Publications

12 PM – 1:30 PM EDT, 28 Apr 2020
Career Events

New Paths Forward & How to Get There

Is there anything holding you back from taking that next step? Are you at an impasse? This session is designed to help to you honestly assess where you are now in your life. From there, we will craft potential new paths and create action plans to guide your immediate... View Details

30 Apr 2024
Book

When Managers Set Unrealistic Expectations, Employees Cut Ethical Corners

the United States. In that work, I learned that company management had known about the dangers of asbestos since the 1930s but had actively suppressed information linking it to cancer to protect the business. I became deeply curious about how respected View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

30 Jul 2008
Op-Ed

Why the U.S. Should Encourage FDI

Last year, foreign investors set new records for their acquisition activity in the United States. And 2008 began with nearly daily stories of American financial executives courting foreign direct investors, particularly sovereign wealth... View Details

Keywords: by Mihir A. Desai

Web

Contact Us

Contact Us Contact Us Work with Us Career & Professional Development is dedicated to fostering connections between employers and HBS talent. Our office takes a personalized approach to your recruiting strategy regardless of your... View Details

July 2023 (Revised October 2024)
Case

Revenue Recognition at Stride Funding: Making Sense of Revenues for a Fintech Startup

By: Paul M. Healy and Jung Koo Kang

The case explores the challenges of revenue recognition and financial reporting for Stride Funding (Stride), a fintech startup that has disrupted the student loan market. Stride leveraged proprietary machine learning and financial models to underwrite alternative... View Details

Keywords: Revenue Recognition; Financial Reporting; Entrepreneurial Finance; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Governance Compliance; Accrual Accounting; Financial Services Industry; United States

September 1988 (Revised January 1989)
Case

Unisys: The Merger of Burroughs and Sperry

Mike Blumenthal, CEO of Burroughs, successfully executes the merger of Burroughs and Sperry in 1986. The case discusses the putting together of the two firms in a fast time period in order to achieve cost savings, high earnings, and an integrated culture. Blumenthal... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Organizational Structure; Mergers and Acquisitions; Consolidation

23 Nov 2021
Book

What It Takes to Build an Organizational Culture That Wins

government protection. An organization may execute the strategy very well and enjoy success. But a problem presents itself when it becomes necessary to change that strategy or... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

01 Apr 2024
In Practice

Navigating the Mood of Customers Weary of Price Hikes

businesses need to know in 2024. Alexander MacKay: Focus on finding balance Since 2021, as companies faced supply shocks and changes to demand in an inflationary period, executives have increasingly focused on consumer price elasticities.... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Retail; Consumer Products

May 2010 (Revised September 2013)
Case

Friend Bank: The Time for Hope

By: Clayton S. Rose and Aldo Sesia

In 2010, Friend Bank was entering the fifth year of Hope Harris Johnson's ambitious 20-year growth plan to transform her family's one branch community bank into an institution with a substantial presence in southeastern Alabama. Harris Johnson was pleased, so far, with... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Financial Crisis; Banks and Banking; Growth and Development Strategy; Risk Management; Family Ownership; Competitive Advantage; Banking Industry; Alabama

12 Jan 2010
First Look

First Look: Jan. 12

negotiating strategy and tactics of incorporating two less well-studied factors beyond etiquette and deeper cultural characteristics: 3) systematic cross-border differences in decision making, governance, and 4) the broader economic and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

13 Oct 2021
News

How Companies Can Improve Employee Engagement Right Now

June 2019
Case

Fangda Partners: A Step Ahead

By: Ashish Nanda and Lisa Rohrer

Elite Chinese law firm Fangda Partners has steered Alibaba and other Chinese and international clients through the complex legal, corporate, and regulatory challenges associated with executing international transactions. “Fangda has traveled a long distance in a short... View Details

Keywords: Law Firm; Law Firms; Growth; Legal Industry; Regulation; Professional Services; Law; Leadership; Growth and Development; Strategy; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Legal Services Industry; China

January 2017
Case

Medtronic: Making the Big Leap Forward (A)

By: William W. George and Monica Baraldi

In 2014, Medtronic was about to execute a $50 billion acquisition of Ireland-based Covidien. Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak was committed to building the largest medical technology company in the world while broadening its ability to fulfill its mission of “alleviating... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Medtronic; Covidien; Mission; Tax Inversion; Business Strategy; Leadership; Mergers and Acquisitions; Pharmaceutical Industry; Republic of Ireland; Europe; Minnesota; United States

Joe is the Senator John Heinz Professor of Management Practice in Environmental Management, Retired. He focuses on one of the world’s most pressing problems: developing clean, secure and carbon-neutral supplies of reliable, low-cost energy all around the world. He... View Details

Keywords: green technology; high technology; internet; oil ＆ gas; private equity (LBO funds); utilities; software; energy

07 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

Digital Transformation: A New Roadmap for Success

This is the second of our three-part "Leading in the Digital Era" series. Read parts one and three. For the past two years, we've been asking executives: Where is your company in its digital journey, and where do you want to go? Roundtable discussions with 175 senior... View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards

August 2019 (Revised August 2020)
Case

Magrabi: Fulfilling the Vision for the Future

By: John Beshears, Alpana Thapar and Boris Tsimerinov

In 2018, Magrabi was the leading retailer of eyeglasses, sunglasses, and other optical products in the Middle East, and it was embarking on a major shift in strategy, transitioning from a brand focused on clinical expertise to a brand that combined technical excellence... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Transition; Luxury; Sales; Service Delivery; Strategy; Employees; Recruitment; Consumer Products Industry; Retail Industry; Middle East

January 2024
Supplement

Winning Business at Russell Reynolds

By: Ethan Bernstein and Cara Mazzucco

In an effort to make compensation drive collaboration, Russell Reynolds Associates’ (RRA) CEO Clarke Murphy sought to re-engineer the bonus system for his executive search consultants in 2016. As his HR analytics guru, Kelly Smith, points out, that risks upsetting—and... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Talent and Talent Management; Compensation and Benefits; Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Performance Evaluation; Motivation and Incentives; Consulting Industry