Publications

January 2003 (Revised January 2008)
Case

The British Motorcycle Industry at a Crossroads

By: Jan W. Rivkin

By 1975, the collapse of the British motorcycle industry is nearly complete. Only one British manufacturer, NVT, remains in operation. In this setting, the British government commissions the Boston Consulting Group to identify and evaluate strategic alternatives for... View Details

Keywords: Cost; Industry Structures; Business and Government Relations; Mathematical Methods; Competition; Consulting Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Motorcycle Industry; Great Britain

April 1989 (Revised January 1994)
Case

Novo Industri

By: Michael E. Porter and Michael J. Enright

Describes the structure of the insulin industry, a treatment for diabetes and Novo's strategy and competitive position in early 1982. The industry is undergoing significant change and Novo must decide how to defend and build its international position. Designed as an... View Details

Keywords: Change; Global Strategy; Industry Structures; Alliances; Competitive Strategy; Health Disorders; Pharmaceutical Industry

17 Jun 2011
HBS Case

KFC’s Explosive Growth in China

should develop a national footprint—supported by a company-owned distribution system since third-party suppliers didn't exist—instead of growing in geographic chunks through franchising. Su sourced products from within China whenever possible. This was no easy feat... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Food & Beverage

December 2012 (Revised April 2013)
Case

Olam: On a New Course

By: David E. Bell, Forest Reinhardt and Mary Shelman

From modest beginnings as a cashew trader in Nigeria, Olam, founded by Indian nationals in 1989, has grown into a leading global agricultural trading company, with annual revenues of $14 billion. The company recently has begun investing in farms and in the production... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Leadership; Customer Value and Value Chain; Corporate Strategy; Organizational Culture; Environmental Sustainability; Expansion; Competitive Advantage; Agribusiness; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Nigeria

Web

Technology & Innovation - Faculty & Research

technologies and with complementary inputs, input supply restrictions on REEs induce a surge in REE-enhancing innovation and lead to an expansion of REE-intensive downstream sectors. Keywords: Industrial Policy ; View Details

08 Sep 2015
First Look

September 8, 2015

demonstrates why some places, times, and industries should be associated with a greater degree of experimentation by investors. Investors respond to financing risk—a forecast of limited future funding—by modifying their focus to finance less innovative firms. Potential... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

Web

Food & Agriculture - Business & Environment

and nutrient management Supply chain innovations that reduce food waste and transportation impacts New product development innovations that shift demand toward less greenhouse gas emissions-intensive foods,... View Details

Web

2023 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

measures reduce US dependence on supply chains linked to China? And what should we do with prices of imports from Vietnam and Mexico on the rise? Paper on Global View Details

27 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

How One Late Employee Can Hurt Your Business: Data from 25 Million Timecards

operations?" Raman says. "Over time, we figured out that you have to have the right product available at the right time and place, when the customer is there and ready to spend. So, we focused on understanding consumers and supply View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Retail

14 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Restarting Under Uncertainty: Managerial Experiences from Around the World

client-centric approach. It intensified virtual interactions with customers, merged sales and customer service, and boosted integration of all databases, which had been spread across functions, into a single customer resource management tool available to everyone to... View Details

Keywords: by Raffaella Sadun, Andrea Bertoni, Alexia Delfino, Giovanni Fassio, and Mariapaola Testa

14 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

Curiosity, Not Coding: 6 Skills Leaders Need in the Digital Age

chairman of a major African retailer at one of the 21 global roundtable discussions we held with leaders of digital-first and incumbent companies. [div class=infogram-embed data-id=_/6OB5d19m9elT4JzFJntV][/div] More troubling, though, was... View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards; Technology

19 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

15 Podcast Episodes That Grabbed Listeners in 2023

Global Sustainability Personal at Bühler The global food supply chain is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

07 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

Digital Transformation: A New Roadmap for Success

the emotional side of digital transformation Digital transformation can be bewildering and exhausting for leaders and employees alike. Emerging digital technologies are disrupting everything from supply View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards

Web

Social Enterprise - Faculty & Research

Harvard Business School Case 425-109, June 2025. How Firms Respond to Worker Activism: Evidence from Global Supply Chains By: Yanhua Bird, Jodi L. Short and Michael W. Toffel... View Details

October 25, 2022
Article

Why Sharing Economic Growth with the Community Is Good Business

By: José A. Tiburcio, Lino Miguel Dias and Robert S. Kaplan

Subsistence dairy ranchers in Central America struggle to stay afloat during the dry season when grass is scarce. Global life sciences company Bayer has launched a program to enable them to produce their own corn silage feed. The results of this program are helping to... View Details

Keywords: Sharing Economy; Innovation; Economic Growth; Poverty; Production; Supply Chain; Social Enterprise; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Central America

Read Now

March–April 2012
Article

The Rise and Fall of Small Worlds: Exploring the Dynamics of Social Structure

By: Ranjay Gulati, Maxim Sytch and Adam Tatarynowicz

This paper explores the interplay between social structure and economic action by examining some of the evolutionary dynamics of an emergent network that coalesces into a small-world system. The study highlights the small-world system's evolutionary dynamics at both... View Details

Keywords: Culture; System; Relationships; Globalization; Industry Clusters; Information; Networks; Competitive Strategy; Computer Industry