democracy Thrives On Conflict

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

06 Sep 2007
Working Paper Summaries

The Excess Burden of Government Indecision

Keywords: by Francisco J. Gomes, Laurence J. Kotlikoff & Luis M. Viceira

March 2018 (Revised March 2018)
Teaching Note

OpenInvest

By: Boris Vallee and Caitlin Reimers Brumme

Founded by a team of hedge fund and NGO alumni, OpenInvest launched its platform in 2015 to enable retail investors to tailor their portfolio to their personal values in an automated way, for instance by screening out weapon manufacturers stocks or overweighting LGBTQ... View Details

Keywords: Socially Responsible Investing; Investing For Impact; Robo-advisors; Investment; Values and Beliefs; Customization and Personalization; Technology; Financial Services Industry

17 Apr 2007
First Look

First Look: April 17, 2007

http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=507006 Edelnor (A) Harvard Business School Case 707-473 Fernando del Sol, president of F. S. Inversiones in Chile, had just bought himself a headache as a New View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

October 1993
Case

Analyst's Dilemma (A), The

By: Joseph L. Badaracco Jr. and Jerry Useem

A young investment banker returns home one night to find that her roommate and best friend has been laid off from Universal Bank because Universal is shutting down its capital finance group. Her roommate makes her promise to keep this information confidential because... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Values and Beliefs; Leveraged Buyouts; Conflict of Interests; Decision Choices and Conditions; Risk and Uncertainty

11 Oct 2004
Research & Ideas

Four Ways to Create Lasting Change

improvements. According to Roberto and Levesque, "We began to understand the barriers and catalysts for successful institutionalization of these programmatic change efforts." They described their results in a new HBS working... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

19 Sep 2005
Research & Ideas

Rethinking Company Loyalty

masters to further her own career are also what the company needs. And when firms help workers acquire new skills that support their professional advancement, they often win those workers' commitment—and attract loyal View Details

Keywords: by Lauren Keller Johnson

October 2008 (Revised February 2011)
Case

Apple's Core

By: Noam T. Wasserman

Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak are best friends who enjoy pulling pranks together and talking about electronics. After several small collaborations, Jobs pitches Wozniak on starting a company together to sell computers based on Wozniak's design for a personal computer.... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Equity; Managerial Roles; Partners and Partnerships; Conflict Management

July 2021 (Revised October 2021)
Case

Trouble at Basecamp: Managing Politics, Polarization, and Conflict in the Workplace (A)

By: Nour Kteily, Deepak Malhotra and David Lane

As founders of the software company Basecamp, Jason Fried and David H. Hansson were used to being the subjects of social media attention. Both maintained active and dedicated Twitter followings for their unique perspectives on management and life. But on April 26,... View Details

May 2009 (Revised August 2010)
Case

The Jenner Situation

By: Richard G. Hamermesh, Andy Whittemore and Eliot Sherman

Dr. Bill Lemont is the new chief medical officer of a large academic medical center. During his first week on the job he has become aware of the abusive behavior and temper outbursts of a prominent orthopedic surgeon. How Dr. Lemont handles the situation will be... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Communication; Employee Relationship Management; Managerial Roles; Behavior; Conflict Management; Health Industry

01 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Encouraging Dissent in Decision-Making

What lessons could the humid shores of the Caribbean, the freezing heights of the Himalayas, or the farthest reaches of Earth's atmosphere hold for your company or organization? Although those places couldn't be more different, all were the scenes of disastrous... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons

03 Oct 2007
Research & Ideas

Dealing with the ‘Irrational’ Negotiator

the time the employee was fired, the company's accounts were a mess; records had been kept poorly. Since then, the firm had hired a new accountant and updated all of the records. These records now clearly revealed that the employee's... View Details

Keywords: by Deepak Malhotra & Max H. Bazerman

November 1990 (Revised April 1999)
Case

General Motors: Packard Electric Division

By: Steven C. Wheelwright

Packard Electric is the division of General Motors (GM) that does all of the electrical wiring and cabling for GM automobiles. They developed a new approach for passing the cables through the firewall between the engine and passenger compartments. The new technology... View Details

Keywords: Business Divisions; Cost; Management Style; Product Design; Product Development; Production; Projects; Groups and Teams; Conflict and Resolution; Technology; Auto Industry

06 Jan 2021
Research & Ideas

Unexpected Exercise Advice for the Super Busy: Ditch the Rigid Routine

Author Danielle Kost is the editor-in-chief of Harvard Business School Working Knowledge. [Image: monkeybusinessimages] Related Reading 5 New Year's Resolutions You Can Keep 6... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

March 2013
Case

Robin Ash and Printzhof Press

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Lynda St. Clair

Robin Ash has just been promoted to Chief Operating Officer of Printzhof Press and Vice President of its parent company, Education and Entertainment Holdings, Inc. Her first objective is to create an action plan that will achieve two seemingly contradictory corporate... View Details

Keywords: United States; Organizational Change; Management Styles; General Management; Change Management; Morale; Communication; Human Resource Management; Book Publishing; Information Technology; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Conflict Management; Leading Change; Competitive Strategy; Organizational Culture; Planning; Education Industry; Publishing Industry

09 Feb 2024
HBS Case

Slim Chance: Drugs Will Reshape the Weight Loss Industry, But Habit Change Might Be Elusive

Year after year, millions of people make a new year’s resolution to lose weight. But because success traditionally depends on making major lifestyle changes, like eating healthier and exercising more, many... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Health; Pharmaceutical

May 1995 (Revised May 1998)
Case

Negotiating the Right to Know: Rhone-Poulenc and Manchester, Texas (A-1)

By: Michael A. Wheeler

Rhone-Poulenc wished to acquire a new permit, but local residents who were concerned about health issues threatened to block the permit. View Details

Keywords: Health; Rights; Negotiation; Conflict of Interests; Social Issues; Chemical Industry; United States