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Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(6,301)
- People (3)
- News (1,207)
- Research (4,498)
- Events (35)
- Multimedia (67)
- Faculty Publications (2,928)
- November 1990 (Revised February 1991)
- Case
Commonwealth Blood Transfusion Service
For the first time, the Commonwealth Blood Transfusion Service (CBTS) has to determine product costs for the output of its plasma fractionation center. The motivation for determining product costs is political in nature. Therefore, the CBTS has to find a way to report... View Details
Cooper, Robin. "Commonwealth Blood Transfusion Service." Harvard Business School Case 191-087, November 1990. (Revised February 1991.)
- March 1975 (Revised April 1988)
- Case
Industrial Grinders N.V.
Focuses on a relevant cost decision. Which costs are relevant for the decision? How should they be taken into account? View Details
Barrett, M. Edgar, and Rohan Weerasinghe. "Industrial Grinders N.V." Harvard Business School Case 175-246, March 1975. (Revised April 1988.)
- 2002
- Case
Southwest Airlines
By: Vijay Govindarajan and Julie Lang
Southwest used its short-haul and point-to-point strategy to achieve the lowest operating cost structure in the domestic airline industry. Flexible contracts and a rigorous peer recruiting process aligned its 35,000 employees with this strategy. View Details
- 07 Sep 2021
- Research & Ideas
Who Pays For Wildfire and Hurricane Damage? Everyone.
New Mexico homeowners might think their inland location buffers them from the financial toll of climate change, but they’re still paying for climate-related property damage occurring in coastal states. New research finds that homeowners in New Mexico and other states... View Details
- July 1990 (Revised October 1997)
- Case
Siemens Electric Motor Works (A) (Abridged)
By: Robert S. Kaplan
Explores how a cost system can help support a firm's decision to change strategies. In the process, the students are introduced to a simple activity-based cost system. Siemens Electric Motor Works found itself facing an increasingly competitive environment and so made... View Details
Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Cost Accounting; Cost; Adoption; Cost vs Benefits; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Production; Business Strategy; Electronics Industry; Manufacturing Industry
Kaplan, Robert S. "Siemens Electric Motor Works (A) (Abridged)." Harvard Business School Case 191-006, July 1990. (Revised October 1997.)
- December 1998 (Revised January 1999)
- Case
Carver Consulting Co.
By: William J. Bruns Jr.
The managing partner of a relatively new consulting firm is concerned because training costs at the firm's new training center are higher than expected. Analysis of actual costs compared to those expected is required. In addition, he is considering capitalizing some... View Details
Bruns, William J., Jr. "Carver Consulting Co." Harvard Business School Case 199-006, December 1998. (Revised January 1999.)
- June 1985 (Revised March 1991)
- Case
Camelback Communications, Inc.
Camelback Communications, Inc. has a poorly designed cost accounting system and is in the process of redesigning it. This case demonstrates how the old cost accounting system operated. View Details
Cooper, Robin. "Camelback Communications, Inc." Harvard Business School Case 185-179, June 1985. (Revised March 1991.)
- 09 Oct 2020
- Working Paper Summaries
Where the Cloud Rests: The Economic Geography of Data Centers
Keywords: by Shane Greenstein and Tommy Pan Fang
- August 2022 (Revised October 2022)
- Case
Sian Flowers: Fresher by Sea?
By: Willy C. Shih, Michael W. Toffel and Pippa Tubman Armerding
The setting for this case is the Sian Flowers, a company headquartered in Kitengela, Kenya that exports roses to predominantly Europe. Because cut flowers have a limited shelf life and consumers want them to retain their appearance for as long as possible, Sian or its... View Details
Keywords: Supply Chain; Supply Chains; Sustainability; Sustainable Agriculture; Sustainability Reporting; Carbon Emissions; Supply Chain Management; Quality; Ship Transportation; Cost Management; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Africa; Kenya; Netherlands; Europe
Shih, Willy C., Michael W. Toffel, and Pippa Tubman Armerding. "Sian Flowers: Fresher by Sea?" Harvard Business School Case 623-008, August 2022. (Revised October 2022.)
- January 1993 (Revised May 2004)
- Case
Adventurous Computer Games, Inc.
By: William J. Bruns Jr.
A new company producing computer games must begin to capitalize computer software development cost. To do so requires a cost accounting system, decisions about which costs to capitalize, and how to match costs to future revenues. Teaches accounting standards for... View Details
Keywords: Product Development; Applications and Software; Cost Accounting; Business Startups; Information Technology Industry
Bruns, William J., Jr. "Adventurous Computer Games, Inc." Harvard Business School Case 193-088, January 1993. (Revised May 2004.)
