Publications

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November 2015 (Revised August 2016)
Case

Unilever's New Global Strategy: Competing through Sustainability

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

In January 2009, when Paul Polman was appointed CEO of Unilever, he inherited a company in long-term decline at the beginning of a major global financial crisis. As the first outsider ever recruited to lead the company, Polman lost little time in challenging the... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Competitive Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Consumer Products Industry

2009
Chapter

On the General Relativity of Fiscal Language

By: Jerry R. Green and Lawrence Kotlikoff

A century ago, everyone thought time and distance were well defined physical concepts. But neither proved absolute. Instead, measures/reports of time and distance were found to depend on one's reference point, specifically one's direction and speed of travel, making... View Details

Keywords: Economics; Finance; Labels; Measurement and Metrics

27 Jun 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, June 27

Karthik, David F. Drake, and Douglas Fearing Abstract—Mobile money systems, platforms built and managed by mobile network operators to allow money to be stored as digital... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

04 Jun 2009
News

JP Morgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon Addresses HBS Students on Class Day

Video

Nicolás Jodal

Nicolás Jodal, Co-Founder and CEO of GeneXus, describes how the gender balance in systems engineering has unexpectedly changed over time in Uruguay, while expressing his commitment to diversity as both a foundational aspect and a deliberate business strategy. View Details

November 2002 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Charles Schwab in 2002

By: Lynda M. Applegate, F. Warren McFarlan and Jamie Ladge

Details the evolution of the Charles Schwab business model, from its founding in 1975 to October 2002. The protagonist, David Pottruck, is faced with re-inventing the firm as a full-service brokerage at a time of tremendous industry instability as the industry reels... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Business Model; Business or Company Management; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation; Financial Services Industry

Leslie K. John is a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. Currently, she teaches on the topics of Negotiation, Marketing and Behavioral Economics in various Executive Education courses, including in the Program for Leadership Development.... View Details

Keywords: diet services; health care; internet; marketing industry

November 2001 (Revised April 2003)
Case

Camp Dresser & McKee: Getting Incentives Right

By: Ashish Nanda

"If you try to use money to motivate behavior, you are in a powerful and dangerous place, especially with engineers and scientists," remarked Tom Furman, CEO of Camp Dresser & McKee, Inc. (CDM), a consulting environmental engineering firm. Historically, CDM had... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Compensation and Benefits; Service Industry

14 Jun 2022
News

Gen Z Revived Life Is Good and the $150 Million Clothing Brand Makes a Case Study for Riding Out a Down Cycle

October 2023
Supplement

Making Progress at Progress Software (B)

By: Katherine Coffman, Hannah Riley Bowles and Alexis Lefort

In this case, the Human Capital team at Progress Software has identified that some employees have a hard time understanding how to advance within Progress. This realization leads the team to develop several major people-process innovations: the introduction of... View Details

Keywords: Leading Change; Negotiation; Organizational Culture; Performance Evaluation; Prejudice and Bias; Talent and Talent Management; Employees; Technology Industry; United States; Bulgaria

2016
Chapter

Luxury Branding Research: New Perspectives and Future Priorities

By: Anat Keinan, Sandrine Crener and Silvia Bellezza

Several major trends have changed the landscape for luxury brands. These shifts include the increasing role of technology (digital and mobile) as well as the use by consumers of alternative signals of status, such as wearing less prominently branded apparel, being less... View Details

Keywords: Luxury; Brands and Branding

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06 May 2008
First Look

First Look: May 6, 2008

an examination of companies such as Boston Scientific and Paramount, and through research on auctions, the authors identified three principal drivers of competitive arousal: intense rivalry, especially in the form of one-on-one... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 May 2020
Blog Post

Words from an HBS Partner: Reflections on the Partner Experience

As the time to say goodbye to HBS and our home in Cambridge comes around, I can’t help but reflect on our move here and the thoughts that were running through my head at the beginning of our first semester.... View Details

08 Nov 2011
First Look

First Look: Nov. 8

Abstract In many service industries, companies compete with each other on the basis of the waiting time their customers experience, along with other strategic instruments such as the price they charge for... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

20 Jun 2023
Research & Ideas

Looking to Leave a Mark? Memorable Leaders Don't Just Spout Statistics, They Tell Stories

than any statistic, chart, or slide deck. However, this is not necessarily because stories are more inspirational or persuasive. Rather, it is because of how our memory works: People are more likely to remember the story as View Details

Keywords: by Scott Van Voorhis

February 2014 (Revised July 2016)
Case

Iora Health

By: William A. Sahlman and Vineeta Vijayaraghavan

The Iora Health case looks at a new approach to the management and delivery of primary care. Instead of having a doctor, half a nurse and two accountants, Iora deploys a doctor, a nurse and several health coaches, all operating as an integrated team. Iora focuses on... View Details

Keywords: Management; Service Delivery; Groups and Teams; Financing and Loans; Health Care and Treatment; Health Industry

2008
Simulation

Strategic Innovation Simulation: Back Bay Battery

By: Willy C. Shih and Clayton Christensen

This online simulation allows students to play the role of a business unit manager at Back Bay Battery Company who faces the dilemma of balancing a portfolio of investment strategies across products in the rechargeable battery space. Players have to manage R&D... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Disruptive Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Innovation and Management; Investment; Product Development; Research and Development; Battery Industry