Publications

April 2019 (Revised April 2021)
Case

Wayfair

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Susie L. Ma and Matthew G. Preble

In 2016 Niraj Shah and Steve Conine, founders of online home goods retailer Wayfair, are faced with a decision about how to improve user experience on their e-commerce sites. A key driver of consumer interest and conversion to purchase in the home category is visual... View Details

Keywords: Visual Assets; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Decision Making; Business or Company Management; Growth Management; Innovation and Invention; Operations; Strategy; Technology; Retail Industry; Service Industry; United States; Massachusetts

18 Apr 2023
Research & Ideas

The Best Person to Lead Your Company Doesn't Work There—Yet

within their own ranks. “What you really do need is knowledge of that specific industry, whether it's pharmaceutical or manufacturing or hospitality or rocket science.” The findings suggest an active market for CEOs, who are lured to PE-owned companies by higher... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Financial Services

07 Jul 2009
First Look

First Look: July 7

between the regions and the headquarters in London, the types of funds the firm will raise, and the skills required of employees. One of the final challenges is whether Actis, which has produced a very good track record, even needs to... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Research Summary

The "New" Corporate Communications

By: Stephen A. Greyser

Stephen A. Greyser continues to explore the issues and problems organizations face as they attempt to communicate effectively with a variety of constituencies. Greyser's work and the course to which it contributes are structured around the business-media-publics... View Details

November 2012
Teaching Note

Groupon (TN)

By: Sunil Gupta, Ray Weaver and Yien Hao Lock

On November 4, 2011, Groupon, a marketing services company that promoted local businesses by selling deeply discounted vouchers for their products and services, completed its initial public offering that valued the company at $17 billion. Within a year Groupon's share... View Details

Keywords: Social Networking; Media; Technology; Strategy; Business Growth and Maturation; Marketing Strategy; Marketing; Internet and the Web; Social Media; Retail Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; North America; United States

March 2011 (Revised August 2012)
Case

Groupon

By: Sunil Gupta, Ray Weaver and Dharmishta Rood

On November 4, 2011, Groupon, a marketing services company that promoted local businesses by selling deeply discounted vouchers for their products and services, completed its initial public offering that valued the company at $17 billion. Within a year Groupon's share... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Customers; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development; Marketing Channels; Competitive Strategy; Value Creation

2006
Book

Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism

By: Arthur C. Brooks

We all know we should give to charity, but who really does? Approximately three-quarters of Americans give their time and money to various charities, churches, and causes; the other quarter of the population does not. Why has America split into two nations: givers and... View Details

Keywords: Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Demographics; United States

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September 2019
Case

JTC: Stronger Together with Shared Ownership

By: Ethan Bernstein and Daniela Beyersdorfer

Nigel Le Quesne, CEO of Jersey-based financial services firm JTC, firmly believed that "shared ownership" was at the heart of his company’s successful track record. The firm had seen its revenues, profits, and number of clients and staff grow steadily throughout its... View Details

Keywords: Ownership; Employee Ownership; Leadership Style; Compensation and Benefits; Organizational Culture; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Going Public; Mission and Purpose; Management Practices and Processes; Human Resources; Financial Services Industry; Channel Islands; Europe; United States

22 May 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

A Luxury Industry Veteran Teaches the Importance of Aesthetics to Budding Business Leaders

Pauline Brown joined the HBS faculty following a tenure as Chairman of North America at the French luxury goods conglomerate, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. (Photo credit: Albert Cheung) To future CEOs who want to succeed in the... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Beauty & Cosmetics; Apparel & Accessories; Auto; Tourism

November 1992 (Revised May 1993)
Case

BW/IP International, Inc.

By: Timothy A. Luehrman and Andrew D. Regan

Less than a year after completing a leveraged buyout of their own company, the managers of BW/IP International were presented with an attractive acquisition candidate. To buy the target company, however, BW/IP would have to borrow more money and take on more... View Details

Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts; Leadership Style; Valuation; Resource Allocation; Capital; Public Ownership

16 Jan 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, January 16, 2018

January–February 2018 Harvard Business Review More Than a Paycheck: How to Create Good Blue-Collar Jobs in the Knowledge Economy By: Campbell, Dennis, John Case, and Bill Fotsch Abstract—Fifty years ago a View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

27 Feb 2024
Research & Ideas

Why Companies Should Share Their DEI Data (Even When It’s Unflattering)

Companies struggling with diversity, equity, and inclusion might be tempted to hide their workforce data. Why shine a light on a company’s limited progress—or worse, risk a public-relations headache? It turns out, all news is good news... View Details

Keywords: by Shalene Gupta

Research Summary

Democratic Governance and Decision Making

By: David A. Moss

Under what conditions are public policies in a democracy determined by special interests or, alternatively, by the general interest? A good deal of academic work, particularly associated with the economic theory of regulation, suggests that special interests... View Details

Article

Landing the First Job: The Value of Intermediaries in Online Hiring

By: Christopher Stanton and Catherine Thomas

Online markets for remote labor services allow workers and firms to contract with each other directly. Despite this, intermediaries—called outsourcing agencies—have emerged in these markets. This paper shows that agencies signal to employers that inexperienced workers... View Details

Keywords: Marketplace Matching; Agency Theory

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Read Now

March 2005 (Revised May 2006)
Case

Buckingham Park

By: Arthur I Segel and Joshua A. Katzin

In September, 2004, Stephen Lebowitz, President of CBL, a $6 billion publicly traded shopping mall real estate investment trust (REIT) with over 70 million square feet, is considering acquiring 170 acres for a new retail development at a racetrack site in Southern New... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Debt Securities; Investment; Real Estate Industry; New Hampshire

07 Nov 2017
First Look

New Research and Ideas: November 7, 2017

of capitalism, and it demonstrates the unsettling effects of the rise of the United States on European powers. Publisher's link: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=53430 2017 Measuring Entrepreneurial Businesses: Current Knowledge and Challenges Are Founder... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

December 2005
Article

Up to Code: Does Your Company's Conduct Meet World-Class Standards?

By: Lynn Paine, Rohit Deshpandé, Joshua D. Margolis and Kim Eric Bettcher

Codes of conduct have long been a feature of corporate life. Today, they are arguably a legal necessity—at least for public companies with a presence in the United States. But the issue goes beyond U.S. legal and regulatory requirements. Sparked by corruption and... View Details

Keywords: Business Ethics; Standards Of Conduct; Globalized Firms and Management; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Values and Beliefs; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance