Publications

December 2002 (Revised June 2003)
Case

Vignette: The Rebar Dilemma

By: G. Felda Hardymon, Josh Lerner and Ann Leamon

Martin Smith, a new associate at an LBO firm, must respond to a problem posed by his boss, based on an historical deal that suddenly came undone. After months of negotiation, his firm's plan to buy a bankrupt competitor of one of its portfolio companies and close it... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Competition; Growth and Development Strategy; Business or Company Management

12 Jul 2016
News

The Fastest-Growing Cause for Shareholders Is Sustainability

Executive Pay and "Independent" Compensation Consultants

Executive compensation consultants face potential conflicts of interest that can lead to higher recommended levels of CEO pay, including the desires to “cross-sell” services and to secure “repeat business.” We find evidence in both the US and Canada that CEO pay... View Details

August 1998
Case

General Motors Corp. (D),The : 1993-1996

By: Peter Tufano

The fourth in a four-part series, the case details the financial policies and practices at General Motors from 1990 to 1996. This case describes the set of financial decisions taken by the firm as its business recovered, and focuses on an immediate decision faced by... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Finance; Auto Industry; United States

June 2025
Case

Transforming a Titan (A)

By: George Serafeim and Lena Duchene

Dimitri Papalexopoulos, fourth-generation CEO of TITAN Cement, must decide whether to keep leading the 120-year-old, family-controlled firm or hand the reins to new management. Over 26 years he has turned TITAN from a domestic player into an internationally diversified... View Details

2013
Case

Travelers Insurance: Focusing on Climate Change and Natural Catastrophe Risk

By: Andrew J. Hoffman

The dilemma Evan Blue faces stems from a report by sustainability advocacy group Ceres that calls on companies to take climate change into consideration in their risk models and develop response strategies. The fictional vice president of Traveler's Insurance is tasked... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Business Strategy; Risk and Uncertainty; Insurance Industry

October 1990
Article

Bankruptcy, Boards, Banks, and Blockholders: Evidence on Changes in Corporate Ownership and Control When Firms Default

By: S. C. Gilson

In 111 publicly traded firms that either file for bankruptcy or privately restructure their debt between 1979 and 1985, bank lenders frequently become major stockholders or appoint new directors. On average, only 46% of incumbent directors remain when bankruptcy or... View Details

Keywords: Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Governance; Banks and Banking; Change; Business Ventures; Ownership

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February 2010
Other Article

The Chilling Effect of Sarbanes Oxley: A Discussion of Sarbanes-Oxley and Corporate Risk-Taking

By: Aiyesha Dey

Bargeron, Lehn, and Zutter [2009. Sarbanes–Oxley and corporate risk-taking. Journal of Accounting and Economics, forthcoming] document that as compared with non-US firms, risk-taking by publicly traded companies in the US declined after the passage of the... View Details

Keywords: Risk; Corporate Risk-taking; Risky Investments; Risk and Uncertainty

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January 2018
Case

Spark Therapeutics: Pioneering Gene Therapy

By: Robert F. Higgins and Tina Liu

Spark Therapeutics is a pioneering gene therapy startup. It was spun out of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The company had taken with it much of the intellectual property and talent that CHOP had developed. The company is considering an initial public... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Innovation and Invention; Business Startups; Opportunities; Problems and Challenges; Strategy

January 2008 (Revised February 2008)
Case

South Dakota Wheat Growers

By: David E. Bell and Mary L. Shelman

As a farmer-owned cooperative, South Dakota Wheat Growers (SDWG) serves the needs of its 3,600 active farmer-members by supplying farm inputs and organizing the marketing and transportation of grain produced in the co-op's service territory. For almost 80 years, the... View Details

Keywords: Cooperative Ownership; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Production; Rail Transportation; Marketing Strategy; Expansion; Economic Growth; Global Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; South Dakota

December 2005 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Cynthia Fisher and the Rearing of ViaCell

By: Robert F. Higgins, Richard G. Hamermesh and Ingrid Vargas

Describes the start up of Viacord, a Boston-based medical services firm founded by Cynthia Fisher (HBS MBA) in 1993. Told from Fisher's perspective, the entrepreneur details the conceptualization and launch of the business and the many obstacles and expenses faced in... View Details

Keywords: Managerial Roles; Business Growth and Maturation; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Service Industry; Health Industry; Boston

February 2000 (Revised March 2000)
Case

National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy was founded in 1995 to bring together a variety of efforts to reduce teen pregnancy in the United States. Over the last four years the campaign has recruited a prestigious board, developed effective programs for... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Social Issues; Business Strategy; United States

August 1996 (Revised August 1997)
Case

TNT Limited's Logistics Services in Asia (A): The Strategy

By: Michael Y. Yoshino and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Meredith Hellicar's mission as general manager of corporate development is to make TNT Ltd. one of the biggest and most diverse transport and logistic companies in the world, with approximately $5 billion in turnover in 1993, a leading provider of logistics services in... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Managerial Roles; Distribution; Logistics; Mission and Purpose; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Diversification; Transportation Industry; Asia; China; Indonesia; Thailand

09 Aug 2021
News

Understanding the Global Chip Shortage, a Big Crisis Involving Tiny Components

26 Apr 2016
News

The Quiet War on Corporate Accountability

Web

Business & Environment

Presentation Vail Resorts: Responding to Activist Pressure (A) By: Benjamin C. Esty and Edward A. Meyer JUNE 2025 | Case On January 27, 2025, the head of a relatively small hedge fund named Late Apex Partners sent a highly critical letter to the View Details

23 Apr 2018
News

Governor Baker Swears In New Commission on Digital Innovation and Lifelong Learning

2008
Working Paper

CEO and CFO Career Penalties to Missing Quarterly Analysts Forecasts

By: Rick Mergenthaler, Shiva Rajgopal and Suraj Srinivasan

We find that missing the quarterly analyst consensus earnings forecast is associated with career penalties in the form of a reduced bonus, smaller equity grants, and a greater chance of forced dismissal for both CEOs and CFOs during the period 1993-2004. These results... View Details

Keywords: Earnings Management; Governing and Advisory Boards; Compensation and Benefits; Managerial Roles; Personal Development and Career