Publications

04 Apr 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research, April 4

to develop Alfred’s routes and respond to customer requests in conjunction with other service providers, for example grocery delivery services, in what the founders describe as their "B2B2C" business model. Alfred won the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

19 Nov 2013
First Look

First Look: November 19

http://ssrn.com/abstract=2350805 Surfacing the Submerged State with Operational Transparency in Government Services By: Buell, Ryan W., and Michael I. Norton Abstract—As Americans' trust in government nears... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

06 Oct 2009
First Look

First Look: October 6

services into three new content areas—news, music, and popular bloggers. Each potential area of Daqi's expansion offered extensive benefits, such as major growth opportunity, as well as risks, including private lawsuits, government... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Program

Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management

Summary Today's nonprofit organizations are faced with shifting demands for services, resource constraints, and diverse operational challenges. They must also learn to navigate the advent of new technology and new sources of funding. To... View Details

Career Coach

Erika Osterling

Erika (HBS '09, ITESM '00) brings 20 years of experience as an operating leader and advisor. She has spent most of her career within Energy & Industrial, with additional roles in Consumer and Retail. Erika's 12+ year career at GE... View Details

Keywords: Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All); Financial Services (All)

06 Aug 2018
Blog Post

Parks Management is People Management

can be an asset to the park system. Of note, the Park Service has operational considerations like any business; how to streamline operations, empower a workforce, evaluate and fund new projects, etc. While... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit / Government

February 2000 (Revised February 2002)
Case

Owens & Minor, Inc. (A)

By: V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem

A forward-thinking manager at Owens & Minor (O&M), a large national medical and surgical distribution company, enlisted the help of both logistics and cost managers to develop an innovative pricing schedule based on the customer's activities instead of the price of the... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Logistics; Distribution; Price; Supply Chain Management; Customer Relationship Management; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Distribution Industry

April 2021 (Revised December 2023)
Case

The Mahindra Group: Leading with Purpose

By: Ranjay Gulati and Rachna Tahilyani

India headquartered Mahindra Group is a multibillion-dollar federation of companies operating across the globe. It is ahead of its time in articulating its purpose and mapping its values, something it had first done at inception and then refreshed yet again as ‘Rise’... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Organizational Culture; Change Management; Communication Strategy; Family Ownership; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Revenue; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Asia; India; Mumbai; South Korea; Italy; United States

06 Oct 2023
Book

Yes, You Can Radically Change Your Organization in One Week

solve difficult problems. Denouncing Mark Zuckerberg’s informal Facebook motto, “move fast and break things,” partners Frei and Morriss combine their decades of consulting experience—Frei as the UPS Foundation Professor of Service... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

13 Feb 2007
First Look

First Look: February 13, 2007

perform industry research to inform investment decisions. Provides detailed information about the recommended resources available for this type of research, focusing primarily on what is available from Harvard Business School's Baker Library. Focusing on how companies... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

2021
Working Paper

The Changing Role of Business in Society

By: Michael E. Porter

Business interaction with the U.S. government, historically based on securing industry or company special interests at the expense of the public good, has enabled and furthered government dysfunction. Gridlock within the American political system has precluded the... View Details

Read Now

07 Oct 2008
Working Paper Summaries

Securing Online Advertising: Rustlers and Sheriffs in the New Wild West

Keywords: by Benjamin G. Edelman; Advertising

10 Jul 2007
Working Paper Summaries

Platform Envelopment

Keywords: by Thomas Eisenmann, Geoffrey Parker & Marshall Van Alstyne; Technology

December 2018 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Bulb 2015: Foundation

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

In late August 2015, Amit Gudka and Hayden Wood, co-founders of Bulb, Ltd (Bulb), were ready to offer affordable renewable energy to the United Kingdom’s 27 million households. They hoped to capitalize on the hundreds of thousands of customers switching their energy... View Details

April 1990 (Revised May 1997)
Case

Lowe's

By: Walter J. Salmon

Lowe's chain of 306 stores was anticipating fierce competition from their major market rival, Home Depot. As they reformulated the size of their new prototype stores and the mix of their merchandise, what would be the ultimate format? What impact would it have on their... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Buildings and Facilities; Markets; Service Delivery; Competition

19 Oct 2010
Working Paper Summaries

The Impact of Supply Learning on Customer Demand: Model and Estimation Methodology

Keywords: by Nathan Craig, Nicole DeHoratius & Ananth Raman; Apparel & Accessories; Fashion

Web

Browse All Articles, Research, & Case Studies - HBS Working Knowledge

Case What Wartime Service Taught These Historic Leaders by Avery Forman What can corporate leaders learn from executives who served their country during wartime conflicts? Drawing on a series of case studies, Robert Simons shares... View Details

June 2010 (Revised December 2019)
Case

Piramal e-Swasthya (A): Attempting Big Changes for Small Places - in India and Beyond

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Matthew Bird

Anand Piramal and his team sought to "democratize healthcare" in India through the development of a new service delivery model. If Henry Ford could build and deliver cars to everyone in the United States, Piramal thought, then why can't India deliver healthcare to the... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Service Delivery; Social Entrepreneurship; Change Management; Emerging Markets; Health Industry; India

September 2002
Case

Abercrombie & Kent

By: Frances X. Frei, Brian Corbett, Mark Partin and Daniel Rethazy

Describes Abercrombie & Kent, the outdoor adventure company that has provided services throughout the entire history of the outdoor adventure industry. Provides an opportunity to learn how the company successfully grown into a premier player in the industry by adapting... View Details

Keywords: History; Financial Management; Activity Based Costing and Management; Service Operations; Marketing Reference Programs; Product Development; Business Growth and Maturation; Balance and Stability; Marketing Channels; Transportation; Growth and Development Strategy; Travel Industry