Publications

July–August 2013
Article

Six Ways to Sink a Growth Initiative

By: Donald L. Laurie and J. Bruce Harreld

The conventional wisdom about how best to pursue growth—launch a slew of initiatives in high-potential areas; appoint some promising young managers to lead them; locate them safely away from the established businesses—is a recipe for failure, according to the authors.... View Details

Keywords: Failure; Growth and Development Strategy

Find at Harvard

November 2012 (Revised April 2013)
Case

TWA Parts (Abridged)

By: V.G. Narayanan

Transworld Auto Parts had to implement its new strategy flawlessly to survive the auto industry upheaval. The new CEO asked her leadership team to craft strategy maps and balanced scorecards to help each division implement its strategies. View Details

Keywords: Business Divisions; Leadership; Balanced Scorecard; Management Teams; Business Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Auto Industry; Manufacturing Industry

February 2024
Case

SundaySky: Changing Customer Experiences through Personalized Video

By: David C. Edelman and James Barnett

In June 2023, SundaySky CEO Jim Dicso considers growth strategies. The software-as-a-service company provided software to create advertising videos, customer service videos, and other videos, like employee training modules, and had begun to pilot a new generative... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Strategy; Technology Adoption; AI and Machine Learning; Applications and Software; Growth and Development Strategy; Advertising Industry; Technology Industry; United States

August 2016 (Revised May 2017)
Case

eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014

By: David B. Yoffie and Eric Baldwin

This case explores Carl Icahn's attack on eBay, starting in January 2014. The case examines how John Donahoe, CEO of eBay, should respond to Icahn's demand that eBay spin off PayPal and accept Icahn's two nominees to the board of directors. View Details

Keywords: Activist Shareholder; Activist Investors; Technology; Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Investment Activism; Financial Services Industry; Retail Industry

November 2007 (Revised March 2008)
Case

Tyco International: Corporate Governance

By: Rakesh Khurana and James Weber

Examines how Tyco and its board recovered from its corporate scandals. Describes how its CEO and board set out to institute processes, guidelines, and a culture that would make Tyco into a company widely recognized for its world class corporate governance. View Details

Keywords: Crime and Corruption; Corporate Governance; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Governing and Advisory Boards; Business Processes; Organizational Culture

April 1993 (Revised June 1993)
Case

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW)

By: Robert J. Dolan

In 1992, BMW attempts to revive its position in the United States market. In 1991, unit sales had fallen to 53,000 from 88,000 in 1987. The new CEO of North America considers a multifaceted plan to turn around the situation. View Details

Keywords: Product Positioning; Marketing Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Market Entry and Exit; Sales; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry; Germany; North America

08 Oct 2015
News

Leadership: Getting it right

12 Feb 2015
Video

Year Up: Why Investing in Young Adults Makes Sense

04 Jun 2009
News

JP Morgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon Addresses HBS Students on Class Day

14 Apr 2020
Video

Perspectives on the COVID-19 Pandemic: Chenault-Mills (Session 1)

Video

An Environmental Epiphany – Jules Kortenhorst

Video

Nicolás Jodal

Nicolás Jodal, Co-Founder and CEO of GeneXus, describes how the gender balance in systems engineering has unexpectedly changed over time in Uruguay, while expressing his commitment to diversity as both a foundational aspect and a deliberate business strategy. View Details

March 2019
Case

Dabur India: Growing Professional Management from Family Roots

By: Suraj Srinivasan, Namrata Arora and Jonah Goldberg

The case opens in December of 2018, with Sunil Duggal, the CEO of Dabur India (a multinational consumer goods conglomerate with a focus in Ayurvedic products) contemplating who should succeed him at the head of the company. The new CEO will have been the first since... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Management Succession; Multinational Firms and Management; Business Growth and Maturation

January 2014 (Revised August 2017)
Case

StepSmart Fitness

By: Robert J. Dolan, Benson P. Shapiro and Alisa Zalosh

StepSmart Fitness, a manufacturer of exercise equipment, is undergoing a sweeping reorganization. The new CEO has terminated the District Sales Director and Regional VP and promoted 30-year-old Benjamin Cooper to manage the underperforming New England district. A... View Details

Keywords: Analysis; Restructuring; Salesforce Management; Management Succession; Performance Improvement; Manufacturing Industry; Sports Industry; New England

January 2011
Supplement

Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring

By: Sandra J. Sucher and Daniela Beyersdorfer

The (B) case describes the actions taken by Royal Dutch Shell's CEO and his management team to maintain their commitment to diversity and inclusion (D&I), as introduced in the (A) case, during a major restructuring of the whole organization. View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Human Resources; Diversity; Management Teams; Energy Industry; Netherlands

August 2002 (Revised February 2005)
Case

Gillette Company (B): Leadership for Change

By: Rosabeth M. Kanter and James Weber

Describes the actions and behavior of a new CEO in his first days and weeks as he sets expectations for his top management team and introduces processes and disciplines to begin the turnaround of a global consumer products company. View Details

Keywords: Business Strategy; Policy; Change Management; Leading Change; Motivation and Incentives; Strategic Planning; Retail Industry