Publications

May 2006 (Revised November 2006)
Case

China: To Float or Not To Float? (F)- Alcatel and Strong Chinese Competition

By: Laura Alfaro, Rafael M. Di Tella and Ingrid Vogel

The Chinese operations of Alcatel, a global communications solution provider based in France, were faced with strong local competition and a difficult market. It remained unclear how Alcatel would be able to recover growth in the Chinese market. Initiatives were... View Details

Keywords: Currency Exchange Rate; International Relations; Growth and Development Strategy; Research and Development; Competitive Strategy; Horizontal Integration; Communications Industry; China; France; United States

May 2022 (Revised June 2024)
Case

LOOP: Driving Change in Auto Insurance Pricing

By: Elie Ofek and Alicia Dadlani

John Henry and Carey Anne Nadeau, co-founders and co-CEOs of LOOP, an insurtech startup based in Austin, Texas, were on a mission to modernize the archaic $250 billion automobile insurance market. They sought to create equitably priced insurance by eliminating pricing... View Details

Keywords: AI and Machine Learning; Technological Innovation; Equality and Inequality; Prejudice and Bias; Growth and Development Strategy; Customer Relationship Management; Price; Insurance Industry; Financial Services Industry

December 2006 (Revised November 2008)
Case

West Wacker Drive: To Build or Not to Build?

In 1980, Thomas J. Klutznick, president of a Chicago-based development company, was considering whether he should build a Class A building on a second-rate site outside the Central Loop or not. He had a promising design, but the economic conditions, concurrent... View Details

Keywords: Development Economics; Interest Rates; Geographic Location; Risk Management; Urban Development; Construction Industry; Real Estate Industry; Chicago

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March 2000 (Revised February 2005)
Case

Thomas Weisel Partners (A)

By: Thomas J. DeLong, Ashish Nanda, Boris Groysberg, Matthew C. Lieb and Scott D Landry

Thomas Weisel, longtime leader of Montgomery Securities, realizes that the sale of Montgomery to NationsBank was the biggest mistake of his life. After his exit from NationsBanc Montgomery Securities, Weisel develops a business plan for a new merchant bank, Thomas... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Business Plan; Financial Institutions; Management Teams; Financial Services Industry

10 Feb 2016
HBS Seminar

Hong Luo of Harvard Business School and Julie Mortimer of Boston College, Department of Economics

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Skydeck - Alumni

Taylor Becker (MBA 2025) shares personal anecdotes and life lessons from his collaboration with the late finance icon Byron Wien (MBA 1956) Joy to the World How Justin Pasquariello (MBA 2010) , CEO of East Boston Social Centers, is making... View Details

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Profiles - MBA

worked on product development and ran our financing process, communicating our story and business plan to investors. I recognized how critical a strong alignment of technology View Details

September 2016 (Revised February 2017)
Case

MyTime

By: Juliane Begenau and Robin Greenwood

Ethan Anderson, the CEO of San Francisco–based e-commerce company MyTime, must decide on the company's growth strategy. MyTime’s first product was a website and mobile app that offered consumers a convenient way to book appointments with local merchants throughout the... View Details

Keywords: Customer Valuation; Discounted Cash Flow; Software; Valuation Methodologies; Subscriber Models; Financial Management; Corporate Finance; Growth and Development Strategy; Valuation; Applications and Software; Information Technology Industry; North and Central America

October 1999 (Revised May 2001)
Background Note

Japanese Financial System, The: From Postwar to the New Millennium

Describes the development of the Japanese financial system, from extensive regulation and fund allocation through administrative guidance in the 1950s to the banking crisis and legal and structural reorganization in the 1990s. Special emphasis is on the processes of... View Details

Keywords: Sovereign Finance; Financial Markets; Banks and Banking; Japan

March 1997 (Revised July 1997)
Case

Morgan Stanley in China

The Asian economy, particularly China's, is experiencing explosive growth. China needs capital to fund the growth, and this presents a tremendous opportunity for an investment bank that can penetrate the market. Morgan Stanley establishes a joint venture with the China... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Investment Banking; Emerging Markets; Developing Countries and Economies; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; China

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Business & Environment - Faculty & Research

Responsible Investments That Make Firms More Profitable By: George Serafeim Article Transition to Clean Technology By: Daron Acemoglu, Ufuk Akcigit, Douglas Hanley and William R. Kerr We develop a microeconomic model of endogenous growth... View Details

11 Apr 2023
Research & Ideas

Is Amazon a Retailer, a Tech Firm, or a Media Company? How AI Can Help Investors Decide

human-plus-machine-based decision-making. Kost: Do you see the potential for a shift away from the GICS? Srinivasan: We develop certain standards because it creates a common way for us to understand and communicate what we are doing. It... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Consumer Products; Real Estate; Financial Services; Retail

September 2019
Case

Clean Energy for the Future

By: Richard H.K. Vietor and Howaida Kamel

This is an industry note on renewable energy – wind, solar, governmental incentives and storage. It covers the recent history of both the wind and solar industries, an extensive look at governmental policies in the United States, including the Green New Deal, and... View Details

Keywords: Green New Deal; Renewable Energy; Energy Policy; Industry Growth; Supply and Industry; Price; Motivation and Incentives; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; United States

March 1996
Case

Telmex PRIDES

By: Kenneth A. Froot and Mark Seasholes

The case examines an issue by a Mexican development bank of PRIDES written on Telmex stock. PRIDES are a dividend-enhanced security which are exchangeable into shares of the underlying stock. The focus is on pricing these instruments, which involve large... View Details

Keywords: Financial Derivatives; Securities; International Finance; Banks and Banking; Financial Instruments; Valuation; Mexico

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2023 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

this “working on material” session (as comedians would call it) with a sneak peek into how we are reconceptualizing career development post-pandemic and the implications for us and our organizations. Build the Life You Want: The Art and... View Details

January 2000 (Revised April 2010)
Case

Heidi Roizen

By: Kathleen L. McGinn and Nicole Tempest

Heidi Roizen, a venture capitalist at SOFTBANK Venture Capital and a former entrepreneur, maintains an extensive personal and professional network. She leverages this network to benefit both herself and others. The case considers the steps she's taken to build and... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Personal Development and Career; Power and Influence; Social and Collaborative Networks