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Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(1,500)
- People (4)
- News (435)
- Research (943)
- Events (13)
- Multimedia (1)
- Faculty Publications (565)
- January 2007
- Article
Introducing the First Management Control Systems: Evidence from the Retail Sector
By: Tatiana Sandino
Focusing on a sample of US retailers, I study the management control systems (MCS) that firms introduce when they first invest in controls, and identify four categories of initial MCS, which are defined in terms of the purposes these MCS fulfill. The first category,... View Details
Keywords: Management Control Systems; Entrepreneurial Organizations; Firm Growth; Corporate Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Management Systems; Growth and Development Strategy
Sandino, Tatiana. "Introducing the First Management Control Systems: Evidence from the Retail Sector." Accounting Review 82, no. 1 (January 2007): 265–293. (Awarded the Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award, 2005, Management Accounting Section, American Accounting Association;
Awarded the Emerging Scholar Competitive Manuscript Award, 2011, Foundation for Applied Research, Institute of Management Accountants.)
- 24 Feb 2014
- News
Why Raising Retail Pay Is Good for the Gap
- 12 Jan 2015
- News
Why Online Retailers Are Starting to Care About Your Feelings
- 2013
- Working Paper
The Operational Consequences of Private Equity Buyouts: Evidence from the Restaurant Industry
By: Albert W. Sheen and Shai Bernstein
What, if anything, do private equity firms do with businesses they acquire? We find evidence of significant operational changes in 101 restaurant chain buyouts between 2002 and 2012. Analysis of health inspections conducted for over 50,000 stores in Florida shows that... View Details
Keywords: Safety; Quality; Private Equity; Food; Management Practices and Processes; Leveraged Buyouts; Performance Efficiency; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Florida
Sheen, Albert W., and Shai Bernstein. "The Operational Consequences of Private Equity Buyouts: Evidence from the Restaurant Industry." Working Paper, June 2013.
- 16 Jun 2020
- News
What Will the Retail Experience of the Future Look Like?
- May 2012
- Case
Evergreen Natural Markets 2012
By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and Paul S. Myers
Evergreen Natural Markets is a successful food retailer located in the Rocky Mountain region of the U.S. Having grown through acquisition, it has a reputation for improving the companies it purchases while retaining previous management. This strategy has succeeded due... View Details
Keywords: United States; Operating Systems; Acquisitions; Strategy; Human Resource Management; Consolidations; Retail Trade; Food; Growth Management; Organizational Culture; Consolidation; Acquisition; Business Processes; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Las Vegas; Western United States
Kanter, Rosabeth M., and Paul S. Myers. "Evergreen Natural Markets 2012." Harvard Business School Brief Case 124-450, May 2012.
- 21 Jun 2022
- News
Asian Grocery Retailers Hit Hard by Import Costs and Delays
- Web
Technology & Operations Management Awards & Honors - Faculty & Research
from the Industry Studies Association for "The Impact of Supplier Inventory Service Level on Retailer Demand" ( Manufacturing & Service Operations Management , Fall 2016) with Nathan Craig and Nicole... View Details
- March 2018 (Revised March 2019)
- Technical Note
Control or Flexibility? Structured Empowerment Offers Both — Lessons from Retail & Service Chains
By: Tatiana Sandino
This note explains how several retail and service organizations use a practice described here as “structured empowerment” to balance control and flexibility as they grow. I define structured empowerment as a practice that grants employees both (a) the power to make... View Details
Keywords: Service Operations; Standards; Employees; Service Delivery; Decision Making; Power and Influence; Retail Industry; Retail Industry
Sandino, Tatiana. "Control or Flexibility? Structured Empowerment Offers Both — Lessons from Retail & Service Chains." Harvard Business School Technical Note 118-082, March 2018. (Revised March 2019.)
- October 2015 (Revised September 2016)
- Case
The Transformation of Mudo
By: Anthony J. Mayo, Esel Çekin and Çiğdem Çelik
After 16 years in management consulting, Barış Karakullukçu left to become the CEO of Mudo in 2012, one of the best-known names in Turkey's retail industry. She was tasked with leading Mudo's transition from a family business to a more institutionalized, corporate... View Details
Keywords: Leadership; Management Challenges; Emerging Market; Retail; Second-generation; Operational Efficiency; Performance Management; Corporate Culture; Growth; Leading Change; Family Business; Organizational Culture; Emerging Markets; Family Ownership; Transformation; Performance Improvement; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Turkey
Mayo, Anthony J., Esel Çekin, and Çiğdem Çelik. "The Transformation of Mudo." Harvard Business School Case 416-015, October 2015. (Revised September 2016.)
- February 2015 (Revised March 2022)
- Case
Quincy Apparel (A)
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Lisa Mazzanti
Quincy Apparel designs, manufactures and sells work apparel for young professional women that offers the fit and feel of high-end brands at a lower price. In late 2012, Quincy's cofounders are debating how to approach a crucial board meeting. Their seed-stage startup... View Details
Keywords: Retail; Failure; Online Retail; Women's Apparel; Business Startups; Business Plan; Business Model; Entrepreneurship; Production; E-commerce; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; New York (city, NY)
Eisenmann, Thomas R., and Lisa Mazzanti. "Quincy Apparel (A)." Harvard Business School Case 815-067, February 2015. (Revised March 2022.)
