Publications

April 2002 (Revised May 2005)
Case

GE's Digital Revolution: Redefining the E in GE

By: Christopher A. Bartlett and Meg Glinska

This case details the implementation of the e-business initiative--the last of Jack Welch's four company-wide strategic thrusts. First, it summarizes the 20-year change process that Welch led, detailing the initiatives he put in place. It then traces how Gerry Podesta,... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Decision Choices and Conditions; Leadership Style; Business or Company Management; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Performance Effectiveness; Corporate Strategy; Internet and the Web

16 Jan 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, January 16, 2018

virtually all the gains to be had go to those that create an ownership culture, by building in participative management and helping employees learn to think and act like owners. Publisher's link:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

September 1991 (Revised March 2005)
Case

WPP Group and Its Acquisitions

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

WPP Group acquired J. Walter Thompson and Ogilvy & Mather, paying high premiums in relation to earnings. In each acquisition the goodwill acquired was immediately charged off against owners' equity. Then, WPP Group established a value for the brand names of the two... View Details

Keywords: Goodwill Accounting; Accounting; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Market Transactions; Equity; Private Equity; Relationships; Mergers and Acquisitions; Management Style; Consumer Products Industry; United States; United Kingdom

26 Feb 2020
News

Phoenix Rising

of fresh orange juice. For the last 18 years, Arhodidis worked for Eurobank, one of the country’s four systemic banks. When he left last July, he was a member of the executive board and a general manager in charge of global markets,... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint

01 Dec 1999
News

From the Editors

prepare managers for the transition to a postwar economy. In 1945, Kidder, Peabody & Company titan Albert H. Gordon (MBA '25) contributed a prescient essay on the economic impact of peace. Gordon predicted "a major reorientation of... View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg

February 2007 (Revised February 2009)
Case

A Differentiation Strategy at ASDA

By: David E. Bell and Nitin Sanghavi

The Wal-Mart CEO has challenged his company to do more to help mankind. The British subsidiary, ASDA, is reviewing its activities in the environment/social arena. View Details

Keywords: Business Subsidiaries; Trends; Values and Beliefs; Leadership Style; Growth and Development Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Food and Beverage Industry; Retail Industry

01 Dec 2004
News

A Life by Design

colors, patterns, swatches of fabric, and garment samples assembled to plan Old Navy’s fall 2005 clothing lines. Ross, casually dressed in a style reflective of Old Navy’s “democratic” approach to fashion, notes that such public displays... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; toys; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Arts, Entertainment; Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, and Book Stores; Retail Trade

January 2008
Article

Where Will We Find Tomorrow's Leaders?

By: Linda A. Hill

Unless we challenge long-held assumptions about how business leaders are supposed to act and where they're supposed to come from, many people who could become effective global leaders will remain invisible, warns Harvard Business School professor Hill. Instead of... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Globalization; Innovation Leadership; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Situation or Environment; Personal Characteristics

Find at Harvard

October 2019
Case

GRIT Fitness

By: Lynda M. Applegate and Olivia Hull

In December 2018, GRIT Fitness was a growing chain of boutique fitness studios offering a variety of workout classes, including weightlifting, high intensity interval training, and cardio dance. With 400 members and three Dallas studios, CEO Brittani Rettig believed... View Details

Article

Selling to Many Countries Within the U.S.

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Michael Wong

In pursuing growth, many companies have plans to sell to emerging markets like the so-called B-R-I-C nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China), but they overlook significant ethnic markets within the United States. For example, the combined African-American and Hispanic... View Details

Keywords: Management Style; Ethnicity; Sales; Business Growth and Maturation; Marketing Communications; Business Plan; Emerging Markets; Debates; Business Strategy; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; United States

Find at Harvard

01 Apr 2001
News

Q&A: Suzy Wetlaufer

who applied to the School on a lark, accepted a position at Bain & Company after graduating from HBS as a Baker Scholar. She and a Bain partner later wrote an article about leadership styles and submitted it to the Harvard Business... View Details

Keywords: Susan Young; Publishing Industries (except Internet); Information

01 Jan 2002
News

Raymond V. Gilmartin (MBA '68)

'Who is this guy?'" Gilmartin recalls with a chuckle. His inclusive management style quickly won him fans within the company. "I met with a lot of people and asked two questions: 'What do you think are the... View Details

16 Dec 2002
Lessons from the Classroom

Marrying Distance and Classroom Education

style and personality; it could be language. Language is a barrier. I'm teaching in an executive program right now and the Koreans and the Japanese speak very rarely. It's not that they don't have a lot to contribute, it's that they can... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

20 May 2019
Research & Ideas

Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening

When former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced earlier this year he was thinking about running for president of the United States, it wasn’t a new idea. Past CEOs seeking the White House have included Carly Fiorina, Ross Perot, Herman Cain, Steve Forbes, Mitt... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

December 1999 (Revised January 2000)
Case

Agrochemicals at Ciba-Geigy AG (B)

By: Michael L. Tushman, Wendy Smith and Daniel Radov

Focuses on Pierre Urech's efforts to change the division structure at Ciba-Geigy to facilitate the marketing of the new product. Details the relationships Urech cultivates and the strategy he pursues as "product champion." Also describes the restructuring of the... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Innovation Strategy; Innovation and Management; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Research and Development; Marketing Strategy; Goods and Commodities; Product Development; Pharmaceutical Industry; Switzerland