Publications

26 Apr 2004
Research & Ideas

A Clear Eye for Innovation

the key to creating breakthrough innovations. Still others have claimed that a company may be able to shift back and forth between different organizational models, focusing on exploitation for a period and then moving into exploration... View Details

Keywords: by Charles A. O'Reilly III & Michael L. Tushman

13 Aug 2014
Lessons from the Classroom

Managing the Family Business: Entrepreneurs Needed for Long-Run Success

activities that can grow. Simply put, successful families are entrepreneurial. Second, families succeed because they invest in productive activities (including the development of the next generation), emphasize growing assets, and consume relatively little of their... View Details

Keywords: by Michael J. Roberts

20 Mar 2025
Blog Post

IFC India 2025: Illuminating India’s Solar Future: Reflections on Tata Solar Manufacturing Plant Visit

Professor Vikram Gandhi’s Immersive Field Course (IFC) “Development while Decarbonizing: India’s Path to Net-Zero" delved into the critical aspect of decarbonization and sustainability goals amid India's rapid development. The course presented an opportunity for... View Details

02 Sep 2014
First Look

First Look: September 2

treating both its suppliers and its blue collar workforce as homogeneous, interchangeable entities as well as its view that expertise could be partitioned so that there was minimal overlap of knowledge amongst functions or levels in the View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2008 (Revised August 2008)
Supplement

Leading Citigroup (B)

By: Lynn S. Paine, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Aldo Sesia

The (B) case describes the actions taken by Citigroup CEO Chuck Prince and his management team to right the company in the wake of the controversies and alleged misdeeds described in the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Ethics; Corporate Governance; Governance Controls; Leadership; Management Teams; Organizational Culture

15 Nov 2024
News

Driving Change

Speaking to nearly 700 alumni at the Women’s Leadership Summit last week, HBS Professor Robin Ely addressed both current and emerging challenges facing women in leadership roles, while emphasizing the critical importance of continued progress. “Today, we face a fresh... View Details

04 Mar 2014
First Look

First Look: March 4

build a culture of innovation? What does that culture look like? How does it evolve and grow? How are teams most effectively created and then nurtured in this context? What is a leader's role in this... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

June 2001
Case

Cerner Corporation (A)

By: D. Quinn Mills and Matt Salloway

The CEO thinks people are not working long enough hours. He sends a memo. This series describes the backlash. View Details

Keywords: Crisis Management; Management Style; Leadership Style; Nonverbal Communication; Employees; Organizational Culture; Health Industry

January 2023 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Adams + Beasley Associates

By: Dennis Campbell and Iuliana Mogosanu

This case illustrates how a strong culture, founder-led SME designed and used a unique performance metric—the job security index—to manage through periods of economic uncertainty. The case centers specifically on how the job security index was used in an interactive... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Measurement and Metrics; Employee Ownership; Risk and Uncertainty; Small Business; Leadership; Organizational Culture

January 2018 (Revised July 2019)
Case

Big Apple Circus: Time to Fold the Tent?

By: David G. Fubini and Matthew Wiger

By 2016, the Big Apple Circus has weathered many storms in its 38 seasons as one of the most well-known New York City nonprofits. Will Weiss, the executive director, has witnessed his share of chaos during four years at Big Apple. After a slight resurgence following... View Details

Keywords: Turnarounds; Bankruptcy; ＂Live Entertainment; Art; Crisis Management; Financial Crisis; Organizational Culture; Entertainment; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

July 2008
Course Overview Note

The Devil Wears Prada (HBS Version) (TN)

By: Howard H. Stevenson and Shirley Spence

The Devil Wears Prada is used to facilitate a discussion of the role of communities in people's lives. It is used in a second year MBA elective at HBS called Building a Business in the Context of a Life (BBCL). BBCL is primarily designed for students who plan to be... View Details

Keywords: Business Education; Entrepreneurship; Personal Development and Career; Planning; Civil Society or Community; Organizational Culture; Power and Influence

08 Apr 2013
Research & Ideas

Women’s Summit Celebrates ‘Sisterhood of the Traveling Pantsuit’

especially in changing the culture of the School and the broader world. The W50 Summit in particular was a way to reach out to the women who "have sometimes felt disenfranchised, disconnected, unwelcome at Harvard Business... View Details

Keywords: by Katie Koch & Harvard Gazette

02 Feb 2016
First Look

February 2, 2016

press Journal of Applied Psychology Cooperation in Multicultural Negotiations: How the Cultures of People with Low and High Power Interact By: Kopelman, Shirli, Ashley E. Hardin, Christopher G. Myers, and Leigh Plunkett Tost Abstract—This... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 2015
Supplement

The National Geographic Society (B)

By: David A. Garvin

This case was written as an update to the case "The National Geographic Society," HBS No. 311-002, published in 2011. The (B) case describes the 2015 creation of National Geographic Partners, a for-profit joint venture between the National Geographic Society and 21st... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Information Publishing; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Growth and Development Strategy; Managerial Roles; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Structure; Internet; Publishing Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry

Web

Departments | Employment

Initiatives, Reporters Culture The Marketing and Communications department is an extremely close knit team who "thinks together." Staff members are mutually supportive and highly cooperative. Attributes of Successful Staff Members View Details

November 2013 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Man Jit Singh at Sony Entertainment Television (A)

By: Linda A. Hill, Dana M. Teppert and Allison J. Wigen

Explores the role of CEO Man Jit Singh and his senior management committee in leading Multi Screen Media Pvt. Ltd. (formerly SET Pvt. Ltd.), a leading television broadcaster in India. Describes Singh's decision to evaluate employees based on values as well as... View Details

Keywords: Performance Appraisals; Performance Management; Performance Evaluation; Leadership Style; Managerial Roles; Organizational Culture; Groups and Teams; Management Teams; Change Management; Decision Making; Emerging Markets; Media and Broadcasting Industry; India

January 27, 2010
Article

Leadership with a Small 'l'

By: Richard Bohmer

What exactly do we mean by leadership in health care? Does it mean to take formal positions in senior leadership teams in hospitals, trusts, health boards, ministries of health, and professional societies-what might be termed leadership with a big "L?" Or does it mean... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Leadership; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Organizational Culture; Outcome or Result; Performance Effectiveness; Health Industry

Find at Harvard

2006
Working Paper

The Limits of Authority: Motivation versus Coordination

By: Eric J. Van den Steen

This paper studies the effects of open disagreement on motivation and coordination. It shows how, in the presence of differing priors, motivation and coordination impose conflicting demands on the allocation of authority, leading to a trade-off between the... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Governance Controls; Organizational Culture; Agency Theory; Conflict and Resolution; Motivation and Incentives

SSRN

October 1999
Case

ZEFER: Building a Business at Hyperspeed

By: John T. Gourville and Joseph B. Lassiter III

In the past 18 months, ZEFER has gone from a several-person Internet consulting firm to a major player in the information-technology services industry. In particular, in the past six months, it has grown from 40 to 400 professionals, has hired a seasoned management... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development; Recruitment; Venture Capital; Acquisition; Organizational Culture; Managerial Roles; Growth Management; Information Technology Industry