Publications

March 2016 (Revised May 2018)
Case

ASOS PLC

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Launched in 2000, ASOS was one of the world’s largest online fashion specialists in 2018. Focusing on young consumers aged 16–25 years, the company offered over 85,000 items on its websites, many times more than the largest fashion stores, and added several thousand... View Details

Keywords: ASOS; AsSeenOnScreen; Online Fashion; Online Apparel; Nick Beighton; Nick Robertson; E-commerce; E-Commerce Strategy; Online Retail; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Social Media; Marketplaces; Shipping; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Startups; For-Profit Firms; Customer Focus and Relationships; Age; Gender; Currency Exchange Rate; Profit; Revenue; Geography; Geographic Scope; Global Range; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Selection and Staffing; Journals and Magazines; Human Capital; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Communications; Marketing Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Media; Distribution; Distribution Channels; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United Kingdom; England; London

Web

Building Iconic Brands and Brighter Futures: Interview with Glossier CEO, Kyle Leahy - Recruiting

different diverse backgrounds.” It was also at HBS that Leahy learned she could utilize her skillset in strategy consulting to contribute to an iconic brand. “I ultimately went to do my internship at Nike in the Corporate View Details

Web

Fostering Candor in Teams and Organizations - Recruiting

Insights & Advice 07 Jul 2023 Fostering Candor in Teams and Organizations Becca Carnahan Author HBS Team tag All Industries All Locations Diversity, Inclusion, & Belonging Recruiting Advice Recruiting View Details

September 2020 (Revised December 2020)
Case

Hot Wheels at Mattel: Reinventing the Wheel

By: Elie Ofek, Andres Terech and Nicole Tempest Keller

In 2017, Chris Down, Global Brand General Manager for Hot Wheels, and his team from the Advanced Play Group within Mattel, Inc., were considering which innovation path to pursue in order to "future proof" the Hot Wheels franchise going forward. Hot Wheels was the... View Details

Keywords: Toys; Industry Evolution; Innovation Strategy; Product Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Technological Innovation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Decision Making; Digital Transformation

Juan Alcacer is the James J. Hill Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He joined HBS in 2007 and has taught the required MBA strategy course, an elective on Global Strategy and PhD courses in Strategy and International Business. Within... View Details

Keywords: consulting; management consulting; telecommunications

October 2023
Case

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt: A Curriculum Provider Puts Itself on the Hook for Student Outcomes

By: John J-H Kim, Derek C. M. van Bever, Michael Norris and Max Hancock

Jack Lynch, CEO of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) since 2017, was leading the company’s transformation from a legacy textbook publisher to a digital-first student outcomes provider, which earned subscription revenue from digital products and curriculum. In 2023, HMH... View Details

Keywords: Edtech; Textbook; Publishing; Leading Change; Change Management; Transformation; Digital Transformation; Expansion; Business Strategy; Publishing Industry; Education Industry; United States

March 2019 (Revised July 2021)
Case

Waymo LLC

By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock

On December 5, 2018, Waymo LLC, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., launched the United States’ first commercial driverless-car ride-hailing service (Waymo One), based in Phoenix, Arizona. As with other ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft, Waymo One riders... View Details

02 Mar 2020
What Do You Think?

Are Candor, Humility, and Trust Making a Comeback?

authors caution that results would undoubtedly differ from one group of customers and one product or service to another.] It brings to mind marketing campaigns in the United States for Progressive’s... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

The Sales Acceleration Formula: Using Data, Technology, and Inbound Selling to go from $0 to $100 Million

The Sales Acceleration Formula provides a scalable, predictable approach to growing revenue and building a winning sales team. Everyone wants to build the next $100 million business and author Mark Roberge has actually done it using a unique methodology... View Details

2020
Working Paper

Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer Finance Industry

By: George Serafeim and Katie Trinh

We apply the product impact measurement framework of the Impact-Weighted Accounts Initiative (IWAI) in two competitor credit card providers within the consumer finance industry. We design a monetization methodology that allows us to calculate monetary impact estimates... View Details

SSRN

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11 Nov 2020
Research & Ideas

How Hackathons Help Decide Platform Winners and Losers

tremendous way for developers to learn quickly, and for both developers and technology companies to reap real benefits.” About the author Michael Blanding is a writer based in Boston. [Image: gorodenkoff]... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Technology

29 Sep 2015
Research & Ideas

Work 3.0: Redefining Jobs and Companies in the Uber Age

Are Uber drivers and HourlyNerd consultants independent contractors or employees? Interesting question, but the wrong one. Better to ask: Are we stifling innovation across the digital economy by forcing a... View Details

Keywords: by Andrei Hagiu; Web Services; Web Services

February 2019 (Revised October 2019)
Case

Extend Fertility: Conceiving the Market for Egg Preservation (A)

By: Debora L. Spar and Olivia Hull

In April 2003, entrepreneur and MBA student Christy Jones was planning a new venture to help women preserve their fertility. Her company, Extend Fertility, would commercialize a technique known as egg freezing, in which a woman’s eggs were extracted and stored at low... View Details

Keywords: Assisted Reproduction; Entrepreneur; Health And Wellness; Fertility; Infertility; Women's Health; Creating Markets; Egg Freezing; Fertility Clinic; Entrepreneurship; Strategy; Marketing Strategy