Publications

January 2021 (Revised March 2021)
Case

Jumia's Path to Profitability

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in September 2019 as Sacha Poignonnec and Jeremy Hodara, co-founders and co-CEOs of Jumia, the leading Pan-African e-commerce platform, are contemplating the company’s path to profitability in the aftermath of a fragile investor sentiment, as the company... View Details

2009
Working Paper

Crafting Integrated Multichannel Retailing Strategies

Multichannel retailing is the set of activities involved in selling merchandise or services to consumers through more than one channel. Multichannel retailers dominate today's retail landscape. While there are many benefits of operating multiple channels, these... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Distribution Channels; Sales; Integration; Retail Industry

26 Sep 2011
HBS Case

HBS Cases: Lady Gaga

Searched-For Female," as recorded by Google, and made international headlines for donning a dress made of red meat, which Time Magazine called the top fashion statement of 2010. “Gaga is a marketing phenomenon” So it's almost... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Entertainment & Recreation; Music

03 Sep 2013
First Look

First Look: September 3

Publications August 2013 The Accounting Review (forthcoming) Do Analysts Follow Managers Who Switch Companies? An Analysis of Relationships in the Capital Markets By: Brochet, Francois, Gregory S. Miller, and Suraj Srinivasan... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

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

Spring 2011
Article

CSR as Reputation Insurance: Primum Non Nocere

By: Dylan B. Minor and John Morgan

We provide a theoretical framework showing how CSR activities can insure a firm against lost reputation in the face of adverse events. We offer evidence for this linkage through a case study and a multi-year analysis of stock price responses for S&P 500 companies... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility; Insurance; Risk Management; Marketing Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Reputation

Find at Harvard

March 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Case

Levi Strauss (A): A Pioneer Lost in the Wilderness

By: Joshua Margolis, Ashish Nanda, Margaret Cross, Imran Manji and Bismah Rahmat

In 2011, newly appointed CEO Chip Bergh needed to urgently turn around the iconic but floundering denim apparel firm, Levi Strauss & Co. (LS&Co.) Famous for its blue jeans, LS&Co. had suffered a decline in revenue of 29% from $6.8 billion in 1997 to $4.8 billion in... View Details

Keywords: Turnarounds; Transformation; Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decision Making; Strategic Planning; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Product Marketing; Apparel and Accessories Industry

November–December 2013
Article

The Dynamic Effects of Bundling as a Product Strategy

By: Timothy Derdenger and Vineet Kumar

Several key questions in bundling have not been empirically examined: Is mixed bundling more effective than pure bundling or pure components? Does correlation in consumer valuations make bundling more or less effective? Does bundling serve as a complement or substitute... View Details

Keywords: Product Strategy; Bundling; Complementary Goods; Marketing; Strategy; Video Game Industry

Find at Harvard

2016
Working Paper

Through the Grapevine: Network Effects on the Design of Executive Compensation Contracts

By: Susanna Gallani

Effective design of executive compensation contracts involves choosing and weighting performance measures, as well as defining the mix between fixed and incentive-based pay components, with a view to fostering talent retention and goal congruence. The variability in... View Details

Keywords: Compensation Design; Board Interlocks; Compensation Consultants; Network Centrality; Homophily; Quadratic Assignment Procedure; Blockholders; Executive Compensation

SSRN

25 Oct 2011
First Look

First Look: October 25

are not compartmentalized; rather a loss in one currency may impact trading in another. We also show that while the impact of a loss on subsequent trading decisions does linger, the affect declines sharply after a losing position is closed. The Impact of Web 2.0 on... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Jul 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Cyclicality of Credit Supply: Firm Level Evidence

Keywords: by Bo Becker & Victoria Ivashina; Banking

17 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

How ‘Hybrid’ Nonprofits Can Stay on Mission

organization ended up hiring a mix of social workers, sociologists, anthropologists, bankers, and economists. The idea was that these seasoned employees would complement each other with their disparate backgrounds, after training them to... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

11 Oct 2011
Working Paper Summaries

US Healthcare Reform and the Pharmaceutical Industry

Keywords: by Arthur Daemmrich; Pharmaceutical; Health

26 Jan 2018
HBS Seminar

John Helveston, Boston University

April 2008
Supplement

Ti-Tech (B)

By: Benson P. Shapiro and John T. Gourville

This case concerns the selection and scheduling of orders by a small industrial titanium fabricator that recently has been plagued by poor deliveries and a lack of capacity. At the time of the case, Ti-Tech must decide which of four orders to accept, with capacity... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Production; Performance Capacity; Marketing Strategy; Bids and Bidding; Manufacturing Industry; Industrial Products Industry; United States

December 2018
Case

Choosy

By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Julia Kelley

Founded in 2017, Choosy is a data-driven fashion startup that uses algorithms to identify styles trending on social media. After manufacturing similar items using a China-based supply chain, Choosy sells them to consumers through its website and social media pages.... View Details

2008
Working Paper

Variation in Experience and Team Familiarity: Addressing the Knowledge Acquisition-Application Problem

By: Robert S. Huckman and Bradley R. Staats

Prior work in organizational learning has failed to find a consistent effect of variation in experience on performance. While some studies find a positive relationship between these two variables, others find no effect or even a negative relationship. In this paper, we... View Details

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Learning; Knowledge Acquisition; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Organizational Culture; Performance Improvement; Groups and Teams; Familiarity; India

July 2010 (Revised March 2016)
Case

MacroMarkets LLC

By: Robin Greenwood and Luis M. Viceira

MacroMarkets co-founder and CEO Samuel Masucci III is meeting with a strategic partner for his firm. Co-founded with Yale University Professor Robert Shiller, MacroMarkets' main innovation is the "MacroShare," which allows investors to take long or short, levered or... View Details

Keywords: Macroeconomics; Financial Instruments; Financial Markets; Investment Funds; Investment Portfolio; Innovation and Invention; Risk Management; Product Positioning; Demand and Consumers; Financial Services Industry