Publications

01 Mar 2024
News

Game On

It’s raining in Sarasota. And not a light sprinkle but a proper, Florida drenching, so the outdoor courts at the Pickleball Club’s Lakewood Ranch location are deserted. Inside is a different story. Most of the 12 courts are in play. With four people to a court, all... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; photographed by Edward Linsmier; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Arts, Entertainment

26 Jun 2020
Research & Ideas

Why Japanese Businesses Are So Good at Surviving Crises

delivers food to victims CEO Takeshi Niinami of Lawson, a chain of convenience stores, watched out his Tokyo office window as skyscrapers swayed. Just minutes before the tsunami reached the Tohoku shore, he sent an order to employees:... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

January 2022
Case

SpartanNash Company: The Amazon Warrants (A)

By: Benjamin C. Esty, E. Scott Mayfield and Daniel Fisher

As of 12/31/21, Amazon held $22 billion of equity and warrants in related companies. In fact, it often requests a free grant of warrants when it enters into a new commercial agreement with a supplier. Over the past 20 years, Amazon has gotten warrants in almost 20... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Value Creation; Consumer Behavior; Negotiation; Distribution; Ownership; Partners and Partnerships; Business Strategy; Equity; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

01 Dec 2023
News

Elevator Pitch: Feedback

Laxmi Wordham (MBA 2001) Chief Growth Officer, Bright Feeds Concept: Bright Feeds uses patent-pending drying technology and an AI-driven processing technique to convert all varieties of food waste into a high-quality and consistent animal-feed replacement for the soy... View Details

Keywords: Illustration by Drue Wagner; Photo by ChiChi Ubiña

09 Nov 2023
News

A Third Act for Ron Shaich (MBA 1978)

Widely credited with pioneering the concept of the restaurant industry’s $80 billion “fast casual” segment, Ron Shaich (MBA 1978) started small: a 400-square-foot business in Boston’s Downtown Crossing that sold cookies. From those humble but tasty beginnings, Shaich... View Details

07 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

Supervisor of Sandwiches? More Companies Inflate Titles to Avoid Extra Pay

If it seems like everyone is a manager these days, you may be onto something. Not only is there a profusion of assistant managers, there are also now carpet shampoo and food cart managers, directors of first impressions, assistant bingo... View Details

Keywords: by Scott Van Voorhis

2017
Working Paper

Creating the Market for Organic Wine: Sulfites, Certification, and Green Values

By: Geoffrey Jones and Emily Grandjean

This working paper examines the history of organic wine, which provides a case study of failed category creation. The modern organic wine industry emerged during the 1970s in the United States and Western Europe, but it struggled to gain traction compared to other... View Details

Keywords: Product Launch; Failure; Problems and Challenges; Complexity; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

SSRN

Read Now

John A. Quelch is Executive Vice Chancellor and Distinguished Professor of Social Science at Duke Kunshan University. He is also John DeButts Professor at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. Between 2017 and 2023 he was the Leonard M. Miller University... View Details

Keywords: fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food; fast food

February 2018 (Revised March 2019)
Case

Sandlands Vineyards

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Gregory Saldutte

Approximately 80% of the wineries in the U.S. break even or lose money. An even greater percentage lose money on an economic basis (i.e., after a charge for the cost of equity). Tegan Passalacqua is a successful, young, Californian winemaker who specializes in making... View Details

September 2024
Case

Topaz: Navigating Governance, Legacy, and Change

By: Christina R. Wing and Carla Larangeira

Since its founding in 2011, the Garza Sada brothers and their father positioned Topaz among leading family offices in Monterrey, Mexico, with several assets under management. Topaz aspired to have a transformative impact across multiple Mexican industries. An industry... View Details

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Family Business; Governance; Governing and Advisory Boards; Managerial Roles; Management Succession; Family Ownership; Financial Services Industry; Real Estate Industry; Education Industry; Energy Industry; Latin America; Mexico

September 2021 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Bühler: Mobilizing Industry around a Common Purpose

By: Ranjay Gulati, Franz Wohlgezogen and Malini Sen

Bühler Group, a Swiss multinational processing technology provider, started by selling machines for processing grains and later transitioned into selling food processing solutions. A family-owned business in the fifth generation, Bühler’s high-end milling, grinding,... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Customer Focus and Relationships; Machinery and Machining; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Innovation Leadership; Switzerland

Web

Adding a Social Dimension to Strategy - Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

their value proposition, they tap into the potential for a competitive advantage that is more sustainable versus competitors than conventional cost and quality advantages. Whole Foods, the most economically successful food retailer in... View Details

Web

Curriculum - Business & Environment

meat sector. Compared to intensive agricultural practices, Aleph's cultured (or lab-grown) meat solution held the promise of considerably reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the use of land and water, while providing a new source of View Details

Web

Topics - HBS Working Knowledge

Financial Markets (22) Financial Reporting (7) Financial Statements (1) Financial Strategy (11) Financing and Loans (22) Food (12) For-Profit Firms (1) Forecasting and Prediction (26) Foreign Direct Investment (5) Forms of Communication... View Details

Article

Cybersecurity Features of Digital Medical Devices: An Analysis of FDA Product Summaries

By: Ariel Dora Stern, William J. Gordon, Adam B. Landman and Daniel B. Kramer

Objectives:
To more clearly define the landscape of digital medical devices subject to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversight, this analysis leverages publicly available regulatory documents to characterise the prevalence and trends of software and... View Details

Keywords: Digital; Medicine; FDA; Health Care and Treatment; Applications and Software; Safety; Cybersecurity; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry