Publications

May 2018 (Revised January 2019)
Teaching Note

Designing a Compliance Program at AB InBev

By: Eugene Soltes

Teaching Note for HBS No. 118-071. View Details

Keywords: Governance; Crime and Corruption; Governance Compliance; Consumer Products Industry; Africa; Europe; India; North America

2008
Working Paper

Extending Producer Responsibility: An Evaluation Framework for Product Take-Back Policies

By: Michael W. Toffel, Antoinette Stein and Katharine Lee

Manufacturers are increasingly being required to adhere to product take-back regulations that require them to manage their products at the end of life. Such regulations seek to internalize products' entire life cycle costs into market prices, with the ultimate... View Details

Keywords: Product; Cost; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability

SSRN

Read Now

Because I teach a course on product management at Harvard Business School, I am routinely asked “What is the role of a product manager?” The role of product manager (PM) is often referred to as the “CEO of the... View Details

April 1983
Supplement

Dansk Designs Ltd.: The Administration of Creativity, Video I

By: Hugo Uyterhoeven

Presents various members of the Dansk organization during conversations and meetings concerning issues arising in the design, production, and marketing of Dansk's product line. Focuses on the individual's role in the company, and on the interaction between marketing... View Details

Keywords: Independent Innovation and Invention; Leadership Development; Marketing; Production; Organizational Design; Creativity

16 Jan 2020
News

5 Ways Office Design Helps Your Company Navigate Change

29 Dec 2014
News

Children’s tablet designed in Mass. hits market in March

2019
Working Paper

Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 16 Capturing Value by Controlling Bottlenecks in Open Platform Systems

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

The purpose of this chapter is to investigate the means by which firms capture value in open platform systems. I begin by arguing that the surplus value created by complementarities within a technical system will be split among the owners of the unique and essential... View Details

Keywords: Open Platforms; Bottlenecks; Flow Production; Value Capture; Disintermediation; Production; Management; Digital Platforms

SSRN

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June 2010
Teaching Note

Design Thinking and Innovation at Apple (TN)

By: Stefan H. Thomke

Teaching Note for 609066. View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Strategy; Product Design; Innovation and Management; Computer Industry; Electronics Industry

February 2010 (Revised September 2011)
Case

Local Motors: Designed by the Crowd, Built by the Customer

By: Michael I. Norton and Jeremy Dann

In the wake of the meltdown among U.S. auto manufacturers in 2009, Jay Rogers, CEO of Local Motors, has a new approach for the automotive industry: decide which models are produced through online design competitions, and then allow customers to "build their own cars"... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Customer Focus and Relationships; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Product Design; Product Development; Creativity; Social and Collaborative Networks; Customization and Personalization; Auto Industry; Manufacturing Industry; United States

August 1994 (Revised May 1997)
Case

Olympus Optical Company, Ltd. (A): Cost Management for Short Life Cycle Products

Explores Olympus Optical's strategic response to major losses in its camera business. Key to Olympus's recovery were its extensive product planning process, a quality improvement program, and an aggressive cost-reduction program. In particular, the case details... View Details

Keywords: Cost Management; Product Design; Business Strategy; Product Development; Consumer Products Industry

May 1997
Teaching Note

Managing Product Development: Matching Technology with Context, Instructor's Note

By: Marco Iansiti

This overview to Managing Product Development (MPD) both previews course material, cases, exercises, and lectures--and provides its conceptual and academic underpinnings. Additionally, this note links these materials to the activities students will be undertaking in... View Details

Keywords: Curriculum and Courses; Product Development; Knowledge Management; Performance; Projects; Management Practices and Processes; Opportunities; Strategy; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques

October 2003
Teaching Note

Herman Miller (A): Innovation by Design (TN)

By: Sandra J. Sucher

Teaching Note to (9-602-023). View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry

Web

Product Management - Course Catalog

HBS Course Catalog Product Management Course Number 1765 Senior Lecturer Sara McKinley Torti Spring; Q3; 1.5 credits Career Focus: This half course provides an introduction to product management, focused... View Details

August 2001 (Revised March 2003)
Background Note

Comments on the Second Toyota Paradox: With appendix on modularity for managing complex-systems design

Two groups of people start out with the same task, equipped with the same resources and the same initial conditions. One, however, consistently beats the other. What are the differences between what the two groups are doing, and what can we adopt from the better... View Details

Keywords: Management; Product Design; Auto Industry; Japan

Find at Harvard

February 1977 (Revised April 1983)
Supplement

Corning Glass Works: The Electronic Products Division (C)

By: Michael Beer

Supplements the (B) case. Designed as an end-of-class handout. View Details

Keywords: Electronics Industry

May 1992 (Revised July 1994)
Case

Breaking with the Past?: Four Examples of Product Change

Describes four examples of product change where the new version of the product makes a "break with the past" in some important respect. The four examples are those of the IBM PS/2 family of personal computers, Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet software, Nikon's line of SLR... View Details

Keywords: Product Design; Change; Information Technology Industry; Computer Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Electronics Industry

Find at Harvard

January 1990 (Revised February 1990)
Case

MSA: The Software Company--Planning the AMAPs Product Line

By: Robert J. Dolan

MSA has commissioned a major market research study to assess demand potential for a computer software system designed for aerospace and defense contractors. Students must evaluate the results of the study (including a conjoint analysis) to assess whether MSA should... View Details

Keywords: Product; Marketing; Mathematical Methods; Software