Publications

August 2011 (Revised October 2011)
Case

PureTech Ventures in 2011

By: Andrei Hagiu, Cesar Castro and Sarah Murphy

In early May 2011, Daphne Zohar, founder and managing partner of PureTech Ventures, a life science venture creation company in Boston, MA, was reviewing a term sheet she had just received from a venture capital (VC) firm for one of PureTech's portfolio companies. The... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Business Startups; Venture Capital; Investment; Innovation and Invention; Negotiation; Partners and Partnerships; Science-Based Business; Opportunities; Boston

04 May 2021
Book

Best Buy: How Human Connection Saved a Failing Retailer

distills the formula down to five key ingredients: Connecting employees with what drives them, and this is usually focused around finding ways to make the world a better place; Creating genuine human connection among employees and... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Retail

September 2019 (Revised July 2025)
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

16 Nov 2021
HBS Case

How a Company Made Employees So Miserable, They Killed Themselves

purpose, and in turn put workers at a greater risk for depression, opioid addiction, and even suicide, Whillans says. “It’s important for managers to realize the psychological threat that workers are facing... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

12 May 2021
Book

The Hard Truth About Being a CEO

told by one group, but also going back and having confirmative conversations with others. Others will go a few layers below the senior management team and engage middle-management, who are often willing to be absolutely candid and have a... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

Career Coach

Mandy Xu

serving the client – and is happy to share her takeaways. She welcomes conversations with students looking for the right career fit post-MBA and enjoys dialogue around personal values and fulfillment. To book an appointment, please send... View Details

28 Oct 2020
Blog Post

Keep Your Weary Workers Engaged

We recently asked 600 CEOs: What is keeping you awake at night during this global pandemic? A major and multifaceted concern that emerged is how to keep employees motivated when their world is crashing around them. The circumstances of... View Details

Keywords: All Industries

08 Dec 2020
Blog Post

Keep Your Weary Workers Engaged

We recently asked 600 CEOs: What is keeping you awake at night during this global pandemic? A major and multifaceted concern that emerged is how to keep employees motivated when their world is crashing around them. The circumstances of... View Details

19 Aug 2002
Research & Ideas

Here Comes Internet2—Time to Shed Dot Vertigo

IT that is not quite justified, based on all the work that continues to be done around the world, he said. Managers need to understand the opportunities and threats of Internet2 for their companies, because... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

06 Jun 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas: June 6, 2017

highlight the pros and cons of each knowledge production model, help identify the scope of the empirical generalization of prior studies comparing the information quality of the two production models, and offer implications for organizations View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2007 (Revised May 2012)
Case

PRG-Schultz International

By: Paul W. Marshall and James Weber

PRG-Schultz will run out of cash within a couple of months unless the new CEO can reduce costs and restructure the company's debt. PRG was the dominant market leader in the audit recovery industry. The industry consisted of firms which employed accounting professionals... View Details

Keywords: History; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Leadership; Restructuring; Cost Management; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Borrowing and Debt; Accounting Audits; Accounting Industry

November 2014
Case

BRAC in 2014

By: Tarun Khanna, Rachna Tahilyani, Reeti Roy and Aldo Sesia

In the early 1970s BRAC was a startup nongovernmental organization (NGO) working in Bangladesh. By 2014, it was the world's largest NGO. It had a strong presence in Bangladesh and had begun to deliver social development programs in nine other countries. Its founder and... View Details

Keywords: BRAC; Bangladesh; NGO; Strategy; Business Model; Business Organization; Social Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Social Enterprise; Social Issues; Poverty; Bangladesh