Publications

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13 Aug 2008
Research & Ideas

The Inner Life of Leaders

was Eisenhower's difficulty during World War II in confronting Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, much to the exasperation of Generals George S. Patton and Omar Bradley. Montgomery fought hard to convince Eisenhower that Eisenhower should remain in View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

February 2010 (Revised July 2010)
Case

Barclays Wealth: Reignite WAR or Launch AlphaStream?

By: Lena G. Goldberg and Elisa Farri

In late January 2009, Thomas Fekete, managing director at Barclays Wealth in London, redeemed the most illiquid positions in the so-called Wealth Absolute Return Fund (WAR), one of Barclays Wealth's most promising offshore funds of hedge funds, and halted the Fund's... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Financial Liquidity; International Finance; Investment Funds; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Strategy; Financial Services Industry; London

25 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

Chasing Stars: Why the Mighty Red Sox Struck Out

have," he says. "Can this person be a good fit based on the team dynamics created by the other players already?" He notes that the New England Patriots have a good reputation for recruiting... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Sports; Banking

September 2019
Case

Dementia Discovery Fund

By: Richard G. Hamermesh, Kathy Giusti and Sarah Gulick

The case is set in March 2019, and tells the story of the founding of the Dementia Discovery Fund (DDF). The idea for the fund began in 2015, when then-Prime Minister David Cameron spoke about the importance of making breakthroughs in dementia research, and pledged... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Investment Funds; Mission and Purpose; Recruitment; Health Care and Treatment; Pharmaceutical Industry; Financial Services Industry; Boston; Massachusetts; London; England

07 Nov 2012
HBS Case

HBS Cases: Sir Alex Ferguson--Managing Manchester United

is a British soccer club manager who turns out to be as incredible a performer as any of the lot. For 26 years, Sir Alex Ferguson has kept his Manchester United soccer club either at or near the top of competition, both in England and... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Sports; Entertainment & Recreation

February 2017
Teaching Note

The Tate's Digital Transformation

By: Jill Avery

John Stack was the visionary Head of Digital Transformation at the Tate, a collection of four major art galleries in the UK, including Tate Modern, the most visited gallery devoted to modern and contemporary art in the world. Stack was the architect of the Tate’s... View Details

08 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 8, 2008

Casey, Comcast's New England Region general manager, transformed a low commitment and performance organization. When he took charge of this Comcast region he inherited an organization that was bureaucratic,... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

15 Jun 2007
Research & Ideas

Remembering Alfred Chandler

chaos of his desk belied a very careful, systematic way of working. I met Al in the early 1990s, when he must have been in his mid- to late 70s. I remember looking at his raincoat, jacket, and tie—I almost never saw Al in anything but a jacket and tie—and thinking how... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

August 2013 (Revised October 2013)
Case

MedImmune Ventures

By: Richard G. Hamermesh and David Lane

Ron Laufer is the new Senior Managing Director of MedImmune Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of AstraZeneca, a leading pharmaceuticals firm. Laufer has to decide whether to pursue a high-potential, but very risky, early-stage investment. The decision Laufer... View Details

Keywords: MedImmune; MedImmune Ventures; AstraZeneca; NeuProtect; Corporate Venturing; Biotechnology; Venture Investing; Venture Capital; Health Care and Treatment; Pharmaceutical Industry; Financial Services Industry; Biotechnology Industry; United States; Australia; Europe; London

March 2022
Teaching Note

Farfetch: Digital Transformation for Luxury Brands

By: Jill Avery and Sunil Gupta

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 522-051. Farfetch, a global luxury technology platform and digital marketplace had been surfing the wave of digital transformation in the luxury fashion industry since 2008. While the company’s stock price and market valuation had... View Details

Keywords: Brand Management; Retailing; Two Sided Markets; SaaS; Online Marketing; Marketing; Marketing Channels; Brands and Branding; Luxury; Digital Transformation; E-commerce; Digital Marketing; Retail Industry; Fashion Industry; London; United Kingdom; Portugal

August 1999 (Revised February 2000)
Case

Cisco Systems, Inc.: Acquisition Integration for Manufacturing (A)

By: Steven C. Wheelwright, Charles A. Holloway, Nicole Tempest and Christian G. Kasper

Describes the procedures and processes used by Cisco Systems in its acquisition of high-technology firms. Its goal is to retain key engineering talent and to leverage existing product development efforts, but to quickly merge acquired companies its own systems and... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Leveraged Buyouts; Acquisition; Integration; Mergers and Acquisitions; Production; Activity Based Costing and Management; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Management; Technological Innovation; Talent and Talent Management; Human Resources; Manufacturing Industry; Technology Industry; England

04 Mar 2014
First Look

First Look: March 4

Cabot Lowell (1775-1817). Slater, a skilled British textile machinery engineer, helped to develop the country's first cotton spinning mill. Lowell, a member of a prominent New England mercantile family,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2013
Working Paper

NBC and the 2012 London Olympics: Unexpected Success

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Vadim Kogan

"The 2010 Vancouver Winter Games lost $223 million, astonishing for a 17-day event. Next year's London Summer Games, which cost a record Olympic rights fee of $1.18 billion, are expected to lose at least as much..." wrote Richard Sandomir in The New York Times. "NBC... View Details

Keywords: Success; Profit; Sports; Failure; Television Entertainment; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Sports Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Vancouver; Beijing; London; Brazil; Russia

Read Now

30 Jun 2015
First Look

First Look: June 30, 2015

directors. Controlling for these effects and other ratings determinants, we find that firms with lower residual ratings have higher subsequent citations in corruption news events. They also report higher future sales growth and show a... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

24 May 2011
First Look

First Look: May 24

responsibility. Working PapersInducement Prizes and Innovation Authors:Liam Brunt, Josh Lerner, and Tom Nicholas Abstract We examine the effect of prizes on innovation using data on awards for technological development offered by the Royal Agricultural Society of... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

09 Apr 2008
Research & Ideas

The Matchmaker of the Modern Economy

manufacturing. And thanks to the war, Doriot has gained a lifetime of experience in organizing and managing new ventures in a pressure-cooker environment. It is not surprising, then, that the former head of the View Details

Keywords: by Spencer E. Ante

February 2003 (Revised May 2003)
Case

Accel Partners' European Launch

By: G. Felda Hardymon and Josh Lerner

In spring 2001, with the venture market crashing all around, the London office of Accel Partners, a major west coast venture capital firm, needs to make a decision about investing in an Irish software company. As the first investment of the new European operation, the... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Growth and Development Strategy; Venture Capital; Global Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Expansion; Management Practices and Processes; Partners and Partnerships; Financial Services Industry; London; United States