Publications

April 2011
Article

The Emotional Impact and Behavioral Consequences of Post-M&A Integration: An Ethnographic Case Study in the Software Industry

By: David Ager

This ethnographic case study has focused in depth on one type of acquisition, that of two small, young firms (each with less than 2,000 employees and less than ten years in operation) acquired by one company in the software development industry based in the United... View Details

Keywords: Integration; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Behavior; Groups and Teams; Mergers and Acquisitions; Emotions

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June 2020
Case

gWorks

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

In January of 2019, Joe Heieck (HBS '14), CEO of gWorks, was deciding whether to proceed with his acquisition of Data Tech, that was a business roughly the same size of gWorks. gWorks, which provided geospatial software to small city and rural county governments, was... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Decision Making; Entrepreneurship; Finance

October 1996 (Revised April 2004)
Case

Eric Wood (A)

By: Myra M. Hart

Describes the early career of an MBA who went to work in a small business, bought the company, and is now contemplating an acquisition to expand the business. The issues involve personal/business finance and financial risk, as well as valuation and financial... View Details

Keywords: Personal Development and Career; Business Growth and Maturation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Risk and Uncertainty

Web

Contemporary Black Artists and Public Art | Baker Library | Bloomberg Center | Harvard Business School

Chairman of Citi and Chairman of the Banking, Capital Markets and Advisory business. For thirteen years, McGuire was Citi’s Global Head of Corporate and Investment Banking.... View Details

March 2010 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Boston Scientific Corporation (A)

By: Regina E. Herzlinger and Charlie Attlan

Boston Scientific Corporation just bought Guidant at a record breaking price to expand their cardiovascular franchise. They need to rationalize their product portfolio to make the acquisition work. What should they sell and why? View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Decision Choices and Conditions; Growth and Development; Product Marketing; Product Development; Franchise Ownership; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

November 1998 (Revised December 1998)
Case

Asea Brown Boveri (Condensed)

By: Robert L. Simons

The merger of Asea AB and BBC Brown Boveri required a restructuring of operations and a change in organizational cultures. Competitive success also necessitated the benefits of scale while remaining "local" for political and customer-responsiveness reasons. The case... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Mergers and Acquisitions; Restructuring; Cost vs Benefits; Competitive Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Growth and Development; Performance Effectiveness; Consumer Products Industry

May 2010
Teaching Note

Offering the Right Service in the Right Place: Growing Orthopedics at the Brigham and Women's/Faulkner (BW/F) Hospitals (TN)

By: V.G. Narayanan and Lisa Brem

Teaching Note for [108016]. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Performance Efficiency; Decisions; Competitive Advantage; Service Delivery; Health Industry

November 2016 (Revised July 2019)
Case

Lenovo to Buy IBM PC: Integration Challenges

By: David G. Fubini and Christine Snively

In December 2004, Chinese computer manufacturer Lenovo announced its purchase of IBM’s PC division. At the time, few industry observers were optimistic about the merger of these entities with seemingly opposite company cultures. How should the two entities plan to... View Details

Keywords: Integration; Strategy; Organizational Culture; Computer Industry; Technology Industry; United States; China

Article

The Business of Medicine in the Era of COVID-19

By: David M. Cutler, Sayeh Nikpay and Robert S. Huckman

This Viewpoint discusses the shifting landscape of health care financing, regulation, and delivery as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, and discusses regulatory and other changes that need to be in place if telehealth and physician practice and hospital mergers... View Details

Keywords: Health Care; COVID-19; Telemedicine; Business; Health Pandemics; Health Care and Treatment; Change; Competition

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February 1998 (Revised May 1998)
Case

Merck-Medco: Vertical Integration in the Pharmaceutical Industry

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Marie Bell

Records the analyses and actions taken by Merck Pharmaceuticals in its acquisition of Medco, a channel intermediary (called "pharmacy benefit manager"). While many of its competitors seem to be faring poorly, Merck seems to have managed the Medco integration superbly. View Details

Keywords: Vertical Integration; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Competitive Strategy; Marketing Channels; Mergers and Acquisitions; Pharmaceutical Industry

March 1998 (Revised October 1998)
Case

Paint-Pen, Inc.

Presents the background and some details on a possible acquisition opportunity--a manufacturer of ballpoint paint pens for the hobby and crafts industry. Forces students to peel the layers of this initially unattractive opportunity to find potential sources of value. A... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Entrepreneurship; Acquisition; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Article

Governments as Owners: State-Owned Multinational Companies

By: Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra, Andrew Inkpen, Aldo Musacchio and Kannan Ramaswamy

The globalization of state-owned multinational companies (SOMNCs) has become an important phenomenon in international business (IB), yet it has received scant attention in the literature. We explain how the analysis of SOMNCs can help advance the literature by... View Details

Keywords: Multinational Corporation; State-owned Enterprises; State Capitalism; FDI; Internationalization; Government And Business; National Oil Companies; State Ownership; Multinational Firms and Management; Business Subsidiaries; Acquisition; Pharmaceutical Industry; Energy Industry; China; India; Europe

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November 2008 (Revised November 2024)
Case

Tottenham Hotspur plc

By: Lauren H. Cohen, Joshua D. Coval and Christopher J. Malloy

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club is a publicly-owned professional soccer team based in London, England. The club's chairman, Daniel Levy, is contemplating a significant investment in physical assets, including the development of a new stadium as well as the acquisition... View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Capital Budgeting; Decision Making; Competency and Skills; Cash Flow; Investment; Buildings and Facilities; Sports; Investment Portfolio; Financial Strategy; Sports Industry; London

October 2015
Case

Integrating Avocent Corporation into Emerson Network Power

By: Prithwiraj Choudhury and Vincent M. Servello

This case reviews Emerson Electric’s proposed acquisition of Avocent Corporation in 2009. The focus of this case is how a technology company such as Avocent, with a dramatically different business model compared to its acquirer, should be integrated into a large,... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Integration; Human Capital; Acquisition; Technology Industry

2000
Chapter

Leveraged Management Buyouts at KKR: Historical Perspectives on Patient Equity, Debt, Discipline, and LBO Governance.

By: George P. Baker and George Smith

Keywords: Governance; History; Leveraged Buyouts; Executive Compensation; Borrowing and Debt

1979
Chapter

Research Methods and Data Analysis: The Challenge of Knowing How to Do What About Why

By: T. M. Amabile and W. DeJong

Keywords: Mathematical Methods; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Management; Knowledge Use and Leverage

Web

Laying Down the Principles: Management - Railroads and the Transformation of Capitalism | Harvard Business School/title>

Railroads Finance Management Business Analysts Mass Distribution Mergers & Syndicates Research Links Laying Down the Principles: Management A system of centralized management was born from the need to direct the flow of capital View Details

November 1999 (Revised October 2009)
Case

Virtualis Systems (A)

By: Jay O. Light and Michael J. Roberts

Describes a second-year MBA's attempts to make money for a fledgling Web-hosting business. As the case ends, he must both sort out the company's business model and financing needs, as well as select from an array of financing and acquisition alternatives. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Model; Business Startups; Financial Strategy; Financing and Loans; Web Services Industry