Publications

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April 2008 (Revised May 2009)
Case

Robert Wessman and Actavis' "Winning Formula"

Robert Wessman took over Actavis in 1999 when it was a failing 90-person domestic generic pharmaceutical maker in Iceland. Within 7 years he had brought Actavis to number 5 worldwide, with 11,000 people, active in 40 countries, global manufacturing, and $1.6 billion.... View Details

Keywords: Globalized Firms and Management; Business Growth and Maturation; Success; Transformation; Business Strategy; Pharmaceutical Industry; Iceland

May 1994 (Revised July 1994)
Case

International Sourcing in Athletic Footwear: NIKE and Reebok

Nike and Reebok, the two largest athletic footwear companies, look to contractors in Asia to manufacture their shoes. Sourcing from Asia offers advantages of low cost and flexibility, but raises questions about human rights and corporate responsibility. How Nike and... View Details

Keywords: Rights; Multinational Firms and Management; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Apparel and Accessories Industry

22 Aug 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, August 23

forthcoming Handbook of Structural Transformation Location Fundamentals, Agglomeration Economies, and the Geography of Multinational Firms By: Alfaro, Laura, View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Racism and Digital Design: How Online Platforms Can Thwart Discrimination

Having uncovered the scope of discrimination taking place against Black guests and hosts on Airbnb, researcher Michael Luca and his colleagues put together a toolkit to aid View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Travel; Entertainment & Recreation; Service

November 2020
Article

When the Boss Comes to Town: The Effects of Headquarters' Visits on Facility-Level Misconduct

By: Jonas Heese and Gerardo Pérez Cavazos

We study the effects of headquarters’ visits on facility-level misconduct. We use the staggered introduction of airline routes to identify exogenous travel-time reductions between headquarters and facilities and test whether such reductions affect facility-level... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Misconduct; Visits By Management; Flight Routes; Control Systems; Compliance Programs; Performance Pressure; Business or Company Management; Management Systems; Governance Controls; Governance Compliance; Performance Expectations

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25 Apr 2011
Research & Ideas

What CEOs Do, and How They Can Do it Better

chooses to spend his or her time has much more of an effect on a company's success or failure than if a middle manager spends a half hour more at lunch. With that in mind, Sadun and three colleagues-Oriana... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

20 Mar 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, March 20, 2018

Abstract—Firms spend millions of dollars annually on whistle-blower hotlines, training, and other efforts to ensure adherence to laws, regulations, and company policies. Yet malfeasance remains entrenched in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Jun 2018
News

June 2018 Alumni and Faculty Books

And his afterlife: “When three-headed Cerberus greeted him / Socrates replied: ‘I won’t need / an attack dog, thank you. I married one.’” Mergers and Acquisitions: Integration View Details

November 2023
Supplement

'Care in Every Drop': Ayala Corporation and Manila Water (B)

By: Debora L. Spar, Paul Healy, Tricia Peralta and Julia Comeau

Since 1834, eight generations of the Ayala family have used their conglomerate to fund nation-building projects in the Philippines, including investments in tramcars, telecommunications, hospitals, and schools. In 1997, Ayala’s subsidiary, Manila Water, took control of... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Economic Growth; Social Entrepreneurship; Climate Change; Natural Resources; Crisis Management; Failure; Privatization; Social Issues; Urban Development; Adaptation; Infrastructure; Utilities Industry; Philippines

01 Dec 2020
News

The Camel and the Unicorn

didn’t pay off. But generally, the New Bedford whaling industry of the 1800s thrived using this investment model, averaging over 14 percent annual returns, says Alex. Holding up the high end of that average was the firm Gideon Allen View Details

01 Feb 1976
Conference Presentation

The Transnational Corporation and the Host Country

By: Louis T Wells Jr

Keywords: Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Multinational Firms and Management

19 May 2008
Research & Ideas

Connecting School Ties and Stock Recommendations

Christopher J. Malloy, along with University of Chicago colleague Andrea Frazzini, investigated the ties between more than 1,800 sell-side analysts and the management of public firms, View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Financial Services

01 May 2009
What Do You Think?

Do Innovation and Entrepreneurship Have to Be Incompatible with Organization Size?

managers to "'personally' drive innovation and competitive advantage." Gerald Nanninga placed the blame on "infestation" (parasites that successful organizations attract) View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

October 2019
Teaching Note

Granite Equity Partners

By: Victoria Ivashina and Terrence Shu

This teaching note accompanies HBS case 219-040, “Granite Equity Partners,” which follows the private equity firm as it evaluates the potential acquisition of Tyrell Corp., a Minnesota-based quality control biomaterials company. Granite Equity’s fund was different from... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity Exit; Investing; Fund Exit; Fund Management; Wealth Management; Liquidity; Buyout; Exit Strategy; Preferred Shares; Convertible Notes; Finance; Private Equity; Investment; Asset Management; Wealth; Management; Financial Liquidity; Minnesota; United States

1986
Chapter

New and Old Multinationals: Competitors or Partners?

By: L. T. Wells Jr.

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Competition; Partners and Partnerships

February 2001
Case

Mavesa (B): International Strategy and Valuation Concerns

Examines Mavesa's response to economic liberalization. Looks at Mavesa's efforts to expand into neighboring countries. Also looks at efforts to support the firm's stock price. A rewritten version of an earlier case. View Details

Keywords: Multinational Firms and Management; Emerging Markets; Global Strategy

01 Apr 2009
Working Paper Summaries

The Contingent Nature of Public Policy and Growth Strategies in the Early Twentieth-Century U.S. Banking Industry

Keywords: by Christopher Marquis & Zhi Huang; Banking

October 2021
Article

Overcoming the Cold Start Problem of CRM Using a Probabilistic Machine Learning Approach

By: Nicolas Padilla and Eva Ascarza

The success of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programs ultimately depends on the firm's ability to understand consumers' preferences and precisely capture how these preferences may differ across customers. Only by understanding customer heterogeneity, firms can... View Details

Keywords: Customer Management; Targeting; Deep Exponential Families; Probabilistic Machine Learning; Cold Start Problem; Customer Relationship Management; Programs; Consumer Behavior; Analysis

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September 2019 (Revised May 2020)
Case

Keroche (A): Fighting for Share in the Kenyan Alcoholic Drinks Market

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Pippa Tubman Armerding

This case discusses the challenges faced by Kenyan alcoholic drinks producer Keroche Industries Limited in 2003, when the Kenyan government accused the company of manufacturing and selling substandard alcoholic drinks, revoked its liquor licenses, and shut down its... View Details

Keywords: Keroche; Alcohol; Wine; Manufacturing; Informal Market; Regulation; Illicit; Illegal; Shutdown; Factory; Low-income Consumers; Multinational; Local; Government; Allegations; Accusations; Negative Press; EABL; Tusker; Beer; SAB; Chang'aa; Naivasha; Rift Valley; East Africa; Lawsuit; Legal Battle; Business Ventures; Business Exit or Shutdown; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Startups; Production; Safety; Quality; Distribution; Small Business; Family Business; Crime and Corruption; Customer Focus and Relationships; Decisions; Income; Demographics; Geographic Scope; Geographic Location; Goods and Commodities; Government Legislation; Growth and Development; Business History; Lawsuits and Litigation; Laws and Statutes; Lawfulness; Goals and Objectives; Consumer Behavior; Market Entry and Exit; Problems and Challenges; Social Issues; Poverty; Strategy; Competition; Entrepreneurship; Manufacturing Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Kenya; Nairobi; Africa