Publications

10 Apr 2006
Research & Ideas

American Auto’s Troubled Road

competing on the basis of discounts, U.S. carmakers need to get to the point where people want to buy their cars. —Stefan Thomke Although the Big 3 (or maybe the Big 2, after Chrysler's merger with Daimler) continue to dominate the U.S.... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Manufacturing; Transportation; Auto

March 2017
Exercise

Designing Transformational Customer Experiences

By: Stefan Thomke

Anyone who has recently travelled, gone shopping, or tried to have a problem solved may have little recollection of the experience. Worse yet, some are frustrated by the lack of responsiveness or empathy that they encountered. The reality is that most customer... View Details

Keywords: Customer Experience; Exercise; Learning By Doing; LEGO; Storytelling; Customer Satisfaction; Design; Innovation and Management; Transformation; Service Delivery

2023
Working Paper

Advances in Power-to-Gas Technologies: Cost and Conversion Efficiency

By: Gunther Glenk, Philip Holler and Stefan Reichelstein

Widespread adoption of hydrogen as an energy carrier is widely believed to require continued advances in Power-to-Gas (PtG) technologies. Here we provide a comprehensive assessment of the dynamics of system prices and conversion efficiency for three currently prevalent... View Details

Keywords: Clean Tech; Decarbonization; Carbon Emissions; Learning By Doing; Environment; Energy; Environmental Management; Sustainable Cities; Price; Energy Industry; Utilities Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Transportation Industry; Europe; North America; South America; Africa; Asia

SSRN

06 Nov 2017
Research Event

Who is Responsible for the Future of Cities?

CAMBRIDGE, Mass — On a rainy afternoon in late October, Mohsen Mostafavi stood before a packed auditorium at Harvard University and considered the history of cities in terms of three cooked eggs. Mostafavi, the Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, described... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

July 2017
Teaching Note

Designing Transformational Customer Experiences

By: Stefan Thomke

Keywords: Customer Experience; Design; Exercise; Learning By Doing; LEGO; Storytelling; Transformation

27 Apr 2015
News

Leadership Lessons From Outer Space

26 Jan 2009
Research & Ideas

Where is Home for the Global Firm?

costs," he continues, "while readily identifiable and daunting, must be compared with the potentially large benefits created by managerial specialization and the ability to access differentiated resources easily." In the following... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

10 Sep 2007
Research & Ideas

High Note: Managing the Medici String Quartet

several members of the quartet. Time spent rehearsing was time not spent performing and recording. They did eventually record the entire string quartet cycle on Nimbus. Folks who are able to play the way these guys play can get lots of gigs and are paid good rates... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Music

Web

Technology & Operations Management - Doctoral

Iansiti Ayelet Israeli Christian Kaps Karim R. Lakhani Himabindu Lakkaraju Jacqueline Ng Lane Michael Lingzhi Li Alan D. MacCormack Edward McFowland III Antonio Moreno Kyle R. Myers Seth Neel Elisabeth C. Paulson Ananth Raman Willy C. Shih View Details

18 Jun 2013
First Look

First Look: June 18

Unlocking Innovation Through Business Experimentation By: Thomke, Stefan Abstract—No abstract available. Publisher's link: http://www.europeanbusinessreview.com/?p=8420 Working Papers Pay Harmony: Peer Comparison and Executive... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

December 2018
Case

Corporate Transformation at Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany

By: Joseph B. Fuller, Amy C. Edmondson, Daniela Beyersdorfer and Tonia Labruyere

When Stefan Oschmann became CEO and chairman of the executive board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, in 2016, the company had started its transformation from a mid-tier traditional German industry player to a global modern science and technology player. The... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance With Family Ownership; Transformation; Change Management; Restructuring; Corporate Governance; Family Ownership

28 Aug 2012
First Look

First Look: August 28

written by six members of the HBS Class of 1976 from the 10th and 20th reunions. The six alumni represent a cross section of the class of 1976 and provide a snapshot of life at the time of the reunions. Purchase this... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Web

Technology & Operations Management Faculty - Faculty & Research

and Jane Cizik Baker Foundation Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration Stefan H. Thomke William Barclay Harding Professor of Business Administration Chair, General Management Program... View Details

10 Jun 2014
First Look

First Look: June 10

Publications August 2013 pub Cannibalization and Option Value Effects of Secondary Markets: Evidence from the U.S. Concert Industry By: Bennett, Victor Manuel, Robert Seamans, and Feng Zhu Abstract—We examine how reducing search frictions in secondary markets affects... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2000 (Revised October 2017)
Case

IDEO

By: Stefan Thomke and Ashok Nimgade

Describes IDEO, the world's leading product design firm, and its innovation culture and process. Emphasis is placed on the important role of prototyping and experimentation in general, and in the design of the very successful Palm V handheld computer in particular. A... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Innovation Strategy; Business or Company Management; Time Management; Product Design; Product Development; Business Processes; Organizational Culture; Practice; Problems and Challenges; Creativity; Hardware

February 2010 (Revised January 2013)
Case

The Dabbawala System: On-Time Delivery, Every Time

By: Stefan H. Thomke and Mona Sinha

Describes the Mumbai-based Dabbawala organization, which achieves very high service performance (6 Sigma equivalent or better) with a low-cost and very simple operating system. The case explores all aspects of their system (mission, information management, material... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Service Operations; Service Delivery; Logistics; Alignment; Management Systems; Human Resources; Innovation and Invention; Mumbai