Publications

January 1977
Case

MRC, Inc. (Consolidated)

By: Thomas R. Piper

A large diversified company must develop a strategy for a division whose performance has deteriorated due to its aging product. Alternatives range from liquidation to a major investment in a new product. The formal capital budgeting system is compared with the informal... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Business Divisions; Capital Budgeting

November 2003 (Revised July 2006)
Case

STAR 2003

By: Thomas R. Piper

A shift in strategy from broadcasting standardized programs throughout its footprint to localized programming necessitates a review of STAR's organizational structure. Growing complexity and a need for local responsiveness point toward adoption of a country-based... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Organizational Structure; Management Teams; Decision Choices and Conditions; Organizational Design; Complexity; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

19 Jun 2014
Blog Post

Exploring the World of Retail as an Intern at Walmart

Fortunately for my stress level, I came into HBS with two parts of my career vision crystallized already: a role in the retail & consumer products realm, and something that would allow me to see a project beyond the recommendation... View Details

January 2025 (Revised June 2025)
Case

U.S. Steel: Proposed Acquisition by Nippon Steel

By: Willy Shih

The case setting is the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel, which elicited a great deal of controversy. The purpose of the case is to look at the history of the American steel industry since World War II and understand how the steel minimill operators... View Details

Keywords: Disruptive Innovation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Business History; Technological Innovation; Business Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Steel Industry; United States

July 2019
Case

Bjarke Ingels Group

By: Boris Groysberg and Aldo Sesia

Danish-born Bjarke Ingels is regarded as a giant in the field of architecture. He started his firm—the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG)—in 2005 in Copenhagen. Fourteen years later, the firm has additional offices in New York City, London, and Barcelona and employs over 500... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Design; Growth Management; Leadership; Organizational Culture; Talent and Talent Management; Urban Development; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Construction Industry; Service Industry; Real Estate Industry; Denmark; Spain; United Kingdom; United States; New York (city, NY)

12 PM – 1 PM EST, 07 Mar 2022
Virtual Programming

Considering a Career Transition? Connect with HBS

Are you thinking about making a career move? Or, do you want to work with a coach on some aspect of your leadership? Maybe you want to step back and reflect on your purpose, power up your LinkedIn profile, or practice for an upcoming interview. If these aspects of... View Details

16 Oct 2023
HBS Case

Advancing Black Talent: From the Flight Ramp to 'Family-Sustaining' Careers at Delta

Johnson. They do this work hand-in-glove,” Hill says. The strategy must be pursued with transparency and rigor companywide. “The leadership needs to be exposed to people from... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Air Transportation

17 Jun 2010
Other Presentation

Value-Based Health Care Delivery

By: Michael E. Porter

This presentation draws on Michael E. Porter and Elizabeth Olmsted Teisberg: Redefining Health Care: Creating Value-Based Competition on Results, Harvard Business School Press, May 2006, and Porter, Michael E. "A Strategy for Health Care Reform." New England Journal of... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; United States

Read Now

January 2009 (Revised March 2013)
Case

Live Nation Faces the Music

By: Stephen P. Bradley, Frank Cespedes and Kerry Herman

In 2008, concert producer and promoter Live Nation faces a decision about its strategy in light of the tumultuous changes in the music industry and the increasing power of the major artists. As the music business once again recreates itself in response to new... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Music Entertainment; Five Forces Framework; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Corporate Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

August 2018 (Revised February 2019)
Case

Shindigz

By: Frank Cespedes

Shindigz provides party and celebratory items for various occasions and events through its branded online channel, through third-party retail and wholesale channels, and external online marketplaces. The case focuses on pricing challenges facing a venture with an... View Details

Keywords: Ecommerce; Pricing; Price; Strategy; Decision Making; Brands and Branding; Distribution Channels; E-commerce; Consumer Products Industry

October 2021 (Revised February 2022)
Case

Hospital 57357: Aligning Performance Towards a Vision of a Cancer-Free Childhood

By: Susanna Gallani and Youssef Abdel Aal

The case follows the Children Cancer Hospital in Egypt, also known as Hospital 57357, as it goes through the roll-out of a new performance management system, which Dr. Sherif Abouel Naga, founder and CEO of the hospital, had championed. This was a critical juncture as... View Details

Keywords: Healthcare; Performance Management; Performance Incentives; Strategic Alignment; Health Care and Treatment; Nonprofit Organizations; Strategy; Alignment; Performance Evaluation; Mission and Purpose; Change Management; Health Industry; Egypt; Middle East

Video

Offshoring Exercise

Research Summary

Overview

Given the difficulty of directly debiasing cognitive and social biases, Ariella's research focuses on how environments can be structured to reduce biased behaviors and outcomes. Ariella is currently pursuing two main strands of research: the first is a focus on... View Details

March 1997 (Revised July 1998)
Case

SOS-Kinderdorf International: Caring for Orphaned Children

By: V. Kasturi Rangan

SOS-Kinderdorf, founded in 1949, has grown rapidly into one of the largest orphanages in the world with children's villages, kindergartens, schools, youth facilities, and other complementary programs in 130 countries. This case describes the evolution of the... View Details

Keywords: Management; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Mission and Purpose; Problems and Challenges; Nonprofit Organizations; Strategy; India; Norway; United States

Find at Harvard

October 2017 (Revised August 2020)
Case

RB

By: Joshua Margolis, Vincent Dessain and Jerome Lenhardt

As 2016 was approaching its end, Rakesh Kapoor, CEO of RB, one of the world’s major fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies, envisioned the prospect of a major acquisition that would add a line of health-related products that promised growth in the developing... View Details

Keywords: Organization Behavior; Corporate Culture; Mergers ＆ Acquisitions; Growth; Geographic Development; Mergers and Acquisitions; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Growth and Development Strategy; France

April 2020
Case

Apple Inc. in 2020

By: David B. Yoffie and Daniel Fisher

After a decade as CEO, Tim Cook is facing one of his biggest strategic transitions of his tenure. While Apple had performed spectacularly well under Cook, Apple's core business was maturing. Sales of iPhones, iPads, and Macs were flat or down. However, Apple's new... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Market Positioning; Marketing Implementation; Planning; Products; Strategic Positioning; Strategy; Information Technology; Competitive Strategy; Technological Innovation; Competitive Advantage; Product Positioning; Communication; Competition; Leadership; Strategic Planning; Computer Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Technology Industry

Web

Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

Great Nashville’s mission is to unite the community and mobilize... Three urgent challenges for leaders in financial inclusion today Robert Abare 25 Jun 2025 Insights from participants of the 2025 HBS-Accion Program on Strategic View Details

February 1998 (Revised January 2002)
Case

China: Facing the 21st Century

After 20 years of strong economic performance, economic czar Zhu Rongji considers whether it is time to rethink China's development strategy. The case reviews China's development strategy since 1978 and considers the challenges facing the country as it enters the 21st... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Macroeconomics; China