Publications

SSRN

Read Now

October 2020 (Revised July 2023)
Case

UCK Partners: Gong Cha

By: Victoria Ivashina and Sangyun Lee

In the Spring of 2017, Soomin Kim, Founding Partner of UCK Partners, and his team were debating the potential exit of UCK Partner’s investment in Gong Cha Korea, the sole local franchisor of the premium milk tea brand that they proprietarily sourced three years ago.... View Details

Keywords: Exit; Strategic Decision Making; Private Equity; Investment; Strategy; Investment Return; Decision Making; Bids and Bidding

11 May 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Creating an R&D Strategy

Keywords: by Gary P. Pisano

December 2001 (Revised June 2002)
Case

Compensation at Level 3 Communications

Level 3's unique compensation plan rewarded managers for the firm's performance only if the firm's stock price movement exceeded that of the market. This design was intended to maximize shareholder value by tying manager's performance more closely to that of the firm,... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Compensation and Benefits; Telecommunications Industry

Every major company is grappling with the meaning and application of sustainability in relation to its geographic location, industry and business model. Similarly, more and more institutional investors are incorporating sustainability into their... View Details

09 Aug 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Shareholder Activism on Sustainability Issues

Keywords: by Jody Grewal, George Serafeim, and Aaron Yoon

January 2023 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Adams + Beasley Associates

By: Dennis Campbell and Iuliana Mogosanu

This case illustrates how a strong culture, founder-led SME designed and used a unique performance metric—the job security index—to manage through periods of economic uncertainty. The case centers specifically on how the job security index was used in an interactive... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Measurement and Metrics; Employee Ownership; Risk and Uncertainty; Small Business; Leadership; Organizational Culture

October 2002 (Revised February 2011)
Case

Union Corrugating Company (A)

By: Paul W. Marshall and Julia Stevens

Lauri Union graduates from Harvard Business School and takes over her family's steel-corrugated roofing and siding manufacturing firm, which her mother has most recently run. The industry is mature, entry barriers to competitors are low, and the company is over 50... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leading Change; Family Business; Entrepreneurship; Organizational Culture; Family Ownership; Gender; Manufacturing Industry; Steel Industry; Industrial Products Industry

25 Oct 2014
News

Executive pay: Moneybags

19 Aug 2020
News

Krispy Kreme: Top-Line Up Double Digits Thru Pandemic (Podcast)

05 Jul 2022
What Do You Think?

Have We Seen the Peak of Just-in-Time Inventory Management?

distribution channel on overall inventory levels and costs. One thing that may have helped generate the HBS offer was an experiment I performed using my own crude version of what would become known as the “beer game.” In my approach, my... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Manufacturing; Shipping; Transportation

August 2003 (Revised October 2003)
Case

Harvard Business School Social Enterprise Initiative at the Ten-Year Mark, The

By: James E. Austin, Stacey M. Childress and Cate Reavis

In mid-2003, as the 10-year anniversary of Harvard Business School's Social Enterprise Initiative approached, the group's faculty and staff decided to analyze its past performance and to formulate its future strategy. View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Performance Evaluation; Strategic Planning; Social Enterprise

April 2011
Exercise

Strategic Foresight: An Exercise

The exercise asks students to perform a strategic analysis of the consulting industry in order to identify untapped strategic opportunities. View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Supply and Industry; Strategic Planning; Opportunities; Cognition and Thinking; Strategy; Consulting Industry

Find at Harvard

December 2005 (Revised December 2008)
Case

SchoolNet: Pursuing Opportunity beyond Federal Mandates

Settling into his seat on the train bound for New York, CEO Jonathan Harber reflected on the evolution of SchoolNet's position in the educational technology market and its important relationship with Philadelphia. Specifically, how could it transition from a project to... View Details

Keywords: Customers; Education; Performance Improvement; Partners and Partnerships; Expansion; Technology Adoption; Philadelphia

Find at Harvard

May 1992 (Revised August 1996)
Case

NIKE in Transition (A): The Ascendancy of Bob Woodell

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

Explores Bob Woodell's tenure as Nike's first COO. Describes development of Woodell's management style, his attempts to develop the organization, and his responses to unforeseen business problems. Changing market forces, new competitors, a build-up of low-end... View Details

Keywords: Conferences; Crisis Management; Management Style; Marketing Strategy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Performance Evaluation; Competition

Research Summary

Flexibility in Manufacturing Systems

David M. Upton has examined the management of flexibility in manufacturing systems. Although flexibility has become an issue of critical competitive importance in a growing number of industries, it remains an ill-understood concept. The broad use of the term and its... View Details

April 2009 (Revised September 2011)
Case

Before the Fall: Lehman Brothers 2008

By: Clayton S. Rose and Anand Ahuja

This case examines Lehman Brothers in the months preceding its collapse. Following the announcement of a huge and unexpected second quarter loss, the CFO was removed from her post after only seven months in the job. This case explores the challenges faced by a firm... View Details

Keywords: Communication Strategy; Financial Crisis; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Financial Management; Financial Markets; Crisis Management; Trust; Financial Services Industry