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- 03 Oct 2011
- Research & Ideas
Transforming Manufacturing Waste into Profit
It's been said that "one man's trash is another man's treasure." HBS Assistant Professor Deishin Lee, however, has taken that old adage a step further in her recent working paper Turning Waste into By-Product by showing how it's possible for companies to turn... View Details
- 21 Apr 2008
- Research & Ideas
The New Math of Customer Relationships
Loveman, has led a remarkable period of growth by installing service profit chain concepts throughout the organization. These organizations have been able to achieve what we might call SPC.2 by creating "owners" out of both... View Details
Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne
- March 1987 (Revised April 1987)
- Background Note
Specialties vs. Commodities: The Battle for Profit Margins
Explains the differences between commodities and specialties and defines four different types of specialty products. The analysis is customer oriented. Special attention is given to the distinctions between functions (product- ) and relationship (vendor-oriented)... View Details
Keywords: Goods and Commodities
Shapiro, Benson P. "Specialties vs. Commodities: The Battle for Profit Margins." Harvard Business School Background Note 587-120, March 1987. (Revised April 1987.)
- February 2003 (Revised March 2007)
- Case
Internet Customer Acquisition Strategy at Bankinter
By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez, V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem
Bankinter, a relatively small Spanish bank, has a large presence as an Internet financial services provider. Leading the way to profitability through the Internet will give Bankinter a major competitive advantage over the larger, more established Spanish banks. Ann... View Details
Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Internet and the Web; Activity Based Costing and Management; Customer Value and Value Chain; Banks and Banking; Banking Industry; Spain
Martinez-Jerez, Francisco de Asis, V.G. Narayanan, and Lisa Brem. "Internet Customer Acquisition Strategy at Bankinter." Harvard Business School Case 103-021, February 2003. (Revised March 2007.)
- September 1975 (Revised June 1983)
- Background Note
Note on the Structural Analysis of Industries
Provides a framework for the analysis of industry structure. Identifies the major structural features that influence the profit potential in industries and some illustrative implications of these for strategy formulation. Can be used as a reference note for business... View Details
Porter, Michael E. "Note on the Structural Analysis of Industries." Harvard Business School Background Note 376-054, September 1975. (Revised June 1983.)
- 2006
- Working Paper
The Value of a 'Free' Customer
By: Sunil Gupta, Carl F. Mela and Jose M. Vidal-Sanz
Central to a firm's growth and marketing policy is the revenus and profit potential of its customer assets. As a result, there has been a recent proliferation of work regarding customer lifetime value. However, extant research in this area is silent regarding how to... View Details
Gupta, Sunil, Carl F. Mela, and Jose M. Vidal-Sanz. "The Value of a 'Free' Customer." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 07-035, December 2006.
- February 2007 (Revised May 2007)
- Case
Bancaja: Developing Customer Intelligence (A)
In 1996, CEO Fernando Garcia Checa wanted to make customer analytics a part of Bancaja's new strategy. Bancaja, a savings bank based in Valencia, Spain, was expanding and wanted to exploit customer information to increase commercial effectiveness. At the same time, it... View Details
Martinez-Jerez, Francisco de Asis, and Katherine Miller. "Bancaja: Developing Customer Intelligence (A)." Harvard Business School Case 107-055, February 2007. (Revised May 2007.)
- December 2022
- Technical Note
Risks and Opportunities from the Transition to a Low Carbon Economy: A Business Analysis Framework
By: George Serafeim
The transition to a low carbon economy introduces many risks and opportunities for businesses. Risks emerge from regulatory actions, such as carbon taxes and cap and trade systems, technological innovation that develop alternatives for customers making existing... View Details
Keywords: Risk Assessment; Opportunities; Environmental Sustainability; Carbon Footprint; Risk Management; Competitive Dynamics; Business Analysis; Climate Change; Accounting; Finance; Valuation; Business and Shareholder Relations; Technological Innovation; Transition; Product Positioning; Renewable Energy; Analysis
Serafeim, George. "Risks and Opportunities from the Transition to a Low Carbon Economy: A Business Analysis Framework." Harvard Business School Technical Note 123-014, December 2022.
- February 2007 (Revised May 2008)
- Supplement
Bancaja: Developing Customer Intelligence (B)
In 1996, CEO Fernando Garcia Checa wanted to make customer analytics a part of Bancaja's new strategy. Bancaja, a savings bank based in Valencia, Spain, was expanding and wanted to exploit customer information to increase commercial effectiveness. At the same time, it... View Details
Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Credit Cards; Analytics and Data Science; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Marketing Strategy; Banking Industry; Spain
Martinez-Jerez, Francisco de Asis, and Katherine Miller. "Bancaja: Developing Customer Intelligence (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 107-066, February 2007. (Revised May 2008.)
- 2010
- Simulation
Marketing Simulation: Managing Segments and Customers
By: Das Narayandas
In this single-player simulation, students assume the position of CEO of a medical motor manufacturer and are tasked with executing a successful business-to-business marketing strategy over a period of twelve fiscal quarters. Students determine all aspects of the... View Details
Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Salesforce Management; Distribution Channels; Price; Product Positioning; Customer Relationship Management; Profit; Revenue; Cost vs Benefits; Policy; Manufacturing Industry
Narayandas, Das. "Marketing Simulation: Managing Segments and Customers." Simulation and Teaching Note. Harvard Business Publishing, 2010. Electronic.