- January 2022 (Revised August 2022)
- Case
Geely SEA: New Electric Vehicle Platforms
By: Willy C. Shih and Shu Lin
Kent Bovellan, the Chief Engineer and Head of the Vehicle Architecture Center for Geely Holding, the Hangzhou, China headquartered global automotive group, was debating the platform choice for an upcoming "D" segment midsized battery electric vehicle (BEV). He had led... View Details
Keywords: Product Innovation; Product Architecture; Product Engineering; Platform Design; Platform Strategy; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Information Technology; Product Design; Product Development; Cost Management; Decision Making; Competitive Strategy; Industry Structures; Auto Industry; China; Sweden
Shih, Willy C., and Shu Lin. "Geely SEA: New Electric Vehicle Platforms." Harvard Business School Case 622-001, January 2022. (Revised August 2022.)
- Article
Hurry or Wait: The Pros and Cons of Going Fast or Slow on Climate Change
By: Eleanor Denny and Jurgen Weiss
Climate change risk will likely force the de-carbonization of our electricity sector and thus involve massive investments in long-lived assets using many new and emerging technologies. Since technological progress (independent or dependent on deployment) will likely... View Details
Keywords: Electricity Sector; Environmental Risks; Fat Tails; Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Climate Change; Information Technology; Investment; Technological Innovation; Cost vs Benefits
Denny, Eleanor, and Jurgen Weiss. "Hurry or Wait: The Pros and Cons of Going Fast or Slow on Climate Change." Economists' Voice 12, no. 1 (August 2015): 19–24.
- 21 May 2012
- Research & Ideas
OSHA Inspections: Protecting Employees or Killing Jobs?
gain access to workers' compensation data. Because the data were collected at the company level, the researchers limited their analysis to firms with only one plant, where the effects of an inspection on injury rates and costs could be... View Details
Keywords: by Michael Blanding
- March 1995 (Revised April 1995)
- Background Note
Scope of the Corporation, The
By: David J. Collis
Describes analyses that determine the appropriate limit to the scope of the firm. Examines both the production cost justification for firm diversification--economies of scope and shared resources, and the governance cost justification for including transactions inside... View Details
Collis, David J. "Scope of the Corporation, The." Harvard Business School Background Note 795-139, March 1995. (Revised April 1995.)
- November 1995
- Technical Note
Analyzing Standard Costs: Technical Note
By: V.G. Narayanan
Explains variance analysis. Concepts of price variance and quantity variance are introduced to analyze prime cost variances. Spending variance and capacity variance are used to analyze overhead variance. Consistent with conducting variance analysis in an activity-based... View Details
Narayanan, V.G. "Analyzing Standard Costs: Technical Note." Harvard Business School Technical Note 196-109, November 1995.
- November 1985 (Revised November 1987)
- Case
R&R
Outlines alternative mechanisms for getting into business. Shows the means by which an experienced entrepreneur can gain control over the necessary resources in order to lower the fixed costs of business entry. Provides a mechanism for discussing the role of... View Details
- March 2008 (Revised April 2008)
- Case
Sony PlayStation 3: Game Over?
By: Elie Ofek
Outlines the challenges faced by Sony with the launch of its PlayStation 3. Information on the 2006 and 2007 holiday seasons and the success of rival consoles is outlined. In addition, the case allows examining the costs and revenues associated with a business model... View Details
Keywords: Business Model; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Cost; Revenue; Product Launch; Sales; Competition; Hardware; Entertainment and Recreation Industry
Ofek, Elie. "Sony PlayStation 3: Game Over?" Harvard Business School Case 508-076, March 2008. (Revised April 2008.)
- June 2002
- Background Note
Note on the Equivalency of Methods for Discounting Cash Flows
Uses a numerical example to demonstrate that when you discount the cash flows to capital from a project at the weighted average cost of capital, you get same net present value result as you obtain when discounting the cash flows to equity at the cost of equity. Also... View Details
Fruhan, William E., Jr. "Note on the Equivalency of Methods for Discounting Cash Flows." Harvard Business School Background Note 202-128, June 2002.
- December 1992 (Revised May 1993)
- Case
Porsche AG
By: Robert S. Kaplan
Describes the financial management of the research and development departments of an automobile manufacturer and technology supplier. Existing cost systems measure accurately the costs incurred by department and by project. But little formal information is provided... View Details
Keywords: Financial Management; Cost Accounting; Research and Development; Machinery and Machining; Auto Industry; Technology Industry
Kaplan, Robert S. "Porsche AG." Harvard Business School Case 193-071, December 1992. (Revised May 1993.)
- March 2018 (Revised September 2023)
- Case
X: The Foghorn Decision
In February 2016, Kathy Hannun—a project leader at X, Alphabet Inc.'s so-called "moonshot factory"—had to prepare a recommendation for the senior leadership of X regarding the future of Foghorn, a project she was leading to develop a carbon-neutral process for... View Details
Keywords: Innovation; R&D Project Management; Radical Innovation; Clean Technology; Innovation and Management; Technological Innovation; Energy; Research and Development; Projects; Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Technology Industry; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; California
Huckman, Robert S., Karim R. Lakhani, and Kyle R. Myers. "X: The Foghorn Decision." Harvard Business School Case 618-060, March 2018. (Revised September 2023.)