Publications

December 2001
Case

Alibaba.com (B)

By: F. Warren McFarlan and Fred Young

The challenges the largest Chinese electronic commerce company faces many challenges at the end of 2001. This case describes how it has completely reoriented its strategy in the past 12 months to become a B-to-B company. The key question is: Will it work and what... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Business Strategy; Internet and the Web; Problems and Challenges; Information Technology Industry; China; United States

10 Nov 2015
Op-Ed

Authentic Leadership Rediscovered

authentic leadership in which the importance of leaders’ life stories became paramount. In spite of widespread acceptance of authentic leadership—or perhaps because of it—several authors have recently challenged the value of being... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George

September 2016 (Revised December 2018)
Case

Joan Bavaria and Multi-Dimensional Capitalism

By: Geoffrey Jones and Seema Amble

The case examines the career of Joan Bavaria, a pioneer of socially responsible investing and founder of Trillium Asset Management and Ceres, the nonprofit organization advocating for sustainability leadership. It describes her personal journey from art student and... View Details

Keywords: Integrated Corporate Reporting; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Personal Development and Career

September 2003 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Learning from LeapFrog: Creating Educational and Business Value

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Christopher Dede and Susan Saltrick

Explores the success factors leading to one's company's rise to the number three ranking in the aggressively competitive toy industry. LeapFrog has made the strategic decision to exploit its educational model in two industry sectors: consumer toys and educational... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Decisions; Education; Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Invention; Growth Management; Media; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Research; Value Creation

December 2007 (Revised April 2008)
Exercise

The Elcer Products Transaction: Confidential Information for RubyFibre Enterprises

By: James K. Sebenius

In a six-party negotiation exercise, the TNDA Corp. plans to sell Elcer Products Division to one of four potential buyers (industrial, financial, U.S., German). This case contains confidential information for the RubyFibre Enterprises management role. Challenges... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation

December 2007 (Revised April 2008)
Exercise

The Elcer Products Transaction: Confidential Information for Pearl Equity Partners

By: James K. Sebenius

In a six-party negotiation exercise, the TNDA Corp. plans to sell the Elcer Products Division to one of four potential buyers (industrial, financial, U.S., German). This case contains confidential information for the Pearl Equity Partners management role. Challenges... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation

Leaders know they need to give people room to be their best, to pursue unconventional ideas, and to make smart decisions in the moment. It’s been said so often that it’s a cliché. But here’s the problem: Executives have trouble resolving the tension between... View Details

07 Dec 2022
Blog Post

2022 Climate Symposium: Tackling Climate Together

With over 500 tickets sold, the Symposium, held on HBS campus on November 6, 2022, facilitated conversation and reflection between leaders and experts from all areas and industries about the challenges and opportunities of climate change.... View Details

21 Nov 2014
News

Pension Funds Lambaste Private-Equity Fees

December 6, 2013
Article

Family Businesses Shouldn't Hunt for Superstar CEOs

By: Josh Baron and Rob Lachenauer

This article discusses the challenges faced by family businesses when it comes to succession planning, particularly in selecting an outside CEO. It presents a case study of a third-generation family business looking for an external CEO, named "Mr. Wonderful," to manage... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Management Succession

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13 Oct 2021
News

Executive Education Courses in Social Entrepreneurship and Nonprofit Leadership

Learning in Action: A Guide to Putting the Learning Organization to Work

Most managers today understand the value of building a learning organization. Their goal is to leverage knowledge and make it a key corporate asset, yet they remain uncertain about how best to get started. What they lack are guidelines and tools that transform abstract... View Details

21 Aug 2000
Research & Ideas

Inside the OR: Disrupted Routines and New Technologies

organizations successfully integrate new technologies into their operations. "In an industry context in which individual heroism and skill are assumed to be critical determinants of important outcomes," they write, "this study produces evidence that... View Details

Keywords: by Hilah Geer

Article

Enfranchisement of Service Workers

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and James Heskett

Enfranchisement is achieved through an integration of empowerment with methods of pay for performance. Evidence from Ito Yokado Group in Japan and Nordstrom in the US demonstrates the positive effects of enfranchisement. Successful efforts to enfranchise employees: 1.... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Franchise Ownership; Employees; Compensation and Benefits; Service Industry; Japan; United States

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December 2015
Article

What Is Disruptive Innovation?

By: Clayton M. Christensen, Michael Raynor and Rory McDonald

For the past 20 years, the theory of disruptive innovation has been enormously influential in business circles and a powerful tool for predicting which industry entrants will succeed. Unfortunately, the theory has also been widely misunderstood, and the "disruptive"... View Details

Keywords: Disruptive Innovation; Theory

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January 1997
Background Note

Conducting a Performance Appraisal Interview

By: Michael Beer

Discusses typical problems experienced by managers in conducting performance appraisal interviews. The underlying causes of these problems are analyzed and ideas are presented that might help managers overcome these problems. A rewritten version of an earlier note. View Details

Keywords: Compensation and Benefits; Managerial Roles; Performance Evaluation; Problems and Challenges

April 2009 (Revised October 2010)
Case

Bob Beall at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

By: Robert Steven Kaplan and Sophie Hood

Bob Beall is the Chief Executive Officer of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF). CFF is an extremely successful organization, but Beall has to determine how to manage the organization through the financial crisis of 2008-2009. In this situation, donations are likely... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Financial Crisis; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Governing and Advisory Boards; Leadership; Crisis Management; Nonprofit Organizations

16 Feb 2023
HBS Case

ESG Activists Met the Moment at ExxonMobil, But Did They Succeed?

The impact-investment hedge fund Engine No. 1 made a big splash in May 2021 when it managed to get three nominees elected to the ExxonMobil board of directors. It was an open effort to prod the oil giant toward renewable energy and test whether activist investing could... View Details

Keywords: by Lane Lambert; Financial Services

April 2012 (Revised February 2013)
Case

Learning About Reducing Hospital Mortality at Kaiser Permanente

By: Anita Tucker

In 2011, Kaiser Permanente Northern California (KPNC) region's efforts to reduce mortality in their 21 hospitals is showing promise. They developed and launched a region-wide initiative to improve the treatment of sepsis, a serious and often deadly medical condition.... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Health Care and Treatment; Performance Improvement; Health Industry; California