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(3,905)
- Faculty Publications (981)
- March 2000
- Case
Merloni Elettrodomestici spa: Building for Profit
By: Joseph L. Bower, Bruce McKern and John L. Naman
In 1995, the Merloni management is faced with profitless prosperity. A rise in raw material prices in the face of ferocious competition in their markets hurts margins. At the same time, the company is trying to expand geographically in order to become Pan-European and... View Details
- February 2000 (Revised August 2000)
- Case
Priceline WebHouse Club
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Jon K Rust
Priceline empowered consumers to "name their own price" for airline tickets and hotel rooms; then it shopped these offers to marketers. Priceline's founder Jay Walker described the resulting transactions as a new ecosystem, that helped consumers realize lower prices... View Details
- January 2000 (Revised June 2000)
- Case
Alloy.com: Marketing to Generation Y
By: John A. Deighton and Gil McWilliams
A profitable dot com company? Alloy.com retails clothing to teens by catalog. Alloy uses a Web site to convert prospects and build community. The result is a business with the economics of a direct marketer and the market capitalization of an Internet start-up. The... View Details
- December 1999 (Revised March 2002)
- Case
Hunter Business Group: TeamTBA
By: Das Narayandas and Elizabeth R. Caputo
The Hunter Business Group (HBG), a direct marketing consulting firm specializing in reorganizing the sales and marketing efforts of industrial firms, uses integrated customer contact technologies (including field sales, telephone, and mail) as a means of... View Details
- November 1999 (Revised July 2001)
- Case
New Profit Inc.: Governing the Nonprofit Enterprise
By: Robert S. Kaplan
New Profit, Inc. (NPI) is an innovative venture philanthropy fund. Founded by social entrepreneur Venessa Kirsch, NPI intends to raise large donations from individuals who wish to invest in nonprofit enterprises that could have a significant social impact and the... View Details
- November 1999
- Case
Seminis Inc.
By: Ray A. Goldberg, Jonathan West, Carin-Isabel Knoop and David Benedict Pearcy
Seminis became the world leader in vegetable seeds through a series of acquisitions. This case describes the Seminis strategy toward capturing value, biotechnology, and international operations. View Details
- November 1999
- Background Note
Recognizing Revenues and Expenses: Realized and Earned
By: Robert S. Kaplan
Describes a key concept in financial accounting: choosing an appropriate revenue recognition point. The accrual process requires revenue recognition and expense matching for reporting on the value creation process of companies. Describes the two key criteria for... View Details
- November 1999 (Revised June 2006)
- Case
DLJdirect: "Putting Our Reputation Online"
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Gillian Morris
Online broker DLJdirect faced two decisions during the fall of 1999: what customer segments should it target and how much should it spend on marketing? Unlike its competitors, who focused either on day traders or more mainstream investors, DLJdirect differentiated its... View Details
- 1999
- Chapter
The Service Profit Chain: Intellectual Roots, Current Realities, and Future Prospects
By: Roger Hallowell and Leonard A. Schlesinger
- October 1999
- Case
Argentina's YFP Sociedad Anonima (E): A New Era
By: Michael Y. Yoshino, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Cate Reavis
In June 1999, Spain's former state-owned oil giant Repsol, acquired 97% of YPF, despite opposition from YPF management. The case describes the status of the two companies at the time of the acquisition and highlights concerns expressed by industry analysts on the deal. View Details
- September 1999 (Revised April 2001)
- Case
Credit Suisse (A) (Abridged)
By: W. Earl Sasser and William E. Fulmer
Credit Suisse is looking for ways to differentiate itself from current and likely competitors. After two years of restructuring, the bank's leadership wants profitable growth. It has decided to emphasize customer service. View Details
- August 1999 (Revised May 2001)
- Case
Catanese and Vulcan (A)
By: V.G. Narayanan and Sanjay Pothen
A small CPA firm puts in a new performance measurement system, and profits increase by 350% in less than a year. This case illustrates the reasons for improved profitability as well as the sustainability of levels of growth, the opportunities, and the threats that... View Details
- July 1999 (Revised June 2000)
- Case
Edward Jones
By: Michael E. Porter and Gregory C. Bond
Edward Jones is a leading, highly profitable retail brokerage firm with a unique strategy very different from those of its rivals. The case describes Jones's activities and allows a rich discussion of its positioning choices, supporting activities, and tradeoffs. Jones... View Details
- July 1999 (Revised March 2000)
- Teaching Note
Walker and Company: Profit Plan Decisions TN
By: Robert L. Simons and Indra Reinbergs
Teaching Note for (9-197-084). View Details
- May 1999 (Revised March 2008)
- Case
Husky Injection Molding Systems
By: Jan W. Rivkin
Husky, a Canadian maker of injection molding systems, has established an enviable position in the market for plastics processing equipment. The company builds the highest performance systems in the business and charges a hefty premium for them. Husky is enjoying robust... View Details
- March 1999 (Revised March 2001)
- Case
Nike, Inc.--Entering the Millennium
Traces the evolution of Nike from 1987 through 1998. Through a series of eight assignment questions, it examines how the company has created and sustained a competitive advantage, and how that competitive advantage is reflected in growth, profitability, and share price... View Details
- March 1999
- Case
MySoftware Company (A)
By: H. Kent Bowen and Nicole Tempest
In 1997, Gregory Slayton took the position as CEO of MySoftware, which had been experiencing revenue and operating losses for the past two years. Within 90 days, he stabilized the company through a combination of cost cutting, financial discipline, and accountability... View Details
- February 1999
- Case
Volant Skis
By: Steven C. Wheelwright and Matt Verlinden
Volant brought innovation to the ski equipment industry in 1989 by developing a stainless steel ski. He claimed the skis could turn more easily, could hold an edge in icy conditions, and were more stable than aluminum or fiberglass skis. The company's "soft-flex"... View Details
- February 1999
- Article
The Persistence of Shocks to Profitability
By: Anita M. McGahan and Michael E. Porter
In this study, we use data for 1981 through 1994 on a large sample of U.S. companies to examine the persistence of incremental industry, corporate-parent, and business-specific effects on profitability. Our results indicate that the incremental effects of industry on... View Details
- January 1999
- Case
Prague Post, The
By: Paul A. Gompers
Lisa Frankenberg, co-founder of the Prague Post, is faced with several business and professional decisions. The English-language paper she founded is under pressure from competition and a Czech Republic recession. She must decide how to return the paper to... View Details