Customer Service - Publications - Faculty & Research

06 Jan 2016
What Do You Think?

Why Do Leaders Get Their Timing Wrong?

company was performing well, at least on measures available to the public. (As a subsidiary of Amazon, Zappos no longer reports separate financials.) It is one of only 12 American companies that win awards both for its customer View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Auto; Fashion

18 Jan 2018
News

The Lessons of All-Day Breakfast

came in? Cunningham: I was not on site, but certainly a lot of folks on the team were. We really closely monitored the results and we look at results across three different dimensions. We always look at the consumer dimension, so what are View Details

Keywords: Food Services and Drinking Places; Food Services and Drinking Places

Web

Organizational Behavior Awards & Honors - Faculty & Research

Business Review for “Getting Serious About Diversity” (November–December 2020) with David A. Thomas. Robin J. Ely : Received the 2020 Robert F. Greenhill Service Award for continued outstanding contributions to the HBS community. Robin J.... View Details

21 Apr 2021
Research & Ideas

The Pandemic Conversations That Leaders Need to Have Now

matters at hand, and demonstrating their willingness to listen. Leadership experts Frances Frei, the UPS Foundation Professor of Service Management at HBS, and Anne Morriss note that trust has three factors: authenticity, logic, and... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg, Robin Abrahams, and Katherine Connolly Baden

04 Jun 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Can a Continuously-Liquidating Tontine (or Mutual Inheritance Fund) Succeed where Immediate Annuities Have Floundered?

Keywords: by Julio J. Rotemberg; Financial Services

03 Jan 2011
Research & Ideas

Most Popular Articles of 2010

to Customer Service Is your enterprise resilient or rigid? In this Q&A, HBS professor Ranjay Gulati, an expert on leadership, strategy, and organizational issues in firms, describes how companies can... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

12 Oct 1999
Research & Ideas

Porter’s Perspective: Competing in the Global Economy

interconnected companies, specialized suppliers, service providers, firms in related industries, and associated institutions in particular fields that compete but also cooperate") in your 1990 book The Competitive Advantage of... View Details

Keywords: Re: Michael E. Porter

06 Aug 2013
First Look

First Look: August 6

during the class period. Named directors receive more negative recommendations from Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), a proxy advisory firm, and significantly more negative votes from shareholders than directors in a benchmark... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

22 Feb 2022
News

New Urban Order

and natural gas to more than 20 million customers in Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island—and has pledged to be net-zero by 2050. That promise keeps Judson focused on the advantages and challenges cities present in transitioning to... View Details

Keywords: Kathleen Fu, Deborah Blagg, Julia Hanna, and Maureen Harmon; illustrations by; energy; environment; sustainability; entrepreneurship; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services; Waste Management and Remediation Services

November 2005 (Revised December 2016)
Case

Bally Total Fitness (A): The Rise, 1962–2004

By: John R. Wells, Elizabeth A. Raabe and Gabriel Ellsworth

From a single, modest club in 1962, Bally Total Fitness had grown to become—in management’s words—the “largest and only nationwide commercial operator of fitness centers” in the United States in 2004. Bally had faced its share of challenges, but the last couple of... View Details

Keywords: Bally Total Fitness; Fitness; Gyms; Health Clubs; Chain; Securities And Exchange Commission; Paul Toback; Weight Loss; Exercise; Contracts; Personal Training; Retention; Accounting; Accounting Audits; Accrual Accounting; Finance; Advertising; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; For-Profit Firms; Customers; Customer Satisfaction; Public Equity; Financing and Loans; Revenue; Revenue Recognition; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Health; Nutrition; Business History; Lawsuits and Litigation; Management; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Marketing; Operations; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Shareholder Relations; Business Strategy; Competition; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Segmentation; Trends; Cost Management; Profit; Growth and Development; Leadership Style; Five Forces Framework; Private Ownership; Opportunities; Motivation and Incentives; Competitive Strategy; Health Industry; United States; Illinois; Chicago

Citation

Educators

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01 Sep 2006
News

Marketing Giant Ted Levitt Remembered

simple question: “What business are you in?” As an example of marketing myopia he cited railroads that “let others take customers away from them because they assumed themselves to be in the railroad business instead of the transportation... View Details

