Publications

April 2012 (Revised October 2013)
Case

eBay, Inc. and Amazon.com (A)

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Anant Thaker

This case has been designed to explore strategic interactions among organizations with different business models. The case considers how a competitor successfully challenged the incumbent in a platform market defined by strong network effects and high switching costs.... View Details

30 Apr 2020
News

Leading Your Team Past the Peak of a Crisis

January 2014
Supplement

J.C. Penney's 'Fair and Square' Strategy (C): Back to the Future

By: Elie Ofek, Jill Avery and Jose B. Alvarez

Rehired in April 2013, Myron E. "Mike" Ullman III was brought back to stabilize the retailer's business. Under Ron Johnson's "Fair and Square" program, sales had declined rapidly and quarterly losses and expensive capital investments had put severe pressure on cash... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Marketing Strategy; Retail Industry

August 2017 (Revised January 2020)
Case

Berkshire Partners: Party City

By: Victoria Ivashina and Jeffrey Boyar

In 2005, Berkshire Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm specializing in growth equity, was one year into their ownership of Amscan, the market leader of designed, manufactured, and distributed decorated party goods and accessories. However, Amscan's primary... View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Fundraising; Cross-fund Investment; Private Equity; Vertical Integration; Governance; Valuation; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

Keywords: retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services; retail financial services

Frances Frei is a Professor of Technology and Operations Management at Harvard Business School. Her research investigates how leaders accelerate performance and design for excellence in leadership, strategy, and operations. She regularly advises senior executives... View Details

17 Jan 2024
HBS Case

Psychological Pricing Tactics to Fight the Inflation Blues

percent off bargain. Online retail giants, such as Temu and Shein, are known for regularly using this tactic, displaying crossed-out anchor prices along with deeply discounted sale prices. “Transparency goes a long way with customers.”... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Retail; Retail

November 2020 (Revised May 2023)
Case

Holaluz: Taking on the Spanish Energy Market

By: Elie Ofek, Marco Bertini, Oded Koenigsberg, Elena Corsi and Emer Moloney

In 2020, the three cofounders of Holaluz, a newcomer to Spain’s electricity retail market, are preparing to launch a new offering: installing and managing solar panels on households' roofs at no extra cost for the consumer, who would still benefit from the energy... View Details

Keywords: Electricity; Solar Power; Subscription Business; Renewable Energy; Entrepreneurship; Service Delivery; Business Model; Product Launch; Marketing; Energy Industry; Spain

February 2020
Article

Effects of a Tournament Incentive Plan Incorporating Managerial Discretion in a Geographically Dispersed Organization

By: Carolyn Deller and Tatiana Sandino

Using retail chain data, we study the effects of a tournament incentive plan based primarily on objective performance, but incorporating managerial discretion in the selection of winners. In principle, such plans could motivate employees to perform both at a high... View Details

Keywords: Tournaments; Subjectivity; Motivation and Incentives; Fairness; Performance Improvement; Geographic Location

March 2016
Case

Advanced Leadership Pathways: Doug Rauch and the Daily Table

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Peter Zimmerman and Penelope Rossano

Former Trader Joe’s President Doug Rauch developed an innovative idea to address the challenge of food insecurity, food waste, and nutrition. His concept was a new retail grocery model, offering nutritious affordable food to a food insecure population in the inner city... View Details

Keywords: Food Waste; Poverty; Food Security; Food Labeling; Nonprofit; Food; Social Entrepreneurship; Social Enterprise; Nonprofit Organizations; Nutrition; Health

August 2013 (Revised August 2014)
Case

Catalina In the Digital Age

By: Robert J. Dolan and Uma R. Karmarkar

Catalina in the Digital Age considers how a company with a dominant market position should evolve its established product lines given the rise of novel digital technologies. Since its founding in 1983, Catalina had enjoyed a distinct position in the world of consumer... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Digital Technologies; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Consumer Behavior; Analytics and Data Science

February 2013 (Revised December 2015)
Case

Groom Energy Solutions: Selling Efficiency

By: Michael W. Toffel, Kira R. Fabrizio and Stephanie van Sice

Groom Energy Solutions helps organizations reduce their energy use and costs through the implementation of energy efficiency measures, which create long-term financial and environmental benefits. With early success serving customers in the cold storage and industrial... View Details

Keywords: Groom Energy Solutions; Jon Guerster; Salem, MA; Energy Management; Energy Efficiency Paradox; Sustainability Management; Manufacturing; Cold Storage; Commercial Real Estate; Enterprise Smart Grid; Carbon Accounting; LED Lighting; Sustainability Research; Entrepreneurship; Environmental Entrepreneurship; Energy Entrepreneurship; Energy Services; Electricity; Startup; Expansion; Growth; Sustainability; Business Startups; Forecasting and Prediction; Energy Conservation; Revenue; Geographic Location; Human Resources; Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Operations; Service Delivery; Strategic Planning; Science; Environmental Sustainability; Climate Change; Society; Social Issues; Technology Adoption; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; Technology Industry; Utilities Industry; United States; Boston

November 2007 (Revised April 2008)
Case

Hariyali Kisaan Bazaar: A Rural Business Initiative

By: David E. Bell, Nitin Sanghavi, Virginia Fuller and Mary L. Shelman

In rural India, farmers historically had limited access to quality input items for both their fields and homes. Indian conglomerate DSCL has undertaken a Rural Business Initiative to address this issue, establishing a chain of retail outlets throughout rural India... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Business Conglomerates; Agribusiness; Rural Scope; Customer Relationship Management; Business Strategy; Service Operations; Networks; Alliances; Retail Industry; India

2016
Case

Advanced Leadership Pathways: Doug Rauch and the Daily Table

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter, Peter Zimmerman and Penelope Rossano

Former Trader Joe's President Doug Rauch developed an innovative idea to address the challenge of food insecurity, food waste, and nutrition. His concept was a new retail grocery model, offering nutritious affordable food to a food insecure population in the inner city... View Details

Keywords: Food Insecurity; Grocery; Social Entrepreneurship; Food; Health; Nonprofit Organizations; Boston

June 2005
Tutorial

Prematriculation Financial Accounting Tutorial/Module

By: David F. Hawkins, Paul M. Healy and Ratna G. Sarkar

The Financial Accounting course is an introduction to the fundamental concepts of financial accounting in a management context. The course describes the business activities for Global Grocer, a small retail franchise specializing in gourmet foods and specialty kitchen... View Details

Keywords: Accounting; Performance; Financial Statements

October 2022 (Revised December 2022)
Case

Reimagining Enel: Enabling Sustainable Progress

By: Michael L. Tushman and Kerry Herman

CEO Francesco Starace is considering what is next for Enel SpA, one of world's largest energy companies. From 2014 to 2022, he has wrought a dramatic transformation at Enel, restructuring the company's business units; redeploying senior talent across functions and... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Leadership And Change Management; Leadership Style; Leadership Succession; Renewables; Energy; Transformation; Renewable Energy; Business Divisions; Digital Transformation; Restructuring; Organizational Structure; Energy Industry; Europe; Latin America; North America; Spain; Italy

August 2017
Article

Catering to Investors Through Security Design: Headline Rate and Complexity

By: Claire Célérier and Boris Vallée

This paper investigates the rationale for issuing complex securities to retail investors. We focus on a large market of investment products targeted exclusively at households: retail-structured products in Europe. We hypothesize that banks strategically use product... View Details

Keywords: Financial Complexity; Catering; Shrouding; Reaching For Yield; Investment