Publications

Article

Fixing What Really Ails Japan

By: Michael E. Porter and Hirotaka Takeuchi

Conventional wisdom claims that Japan’s “economic miracle” stemmed from its unique model of government guidance and its revolutionary corporate management techniques. An in-depth study proves this seriously wrong. Rampant government intervention has caused more... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Competition; Innovation and Invention; Business and Government Relations; Japan

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September 2012 (Revised September 2012)
Case

Inkaterra

By: Diego Comin, Rohan Gopaldas and Diego Rehder

The case presents the unique business model of Inkaterra, a leading eco-tourism organization in Peru, and the different strategies the company can pursue to grow. Through the experience of Inkaterra the case studies two general issues. First, it discusses the potential... View Details

Keywords: Inkaterra; Ecotourism; Tourism; Environment; Peru; Informal Sector; Regulation; Economic Development; Bottom Of The Pyramid; Technology Diffusion; Competitiveness; Business Model; Growth and Development Strategy; Natural Environment; Market Entry and Exit; Conflict Management; Tourism Industry; Peru

Article

Improving the Rhythm of Your Collaboration

By: Ethan S. Bernstein, Jesse Shore and David Lazer

In this article, we summarize our research on the value of intermittency for complex problem solving at work and give practical advice on how organizations can improve the rhythm of their people's collaboration. Executives have been counseled to be collaborative... View Details

Keywords: Problem Solving; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Internet and the Web; Leadership

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January 2014 (Revised April 2025)
Supplement

The PGA Tour (D)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Cole Magrath

In 1994, the PGA Tour (the "Tour"), the dominant incumbent professional golf circuit, had created tremendous value for its players. In the 1974 season, players competed for $8 million in prize money; by the 1994 season, the total prize purse had increased to $56... View Details

Keywords: PGA Tour; Tim Finchem; Deane Beman; Golf; Professional Golf; Business Model; Value Creation; Adaptation; Sports; Business Strategy; Sports Industry; United States

January 2006 (Revised October 2007)
Background Note

Managing Networked Businesses: Course Overview for Students

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann

Provides an overview for students of the MBA elective course Managing Networked Businesses (MNB). MNB focuses on management challenges in businesses that exhibit network effects. The first section of the note explains that such businesses comprise a large and growing... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Capital Structure; Business or Company Management; Network Effects; Organizational Design; Business and Government Relations; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competitive Strategy

January 2016
Case

TransDigm Inc.

By: Eric Van den Steen, Kavita Mathews and Alon Galor

Transdigm had been very successful with a PE-like business model: it acquired smaller producers of aircraft components and improved their profits, mainly by increasing efficiency and applying value pricing. By 2014, Transdigm had completed almost 50 acquisitions. Its... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Price; Competitive Strategy; Air Transportation Industry

November 2009
Case

METRO Cash & Carry in China, 2008

By: Tarun Khanna

In April 2008, the country head for METRO AG's Cash & Carry wholesaling operations is considering the most appropriate model for expansion in China, where METRO has operated stores for small business professionals for eight years. In addition, METRO is actively... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Emerging Markets; Distribution Channels; Partners and Partnerships; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Retail Industry; China

12 PM – 1 PM EDT, 20 Oct 2016
Webinars: Trending@HBS

Developing and Delivering Strong Pitches

Entrepreneurs--whether building and launching their own venture or launching new ventures in established businesses--are called on daily to explain the business opportunity they are pursuing to potential customers, partners, suppliers, advisers, investors, and... View Details

September 2009 (Revised February 2011)
Case

Eden McCallum: A Network-Based Consulting Firm (A)

By: Heidi K. Gardner and Robert G. Eccles

Eden McCallum pioneered the network-based ("virtual") consulting firm model in the U.K. Contracting freelance consultants on a per-project basis keeps overheads lean so that Eden McCallum's fees are a fraction of the big firms' rates. Their flexible, low-cost model has... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Decision Choices and Conditions; Financial Crisis; Growth and Development Strategy; Expansion; Consulting Industry; United Kingdom

31 Jan 2014
News

How to really measure the value in health care

October 2019 (Revised January 2020)
Case

Fixing Facebook: Fake News, Privacy, and Platform Governance

By: David Yoffie and Daniel Fisher

Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook based on the idea that connecting people was a fundamentally good thing—and a way to turn a handsome profit. But from the beginning, Facebook received criticism both for how it handled user privacy and how it curated user-generated... View Details

Keywords: Platform; Governance; Privacy; Internet and the Web; Corporate Governance; Ethics; Business and Government Relations; Strategy; Digital Platforms; Web Services Industry

October 2001 (Revised November 2002)
Case

Herman Miller (A): Innovation by Design

By: Sandra J. Sucher and Stacy McManus

Gary Van Spronsen, president of Miller SQA, has been asked to leave the thriving subsidiary he helped to reinvent to join Herman Miller's corporate initiative on innovation. Miller SQA has pioneered processes new to the Herman Miller organization, such as... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Product Design; Product Development; Supply Chain Management; Business Model; Organizations; Values and Beliefs; Manufacturing Industry; Consumer Products Industry

February 2006 (Revised September 2006)
Case

Sippican Corporation (A)

By: Robert S. Kaplan

Presents a time-driven version of the Wilkerson Co. activity-based costing case (101092). Faced with declining profits, Sippican Corp. is struggling to understand why it is encountering severe price competition on one product line. The controller collects data that... View Details

Keywords: History; Business Model; Strategic Planning; Cost Accounting; Motivation and Incentives; Resource Allocation; Activity Based Costing and Management; Profit; Business Strategy; Budgets and Budgeting

31 Jan 2017
News

All The Single Ladies - Women Who Downplay Their Successes And Why It’s a Huge Mistake

23 Nov 1999
Research & Ideas

What’s Your Strategy for Managing Knowledge?

Knowledge is codified using a "people-to-documents" approach: it is extracted from the person who developed it, made independent of that person, and reused for various purposes. Ralph Poole, director of Ernst & Young's Center for View Details

Keywords: by Morten T. Hansen, Nitin Nohria & Thomas Tierney; Consulting

September 2016
Case

Partners Group: Ain't No Mountain High Enough

By: Nori Gerardo Lietz and Ricardo Andrade

Partners Group (PG), a Swiss-based PE manager, initiated a series of strategic shifts and evolved from a predominately fund-of-funds manager into a large, multi-asset class PE firm focused on direct investments. PG was the first PE firm to go public in 2006. A number... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Management Practices and Processes; Entrepreneurship