Publications

February 2014 (Revised August 2016)
Case

Strava

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, William A. Sahlman and Sid Misra

Strava is a new fast-growing social network for the avid cyclist and runner. The Strava case traces the entrepreneurial journey of two serial entrepreneurs who have been co-founders in a prior venture, and who have co-founded Strava 3 years ago. The protagonists must... View Details

18 Dec 2006
Lessons from the Classroom

Grooming Next-Generation Leaders

assume we have fantastic R&D people," he continues. "They are building ideas. They might never ask the question, 'Is this relevant to the company, customers, and marketplace?' Sometimes they might just work with the budget they have on a potential View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

November 1991 (Revised April 1994)
Case

Taco Bell Corp.

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and Roger H. Hallowell

John Martin, Taco Bell CEO, brings the company into line with its competitors through incremental change during the 1980s. In the early 1990s, he adopts breakthrough approaches to improve service levels while reducing prices, providing a distinct competitive advantage.... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Food; Competitive Advantage; Innovation and Management; Retail Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

Web

2024 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

available + More Info – Less Info After spreading rapidly in the late 20th century, democracy has been on the defensive around the world—and arguably receding—in the 21st century. This represents a profound threat to freedom and... View Details

19 Jun 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, June 19, 2018

religious discrimination claims and monetary settlements, in the United States and around the world. This case examines two incidents of alleged religious discrimination that made their way to the U.S. Supreme Court, allowing students to... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

March 2023
Case

Mirakl: Growing The Marketplace Economy

By: Antonio Moreno, Santiago Gallino and Emilie Billaud

Mirakl provided the technology and seller network required for companies like Macy's, Best Buy, Walmart, Siemens, or Carrefour to simply design, launch, and administer a marketplace that included products from third-party sellers. What began as a basic business idea in... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Business Startups; Transformation; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Internet and the Web; Technology Adoption; Sales; Information Technology Industry; Retail Industry; Web Services Industry; Europe; France; Paris; United States

Profile

Kiran Gandhi

more critically about unmet needs in the music industry. For example, I loved learning about “blue ocean” strategy, the idea that you can make competition irrelevant by innovating in new market spaces that are ripe for growth. This year,... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment/Media

22 Nov 2016
First Look

November 22, 2016

Abstract—Although Indian tribes and the surrounding states were often bitter enemies throughout much of the history of the United States, recently tribes and states have been able to work cooperatively in a number of areas. In some... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

08 Sep 2008
HBS Case

The Value of Environmental Activists

There are many methods, most financial, to measure the success of companies in meeting goals. But the question becomes a lot harder at Harvard Business School when MBAs are challenged to measure the efforts of environmental organizations like Greenpeace and the World... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Energy; Utilities

January 2021
Case

Bespoken Spirits: Disrupting Distilling

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher

On October 7, 2020, Bespoken Spirits publicly announced it had received $2.6 million of seed funding for its “sustainable maturation process,” a process that could produce award-winning whiskeys in just days rather than years using a novel technology and data science. ... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Business Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Disruption; Entrepreneurship; Environmental Sustainability; Cash Flow; Disruptive Innovation; Innovation Strategy; Brands and Branding; Business Model; Consumer Products Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Service Industry; United States; California