Publications

24 Oct 2023
HBS Case

From P.T. Barnum to Mary Kay: Lessons From 5 Leaders Who Changed the World

1960s Bay Area counterculture, and the other, a daughter of former enslaved people born after the Civil War, both built iconic companies by passionately championing their ideas and pushing for growth. They’re two of the 23 profiles that... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

August 2019 (Revised April 2021)
Case

Unifying Divisions: Joro's Mission to Preserve the Planet

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Marilyn Morgan Westner

The case focuses on the initial startup team and Founders’ agreements. In March 2018, Sanchali Pal proposed renegotiating the informal founders’ agreement and equity split she and her co-founders had drafted the previous spring. They had been working together for over... View Details

Keywords: Founders' Agreements; Business Startups; Climate Change; Agreements and Arrangements; Conflict Management

2018
Introduction

Introduction

By: Sophus A. Reinert

BOOK ABSTRACT: When Istvan Hont died in 2013, the world lost a giant of intellectual history. A leader of the Cambridge School of Political Thought, Hont argued passionately for a global-historical approach to political ideas. To better understand the development of... View Details

Keywords: Markets; Moral Sensibility; Government and Politics; Trade; History

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January 2017 (Revised December 2017)
Case

Carmichael Roberts: To Create a Private Equity Firm?

By: Steven Rogers and Kenneth J. Cooper

Carmichael Roberts, a rare African-American venture capitalist, considered leaving his general partnership in a private equity firm near Boston and setting up his own in 2015. He weighed whether the timing was right, with the economy still not fully recovered from the... View Details

2018
Book

Markets, Morals, Politics: Jealousy of Trade and the History of Political Thought

By: Béla Kapossy, Isaac Nakhimovsky, Sophus A. Reinert and Richard Whatmore

When Istvan Hont died in 2013, the world lost a giant of intellectual history. A leader of the Cambridge School of Political Thought, Hont argued passionately for a global-historical approach to political ideas. To better understand the development of liberalism, he... View Details

Keywords: Morals; Politics; Istvan Hont; Jealousy Of Trade; Enlightenment; Economic Nationalism; Markets; Moral Sensibility; Government and Politics; Trade; History

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June 2013 (Revised June 2016)
Case

Ensina!

By: John J-H Kim, Alejandra Meraz Velasco and Christine An

In 2011, a group of passionate social entrepreneurs in Rio de Janeiro, with the support and encouragement of several prominent philanthropists and members of government, launch Ensina!, seizing Brazil's unprecedented economic growth and national commitment to... View Details

Keywords: Social Entrepreneurship; Teaching; Business and Government Relations; Education Industry; Brazil

August 2021
Case

Mylestone: Can Multiple Pivots Preserve the Life of a Death Tech Startup?

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Marilyn Morgan Westner

Dave Balter and Jim Myers co-founded Mylestone, a death tech startup that applied technology to transform how grieving people memorialize the dead. The startup addressed a cultural problem and promised to solve a pressing need in the antiquated, multi-billion dollar... View Details

Keywords: Pivot; Startup; Business Model; Cryptocurrency; Ethical Decision Making; Emotions; Growth and Development Strategy; Ethics; Market Entry and Exit; Customer Relationship Management; Loss; Change Management; Relationships

01 Nov 2021
What Do You Think?

How Long Does It Take to Improve an Organization’s Culture?

determining success in changing an organization’s culture is the interest, support, and even passion displayed by its leader. The quality of leadership is strongly linked to the level of employee engagement, and employee engagement (based... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

23 Nov 2021
Book

What It Takes to Build an Organizational Culture That Wins

including how to lead with passion and how to create an inspirational mission. In this excerpt from the book, Heskett takes on the corporate adage that “culture eats strategy for lunch.” Culture and strategy don’t have to be in conflict,... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

07 Jul 2022
HBS Case

How a Multimillion-Dollar Ice Cream Startup Melted Down (and Bounced Back)

Lindsay N. Hyde. Eisenmann and Hyde wrote two case studies with HBS case researcher Tom Quinn that analyze the smart moves and simple errors at Ample Hills Creamery, as well as the launch of the company’s new shop afterward. The cases illustrate the challenges of... View Details

Keywords: by Pamela Reynolds

15 Aug 2023
HBS Case

(Virtual) Reality Check: How Long Before We Live in the 'Metaverse'?

worlds—without technological walls put up by corporations. To achieve widespread adoption, Wu says, those passionate about it say interoperability is key. “The most enthusiastic advocates of the metaverse believe in and fight for the... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Technology; Computer; Information Technology

17 Feb 2020
Sharpening Your Skills

How Entrepreneurs Can Find the Right Problem to Solve

are so biased it’s hard to trust the results. Further, entrepreneurs may have a good hunch there’s a job to be done that needs improving or replacing, but they can’t describe where in the customer journey they can truly make an impact. I’m a big fan of confident... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Austin

Research Summary

Moving Beyond Direct-to-Consumer

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger

Changing consumer behaviors have redefined what it means to be direct to consumer ("DTC"). What once began online a decade ago as a distribution and disintermediation strategy has since evolved into a multifaceted approach for the modern-day brand.

The... View Details

2013
Book

What You're Really Meant To Do: A Road Map for Reaching Your Unique Potential

By: Robert Steven Kaplan

How do you create your own definition of success—and reach your unique potential? Building a fulfilling life and career can be a daunting challenge. It takes courage and hard work. Too often, we charge down a path leading to "success" as defined by those around us—and... View Details

Keywords: Career Planning; Vocational Guidance; Job Satisfaction; Satisfaction; Personal Development and Career; Customization and Personalization

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07 Feb 2017
Research & Ideas

The Right Way to Cry in Front of Your Boss

Negotiation, Organizations & Markets unit. But instead of apologizing for being emotional, apologize for being passionate, she advises. “Saying you’re emotional is about you, whereas saying you’re passionate is about what the... View Details

Keywords: by Roberta Holland

24 Jul 2000
Research & Ideas

Value Maximization and Stakeholder Theory

turned on by the vision or the strategy in the sense that it taps into some desire deep in the passions of human beings—for example a desire to build the world's best automobile or to create a movie or play that will affect humans for... View Details

Keywords: by Michael C. Jensen

February 2013 (Revised March 2013)
Case

Agero: Enhancing Capabilities for Customers

By: Robert Simons and Natalie Kindred

This case illustrates the importance of choosing a primary customer as the basis for organization design. Cross Country Group managers adjusted resource allocation, organization design and performance measures over time to transform Cross Country Group from an... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Management; Entrepreneurial Gap; Entrepreneurship; Auto Industry; Insurance; Performance Management; Performance Measurement; Performance Measures; Performance Pressure; Decisions; Family Business; Resource Allocation; Organizational Design; Customer Focus and Relationships; Performance Evaluation; Growth and Development Strategy; Service Industry