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April 1982 (Revised September 1986)
Case

Ideal Standard France: Pat Paterson

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

A newly appointed country subsidiary manager must decide on action for an operation losing $1 million per month. He is constrained by price controls on one hand and sensitive union relations on the other. Furthermore a major loss-contributing plant has recently been... View Details

Keywords: Business Subsidiaries; Transition; Cost Management; Management; Crisis Management; Labor and Management Relations

October 1987 (Revised July 1991)
Case

Tiffany & Co.

By: Samuel L. Hayes III

This premier retail jewelry company was bought from its parent, Avon, by a group of investors led by its own management in 1984. The company was highly leveraged, financially, and had to scramble to meet the cash flow and earnings requirements laid down by its lenders.... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Borrowing and Debt; Cash Flow; Price; Going Public; Apparel and Accessories Industry

2011
Case

Wrapitup

By: W. Earl Sasser

A restaurant chain based in California offers made-to-order sandwich wraps using fresh, healthy ingredients. The founders of the company take a very active role in day-to-day business and tightly control every aspect of the restaurant operation from hiring store... View Details

Keywords: Service Operations; Governance Controls; Revenue; Employee Relationship Management; Planning; Customer Satisfaction; Problems and Challenges; Profit; Change Management; Compensation and Benefits; Leadership Style; Service Industry; California

August 2014
Case

Netflix in 2011

By: Willy Shih and Stephen Kaufman

Reed Hastings founded Netflix to provide a home movie service that would do a better job satisfying customers than the traditional retail rental model. But as it encountered challenges it underwent several major strategy shifts, ultimately developing a business model... View Details

06 Mar 2025
Blog Post

IFC India 2025: Sustainability in Action: Inside Hindustan Unilever’s Public Sanitation and Plastic Recycling Facilities

climate change. In Dharavi, lack of proper sanitation amplifies the impacts of flooding, heatwaves, water contamination, and increased health burdens. Similarly, improper plastic waste management contributes... View Details

April 2005 (Revised February 2006)
Case

Monster Networking

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and David Andrew Vivero

The management at Monster.com, the leading U.S. provider of online recruitment services, must decide how to proceed with Monster Networking (MN), a new business launched in late 2003. MN helps users identify other individuals who can offer career advice. Monster.com... View Details

Keywords: Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Social and Collaborative Networks; Recruitment; Service Industry; Employment Industry; United States

July 1997 (Revised April 1998)
Case

Chase Manhattan Corporation: The Making of America's Largest Bank

By: Stuart C. Gilson and Cedric Escalle

Chase Bank and Chemical Bank intend to merge, producing the largest commercial bank in the United States, the fourth largest in the world. Projected financial benefits under the merger reflect significant planned reduction in operating costs, including 17,000 employee... View Details

Keywords: Commercial Banking; Profit; Corporate Strategy; Value Creation; Restructuring; Negotiation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Risk and Uncertainty; Resignation and Termination; Revenue; Banking Industry; United States

March 2001 (Revised August 2003)
Case

Wilkerson Company

By: Robert S. Kaplan

The president of Wilkerson, faced with declining profits, is struggling to understand why the company is encountering severe price competition on one product line while able to raise prices without competitive response on another product line. The controller proposes... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Competition; Profit; Product; Consumer Products Industry

01 Apr 1996
News

Stewards of the Seventh Generation

things to different people," says HBS assistant professor Forest L. Reinhardt, who teaches the MBA elective Business Management and the Natural Environment. "For example, many economists, in particular, take... View Details

Keywords: Marguerite Rigoglioso, Garry Emmons, Linda Goodspeed, and Elaine Gottlieb

February 2005 (Revised June 2007)
Case

Unilever in India: Hindustan Lever's Project Shakti--Marketing FMCG to the Rural Consumer

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Rohithari Rajan

With liberalization of India's economy and the opening up of markets to foreign multinationals such as Procter & Gamble, the Indian subsidiary of Unilever--Hindustan Lever Ltd. (HLL)--was under pressure to grow revenues and profits. HLL had a long and stellar record of... View Details

Keywords: Economy; Market Entry and Exit; Business Subsidiaries; Revenue; Profit; Market Participation; Programs; Rural Scope; Poverty; Multinational Firms and Management; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; India

August 1985
Case

CML Group, Inc.: Going Public (C)

By: William A. Sahlman

Contains a description of some issues confronting management of CML Group. They have decided to go public, have selected an underwriting team, and must make final decisions about the size, composition and pricing of the issue. Because stock prices have fallen since the... View Details

Keywords: Initial Public Offering; Going Public; Problems and Challenges; Consumer Products Industry; Retail Industry

September 1995 (Revised June 2002)
Case

Intel Pentium Chip Controversy (A), The

By: V.G. Narayanan and James D Evans

Following Intel Inc.'s decision to replace flawed Pentium chips, the company faces revenue recognition choices. Events leading up to IBM's decision to halt shipment of computers that have Intel's microprocessor inside and Intel's decision to replace all the flawed... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Revenue Recognition; Computer Industry

January 2004 (Revised October 2006)
Case

Electronic Arts in Online Gaming

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Justin Wong

Electronic Arts (EA), the world's largest independent video-game publisher, must decide whether to support Microsoft's initiatives in online gaming. Historically, EA has been platform-agnostic, releasing versions of its titles for all major console platforms. However,... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Strategy; Digital Platforms; Network Effects; Policy; Customer Focus and Relationships; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Revenue; Segmentation; Sales; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

August 2019 (Revised October 2019)
Case

Systems Design West

By: Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Jenn Braus (HBS 2013) was halfway through the 90-day exclusivity period for her proposed acquisition of Systems Design West (SDW). She had completed her business and accounting due diligence. Just as she was about to ask her lawyer to begin drafting the purchase... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Price; Negotiation Offer; Decision Making

17 Jun 2025
Blog Post

Alumni in Climate Networking Series: San Francisco - Addressing Extreme Weather, Climate Risk, and Resilience

the insurance market in the face of worsening climate events and called attention to the increasing number of U.S. regions becoming "uninsurable." Jones advocated for integrating risk-reducing investments—such as forest View Details

TransDigm in 2017: The Beginning of the End or The End of the Beginning?

TransDigm, an incredibly successful yet relatively unknown company, manufactures a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts utilizing a somewhat controversial strategy. In the 10 years following its IPO in March 2006, its stock price increased by... View Details

November 1999 (Revised February 2000)
Case

Granny's Goodies, Inc.

By: Das Narayandas and Katherine B. Korman

The young entrepreneurs of Granny's Goodies, Inc., a corporate gift package specialist, face the challenge of finding ways to create consistent revenue streams and reduce sales costs. Outside of a few long-term contracts, the two founders have had to work very hard for... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Customer Relationship Management; Entrepreneurship; Cost Management; Marketing Strategy; Product Design; Problems and Challenges; Sales; Segmentation; Service Industry