Publications

01 Sep 2021
What Do You Think?

Can We Train for Trust?

academics call transactional “friction.” As a result, decisions are made and implemented faster and at lower cost, something critical in an age where speed takes on greater and greater value. At a 2019 business conference, Brian Chesky,... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

25 Jan 2012
Research & Ideas

A Few Firms Have Outsized Influence in D.C.

into the issue, however, Kerr found that wasn't necessarily the case. Collaborating with William Lincoln of the University of Michigan and Prachi Mishra of the International Monetary Fund, Kerr tapped into a database of lobbying activities kept View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

May 2022
Case

The NFL’s $110-Billion Media Rights Deals

By: Anita Elberse and Elizabeth Warner

On March 18, 2021, Brian Rolapp, chief media and business officer at the National Football League (NFL) presented the results of a months-long effort to renegotiate rights deals with the NFL’s current partners in television—the media conglomerates behind the networks... View Details

Keywords: Sports; Entertainment; Media; Marketing; Strategy; General Management; Negotiation; Partners and Partnerships; Competition; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Sports Industry

14 May 2020
Blog Post

A PRIDE Farewell

When we assumed our PRIDE co-president roles in the Spring of 2019, we could not have imagined the state of the world into which we would graduate. We imagined the halls of Aldrich bustling until the very last cold call, families... View Details

October 1994
Case

Bankers Trust: Global Investment Bank

By: Andre F. Perold and Kuljot Singh

In October 1992, Eugene Shanks, president of Bankers Trust New York Corp., and Brian Walsh, head of the Global Investment Bank (GIB) business unit, are considering a proposal for a large and complex financing involving the North Sea Oil Co. (NSOC). The financing... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Credit Derivatives and Swaps; Risk Management; Value Creation; Business History; Capital Markets; Financing and Loans; Financial Markets; Corporate Finance; Banking Industry; Energy Industry

01 Mar 2021
What Do You Think?

What Does Remote Work Mean for Middle Managers?

Business Review in 1993. Michael Hammer and James Champy, Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution (New York: HarperCollins, 1993). Brian Hancock and Bill Schaninger, “The vanishing middle manager,” McKinsey... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

11 Feb 2020
Sharpening Your Skills

10 Rules Entrepreneurs Need to Know Before Adopting AI

However, that’s not the reality of the enterprise world. Big enterprises by default are averse to change unless they are convinced the alternative is worth their business development effort and the time involved of the legal-finance team... View Details

Keywords: by Rocio Wu

September 2019 (Revised December 2022)
Supplement

Cooking Down a Storm: Changing Culture at Pasta Serafina (B)

By: Susanna Gallani, Francesca Gino and Raffaella Sadun

The case complements Pasta Serafina (A) by describing the aftermath of a town hall meeting in which management had publicly denounced the absenteeism problem and challenged the employees to find a solution. In spite of the initial mistrust against management, the fear... View Details

Keywords: Absenteeism; Employees; Behavior; Organizational Culture; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Employee Relationship Management; Problems and Challenges; Decision Making; Performance Evaluation

17 Dec 2014
Research & Ideas

How Our Brain Determines if the Product is Worth the Price

Think of the last time you went shopping. By the time you decided to buy a product, you knew both what you were buying and how much it cost. But was your decision affected by whether you saw the price or the... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail

16 Nov 2016
Research & Ideas

Turning One Thousand Customers into One Million

soliciting feedback from its most loyal and vocal customers” As impressive as that accomplishment was, 1,000 customers is hardly enough to ensure long-run success. For that, these companies had to scale up dramatically, from 1,000 to over 1 million, which is the... View Details

Keywords: by Thales S. Teixeira and Michael Blanding; Retail; Transportation; Accommodations

17 Jun 2022
News

In Defense of Online Anonymity

04 Apr 2012
Research & Ideas

When Founders Recruit Friends and Family as Investors

Editor's note: Seasoned entrepreneurs know that a great idea for a new company is no guarantee of a successful exit. Startups fail more often than not, largely due to hubris-fueled mistakes by an inexperienced founding team. Alas, the... View Details

Keywords: by Noam Wasserman

12 Nov 2019
News

The Longwood Orchestra Talks Through the Intersection of Music and Medicine

December 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

Strategy and CEO Succession at Starbucks

By: Krishna G. Palepu and David Lane

On August 13, 2024, Starbucks announced that Laxman Narasimhan who was appointed as the CEO only in September 2023, was stepping down as CEO and board director “with immediate effect.” Laxman would be replaced on September 9 by Brian Niccol, CEO since 2018 of Chipotle... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Corporate Governance; Leadership; Management Succession; Cost Management; Labor Unions; Working Conditions; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Service Operations; Investment Activism; Governing and Advisory Boards; Resignation and Termination; Food and Beverage Industry; United States