Publications

June – July 2008
Article

A Better Approach to Foreign Aid

By: Justin Muzinich and Eric D. Werker

Frustration with U.S. foreign aid is widespread. At the same time, flows of private development finance—including foreign direct investment and remittances—have begun to dwarf official aid. We suggest a new approach that harnesses the power of private development... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Foreign Direct Investment; International Relations; Taxation; Welfare or Wellbeing; United States

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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

January 1995 (Revised March 1995)
Case

GuateSalud

Dr. Glenn Lopez, the founder and general director of GuateSalud, faces cash flow problems and some crucial choices about how to expand his innovative health maintenance organization for agricultural workers in rural Guatemala. The case describes Lopez's six-year... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Government and Politics; Conflict and Resolution; Health Industry; Guatemala

18 Oct 2016
First Look

October 18, 2016

first review the landscape of global talent mobility, which is both asymmetric and rising in importance. We next consider the determinants of global talent flows at the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

August 2023
Case

WayCool: Reimagining the Food Supply Chain

By: Paul Gompers and Kairavi Dey

Founded in 2015, WayCool, is an Indian agri-tech start-up that built a B2B operation acquiring fruits and vegetables from product-specific agriculture companies and small-holding farmers. It sold them to business customers, such as local retail stores, restaurants, and... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Digital Transformation; Operations; Business Strategy; Supply Chain; Performance; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Technology Industry; Web Services Industry; Asia; South Asia

June 2001
Case

GE's Early Dispute Resolution Initiative (A)

By: Michael A. Wheeler and Gillian Morris

GE's chief litigation counsel sought to rationalize litigation flow by viewing it as a manufacturing process. By applying the principles of Six Sigma, P.D. Villareal created an Early Dispute Resolution (EDR) system that enabled both lawyers and managers to work... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Lawsuits and Litigation; Six Sigma; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Problems and Challenges; Conflict and Resolution; Energy Industry; Technology Industry; United States

January 1988 (Revised January 1997)
Case

Digital Equipment Corp.: The Endpoint Model (A)

By: David A. Garvin

Describes a comprehensive manufacturing strategy designed to reduce substantially the cycle time of orders (i.e. the time between the placement of an order by a customer and its delivery to the customer). To launch the strategy Digital has adopted manufacturing... View Details

Keywords: Business Plan; Information; Time Management; Production; Strategic Planning; Strategy; Manufacturing Industry

March 2008 (Revised December 2011)
Case

IBM Values and Corporate Citizenship

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter

IBM's transformation into a globally integrated enterprise (GIE) began with a conviction about what should never change. Since its founding in 1911, the company operated under a set of principles articulated by founder Thomas Watson and became known for a strong... View Details

Keywords: Values and Beliefs; Globalized Firms and Management; Technological Innovation; Leading Change; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Integration

28 Oct 2014
News

There’s No Excuse for Avoiding Strategy

April 2017
Teaching Note

DoubleDutch

By: Frank Cespedes

This Teaching Note accompanies HBS No. 815-044 “DoubleDutch” in which the co-founders of the event management start-up, DoubleDutch, have to make a significant decision about their young company's sales function. The teaching note covers: Opportunity analysis,... View Details

Keywords: Sales Management; Selling; Marketing Management; Strategy Implementation; Business Marketing; Salesforce Management; Marketing; Sales; Marketing Strategy; Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Technology Industry; United States; Europe; Asia

September 1991
Case

All American Pipeline

By: Timothy A. Luehrman

Goodyear is nearing its first major capital commitments for the largest investment project in its history, the All American Pipeline. The pipeline will transport heavy crude oil from California to Texas. It is the centerpiece of a major program by Goodyear to diversify... View Details

Keywords: Capital; Financial Strategy; Business Startups; Diversification; Valuation; Standards; Supply Chain; Resource Allocation; Cash Flow; Mining Industry; California; Texas

Summer 2018
Article

Why High-Tech Commoditization Is Accelerating

By: Willy C. Shih

Knowledge embedded within state-of-the-art production and design tools is a powerful force that is leveling the global technology playing field. It democratizes innovation and makes future competition more challenging. This paper describes the knowledge flows through... View Details

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11 Dec 2019
News

How AI shifts enterprise decision-making into self-driving mode

August 2014 (Revised May 2015)
Case

Teaming at Disney Animation

By: Amy C. Edmondson, David L. Ager, Emily Harburg and Natalie Bartlett

Jonathan Geibel, Director of Systems at Walt Disney Animation Studios (hereafter referred to as Disney Animation), walked through the workspace occupied by the group he had been tasked to lead. Geibel knew he was part of a creative and magical environment. The Disney... View Details

Keywords: Leading Change; Creativity; Organizational Structure; Animation Entertainment; Organizational Culture; Groups and Teams; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

Research Summary

Sustainable Operations

Professor Lee studies how operational synergies between different supply chains can be used to create economic value and improve environmental sustainability. She uses an operational lens to approach sustainability problems, focusing on the management of material flow... View Details

Keywords: Environment; Environmental Operations; Sustainability; Operations Management; Operational Disruptions; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Food Security

January 2008 (Revised February 2008)
Case

South Dakota Wheat Growers

By: David E. Bell and Mary L. Shelman

As a farmer-owned cooperative, South Dakota Wheat Growers (SDWG) serves the needs of its 3,600 active farmer-members by supplying farm inputs and organizing the marketing and transportation of grain produced in the co-op's service territory. For almost 80 years, the... View Details

Keywords: Cooperative Ownership; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Production; Rail Transportation; Marketing Strategy; Expansion; Economic Growth; Global Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; South Dakota