Publications

August 2010 (Revised September 2010)
Case

Paul Bremer at the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq

By: Robert Steven Kaplan and Nicholas Henri Taranto

Since becoming the President's envoy responsible for post-war Iraq, Paul Bremer endured many sleepless nights, struggling with the decision of how to hand over sovereignty to the Iraqi people. Despite daily assassination attempts, tribal warfare, growing violence, and... View Details

Keywords: Government Administration; International Relations; National Security; Leadership; Crisis Management; Iraq; District of Columbia

21 Jul 2009
First Look

First Look: July 21

stronger. Download the paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/09-051.pdf Quality Management and Job Quality: How the ISO 9001 Standard for Quality Management Systems Affects Employees and Employers (revised)... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

20 Jul 2010
First Look

First Look: July 20

value-relevant before disclosure, for negative earnings adjustments it is value-relevant only after disclosure. This finding is consistent with managers delaying the communication of bad news until IFRS compliance. A finer model shows... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

December 2018
Case

The Swedish Academy #MeToo Scandal and the Reputation of the Nobel Prize

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Mats Urde

This case focuses on the potential for “reputational contagion” to the Nobel Prize from a scandal affecting one of its independent network member entities, the Swedish Academy. The latter is responsible for selecting the Nobel Prize in Literature, by appointment of... View Details

Keywords: Nobel Prize; Swedish Academy; Scandal; Reputation; Brands and Branding; Crisis Management

20 Feb 2013
Research & Ideas

Big Deal: Reflections on the Megamerger of American and US Airways

Business Administration and author of Creating Value through Corporate Restructuring: Case Studies in Bankruptcies, Buyouts, and Breakups As United States equity markets and corporate balance sheets continue their remarkable comeback from the financial View Details

Keywords: Re: Rosabeth M. Kanter & Stuart C. Gilson; Air Transportation

18 Jun 2013
First Look

First Look: June 18

managers-firms with the greatest information frictions prior to the rule change. We report three changes related to compensation after 1992 for division managers. First, within firms with dispersed managers, division manager pay co-moves... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

12 Feb 2016
Op-Ed

The Real Jobs Tragedy in the US: We've Lost the Skills

workforce. "Companies that might once have moved overseas to access low wage labor will likely in the future do so to access skilled workers" There’s plenty of evidence that the middle skills jobs crisis is really a skills... View Details

Keywords: by Joe Fuller and Matt Sigelman; Manufacturing; Electronics

October 2007 (Revised August 2009)
Case

Perfect Storm over Zurich Airport (A)

By: Michael L. Tushman and David Kiron

Josef Felder, CEO of Zurich Airport, faces several crises as he tries to transform the Airport from a slow-moving, conflict-ridden, government-owned entity into a privatized, world-class airport. View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Leading Change; Crisis Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; State Ownership; Privatization; Air Transportation Industry

23 Jun 2009
First Look

First Look: June 23

Interconnected: A Manifesto for Smarter Cities Authors:Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Stanley S. Litow Abstract The need for a fresh approach to U.S. communities is more urgent than ever because of the biggest global economic crisis since the... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

November 2010 (Revised October 2011)
Case

Oriflame S.A. (A)

By: David F. Hawkins, Karol Misztal and Daniela Beyersdorfer

A direct-selling cosmetics company involved in emerging markets exhibits significant foreign exchange risk exposure and profitability swings in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Students must review the company's use of derivative instruments and other hedging... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Financial Crisis; Currency Exchange Rate; Financial Strategy; Investment; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Risk Management; Emerging Markets; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

November 2008
Journal Article

Financial Constraints and Growth: Multinational and Local Firm Responses to Currency Crises

By: Mihir A. Desai, C. Fritz Foley and Kristin Forbes

This paper examines how financial constraints and product market exposures determine the response of multinational and local firms to sharp depreciations. U.S. multinational affiliates increase sales, assets, and investment significantly more than local firms during,... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Financial Crisis; Currency; Private Equity; Foreign Direct Investment; Multinational Firms and Management; Emerging Markets; United States

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June 2025
Case

Transforming a Titan (A)

By: George Serafeim and Lena Duchene

Dimitri Papalexopoulos, fourth-generation CEO of TITAN Cement, must decide whether to keep leading the 120-year-old, family-controlled firm or hand the reins to new management. Over 26 years he has turned TITAN from a domestic player into an internationally diversified... View Details

18 Sep 2000
Research & Ideas

Big Deals: Financing Large-Scale Investments

time," he remarks. "In my thesis, I analyzed why certain S&Ls adopted high-risk strategies while others did not and found that high leverage was an important consideration." As the S&L crisis passed and interest in... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

October 2021 (Revised January 2022)
Supplement

Michael Ku and Global Clinical Supply at Pfizer Inc.: Bringing Hope to Patients (C)

By: Linda A. Hill and Emily Tedards

This case is the third installment in a series about the 10-year cultural and digital transformation of Pfizer’s Global Clinical Supply organization. In 2011, Michael Ku became Pfizer’s Vice President of Global Clinical Supply (GCS) after the company had undergone... View Details

Keywords: Clinical Supply Chain; COVID-19; Vaccine; Agile; Innovation and Invention; Change Management; Organizational Culture; Transformation; Leadership; Corporate Strategy; Health Pandemics; Crisis Management; Mission and Purpose; Health Care and Treatment; Supply Chain Management; Digital Transformation

June 2000
Case

Lifeline Systems, Inc. (A)

By: H. Kent Bowen and Marilyn Matis

Lifeline Systems provides emergency response equipment to the elderly who live at home. The company uses local hospitals to market, sell, and install these units in homes, while the hospital monitors and calls for aid to respond to emergency calls from the elderly... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Product Marketing; Sales; Problems and Challenges; Growth and Development Strategy; Managerial Roles; Service Operations; Information Infrastructure; Age; Service Delivery; Restructuring; Crisis Management; Health Industry; Service Industry

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March 2006 (Revised February 2017)
Case

Rwanda: National Economic Transformation

By: Michael E. Porter, Kaia Miller, Michael McCreless, Kjell Carlsson, Jem Hudson and Haviland Sheldahl-Thomason

Set in the year 2004, when Rwanda commemorated the 10th anniversary of a genocide that had claimed the lives of over 10% of its population. Focuses on the formulation of an economic strategy to rebuild the economy and its institutions after the devastation. Rwanda, one... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Developing Countries and Economies; Policy; Government Administration; Crisis Management; Strategy; Rwanda

January 2000
Case

Talbots - A Classic

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Marie Bell

This case traces why the $1 billion women's clothing retailer decided to attract younger customers, what went wrong, and the actions taken to recover. By the end of 1999, the company has reestablished itself and faces several growth opportunities and must decide on the... View Details

Keywords: Customer Focus and Relationships; Decisions; Crisis Management; Product Positioning; Problems and Challenges; Segmentation; Fashion Industry