Publications

25 Sep 2006
Research & Ideas

How Software Platforms Revolutionize Business

solutions for myriad tasks that previously were performed in traditional, non-tech ways. In this way, they have improved the productivity of many traditional industries (just look at all the industries that... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Video Game; Web Services

May 1995 (Revised April 1998)
Case

AT&T Paradyne

By: Robert S. Kaplan

A company making data communication devices has adopted a Total Quality philosophy for working with suppliers, employees, and customers. The finance group finds its existing cost system has become obsolete because of a shift from manual to automatic production... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Product; Corporate Accountability; Activity Based Costing and Management; System; Performance Efficiency; Financial Reporting; Operations; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry

31 Aug 2010
First Look

First Look: August 31

related to diminished performance. Additionally, the interaction of team familiarity with interpersonal diversity is related to improved project performance in some cases. Our results highlight a need for... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

13 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Managing the Family Business: Leadership Roles

business systems worldwide, including how leadership affects performance. As an example of very capable leadership of a high performing family enterprise, I introduced Nelson Sirotsky, Chairman of RBS, who two years ago successfully... View Details

Keywords: by John A. Davis

21 Jul 2009
First Look

First Look: July 21

The case describes an organization's use of the science of improvement to transform their process quality from below average to the top 10% in their industry. The case outlines the protagonist's strategy of developing internal experts who... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

September 2012 (Revised May 2015)
Case

Philips-Visicu

By: Regina E. Herzlinger, Natalie Kindred and Sara M. McKinley

Would the advent of global payment models and ACOs create sufficient demand for a telemedicine offering covering the care continuum, from hospitals to the home? This was the decision facing Royal Philips Electronics (Philips), the Netherlands-based producer of... View Details

29 Jul 2014
First Look

First Look: July 29

and performance in most organizations but require effective leadership to succeed. This note summarizes the conditions leaders can create to increase the chances of creating, managing, and participating in successful teaming environments.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

03 Nov 2015
First Look

November 3, 2015

the performance effects of those choices. We find that, on average, deviations lead to slower read times. Doctors tend to deviate more with experience and when they have more variety within their queue. Interestingly, deviations tend to... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

14 Jan 2019
Op-Ed

These 4 CEOs Created a New Standard of Leadership

the World Economic Forum, and the next day he’s demanding improved performance from Unilever’s senior executives. In my view, Polman isn’t an enigma at all, but a world statesman who exemplifies all the... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Health; Banking; Food & Beverage; Consumer Products

January 2014 (Revised August 2017)
Case

StepSmart Fitness

By: Robert J. Dolan, Benson P. Shapiro and Alisa Zalosh

StepSmart Fitness, a manufacturer of exercise equipment, is undergoing a sweeping reorganization. The new CEO has terminated the District Sales Director and Regional VP and promoted 30-year-old Benjamin Cooper to manage the underperforming New England district. A... View Details

Keywords: Analysis; Restructuring; Salesforce Management; Management Succession; Performance Improvement; Manufacturing Industry; Sports Industry; New England

23 Apr 2024
In Practice

Getting to Net Zero: The Climate Standards and Ecosystem the World Needs Now

With each month clocking record-breaking temperatures across the planet, this Earth Day reflected the renewed urgency of regulators and businesses to find climate-change solutions. The US Securities and Exchange Commission recently adopted new rules that will mandate... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

June 2020
Article

How Scheduling Can Bias Quality Assessment: Evidence from Food Safety Inspections

By: Maria Ibanez and Michael W. Toffel

Accuracy and consistency are critical for inspections to be an effective, fair, and useful tool for assessing risks, quality, and suppliers—and for making decisions based on those assessments. We examine how inspector schedules could introduce bias that erodes... View Details

Keywords: Assessment; Bias; Inspection; Scheduling; Econometric Analysis; Empirical Research; Regulation; Health; Food; Safety; Quality; Performance Consistency; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms

Article

Reclaim Your Commute: Getting To and From Work Doesn't Have to be Soul Crushing

By: Francesca Gino, Bradley Staats, Jon M. Jachimowicz, Julia J. Lee and Jochen I. Menges

Every day, millions of people around the world face long commutes to work. In the United States alone, approximately 25 million workers spend more than 90 minutes each day getting to and from their jobs. And yet few people enjoy their commutes. This distaste for... View Details

Keywords: Commuting; Welfare; Attitudes; Satisfaction; Performance Productivity

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07 Apr 2015
First Look

First Look: April 7

commissions hurt sales. If managers must retain a cap, they should set it as high as possible to avoid reducing reps' incentives. Although overly complicated compensation systems have their downsides, research has found that a system needs to include enough elements... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

03 Mar 2009
First Look

First Look: March 3, 2009

the efforts of Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, to improve liquidity in money markets during the subprime crisis. The case explains the four main new tools for monetary policy (or quantitative easing) the Federal Reserve has... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

23 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 23

of the vision requires leaders to invest in the tools, guide their use, and pave the way for transformation. Perhaps the urgency of the current economic crisis can provide the impetus to overcome resistance to change and turn problems into an opportunity to reduce... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

2008
Working Paper

Variation in Experience and Team Familiarity: Addressing the Knowledge Acquisition-Application Problem

By: Robert S. Huckman and Bradley R. Staats

Prior work in organizational learning has failed to find a consistent effect of variation in experience on performance. While some studies find a positive relationship between these two variables, others find no effect or even a negative relationship. In this paper, we... View Details

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Learning; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Groups and Teams; Familiarity; India