Publications

January 2010 (Revised May 2012)
Case

TopCoder (A): Developing Software through Crowdsourcing

By: Karim R. Lakhani, David A. Garvin and Eric Lonstein

TopCoder's crowdsourcing-based business model, in which software is developed through online tournaments, is presented. The case highlights how TopCoder has created a unique two-sided innovation platform consisting of a global community of over 225,000 developers who... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Innovation and Invention; Two-Sided Platforms; Motivation and Incentives; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Software; Technology Industry

January 2019 (Revised July 2022)
Case

Jain Irrigation Systems Limited: Continuing a Legacy

By: Forest Reinhardt, Gunnar Trumbull and Mahima Rao-Kachroo

Founded in 1963 by Bhavarlal Jain (Bhau), who believed in “providing solutions for every problem,” Jain Irrigation in 2018 had a global footprint and $1.1 billion in revenue. Bhau had insisted that his business add value to farmers' lives and promote sustainable... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Mission and Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; India

02 Jun 2003
Research & Ideas

Why Have Marketers Ignored America’s Man-of-Action Hero?

should manage their corporate brands. The idea is that a significant part of the value of MNC brands comes from the inferences that consumers draw from their global reach. This idea makes intuitive sense to... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls

11 Mar 2001
Research & Ideas

Merchants to Multinationals: British Trading Companies in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

manufacturing and financial activities around the globe prior to WWI. The British trading companies played a significant role in opening new markets and developing new sources of supply in resources in the emerging global economy.... View Details

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones

Naina Lal Kidwai

Keywords: Financial Services, Banking, Sanitation

January 2004
Background Note

Cross-Border Listings and Depositary Receipts

By: Mihir A. Desai, Maria Raga-Frances, Ami Dave, Mark Veblen and Kathleen Luchs

This case describes the varied instruments that have evolved to facilitate investments in foreign corporations, emphasizing American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) and cross-border listings. It describes the different types of ADRs and the regulatory requirements foreign... View Details

Keywords: Financial Markets; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Business History; Research; Motivation and Incentives; United States

06 Aug 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Super Bowl Ads Sell Products, but Do They Sell Brands?

it was an advertising bro fest, but also a reflection of the cultural norms of the time. After all, the 1960s was the dawn of the golden age of advertising when agencies were evolving from product pitchers to storytellers. That first... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Sports; Entertainment & Recreation; Media & Broadcasting

28 Mar 2018
News

Wharton Business Radio with Tsedal Neeley

October 1989
Case

Dennis Hightower and the Walt Disney Co. in Europe

Describes the initial entry challenges faced by Dennis Hightower after being assigned the task to revitalize and reposition Walt Disney Co. of Europe in preparation for 1992. Allows students to consider the challenges of cultural heterogeneity, Disney traditions, and... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States; Europe

June 2015
Article

The Organization of Enterprise in Japan

By: Tom Nicholas

Recent research reveals that the joint stock corporation was not a superior form of business organization in many countries historically. In Japan, however, it played a more fundamental role. Between 1896 and 1939 joint stock enterprises accounted for 44 percent of... View Details

Keywords: Japan; Legal Form; Enterprise; Modernization; Business Organization; Entrepreneurship; Japan

Read Now

August 2023 (Revised December 2023)
Case

Money Fellows: The Quest for Expansion

By: Álvaro Rodríguez Arregui, Michael Chu and Ahmed Dahawy

This case explores the opportunities and challenges associated with expanding the operations of a complex entrepreneurial business model. It highlights how cultural aspects of different geographies impact a startup's operational and economic models. The case also... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Developing Countries and Economies; Geographic Scope; Business Strategy; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Business and Shareholder Relations; Financial Services Industry; Banking Industry; Egypt

Professor Yoshino holds the Herman C. Krannert Chair in Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and is a Director of Research. He specializes in global strategy and management, competitive strategy, and general management. A founding member of the... View Details

Tarun Khanna

Tarun Khanna is the Jorge Paulo Lemann Professor at the Harvard Business School. For almost three decades, he has studied entrepreneurship as a means to social and economic development in emerging markets. At HBS since 1993, after obtaining degrees from Princeton... View Details

2010
Book

Rethinking the MBA: Business Education at a Crossroads

By: Srikant M. Datar, David A. Garvin and Patrick Cullen

"Business Schools Face Test of Faith." "Is It Time to Retrain B-Schools?" As these headlines make clear, business education is at a major crossroads. For decades, MBA graduates from top-tier schools set the standard for cutting-edge business knowledge and skills. Now... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Business Education; Curriculum and Courses; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Problems and Challenges

February 2010
Case

Burt's Bees: Balancing Growth and Sustainability (Multimedia)

By: Christopher Marquis

The case examines sustainability initiatives at Burt's Bees, with video segments that detail the company's history, leadership, and implementation of ambitious 2020 sustainability goals. The company traces its roots to 1984, when Roxanne Quinby and Burt Schavitz teamed... View Details

Keywords: Balance and Stability; Leadership; Problems and Challenges; Business or Company Management; Growth Management; Organizational Culture; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Mergers and Acquisitions; Social Enterprise; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Ethics

Daniel Quinn Mills provides thought leadership in several fields including leadership, strategy, venture capital, finance, economics and geopolitics. He has been a director of publicly-listed firms and is currently a director of several closely-held private... View Details

Keywords: accounting industry; banking; brokerage; computer; construction; consulting; e-commerce industry; education industry; information technology industry; investment banking industry; management consulting; professional services; publishing industry; venture capital industry

December 2006 (Revised March 2010)
Case

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs

By: Anthony Mayo and Mark Benson

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, founders of Microsoft and Apple respectively, have revolutionized the relationship between the individual and computer technology. Once the exclusive domain of academia and research facilities, computers can now be found in every area of... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business History; Technological Innovation; Leadership; Risk and Uncertainty; Technology Industry

Article

Czech Mate: Expropriation and Investor Protection in a Converging World

By: Mihir A. Desai and Alberto Moel

This paper examines the expropriation of a foreign investor by a local partner and the subsequent resolution of that case through international arbitration in favor of the investor. Despite the investor's 99% interest in joint venture, the local partner managed to... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Capital Markets; Foreign Direct Investment; Geographic Location; Multinational Firms and Management; Governance Controls; Courts and Trials; Rights; Czech Republic; United States

SSRN

Article

Making Small Farms More Sustainable—and Profitable

By: Lino Dias, Robert S. Kaplan and Harmanpreet Singh

Smallholder farms provide a large proportion of food supply in developing economies, but 40% of these farmers live on less than U.S.$2/day and their deforestation produces environmental degradation. With a rapidly growing global population, it is imperative to improve... View Details

Keywords: Small Farms; Sustainable Agriculture; Agribusiness; Developing Countries and Economies; Environmental Sustainability