by HBS Staff - Publications - Faculty & Research

16 May 2012
Research & Ideas

Can Decades of Military Overspending be Fixed?

of a total federal R&D budget of $8.7 billion, or 64.4 percent. By 2007, the defense R&D budget had risen to $69.3 billion, accounting for 50 percent of the total federal R&D budget of $137.2 billion. In pursuit of its mission... View Details

Keywords: by J. Ronald Fox; Service

14 Feb 2011
Research & Ideas

Clay Christensen’s Milkshake Marketing

Updated to clarify a failure rate figure included in an earlier version. When planning new products, companies often start by segmenting their markets and positioning their merchandise accordingly. This segmentation involves either... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail; Service; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

14 Nov 2019
Working Paper Summaries

Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations series

Keywords: by Carliss Y. Baldwin

23 Jul 2001
Research & Ideas

Sam Walton: Great From the Start

fully the power of the idea. Once seizing on it, never wavering from it became the centerpiece of Wal-Mart's greatness. Sam Walton That was still a long time in the future. Butler Brothers was not thrilled by Walton's freelancing ways,... View Details

Keywords: by Richard S. Tedlow; Retail

12 Dec 2005
Research & Ideas

Using the Law to Strategic Advantage

to police its trademark by preventing others from using it to refer to something other than the Real Thing. Shareholder value is enhanced when a firm chooses an appropriate form of business organization, ranging from a limited liability... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Legal Services

10 Jul 2023
In Practice

The Harvard Business School Faculty Summer Reader 2023

What books are HBS faculty members reading this summer—and are certain publications especially meaningful to them? Turns out, faculty are interested in a variety of topics, everything from exploring spirituality and confronting climate... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

16 Jan 2006
Research & Ideas

What Customers Want from Your Products

effort to improve sales of its milk shakes. (In this example, both the company and the product have been disguised.) Its marketers first defined the market segment by product—milk shakes—and then segmented it further View Details

Keywords: by Clayton M. Christensen, Scott Cook & Taddy Hall; Consumer Products

05 Mar 2009
What Do You Think?

How Frank or Deceptive Should Leaders Be?

by Nobel-prize winner in economics George Akerlof and economist Robert Sheeler of "irrational exuberance" fame. These authors cite the importance of what John Maynard Keynes once referred to as "animal spirits" in... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

13 Apr 2009
Research & Ideas

Kind of Blue: Pushing Boundaries with Miles Davis

only two short sessions in 1959. At the age of 32, Davis coaxed innovative ideas out of his players—among them greats including John Coltrane and Bill Evans—that took everyone by surprise. He also remade the industry, introducing longer,... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Music

16 May 2000
Research & Ideas

Getting the Message: How the Internet is Changing Advertising

outfit walked across the screen carrying a sign that pitched a product. These almost literal translations of billboard and magazine ads did little more than set the previous forms in motion. Silk: Issues of privacy will come under increased scrutiny View Details

Keywords: by Susan Young

17 Nov 2003
Research & Ideas

The Business of Babies

foster care, the vast number of children available for adoption is the most obvious "low-tech" solution to satisfy demand. However, this availability is complicated by racial preferences (most people want children who look like... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Health

04 Aug 2003
Research & Ideas

Shackleton: An Entrepreneur of Survival

ship, the Endurance, became hopelessly trapped in pack ice, Shackleton abandoned one cherished goal and shouldered another that was forced on him by circumstance. Through extraordinary hardships that lasted almost two more years, he... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

03 Jun 2002
Research & Ideas

How to Succeed With Your New Boss

good defense, not making mistakes that damage the business. Help in finding ways to take the business to a new level. Living By The Golden Rule Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. You will almost certainly hire new people... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Watkins

17 May 2017
Research & Ideas

Minorities Who 'Whiten' Job Resumes Get More Interviews

Minority job applicants are “whitening” their resumes by deleting references to their race with the hope of boosting their shot at jobs, and research shows the strategy is paying off. In fact, companies are more than twice as likely to... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

14 Oct 2002
Research & Ideas

The Widening Rift Between Corporations and Society

Society is evolving and it is leaving business behind, say HBS professor Shoshana Zuboff and James Maxmin. In their new book, The Support Economy: Why Corporations are Failing Individuals and the Next Episode of Capitalism, they address... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

19 Apr 2010
Research & Ideas

The History of Beauty

you have a major industry that still has lots to reveal. We asked Jones to discuss his research and his new book. Sean Silverthorne: What inspired your interest in the beauty business and its history? Geoffrey Jones: My initial interest in the beauty industry was... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Beauty & Cosmetics

08 Dec 2008
Research & Ideas

Thinking Twice About Supply-Chain Layoffs

unavoidable, research by HBS assistant professor Zeynep Ton suggests that retailers should make labor decisions thoughtfully. "Many retailers see labor more as a cost driver than a sales driver." Her advice:... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail

11 Mar 2001
Research & Ideas

Group Therapy

Look beyond the United States and Great Britain and you are likely to find networks of companies, from Latin America's grupos to India's business houses and Japan's keiretsu, helping to form the world's economies. For HBS associate... View Details

Keywords: by Peter Jacobs

14 Sep 2023
Research & Ideas

Working Moms Are Mostly Thriving Again. Can We Finally Achieve Gender Parity?

employment, and points to some surprising new developments for working moms. Despite all the upheaval, the changes aren’t all bad. “Children got to see how their moms and dads managed to be good parents and good employees at the same time.” In April 2020, McGinn and... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin

17 Dec 2008
Lessons from the Classroom

‘Ted Levitt Changed My Life’

early weeks (the man does not let up!), the students come to appreciate the intensity and rapid-fire humor of their teacher. Clearly, he cares. A lot. And by the end of the semester, something transformative has happened: They are better... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Education; Retail

Publications