Publications

December 2011 (Revised January 2012)
Supplement

Pierre Frankel in Moscow (B): Plowing Ahead

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Matthew Bird

After several months into his turnaround of a global technology company's Russia subsidiary, a young and upcoming French executive reflected on how to institutionalize the subsidiary's transformation by further driving cultural change and breaking down internal silos.... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Business Subsidiaries; Leadership; Manufacturing Industry; Russia

25 Jun 2007
Research & Ideas

HBS Cases: Beauty Entrepreneur Madam Walker

By 1910, however, with the new name Madam C.J. Walker, Breedlove had accrued a sizable fortune and considerable influence. This daughter of adversity was now well known and respected among the nation's African Americans as a savvy entrepreneur with a thriving View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Beauty & Cosmetics

June 2015
Case

Beacon Group of Hong Kong: Finding Light in the Shadow Education Industry

By: Christopher Marquis, Qi Li and Guy Leung

After more than 25 years of operation, Beacon Group had grown from having 3 small classrooms on the fourth floor of a commercial building, to a network of 21 centers across Hong Kong with over 60,000 students enrolled per year. The key long-term challenge for the... View Details

Keywords: Online Education; Education; Tutoring; Incentives; Hong Kong; Motivation and Incentives; Internet and the Web; Family Business; Education Industry; Hong Kong

22 Feb 2021
Blog Post

I Found My Future at HBS and You Can Too

Although I did not know it at the time, my path to business school began on March 1, 1992. It was my ninth birthday, and I was enjoying the liberty that came with growing up on a farm on the outskirts of a small mining community in Ohio:... View Details

14 May 2020
Blog Post

A PRIDE Farewell

When we assumed our PRIDE co-president roles in the Spring of 2019, we could not have imagined the state of the world into which we would graduate. We imagined the halls of Aldrich bustling until the very last cold call, families... View Details

March 2025
Case

Skylight: Hit Product or Scalable Company?

By: Rembrand Koning, Christina Wallace and Jeff Huizinga

Skylight, originally a digital frame startup aimed at connecting dispersed families, expanded with a second product—Calendar—to help families manage schedules. Despite significant potential, Calendar struggled with persistent technical issues and poor customer... View Details

Keywords: Culture; Software; Hardware; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Customer Satisfaction; Resource Allocation; Product Launch; Business Strategy; Expansion

Research Summary

Building Effective Relationships Across Cultures

Trust is the foundation of any successful collaborative relationship. In my first stream of research, I draw on the basic distinction between cognition-based versus affect-based trust– that is, trust from the head versus trust from the heart – to better... View Details

03 May 2023
Research & Ideas

Why Confronting Racism in AI 'Creates a Better Future for All of Us'

During his recent standing-room-only seminar about artificial intelligence (AI) and race at Harvard Business School recently, marketing professor Broderick Turner displayed a slide showing several white blob-like characters that resembled... View Details

Keywords: by Barbara DeLollis

Program

Foundations of Private Equity and Venture Capital

executives from various backgrounds, industries, and countries across the globe Build relationships with a diverse group of peers who can provide wide-ranging insights into your business challenges and career decisions Who Should Attend... View Details

Keywords: Finance; Finance

14 Feb 2019
Blog Post

LOVE At HBS

Love at HBS is a celebration of the diverse expressions of love that exist on our campus and in the world around us. This portrait project showcases stories of love from students at Harvard Business School. Alli Iglehart, Class of 2020 As... View Details

November 2010 (Revised April 2011)
Case

Magna International, Inc. (A)

By: Timothy A. Luehrman and Yuhai Xuan

Magna International, Inc., a Canadian-based automotive parts manufacturer, is considering whether and how to unwind its dual-class ownership structure. A family trust controlled by the founder owns a 0.65% economic interest in the company but has 66% of the votes via a... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Restructuring; Cost vs Benefits; Governance Controls; Ownership Stake; Family Ownership; Auto Industry; Canada

October 2001
Case

SchoolSuccess.net

By: James E. Austin and Arthur McCaffrey

The mission of the nonprofit Jumpstart for Young Children was to address the problem of school readiness of low-income family preschoolers. It had been growing significantly, and to achieve its projected expansion would require major increases in funding. After... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Early Childhood Education; Venture Capital; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Startups; Management Teams

Find at Harvard

28 Feb 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

Master the Team Meeting

zones? Find a time that’s mutually convenient for all team members. Do you find the meetings always run over? Schedule them for an extra 30 minutes. If it ends early, you’re a hero. Do team members have family responsibilities in the... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Austin

25 Jan 2016
Blog Post

3 Tips on Coming to HBS with a Partner

For many prospective students, attending business school is a joint venture. 30% of our students come to HBS with partners, and the school recognizes these spouses, boyfriends, girlfriends, and life partners as an integral part of the HBS... View Details

17 Apr 2022
Book

How to Avoid the 'Ethical Slide' That Leads Companies Astray

go further still, and teach that we have obligations to intangible legal entities like corporations. This aspect of business ethics can raise some practical difficulties. It is relatively easy and natural for a person to remember the... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert

21 Jan 2009
First Look

First Look: January 21, 2009

paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/08-012.pdf Cases & Course MaterialsArrow Electronics—The Apollo Acquisition Harvard Business School Case 607-007 Having already made 10 acquisitions of competitors in the last decade, the CEO... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Steven C. Wheelwright

Steve Wheelwright is the Edsel Bryant Ford Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus at Harvard Business School.

Following his retirement from HBS in 2006, he served with former Dean Kim B. Clark at BYU-Idaho and then from 2007-2015 he served as... View Details

February 2019
Article

Does It Matter If Your Health Insurer Is For Profit? Effects of Ownership on Premiums, Insurance Coverage, and Medical Spending

By: Leemore S. Dafny

There is limited empirical evidence about the impact of for-profit health insurers on various outcomes. I study the effects of conversions to for-profit status by Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) affiliates in 11 states, spanning 28 geographic markets. I find both the... View Details

Keywords: Health Insurance; Medical Loss Ratio; Blue Cross; Corporate Governance; Health; Insurance; For-Profit Firms; Insurance Industry; United States