Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(829)
- Faculty Publications (199)
- January 2019 (Revised October 2019)
- Case
Rural Taobao: Alibaba's Expansion into Rural E-Commerce
By: Tarun Khanna, Ryan Allen, Adam Frost and Wesley Koo
Alibaba's Rural Taobao initiative had been launched in 2014 as a public service initiative to increase e-commerce adoption in China’s remote rural areas. In the first two iterations of the initiative, dubbed “1.0” and “2.0,” Alibaba had partnered with local businesses... View Details
Keywords: Strategy; Business Growth; Ecommerce; Corporate Social Responsibility; Business And Government; Emerging Market; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Emerging Markets; Rural Scope; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Business and Government Relations; Decision Making; E-commerce; China
- December 2018 (Revised February 2020)
- Case
Fishbowl: Scaling Up
By: Leslie K. John
Fishbowl is a social media app that allows professionals to connect with other relevant professionals both within their company and across industry. Unlike many other social media apps, on which users typically present idealized portraits of themselves, on Fishbowl,... View Details
Keywords: Communication Technologies; Customer Value; Value Chain; Interpersonal Communication; Talent and Talent Management; Customer Value and Value Chain; Entrepreneurship; Business Model; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Advertising; Product Marketing; Digital Platforms; Consumer Behavior; Network Effects; Emotions; Motivation and Incentives; Trust; Applications and Software; Technology Adoption; Social Media; Communications Industry; Employment Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; United States
- December 2018
- Case
Tiantong & Partners: Transforming Litigation Practice in China
By: Ashish Nanda and Lisa Rohrer
Jiang Yong founded Tiantong & Partners in 2002, seeking to radically improve the level of litigation-related services in China. By 2015, Tiantong was the premier Chinese litigation firm with the highest per lawyer revenues. The firm focused exclusively on high-stakes... View Details
- November 2018 (Revised February 2019)
- Teaching Plan
Gimlet Media: A Podcasting Startup
By: John Deighton and Leora Kornfeld
When digital distribution becomes an option for an analog industry, the effects on the incumbents can be devastating. Is podcasting the beginning of the end of radio? Can it do what streaming video did to television and websites did to print? Two former public radio... View Details
- November 2018 (Revised June 2019)
- Case
ofo
By: Mitchell Weiss
Dai Wei and his co-founders grew Beijing-based ofo from a school-based startup to a bike-share behemoth in a matter of months, topped an all-out market-share battle fueled with almost $1 billion in venture capital, provided 2 billion bicycle rides, soaked up the... View Details
Keywords: Ofo; Bikeshare; Scale; Platforms; Government As A Platform; Platform Mechanics; Dai Wei; Dockless Bikes; Mobike; Bike-share; Online-to-offline; Mobility; Digital Platforms; Infrastructure; Transportation; Bicycle Transportation; Growth and Development Strategy; Bicycle Industry; China; Beijing
- September 2018 (Revised October 2018)
- Supplement
Lexoo: Building a Long-Lasting Platform
By: Chiara Farronato and Elena Corsi
Lexoo, a UK-based online marketplace for legal services, was facing the strategic choice of how to grow from early start-up to mature platform. Daniel van Binsbergen, Lexoo's CEO, and web developer Chris O'Sullivan, CTO, had set up Lexoo to help Small and Medium-Sized... View Details
- August 2018 (Revised June 2019)
- Case
Oaktree: Pierre Foods Investment
By: Victoria Ivashina and Mike Harmon
This case is a setting to discuss “loan to own” investment strategy that is often pursued by distressed investors. The aftermath of the 2007 financial crisis left many companies with poor liquidity and limited ability to obtain credit. One of these companies was Pierre... View Details
- August 2018 (Revised February 2022)
- Case
Lexoo: Building a Long-Lasting Platform
By: Chiara Farronato and Elena Corsi
Daniel van Binsbergen, Lexoo’s CEO, and web developer Chris O’Sullivan, CTO, had set up Lexoo, a UK legal marketplace, to help small and medium enterprises (SME) find legal advice at low prices. Lexoo had recently invested in a new vertical focused on larger companies.... View Details
- August 2018
- Teaching Note
IguanaFix
By: Frank V. Cespedes and Thomas Eisenmann
Teaching Note for HBS No. 817-056. IguanaFix, based in Argentina, is a platform business that connects consumers with home improvement contractors. The founders are evaluating growth options and an investment offer. The case focuses on scaling issues for a venture... View Details
- July 2018
- Teaching Note
Cumplo.com
Teaching Note for HBS No. 818-039. Teaching Note for HBS No. 818-039. Cumplo is a Chilean-based fin-tech startup that provides investors and small businesses with opportunities to access loans and investments in ways distinct from traditional financial institutions in... View Details
- July 2018
- Case
Financing Anghami's Growth
By: Ramana Nanda and Eren Kuzucu
In December 2012, less than two years into the founding of their music-streaming platform Anghami, cofounders Elie Habib and Eddy Maroun found themselves evaluating an unorthodox term sheet. Habib and Maroun needed to make a decision vis-à-vis the proposal put forth by... View Details
