Publications

January 2008 (Revised February 2011)
Case

Rubbish Boys

By: Noam Wasserman and Rachel Galper

It looked like founder-CEO Brian Scudamore might not be able to pursue franchising as a growth option for his junk-removal business after all. Over the years, he had overcome many hurdles, including buying out his "too-fiery" co-founder, firing all of his employees so... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Problems and Challenges; Brands and Branding; Business Model; Partners and Partnerships; Business Growth and Maturation; Franchise Ownership; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry; Canada; North America

09 Dec 2002
Research & Ideas

Unilever—A Case Study

Langnese; and Sunlicht. The name "Unilever" was not used in operating companies or in brand names. Lever Brothers and T. J. Lipton were the two postwar U.S. affiliates. These national operating companies were allocated to either... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones; Consumer Products; Entertainment & Recreation; Food & Beverage; Manufacturing; Retail

Career Coach

Michelle Antonio

Michelle (Chicago Booth ’97, Wharton ’91) offers 15 years of professional experience in recruiting, consulting and career management leadership roles. Michelle partners with MBA students and alumni to achieve career success by tapping... View Details

Keywords: Consulting; Consumer Products; Education; Government

Research Summary

Design Driven Innovation

By: Roberto Verganti

Firms, managers and scholars have often balanced between two approaches to innovation: user centered (where incremental innovation is pulled by the market) and technology push (where innovation comes from breakthrough development in technologies). However there is a... View Details

March 2019
Case

HOPI: Turkey's Shopping Companion

By: Sunil Gupta, Donald Ngwe and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in 2017 as Onur Erbay, CEO of HOPI, a multi-vendor loyalty platform, is contemplating a critical decision. The case chronicles the origins of Boyner Group, the parent company of HOPI and a major retailer in Turkey, and development of retail and customer... View Details

Keywords: Loyalty Programs; Multi-vendor Platform; Retail; Big Data; Customer Relationship Management; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Business Model; Analytics and Data Science; Competitive Strategy; Decision Making; Applications and Software; Digital Platforms; Technology Industry; Retail Industry; Turkey

Web

Video Clips - Creating Emerging Markets

Laura Catena Dr. Laura Catena Building Brands Dr. Laura Catena, Managing Director of Bodega Catena Zapata, traces the history of her family winery from humble beginnings to their decision in the 1990s to... View Details

August 1997 (Revised March 1998)
Case

Unilever's Butter-Beater: Innovation for Global Diversity

By: Clayton M. Christensen and Jorg Zobel

Unilever, one of the world's largest food product manufacturers, has achieved impressive growth in Europe, primarily by acquiring local food companies. Initially Unilever allowed each acquired company to manage its own product development in a way that was tailored to... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Brands and Branding; Product Development; Mergers and Acquisitions; Local Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Marketing Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Innovation and Management; Food; Conflict Management; Food and Beverage Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Europe

22 Sep 2003
Research & Ideas

When Protestors Knock at Your Door

competitive position as important factors in determining how management might respond to NGOs. Do have you any recommendations for managers in determining the relative value of each factor? Spar: Firms need... View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia Churchwell

May 1992 (Revised May 2002)
Case

NIKE in Transition (B): Phil Knight Returns

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

After returning to the CEO/COO job, Phil Knight makes changes to Nike's strategy, organization, and management between 1983 and 1987 aimed at making Nike more responsive to the market place. He takes cost-cutting measures, and experiments with several management and... View Details

Keywords: Change; Entrepreneurship; Cost Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business Strategy

February 2011 (Revised November 2013)
Case

The Cheezburger Network

By: John Deighton and Leora Kornfeld

Cheezburger Network was a Web publisher of humorous, user-contributed content, using social media for dissemination, and selling advertising against the traffic of 1 billion page views per quarter. In January 2011, it raised $30 million in venture capital for the... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Digital Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Venture Capital; Emerging Markets; Strategic Planning; Sales; Internet and the Web; Publishing Industry; Web Services Industry

27 Mar 2007
First Look

First Look: March 27, 2007

Working PapersFrom Manufacturing to Design: An Essay on the Work of Kim B. Clark Authors:Sylvain Lenfle and Carliss Y. Baldwin Abstract Kim Clark occupies a unique place in management scholarship. As a member of the Technology and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Video

Dr. R.S. Sodhi

Dr. R.S. Sodhi, former Managing Director of GCMMF (Amul), discusses the organization's strategies to build a unique reputation with both farmers and consumers. View Details

Career Coach

Lauren Murphy

responsibility at the Proctor & Gamble company where she was a Brand Manager and a Regional Marketing Manager. She began her business career in the buying office as an Area View Details

Career Coach

Erika Beisler

data and coaching for offer negotiations. Her prior work experience includes brand management at Bestfoods, Unilever, and Welch’s and market research at CSpace. View Details

07 Jun 2019
Book

Are You a Digital Manager?

Complex trends in globalization, demographic shifts, and new technologies are raising urgent challenges for managers on an everyday level. Because of the number of companies undergoing digital transformation, View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

Career Coach

Rebecca Emerick

Rebecca is a Corporate Relations Director in the HBS Career & Professional Development (CPD) office. She has worked in CPD since 2008 and serves as the consulting industry lead for the office. In addition, she manages the recruiting... View Details

Keywords: Consulting

10 Dec 2013
First Look

First Look: December 10

Publications August 2013 Strategic Management Journal Location Choices under Strategic Interactions By: Alcácer, Juan, Minyuan Zhao, and Cristian Dezso Abstract—The literature on location choices has mostly emphasized the impact of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2021 (Revised February 2025)
Teaching Note

Afterpay U.S.: The Omnichannel Dilemma

By: Antonio Moreno and Anibha Singh

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 519-086. In 2018, Nick Molnar, the founder of the Australia-based online payment service Afterpay began its expansion to the U.S. market. The service had gained a loyal following in Australia by enabling customers to pay for online... View Details