- February 2024 (Revised February 2024)
- Teaching Note
Travelogo: Understanding Customer Journeys
By: Eva Ascarza and Ta-Wei Huang
Teaching Note for HBS Exercise 524-044. The exercise aims to teach students about 1) Customer Segmentation; and 2) constructing buying personas, 3) Get actionable insights from clickstream data. View Details
- 16 Jan 2006
- Research & Ideas
What Customers Want from Your Products
understand each of these dimensions, then they can design a product that's precisely targeted to the job. In other words, the job, not the customer, is the fundamental unit of analysis for a marketer who hopes to develop products that... View Details
- January 1995 (Revised October 1995)
- Case
Citibank: Global Customer Management
By: Michael Y. Yoshino and Thomas W. Malnight
Describes Citibank's worldwide operations, which include activities in developing and developed markets. The bank's structure also varies across markets and regions, varying from autonomous national affiliates to an industry/product-based structure in its domestic U.S.... View Details
Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Global Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Multinational Firms and Management; SWOT Analysis; Emerging Markets; Banking Industry; United States
Yoshino, Michael Y., and Thomas W. Malnight. "Citibank: Global Customer Management." Harvard Business School Case 395-142, January 1995. (Revised October 1995.)
- 2013
- Working Paper
FIN Around the World: The Contribution of Financing Activity to Profitability
By: Russell Lundholm, George Serafeim and Gwen Yu
We study how the availability of domestic credit influences the contribution that financing activities make to a firm's return on equity (ROE). Using a sample of 51,866 firms from 69 countries, we find that financing activities contribute more to a firm's ROE in... View Details
Keywords: Domestic Credit; Return Of Equity; Corporate Performance; Financial Statement Analysis; Financial Statements; Valuation; Cost of Capital; Asset Pricing; Economic Growth
Lundholm, Russell, George Serafeim, and Gwen Yu. "FIN Around the World: The Contribution of Financing Activity to Profitability." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 13-011, July 2012. (Revised March 2014.)
- January 2006
- Tutorial
Alternative Choice Decisions Analysis
By: David F. Hawkins, V.G. Narayanan, Jacob Cohen and Michele Jurgens
Shows how managers use information on costs and revenues to decide between possible alternative courses of action. Presents two case examples of differential cost analysis. The first, a make or buy decision, examines two alternatives in which only costs vary. The... View Details
- September 2010 (Revised August 2013)
- Case
Liza Davis and the Bargain Hunting Customer
By: Francisco de Asis Martinez-Jerez and Lisa Brem
Liza Davis, an upscale women's fashion retailer, is reeling from worldwide recession and lower demand. Should the company target the fast-growing bargain hunter segment or hold the line on price discounts to preserve their brand image? Customer profitability... View Details
Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Price; Product Positioning; Customer Value and Value Chain; Business Cycles; Financial Crisis; Profit; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry
Martinez-Jerez, Francisco de Asis, and Lisa Brem. "Liza Davis and the Bargain Hunting Customer." Harvard Business School Case 111-040, September 2010. (Revised August 2013.)
- Summer 2025
- Article
Dynamic Competition for Customer Memberships
By: Cristian Chica, Julian Jimenez-Cardenas and Jorge Tamayo
A competitive two-period membership (subscription) market is analyzed. Two symmetric firms charge a “membership” fee that allows consumers to buy products or services at a given unit price for both periods. Firms can choose between long- or short-term memberships. When... View Details
Keywords: Competitive Price Discrimination; Membership; Dynamic Competition; Competition; Price; Consumer Behavior; Business Model
Chica, Cristian, Julian Jimenez-Cardenas, and Jorge Tamayo. "Dynamic Competition for Customer Memberships." Journal of Economics & Management Strategy 34, no. 2 (Summer 2025): 525–556.
- September 2016 (Revised September 2017)
- Case
Zalora Philippines: From Growth to Profitability
By: Donald Ngwe and Thales Teixeira
In May 2015 Paulo Campos, co-founder and CEO of Zalora Philippines, found himself at a crucial turning point in his young company’s development. In just three years, Zalora had come from entering the Philippine fashion retail industry as an unknown quantity to becoming... View Details
Keywords: Internet and the Web; Business Subsidiaries; Business Growth and Maturation; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; Sweden; Southeast Asia; Philippines
Ngwe, Donald, and Thales Teixeira. "Zalora Philippines: From Growth to Profitability." Harvard Business School Case 517-009, September 2016. (Revised September 2017.)
- November 2011 (Revised August 2012)
- Background Note
Customer Discovery and Validation for Entrepreneurs
By: Frank V. Cespedes, Thomas Eisenmann and Steven G. Blank
Provides practical guidelines for conducting market research to explore and validate demand for entrepreneurial offering. Explains how the research objectives of entrepreneurs might differ from those relevant to managers evaluating product or service offerings to... View Details
Cespedes, Frank V., Thomas Eisenmann, and Steven G. Blank. "Customer Discovery and Validation for Entrepreneurs." Harvard Business School Background Note 812-097, November 2011. (Revised August 2012.)
- 14 Jul 2003
- Research & Ideas
Keeping Your Balance With Customers
and profits could be derived from scale. Customer management was relegated to selling and promoting the company's products. The customer relationship was seldom the issue. The... View Details
Keywords: by Robert S. Kaplan & David P. Norton