Publications

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May 2016
Case

The Inexorable Rise of Walmart? 1988—2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In October 2015, Walmart surprised investors by announcing that it expected flat sales growth for 2015 and growth of only 3% to 4% over the coming three years. Profits would also fall due to significant investments in people and technology. The company’s stock price... View Details

Keywords: Asda; Costco; David Glass; Convenience Stores; Discount Retailing; Dollar Stores; Doug McMillon; E-commerce; Online Retail; General Merchandise; Grocery; Lee Scott; Mike Duke; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Neighborhood Market; Sam Walton; Sam's Club; Store Formats; Supercenter; Supermarket; Warehouse Clubs; Merchandising; Walmart; Wal-Mart; Globalized Firms and Management; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Units; Business Divisions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Banks and Banking; Price; Profit; Revenue; Food; Global Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Business History; Compensation and Benefits; Employees; Human Capital; Labor Unions; Wages; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Distribution; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Labor and Management Relations; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Diversification; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet; Mobile Technology; Online Technology; Web; Web Sites; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; United States; Arkansas; Bentonville

November 1991 (Revised October 1995)
Case

Calyx & Corolla

By: Walter J. Salmon and David Wylie

Describes a new entry into the $8 billion flower industry in the United States. Combining the use of overnight air freight (Federal Express), information technology, an 800 number, and a catalog, Calyx & Corolla was changing the way flowers had traditionally been... View Details

Keywords: Market Entry and Exit; Transformation; Distribution Channels; Business Startups; Problems and Challenges; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

March 2023 (Revised May 2025)
Case

On

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karolin Frankenberger and Sascha Mader

Founded in 2010, in just one decade, the Swiss company On had established itself as a main player in global sports footwear and apparel. Based on an unconventional strategy which one of the founders labeled as “obsessively distinct,” On grew its sales with a compound... View Details

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HBS - Financials | Supplemental Financial Information

and philanthropic revenues (including current use gifts and distribution from the endowment). In fiscal 2021, the School's total revenues decreased by $56 million, or 7 percent, to $805 million from $861 million in the prior year. The... View Details

2024
Working Paper

Contributing to Growth? The Role of Open Source Software for Global Startups

By: Nataliya Langburd Wright, Frank Nagle and Shane Greenstein

How does participating in open source software (OSS) communities spur entrepreneurial growth? To address this question, we analyze novel data matching accounts from GitHub—the largest OSS hosting platform—to the universe of global software venture-backed firms... View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Open Source Distribution; Entrepreneurship; Business Growth and Maturation; Human Capital; Valuation; Corporate Strategy

SSRN

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Judging Criteria - Alumni

addressable market for your product and service. Highlight growth and trends. Attractive business model: How do you plan to make money? Who pays you? What are your distribution channels? What is your gross margin? Is your business model... View Details

01 Sep 2023
News

Turning Point: Listen to the Music

Marnie Tattersall: (MBA 1972) (Illustration by Gisela Goppel) Marnie Tattersall: (MBA 1972) (Illustration by Gisela Goppel) I was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and came to the United States in 1958 with my parents and my brother because my parents thought it was... View Details

Keywords: music; film; purpose; career

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Drug & Alcohol Policy | About

staff, and is designed to ensure that we comply with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Amendments of 1989. The unlawful possession, use, or distribution of illicit drugs and alcohol... View Details

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Demonstration Policy | About

HBS also may determine that an event requires the participation of staff to guide the event planners, to prepare and assist the moderator, to aid in managing the event, and to help make decisions during an event when questions or issues arise. Forms of dissent at an... View Details

14 Jul 2014
Research & Ideas

Pay Attention To Your ‘Extreme Consumers’

of the bell curve, says Avery, product designers can discover truly innovative breakthroughs. "Only by looking at consumers who fall within those tails of the normal distribution can you understand the extremes," she says. "And they often... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

January 2022
Case

Bee-ing Better at Bombas

By: Elizabeth A. Keenan, Youngme Moon and John Masko

David Heath and Randy Goldberg founded Bombas in 2013 to serve two missions: to deliver the “best socks in the history of feet,” and to donate socks (the most requested item in homeless shelters) to Americans experiencing homelessness. Eight years later, Bombas had... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Values and Beliefs; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Digital Marketing; Distribution; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Quality; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Human Needs; Poverty; Growth and Development Strategy; Apparel and Accessories Industry; New York (city, NY)

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Modern Capitalism: Mergers and Syndicates - Railroads and the Transformation of Capitalism | Harvard Business School

Railroads Finance Management Business Analysts Mass Distribution Mergers & Syndicates Research Links Modern Capitalism: Mergers and Syndicates Productivity rose almost six-fold in the United States during the era of railroad expansion.... View Details

August 2003 (Revised October 2003)
Case

C&S Wholesale Grocers: Self-Managed Teams

By: Thomas J. DeLong, Tejal Mody and David Ager

Rick Cohen, president and CEO of C&S Wholesale Grocers, is trying to decide whether and how to implement the self-managed teams concept in his warehouse. Eight months earlier, C&S had begun to act as principal wholesaler to A&P throughout New England, a decision that... View Details

Keywords: Customer Satisfaction; Decision Making; Labor Unions; Growth and Development Strategy; Distribution Channels; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Groups and Teams; New England