Keywords: Educational Services; Educational Services

13 Apr 2016
Research & Ideas

Why Your Company Wants to be a 'Cognitive Referent' (Hint: SpaceX)

mature industries, nascent markets offer little certainty and plenty of ambiguity—undefined customers, unclear products or features, uncertain customer demand, and even an ill defined set of competitors. Yet, for these startups to have... View Details

Keywords: by Roberta Holland; Aerospace; Food & Beverage; Retail

September 2019 (Revised September 2019)
Case

Facebook Fake News in the Post-Truth World

By: John R. Wells, Carole A. Winkler and Benjamin Weinstock

In August 2019, Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, was surrounded by controversy. The first major storm of protest followed the surprise election of Donald Trump as President of the United States on November 8, 2016; many put the blame at the door of fake... View Details

Keywords: Facebook; Fake News; Mark Zuckerberg; Donald Trump; Algorithms; Social Networks; Partisanship; Social Media; App Development; Instagram; WhatsApp; Smartphone; Silicon Valley; Office Space; Digital Strategy; Democracy; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Controversy; Tencent; Agility; Social Networking; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Messaging; Monetization Strategy; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Headquarters; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Trends; Communication; Communication Technology; Forms of Communication; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Talent and Talent Management; Crime and Corruption; Voting; Demographics; Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Initial Public Offering; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Location; Global Range; Local Range; Country; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Government and Politics; International Relations; National Security; Political Elections; Business History; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Information Management; Information Publishing; News; Newspapers; Innovation and Management; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Dissemination; Human Capital; Law; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Practices and Processes; Management Style; Management Systems; Management Teams; Managerial Roles; Marketing Channels; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Marketplace Matching; Industry Growth; Industry Structures; Monopoly; Media; Product Development; Service Delivery; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Mission and Purpose; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Rank and Position; Opportunities; Behavior; Emotions; Identity; Power and Influence; Prejudice and Bias; Reputation; Social and Collaborative Networks; Status and Position; Trust; Society; Civil Society or Community; Culture; Public Opinion; Social Issues; Societal Protocols; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Customization and Personalization; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Valuation; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; Service Industry; United States; California; Sunnyvale; Russia

Citation

Educators

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04 Feb 2013
Research & Ideas

Are the Big Four Audit Firms Too Big to Fail?

their preferences for reporting flexibility, such as customized accounting methods that best reflect clients' business models. Instead audit firms are playing it safe by concentrating on verifiability. A 'thin' World Mindful of this... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Accounting

01 Feb 2002
News

It's academic. (Not!)

dollars in lost sales and customer goodwill. Ton is currently working with a nationwide chain to estimate the magnitude of this problem and identify its drivers. "We have found large and systematic variation in performance in 250 stores... View Details

Keywords: Educational Services; Educational Services

12 Nov 2021
News

Alumni Business Leaders on Confronting the Climate Change Challenge

We see a strong push from customers and investors to adopt climate-positive policies and products. And we see movement to adopt policies that emphasize human consequences, these in addition to traditional approaches to compliance with... View Details

13 Oct 2009
Research & Ideas

7 Lessons for Navigating the Storm

itself, emerging financial service leaders are envisioning changes needed in capital markets. In a major policy address in April 2009, Goldman's Lloyd Blankfein outlined industry-wide changes required to restore sound risk taking, provide... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

17 Dec 2008
Lessons from the Classroom

‘Ted Levitt Changed My Life’

later: "What business are you really in?" "An industry begins with the customer and his or her needs, not with a patent, a raw material, or a selling skill," wrote Levitt, citing the railroads as one example of a... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Education; Retail

15 Nov 2011
First Look

First Look: November 15

where a firm monetizes its product through sponsors rather than setting prices to its customer base. We analyze strategic interactions between an innovative entrant and an incumbent where the incumbent may imitate the entrant's business... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

17 Apr 2017
HBS Case

This Turkish Debt Collector Is Customer-friendly

Debt collectors aren’t perceived as providing great service to debtors.Source: BrianAJackson On the list of industries known for great customer service, debt collection is far from the top—and may not even... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Financial Services

Publications