- December 2015 (Revised February 2016)
- Case
Ocado
By: José Alvarez, David E. Bell and Damien McLoughlin
In 2015, U.K.-based Ocado was the world's largest pure player in the online home-delivery grocery business and was gaining a growing share of the highly competitive U.K. grocery market. Ocado had made heavy investments in technology, including a highly automated... View Details
Keywords: Ocado; Grocery; Retail; Online Grocery; Supermarket; Delivery Models; Service Models; United Kingdom; Technology; Operations Management; Digital Platforms; Competition; Internet and the Web; Service Operations; Service Delivery; Supply Chain; Marketing; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United Kingdom
- March 2021 (Revised February 2025)
- Teaching Note
Afterpay U.S.: The Omnichannel Dilemma
By: Antonio Moreno and Anibha Singh
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 519-086. In 2018, Nick Molnar, the founder of the Australia-based online payment service Afterpay began its expansion to the U.S. market. The service had gained a loyal following in Australia by enabling customers to pay for online... View Details
Keywords: Omnichannel Retail; Digital Marketing; Business Startups; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Change Management; Customer Value and Value Chain; Customer Relationship Management; Customer Satisfaction; Financing and Loans; Microfinance; Global Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Product Development; Supply Chain Management; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Networks; Network Effects; Internet and the Web; Financial Services Industry; Technology Industry; United States; Australia
- February 2015 (Revised April 2016)
- Supplement
Quincy Apparel (B)
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Lisa C. Mazzanti
The (B) case provides post-mortem analysis from Quincy's cofounders on why their startup failed and what they could have done differently. Explanations for failure focus on Quincy's ambitious value proposition and resulting operational challenges; cofounder conflict;... View Details
Keywords: Retail; Online Retail; Women's Apparel; Internet and the Web; Entrepreneurship; Failure; Business Startups; E-commerce; Retail Industry; Retail Industry
Eisenmann, Thomas R., and Lisa C. Mazzanti. "Quincy Apparel (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 815-095, February 2015. (Revised April 2016.)
- 2025
- Working Paper
The Hidden Costs of Flexible Labor Models: How Working Multiple Jobs Affects Employees
By: Paige Tsai and Ryan W. Buell
As operations increasingly rely upon flexible labor models—such as gig, part-time, and remote work—it has become commonplace for individuals to work multiple jobs. Across three studies, relying on a combination of transaction-level data from 90,548 customers of a... View Details
Keywords: Behavioral Operations; Employee Behavior; Job Design; Sustainable Operations; Job Design and Levels; Personal Finance; Well-being; Happiness; Satisfaction; Wages
Tsai, Paige, and Ryan W. Buell. "The Hidden Costs of Flexible Labor Models: How Working Multiple Jobs Affects Employees." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 25-036, January 2025. (Revised June 2025.)
- October 2014
- Case
Mothercare, 2014
By: John R. Wells and Galen Danskin
In early 2014, Mothercare was the UK's leading retailer of mother-and-baby products. In fiscal 2013, it generated £341 million in revenues from its 255 UK stores and £128 million online, and was more than three times the size of its next biggest competitor, Mama and... View Details
- May 2013 (Revised March 2014)
- Case
Benetton Group S.p.A., 2012
By: John R. Wells and Galen Danskin
On May 31, 2012, after 36 years on the Milan Stock Exchange, Benetton was officially delisted and taken private by Edizione, the Benetton family's holding company. Since 2000, Benetton shareholders had seen its market value fall from $4.3 billion to $720 million at the... View Details
Keywords: Strategy; Fashion; Retail; Privatization; Family Ownership; Performance Improvement; Problems and Challenges; Management Teams; Globalized Firms and Management; Change Management; Restructuring; Competitive Strategy; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Italy
Wells, John R., and Galen Danskin. "Benetton Group S.p.A., 2012." Harvard Business School Case 713-513, May 2013. (Revised March 2014.)
- January 2010 (Revised February 2010)
- Supplement
IBM Retail Business Assessment at Dillard's, Inc.: Managing Staffing Levels to Improve Conversion (CW)
IBM consultants are convinced that there is a positive relationship with staffing levels and conversion rate. How should Dillard's, a large department store chain, use this insight to manage their staffing levels? View Details
- July 2014 (Revised August 2014)
- Case
AmazonFresh: Rekindling the Online Grocery Market
By: Rory McDonald, Clayton Christensen, Robin Yang and Ty Hollingsworth
More than a decade after the high-profile failures of several early online grocers, grocery remains the largest single U.S. retail category and one of the few that has not yet migrated online. Amazon began testing its grocery-delivery service, AmazonFresh, in Seattle,... View Details
Keywords: Innovation; New Markets; Grocery; Operations Strategy; Innovation and Invention; Strategy; Emerging Markets; Learning; Service Operations; Internet and the Web; Business Model; Food and Beverage Industry; United States
McDonald, Rory, Clayton Christensen, Robin Yang, and Ty Hollingsworth. "AmazonFresh: Rekindling the Online Grocery Market." Harvard Business School Case 615-013, July 2014. (Revised August 2014.)