Publications

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2012
Report

Better Outcomes, Lower Costs: A Conversation with Dr. Atul Gawande

By: Mark R. Kramer

In the face of increasing health care costs and uncertainty about health care quality in the United States, community-based collective impact initiatives driven by regional funders offers a new way to improve patient outcomes at the local level. Collectively,... View Details

Keywords: Community Foundations; Health Outcomes; Health Care and Treatment; Quality; Cost Management; United States

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Jonas Heese is... View Details

Research Summary

Financial Markets and Corporate Governance

By: Dwight B. Crane

Corporate scandals beginning in the late 1990s focused renewed attention on corporate governance, but significant cracks in the governance system also contributed to recent problems. Deregulation and growth of financial markets, as well as changes in the competitive... View Details

26 Oct 2020
News

Great promise but potential for peril

Research Summary

Overview

By: Tatiana Sandino

In studying management control systems, Professor Sandino aims to understand how different control mechanisms can help lead employees within an organization to achieve common goals. Her work builds on contingency theory by exploring environmental, strategic, and... View Details

September 2012 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Doing Business in China

By: Felix Oberholzer-Gee, Michael Shih-ta Chen, Nancy Dai and G.A. Donovan

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in China. It highlights China's remarkable economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2012 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case summarizes the main obstacles faced... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Market Finance; Emergent Countries; Business History; Economic History; Emerging Markets; Business Ventures; Strategy; China

October 2023 (Revised February 2024)
Case

Loris

By: Shunyuan Zhang, Das Narayandas, Stacy Straaberg and David Lane

In December 2022, Loris’s executive team considered their go-to-market strategy. Loris was an artificial intelligence (AI) software startup for the customer service industry with two products on the market: 1) Agent Assist which provided customer service agents (CSAs)... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Business Startups; AI and Machine Learning; Applications and Software; Marketing Strategy; Sales; Technology Industry; United States

2019
White Paper

Impact-Weighted Financial Accounts: The Missing Piece for an Impact Economy

By: George Serafeim, T. Robert Zochowski and Jennifer Downing

Reimagining capitalism is an imperative. We need to create a more inclusive and sustainable form of capitalism that works for every person and the planet. Massive environmental damage, growing income and wealth disparity, stress, and depression within developed... View Details

Keywords: Impact-Weighted Accounts; IWAI; Background; Economic Systems; Economy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Measurement and Metrics; Financial Statements

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Research Summary

Mastering Strategy Execution

By: Robert Simons

Professor Robert Simons’ research encompasses three areas of management accountability that are the foundation for successful strategy execution: organization design, performance measurement and control, and risk management. In addition, Simons is interested in the... View Details

22 Jul 2021
News

Sandra Sucher and Ram Charan

05 Jun 2012
First Look

First Look: June 5

system in particular countries are instructive. It also contains exhibits that display comparative performance of the system in terms of cost and quality. It raises the question of how health care can be... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Joseph L. Bower

JOSEPH L. BOWER, Donald K. David Professor Emeritus, has been a leader in general management at Harvard Business School for 51 years. He also served on the faculty of the Harvard Kennedy School during its first decade. He has served in many administrative roles... View Details

Keywords: banking; chemical; electronics; financial services; home appliances; hotels ＆ motels; information technology industry; insurance industry; private equity (LBO funds); retailing

February 2018 (Revised June 2021)
Case

New Constructs: Disrupting Fundamental Analysis with Robo-Analysts

By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Kyle Thomas

This case highlights the business challenges associated with a financial technology firm, New Constructs, that created a technology that can quickly parse complicated public firm financials to paint a clearer economic picture of firms, remove accounting distortions,... View Details

Keywords: Fundamental Analysis; Machine Learning; Robo-analysts; Financial Statements; Financial Reporting; Analysis; Information Technology; Accounting Industry; Financial Services Industry; Information Technology Industry; North America; Tennessee

September 1989 (Revised December 1989)
Case

Siemens Electric Motor Works (A) and (B) (Combined)

Explores how a cost system can help support a firm's decision to change strategies. In the process, students are exposed to a simple activity-based cost system. Also examines Siemens policy for transferring products between sales and manufacturing divisions. Transfer... View Details

Keywords: Activity Based Costing and Management; Business Strategy; Technology Industry

March 2001 (Revised January 2009)
Case

Walt Disney Company, The: The Entertainment King

By: Michael G. Rukstad, David J. Collis and Tyrell Levine

The first ten pages of this case are comprised of the company's history, from 1923 to 2001. The Walt years are described, as is the company's decline after his death and its resurgence under Eisner. The last five pages are devoted to Eisner's strategic challenges in... View Details

Keywords: History; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Managerial Roles; Creativity; Corporate Strategy; Boundaries; Brands and Branding; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

January 1976 (Revised December 1988)
Case

Webster Industries (A)

The manufacturing manager of Webster's largest division is told to cut his managerial payroll by 15%. Provides company background data and a description of the manufacturing manager's reactions to the proposed reduction. Provides the students with an opportunity to... View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Cost Management