Publications

January 2007 (Revised July 2013)
Case

To JV or Not To JV? That Is the Question (for XTech in China)

By: Daniel J. Isenberg and Paul W. Marshall

XTech, a leading manufacturer of metal parts for the telecommunications industry, is being pushed by its large equipment vendor customers to establish a manufacturing operation in China. CEO Reinhold Hesse is debating several options: establishing a joint venture,... View Details

04 Feb 2025
Blog Post

Leadership with Purpose: Redefining Success and Impact with Satpal Singh (SELP—India 4, 2019)

more strategic and holistic lens. My career has continued to evolve since SELP—India. As Country Head of Supply Chain during the pandemic, I navigated operational complexities that taught me invaluable lessons in resilience and Later as View Details

June 2010
Article

The China Rules: A Practical Guide for CEOs Managing Multinational Corporations in the People's Republic

By: Lynn S. Paine

To achieve growth and profitability in the world's third-largest economy, multinationals need strong leadership--but China is tough on top executives. Pulsating with opportunity, China attracts foreigners, yet HR professionals continue to rank it as one of the most... View Details

Keywords: Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Multinational Firms and Management; Leadership; Management Skills; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Adaptation; China

Find at Harvard

08 Feb 2021
News

We asked a Harvard Business School professor to analyze Jeff Bezos' departure letter. Here's where it was successful

16 Feb 2021
Blog Post

The Rise of The Sixes: Interview with CEO and Founder Franci Girard

and is operationally sound.” On top of building out the business plan and managing manufacturing delays, one of the other challenges Girard faced as a new CEO was deciding what she was going to hire for and what she would do herself.... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Consumer Products / Retail

Web

Special Assistant to the CEO | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

Special Assistant to the CEO Sometimes the right role comes as a consequence of long hours dedicated to research, networking, and soul-searching. At other times, the stars simply align – and the wise person’s job is to recognize it. After... View Details

14 Jan 2014
News

Spreading the Seeds of Entrepreneurship

seeds of entrepreneurship among rural youth in America's heartland. Schultz is the founder and CEO of Agracel, an industrial development firm that focuses on rural America. Since 1986, Agracel, based in Effingham, Illinois, has completed... View Details

Keywords: CEO (Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities); Educational Services; Agriculture; Manufacturing

March 2022 (Revised October 2022)
Case

Transforming Kimball International, Inc. (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

Kimball International, Inc. (KII), led by CEO Kristie Juster, and its board of directors, chaired by Kim Ryan, faced critical questions about KII’s future in the spring of 2021. Two years earlier, the board had appointed Juster as the new CEO of KII, a publicly traded,... View Details

September 2018
Case

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice at 40

By: Josh Lerner, Abhijit Tagade and Terrence Shu

In 2018, private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice celebrated its 40th anniversary and its 20th year under the leadership of CEO Don Gogel. In those decades, CD&R showed solid portfolio performance and generated strong returns for its investors - accomplishments... View Details

Keywords: Finance; Succession; Buyout; Leveraged Buyout; Turnaround; Operations; Private Equity; Management Succession; Business Model; Leveraged Buyouts; Trends; Organizational Change and Adaptation

16 Feb 2021
Blog Post

The Rise of The Sixes: Interview with CEO and Founder Franci Girard

and is operationally sound.” On top of building out the business plan and managing manufacturing delays, one of the other challenges Girard faced as a new CEO was deciding what she was going to hire for and what she would do herself.... View Details

04 Apr 2022
What Do You Think?

As Disney Board Chair, What Would You Advise CEO Bob Chapek Regarding 'Don’t Say Gay'?

(Unsplash/Brian McGowan) Early in 2022, Bob Chapek, CEO of The Walt Disney Company—one of Florida’s largest employers with roughly 80,000 employees—and taxpayers, had reason to be satisfied with the company’s performance, having just... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

Web

Leadership with Purpose: Redefining Success and Impact with Satpal Singh (SELP—India 4, 2019) - Recruiting

Insights & Advice 05 Feb 2025 Leadership with Purpose: Redefining Success and Impact with Satpal Singh (SELP—India 4, 2019) tag All Industries All Locations Alumni Career Journeys Student & Alumni Stories When I joined the Senior... View Details

May 2015 (Revised March 2016)
Supplement

Thomas Cook Group on the Brink (C): Transformation Year 2 Results

By: Benjamin C. Esty

Analyzes the results of the Thomas Cook turnaround plan after the second year under Harriet Green's leadership (November 2014). View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Corporate Restructuring; Female Ceo; Transformation; Change Management; Communication Strategy; Cost Management; Financial Liquidity; Financial Management; Management Succession; Leading Change; Crisis Management; Value Creation; Leadership; Travel Industry; United Kingdom

March 2018
Case

Sachem Head's Activism at Autodesk

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher

In 2015, activist hedge fund Sachem Head Capital, led by founder Scott Ferguson, launched an activist campaign at computer aided design (CAD) software maker Autodesk. The activist campaign, waged mainly in private, was over Autodesk's lackluster financial performance,... View Details

Keywords: Shareholder Activism; Investing; Activist Investing; Technology; CEO Turnover; Hedge Fund Activism; Benchmarking; Corporate Governance; Information Technology; Investment Activism; Performance Improvement; Management Succession; United States

May 2015 (Revised March 2016)
Supplement

Thomas Cook Group on the Brink (B): Transformation Year 1 Results

By: Benjamin C. Esty

Analyzes the results of the Thomas Cook turnaround plan after the first year under Harriet Green's leadership (November 2013). View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Corporate Restructuring; Female Ceo; Transformation; Change Management; Communication Strategy; Cost Management; Financial Liquidity; Financial Management; Management Succession; Leading Change; Crisis Management; Value Creation; Leadership; Travel Industry; United Kingdom

December 2018
Case

CIR Group: Passing Wealth through the Generations

By: Lauren Cohen, Christopher J. Malloy and Elena Corsi

Rodolfo, Marco, and Edoardo De Benedetti had received from their father his controlling shares in COFIDE, a publicly listed holding company that held 45.8% of CIR Group, another publicly listed holding. The latter held majority shares in GEDI, Italy’s largest print... View Details

Keywords: Succession Planning; Transferring Shares; Wealth Management; Holding Structures; Family Ownership; Ownership Stake; Management Succession; Governing and Advisory Boards; Policy; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Health Industry; Italy

October 2022 (Revised December 2022)
Case

Reimagining Enel: Enabling Sustainable Progress

By: Michael L. Tushman and Kerry Herman

CEO Francesco Starace is considering what is next for Enel SpA, one of world's largest energy companies. From 2014 to 2022, he has wrought a dramatic transformation at Enel, restructuring the company's business units; redeploying senior talent across functions and... View Details

Keywords: Leadership; Leadership And Change Management; Leadership Style; Leadership Succession; Renewables; Energy; Transformation; Renewable Energy; Business Divisions; Digital Transformation; Restructuring; Organizational Structure; Energy Industry; Europe; Latin America; North America; Spain; Italy

March 2022
Supplement

Transforming Kimball International, Inc. (B)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

Supplements the (A) case. View Details