Publications

03 Mar 2023
Research & Ideas

When Showing Know-How Backfires for Women Managers

combination of observations, interviews, and archival data in The Task Bind: Explaining Gender Differences in Managerial Tasks and Performance, recently published in Administrative Science Quarterly, to analyze 80 retail grocery stores... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin; Retail; Retail

27 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

How One Late Employee Can Hurt Your Business: Data from 25 Million Timecards

The retail business is not for the faint of heart. Turning a consistent profit requires navigating many variables, such as hiring capable staff, ordering the right products at the right time, and complying with a litany of regulations.... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Retail

February 2017 (Revised May 2022)
Case

The De Beers Group: Exploring the Diamond Reselling Opportunity

By: Benjamin C. Esty, Daniel P. Gross and Lauren G. Pickle

In September 2014, Tom Montgomery (SVP of strategic initiatives at the De Beers Group) and his team launched a pilot program in the United States to explore the $1 billion diamond market for pre-owned (recycled) diamonds. According to Montgomery, the motivation for the... View Details

Program

Strategy for Health Care Delivery—Virtual

collaborate with health care institutions, or offer on-site health services or retail health care (e.g., Minute Clinic) as part of their business model Senior executives from nonprofit organizations that deliver health care services... View Details

Keywords: Health Care; Health Care

Web

Podcast - Business & Environment

Business School, Karen Pflug, Chief Sustainability Officer of Ingka Group (IKEA), shares how IKEA is embedding circularity throughout its business model. She discusses how IKEA is redesigning iconic products like the Billy bookcase to make them easier to disassemble... View Details

16 Nov 2016
Research & Ideas

Turning One Thousand Customers into One Million

Few companies in the past few years have rocketed to success faster than Uber, Airbnb, and Etsy, which together have transformed the way we hail a cab, plan a vacation, and shop for handmade gifts, respectively. In a previous HBS Working Knowledge article, How Uber,... View Details

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

Web

Contact Us

Hedge Fund Manufacturing Non-Profit Other Financial Services Real Estate Retail Services Technology Venture Capital / Private Equity / LBO Other - Please note in message Message* Career & Professional Development Harvard Business School... View Details

December 2021
Case

Green Monday

By: José B. Alvarez, Billy Chan and Dawn H. Lau

This case describes the entrepreneurial journey of David Yeung, from campaigning for plant-based diets to building Green Monday, a purpose-driven business and an ecosystem based in Hong Kong comprising a retail platform, an alternative meat brand (“OmniPork”), a... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Social Enterprise; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Business Model; Mission and Purpose; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Hong Kong; China; Asia

November 2024
Case

Dr. Bombay Ice Cream

By: William R. Kerr, Alexis Brownell and Michael Liu

This case examines the creation, launch, and rapid growth of Dr. Bombay Ice Cream, a joint venture between Happi Co., a consumer packaged goods incubator, and entertainment mogul Snoop Dogg, with his son, Cordell Broadus. The brand was inspired by a Bored Ape Yacht... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Growth Management; Brands and Branding; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Market Entry and Exit; Distribution Channels; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

June 2012 (Revised March 2014)
Case

I Paid a Bribe (Dot) Com

By: Karthik Ramanna and Rachna Tahilyani

Anti-corruption web platform "ipaidabribe.com" leverages the transparency and anonymity of the Internet to encourage private citizens in India who have been the victims of corruption to self-report details of bribes paid, including the bribe amount, the name of the... View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Internet and the Web; Ethics; Service Industry; India

05 Jul 2017
News

Stop the Meeting Madness

2018
Race & 21st century economy: Access, investments and institution-building

The Importance of Entrepreneurship to the Black Community

19 Apr 2011
First Look

First Look: April 19

Becker, Zoran Ivkovic, and Scott Weisbenner Publication:Journal of Finance 66, no. 2 (April 2011) Abstract : We exploit demographic variation to identify the effect of dividend demand on corporate payout policy. Retail investors tend to... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Research Summary

Performance Measurement and Incentive Alignment

Professor Kulp is interested in how organizations use information to enhance firm performance. The manner in which an organization gathers, analyzes, and uses performance information as part of its internal governance system affects organizational success. Professor... View Details

September 2023
Case

FoodCloud: Tackling Food Insecurity and Climate Change in One Bite

By: Brian Trelstad and Emer Moloney

In 2013, Aoibheann O’Brien and Iseult Ward founded FoodCloud, a non-profit social enterprise that aimed to address food waste and food insecurity issues. Through its technology platform, Foodiverse, FoodCloud connected surplus food from retailers with community groups... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Expansion; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Social Issues; Growth and Development Strategy; Green Technology Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Republic of Ireland; Europe

April 2021
Article

The Effects of Quota Frequency: Sales Performance and Product Focus

By: Doug J. Chung, Das Narayandas and Dongkyu Chang

This study investigates the comprehensive and multidimensional effects of quota (goal) frequency on sales force performance. We develop a theory of salespeople’s behavior—aggregate effort and the product type focus—in response to the temporal length of a sales-quota... View Details

Keywords: Sales Force Compensation; Field Experiment; Quotas; Quota Frequency; Commissions; Bonuses; Goals; Salesforce Management; Compensation and Benefits; Goals and Objectives; Behavior; Performance

Find at Harvard

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April 2006 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Endeca Technologies: New Growth Opportunities

By: Paul A. Gompers and Kristin Perry

Steve Papa, CEO of Endeca Technologies, must decide whether to expand into a new market with a new application of his company's technology. Endeca has experienced significant success with its information access software in the online retail industry, and in September... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Market Entry and Exit; Production; Organizational Structure; Partners and Partnerships; Opportunities; Expansion; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Technology Industry