Keywords: Growth; Startups; Copyright; Business Startups; Business Model; Music Entertainment; Decisions; Technological Innovation; Venture Capital; Internet and the Web; Growth and Development Strategy; Financial Strategy; Product Marketing; Product Launch; Product Development; Expansion; Digital Platforms; Agreements and Arrangements; Valuation; Decision Making; Middle East; Lebanon
- May 2018
- Case
Environmental Platform LEEDership at USGBC
By: Michael W. Toffel, Timothy S. Simcoe and Aldo Sesia
By 2018, it was clear that U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) had significantly contributed to the growth of green building and over its 25-year history had become a powerful brand in the construction sector with its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised March 2018)
- Case
Artificial Intelligence and the Machine Learning Revolution in Finance: Cogent Labs and the Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
By: Lauren Cohen, Christopher Malloy and William Powley
This case examines the intersection of two firms (Cogent Labs—a machine learning software firm in Tokyo; and Google, the technology infrastructure giant) attempting to exploit the benefits of artificial intelligence and machine learning in the financial services... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised August 2018)
- Case
OpenInvest
By: Shawn Cole, Boris Vallée and Nicole Tempest Keller
Founded by a team of hedge fund and NGO alumni, OpenInvest launched its platform in 2015 to enable retail investors to tailor their portfolios to their personal values in an automated way, for instance by screening out weapons manufacturers stocks or overweighting... View Details
- February 2018 (Revised May 2018)
- Case
Haier: Incubating Entrepreneurs in a Chinese Giant
By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Nancy Hua Dai
CEO Zhang Ruimin must plan how to accelerate the growth of self-managed microenterprises. Platforms were Haier’s business platforms operating in five major sectors: white goods transformation, investment and incubation, financial holdings, real estate, and cultural... View Details
- January 2018 (Revised January 2020)
- Case
STRIVR: Changing the Game in Virtual Reality
By: Rajiv Lal, Matt Denison, Robert Higgins and Scott Johnson
The CEO of a growing virtual reality company that trains athletes must decide whether or not to stay in sports or expand into other areas. View Details
Keywords: Virtual Reality; Strivr; Internet Of Things; Football; Retail; Training; Startup; Start-up; Start-up Growth; ＂Sports Organizations,; Experiential Marketing; Business Startups; Technological Innovation; Sports; Information Infrastructure; Applications and Software; Digital Platforms; Technology Adoption; Sports Industry; Technology Industry; Retail Industry; United States
- December 2017 (Revised March 2019)
- Case
Armarium: Luxury Fashion Brands for Rent
By: Jill Avery, David Fubini, Natasha Dossa and Devon Stewart
Armarium, a two-sided online platform that offered consumers the opportunity to rent the most coveted, current season high fashion clothing and accessories from the top global luxury brands, had emerged from its first sales season with two distinct customer segments:... View Details
Keywords: Brand Management; Retailing; Sharing Economy; Luxury Brand; Ecommerce; Startup; Fashion; Brand Positioning; Customer Acquisition; Internet Marketing; Marketing; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Brands and Branding; Business Startups; Luxury; Consumer Behavior; Growth and Development Strategy; Social Media; E-commerce; Fashion Industry; Retail Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States; North America
- December 2017 (Revised March 2018)
- Case
Kellogg Company/eighteen94 capital
By: David Bell, Damien McLoughlin and Natalie Kindred
With 33,000 employees and revenues of $13 billion in 2016, Kellogg Company was the world’s largest producer of branded packaged cereal and a leader in branded convenience foods. Founded in 1906 and based in Michigan, the company had a proud history of product and... View Details
Keywords: CPG; Consumer Packaged Goods; Cereal; Battle Creek; Michigan; Breakfast; Snack; Agribusiness; Change Management; Growth Strategy; Corporate Venture Capital; Innovation; Startup; Brand; Brand ＆ Product Management; Advertising; Demand and Consumers; Innovation and Invention; Venture Capital; Food; Brands and Branding; Marketing; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States; Michigan; North America
- September 2017 (Revised November 2018)
- Case
Marriott International: The Next 90 Years
By: Chiara Farronato and Gary Pisano
The case examines how Marriott should respond to the potential threats from new home-sharing platforms and the rise of online travel agencies. In 2017 Marriott was the largest hotel chain, with more than one million rooms and 7% of worldwide room supply. In the... View Details
Keywords: Airbnb; Competitiveness; Threats; Disruption; Lodging Industry; Long-term Growth; Loyalty Program; Marriot; Online Platforms; Online Travel Agencies; Digital Platforms; Disruptive Innovation; Competitive Strategy; Competition; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Internet and the Web; Tourism Industry; Travel Industry; Accommodations Industry
- September 2017
- Case
NBCUniversal Telemundo: Transforming Latino Television
By: Henry W. McGee, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Christine Snively
In August 2017, Cesar Conde, chairman of NBCUniversal International Group and NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, considered how the Miami-based Spanish-language TV network Telemundo could succeed in a rapidly shifting media landscape. Over the past few years,... View Details