Publications

August 2018
Teaching Note

IguanaFix

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Thomas Eisenmann

Teaching Note for HBS No. 817-056. IguanaFix, based in Argentina, is a platform business that connects consumers with home improvement contractors. The founders are evaluating growth options and an investment offer. The case focuses on scaling issues for a venture... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Marketing; Home Improvement Services; Marketing Management; Scaling; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Sales; Digital Platforms; Growth and Development Strategy

2016
Working Paper

Controlling Versus Enabling

By: Andrei Hagiu and Julian Wright

Revenue sharing between principals and agents is commonly used to balance double-sided moral hazard. We provide a theory of how, when such revenue-sharing is optimal, a principal allocates control rights over decisions that either party could make. We show that the... View Details

Keywords: Control Rights; Decision Authority; Employment; Independent Contractors; Organizational Theory; Digital Platforms; Governance Controls; Ethics; Vertical Integration

SSRN

Read Now

01 Jul 2021
Office Hours

Readers Ask: Which Companies Are Transforming Work?

system. They’re just not working. "We do a very poor job of teaching that in the United States—giving people a basic familiarity with digital technology." "The second is that a lot of the shortage of workers is coming in the form of View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Retail; Manufacturing

August 2021
Case

Orchadio's First Two Split Experiments

By: Iavor I. Bojinov, Marco Iansiti and David Lane

Orchadio, a direct-to-consumer grocery business, needs to conduct its first two A/B tests—one to evaluate the effectiveness and functioning of its newly redesigned website, and one to market-test four versions of a new banner for the website. To do so, it will rely on... View Details

Keywords: Information Management; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Resource Allocation; Marketing; Measurement and Metrics; Customization and Personalization; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Digital Platforms; Information Technology Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

01 Dec 2021
What Do You Think?

How Will the Metaverse Affect Productivity?

described the Metaverse as “alternate digital realities where people work, play, and socialize.” That reminds us of the things that were promised us by futurists at the time of the development of the internet, many of which have exceeded... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

10 Aug 2020
Research & Ideas

COVID's Surprising Toll on Careers of Women Scientists

Foundation. About the Author Rachel Layne is a writer based in the Boston area. [Image: valentinrussanov] Related Reading Restaurant Revolution: How the Industry Is Fighting to Stay Alive Who Guarantees Your Workplace Is Safe for Return? Are View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Pharmaceutical; Biotechnology; Health

25 Apr 2012
What Do You Think?

How Will the “Age of Big Data” Affect Management?

organized. Other facts are generated by so-called digital sensors operating worldwide in industrial equipment, autos, and the like. By linking the sensors, an "industrial Internet" can be created. These trends appear to have "opportunity"... View Details

Keywords: Re: James L. Heskett

15 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Rethinking E-Leadership

gets you through such times. 4. Design your culture primarily around the needs of Gen X and Gen Y employees. "E-leadership demands heroic behavior," writes Nextera consultant Susan Annunzio in eLeadership: Proven Techniques for Creating an Environment of... View Details

Keywords: by Melissa Raffoni

06 Nov 2019
Op-Ed

Torched Planet: The Business Case to Reinvent Almost Everything

School’s Digital Initiative under the title Sustainability is an Innovation Problem. About the Author Rebecca M. Henderson is the John and Natty McArthur University Professor at Harvard University, where she has a joint appointment at the... View Details

Keywords: by Rebecca Henderson; Energy

October 2015
Case

Facebook: The First Ten Years

By: Shane Greenstein, Marco Iansiti and Christine Snively

Facebook celebrated its ten year anniversary in February 2014. Over the past decade it has grown into the largest social network in the world with one billion users. After filing an IPO in 2012 at a $104 billion valuation (the third largest IPO in U.S. history), the... View Details

Keywords: Social Networks; Technology; Facebook; Entrepreneurship; Profit; Open Source Distribution; Social and Collaborative Networks; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Internet and the Web; Digital Platforms; Social Media; Information Technology Industry

21 Jul 2015
First Look

First Look: July 21, 2015

acquisitions of companies that were important providers of transaction software in the retail and hospitality industries. Now, in late November 2013, Nuti and his team were considering a third potential major acquisition: Digital Insight,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 Oct 2007
HBS Case

Marketing Maria: Managing the Athlete Endorsement

possesses a number of qualities that fit with its PowerShot digital camera brand." Fortunately, one of my students, Margarita Golod came to the rescue and connected me with Maria Sharapova. Sharapova was the ideal study subject in... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Sports

August 2020 (Revised January 2022)
Case

1928 Diagnostics: Fighting Antibiotics Resistance

By: Ariel D. Stern and Daniela Beyersdorfer

In 2019, the co-founders of the Swedish medical start-up 1928 Diagnostics, CEO Dr. Kristina Lagerstedt and COO Dr. Susanne Staaf, had to pick the right business model to commercialize their novel technology to hospitals and health care providers. Developed in... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Entrepreneurship; Leadership; Science-Based Business; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Information Technology; Digital Platforms; Health Disorders; Market Entry and Exit; Value Creation; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Health Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Technology Industry; Europe; Sweden

April 2024 (Revised July 2024)
Case

Unleashing Human Magic at Best Buy

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger, Sunil Gupta and Amram Migdal

The case examines the transformation of Best Buy under CEO Hubert Joly's leadership from 2012. Facing significant business challenges, including competition from online and physical retailers, Joly implemented the "Renew Blue" turnaround strategy, which focused on... View Details