Publications

11 Jun 2020
In Practice

Are Digital Organizations Better at Overcoming COVID?

as the long-run winners, and those firms that count their future in decades, instead of months or years. Lauren H. Cohen is the L.E. Simmons Professor of Business Administration. Shane M. Greenstein: Robust infrastructure helps companies... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

26 Jun 2013
Op-Ed

A Roadmap for Afghanistan’s Economic Future

Uzbek energy and gas to India in particular. So, how can a job-creating infrastructure be created efficiently to reverse the country's precipitous decline? First, leverage existing successes. Roshan, for example, is a rags-to-riches... View Details

Keywords: by Tarun Khanna

12 Oct 2016
Blog Post

Interning as a Software Engineer while at HBS

doing this summer? I’m working on the payments engineering team at Instacart, a same-day grocery delivery service. My team’s job is to handle everything that relates to the ordering process: we work with Stripe, our payments API, build the discounts infrastructure, and... View Details

18 Apr 2022
News

Book Smart

school in Ghana. There, they handed those Kindles, loaded with books, to a group of sixth graders and their teachers. “We had to provide infrastructure and scaffolding and instruction, and we had to physically move things around and load... View Details

01 Apr 1997
News

Critical Information: MIS Monitors the Ever-Changing World of IT

MIS faculty, as well as faculty from other units whose research is related to MIS, are currently engaged in research to track the evolution of information technology and to determine how IT infrastructure can create value in the... View Details

Keywords: Elaine Gottlieb

01 Mar 2017
News

In My Humble Opinion: Arunma Oteh (MBA 1990)

public services and infrastructure have been most directly affected by an influx of Syrian refugees. The refugee crisis is a global problem, not just that of a few countries.” Native tongue: Igbo. “My parents were very particular about us... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

01 Mar 2004
News

L. Paul Bremer: In His Own Words

will require a fundamental transformation from three decades of economic mismanagement and neglect and a Stalinist industrial structure. Even before the war, joblessness was high and public infrastructure was in a shambles. It is going to... View Details

Keywords: National Security and International Affairs; Government

16 Apr 2007
Research & Ideas

Delivering the Digital Goods: iTunes vs. Peer-to-Peer

however, depends on the number of peers in the network, the amount of people that share, the state of broadband infrastructure, and the "resolution" of content. Intuitively, a better broadband infrastructure should make p2p more... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Music

February 2014
Technical Note

Mobile Broadband and the Telecommunications Industry in 2011

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Kerry Herman and Christine Snively

Mobile broadband carriers provide network access to the Internet for a range of devices (typically portable or mobile), including consumer devices such as smartphones, tablets and E-Readers, but also a host of new emerging devices. Mobile broadband networks enable data... View Details

Keywords: Telecommunications; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Telecommunications Industry; Information Technology Industry; Technology Industry; Communications Industry

September 1999 (Revised April 2000)
Case

Novell: World's Largest Network Software Company

By: Richard L. Nolan

After phenomenal growth and market leadership in networking, founder and CEO Ray Noorda made a frontal assault on Microsoft's core strengths. In 1994, Noorda spend over $1.5 billion acquiring companies such as WordPerfect to combat Microsoft Word, products such as... View Details

Keywords: Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Competition; Internet and the Web; Strategic Planning; Corporate Strategy; Information Technology Industry

Find at Harvard

April 2009 (Revised August 2009)
Case

Linden Lab: Crossing the Chasm

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

In early 2008, managers at Linden Lab, creator of the virtual world Second Life, faced decisions about the company's growth strategy. Despite profound initial skepticism about demand for a user-generated virtual world that was not a traditional game, Second Life had... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Demand and Consumers; Infrastructure; Technology Adoption; Digital Platforms

April 2006 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Apple Computer, 2006

By: David B. Yoffie and Michael Slind

Apple has reaped the benefits of its innovative music player, the iPod. However, its PC and server business continue to hold small market share relative to the worldwide computer over the past few years. Will the iPod lure new users to the Mac? Will Apple be able to... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Product Positioning; Performance Evaluation; Information Infrastructure; Music Entertainment; Time Management; Information Technology Industry

June 2023
Teaching Note

Connecting Students in Chattanooga (A) and (B)

By: Jan W. Rivkin

Teaching Note for HBS Case Nos. 722-449 and 722-451. As this case opens, it is the spring of 2020 in Chattanooga. COVID-19 has hit, public schools have closed their buildings, remote learning has begun, and more than 28,000 schoolkids lack the high-quality Internet... View Details

Keywords: K-12 Education; Pandemic; COVID-19; Accessibility; Education; Urban Development; Wealth and Poverty; Internet and the Web; Information Infrastructure; Education Industry; Tennessee

September 2012 (Revised March 2014)
Case

Reinventing Brainlab (A)

By: Regina E. Herzlinger, Vincent Dessain and Karol Misztal

The management of Germany's Brainlab AG, a leading provider of software-driven oncology and surgery solutions, needs to evaluate strategic options for proceeding without an exclusive hardware partner in its most profitable business segment. View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Medical Specialties; Health Care and Treatment; Information Technology Industry; Health Industry; Germany

2010
Working Paper

Sustainable Cities: Oxymoron or the Shape of the Future?

By: Annissa Alusi, Robert G. Eccles, Amy C. Edmondson and Tiona Zuzul

Two trends are likely to define the 21st century: threats to the sustainability of the natural environment and dramatic increases in urbanization. This paper reviews the goals, business models, and partnerships involved in eight early "ecocity" projects to begin to... View Details

Keywords: Communication Technology; Investment; City; Infrastructure; Business and Government Relations; Environmental Sustainability; Urban Development; Information Technology; Green Technology Industry; Real Estate Industry

Read Now

Profile

Carlos Coto

Carlos joined his fifty-odd HBS colleagues on the India IXP, where the focus was on "the technology and infrastructure necessary to sustain growth in an emerging market." That theme resonates with Carlos' own ambitions.... View Details

08 Nov 2024
Op-Ed

How Private Investors Can Help Solve Africa's Climate Crisis

than infrastructure development and climate adaptation, according to the Associated Press. Finding the necessary capital What does this mean? Essentially, this lack of capital means governments and DFIs will not be able to ride to the... View Details

Keywords: by John Macomber; Green Technology; Energy

09 Apr 2024
Blog Post

IFC India: JSW Steel

change while building new capacity. While many countries, including the US, are in the middle of a “clean transition,” India is currently faced with the grand task of a “clean build:” two-thirds of India’s infrastructure has yet to be... View Details

2012
Chapter

Sustainable Cities: Oxymoron or the Shape of the Future?

By: Robert G. Eccles, Annissa Alusi, Amy C. Edmondson and Tiona Zuzul

Two trends are likely to define the 21st century: threats to the sustainability of the natural environment and dramatic increases in urbanization. This paper reviews the goals, business models, and partnerships involved in eight early "ecocity" projects to begin to... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; City; Urban Development; Infrastructure; Housing; Urban Scope; Business Ventures; Business Model; Green Technology Industry