Publications

2024
Working Paper

The Operational Impact of Customer Location in On-Demand Services

By: Natalie Epstein, Santiago Gallino and Antonio Moreno

The rapid growth of on-demand delivery services, particularly in the food and grocery sectors, has driven the expansion of hyperlocal fulfillment centers (FCs). This paper uses data from an on-demand grocery delivery platform in Latin America to assess how customer... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Behavior; Logistics; Geographic Location; Service Delivery; Quality; Retail Industry; Latin America

SSRN

September–October 2024
Article

How AI Can Power Brand Management

By: Julian De Freitas and Elie Ofek

Marketers have begun experimenting with AI to improve their brand-management efforts. But unlike other marketing tasks, brand management involves more than just repeatedly executing one specialized function. Long considered the exclusive domain of creative talent, it... View Details

Keywords: Creativity; AI and Machine Learning; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Customer Focus and Relationships

2023
Working Paper

Do Third-Party Guarantors Reassure Foot Soldiers?

By: Natalia Garbiras-Díaz, Michael Weintraub, Leopoldo Fergusson, Juana Catalina Garcia Duque and Laia Balcells

Since the end of the Cold War, international third parties such as the United Nations (UN) have become frequent guarantors of peace agreements. Existing studies document that third parties provide assurances that help maintain peace, yet these studies nearly... View Details

Keywords: United Nations; Colombia; Peacemaking; Peace Process; Peace; Civil Unrest; Civil Society; Political Leadership; Policy; Civil Society or Community; Governance; Government and Politics; Economy; Economic Growth; Latin America; South America; Colombia

Read Now

April 2016 (Revised June 2017)
Teaching Note

Dollar General Bids for Family Dollar

By: Jonas Heese, Paula A. Price and Suraj Srinivasan

In spring 2015, Dollar General CEO Rick Dreiling was looking ahead to retiring at year's end but worried about ensuring continued growth for the company he had built since 2008 into a market leader in the U.S. discount retail world. Dollar General operated over 11,500... View Details

Keywords: Dollar General; Family Dollar; Dollar Tree; Antitrust; Board Of Directors; Activist Investors; Federal Trade Commission; Acquisition; Valuation; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry

14 Jun 2023
Research & Ideas

Four Steps to Building the Psychological Safety That High-Performing Teams Need

Perks like remote work or unlimited vacation time might be nice, but when it comes to true fulfillment in a post-pandemic workscape, psychological safety is essential. Harvard Business School Professor Amy C. Edmondson coined the term... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin

18 Sep 2013
Working Paper Summaries

What Do We Know About Corporate Headquarters? A Review, Integration, and Research Agenda

Keywords: by Markus Menz, Sven Kunisch & David J. Collis

February 1999
Case

Volant Skis

By: Steven C. Wheelwright and Matt Verlinden

Volant brought innovation to the ski equipment industry in 1989 by developing a stainless steel ski. He claimed the skis could turn more easily, could hold an edge in icy conditions, and were more stable than aluminum or fiberglass skis. The company's "soft-flex"... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Operations; Product Development; Performance Improvement; Quality; Corporate Strategy; Value Creation

2025
Working Paper

The Cybernetic Teammate: A Field Experiment on Generative AI Reshaping Teamwork and Expertise

By: Fabrizio Dell'Acqua, Charles Ayoubi, Hila Lifshitz, Raffaella Sadun, Ethan Mollick, Lilach Mollick, Yi Han, Jeff Goldman, Hari Nair, Stew Taub and Karim R. Lakhani

We examine how artificial intelligence transforms the core pillars of collaboration— performance, expertise sharing, and social engagement—through a pre-registered field experiment with 776 professionals at Procter & Gamble, a global consumer packaged goods company.... View Details

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence; Teamwork; Human-machine Interaction; Productivity; Skills; Innovation; Field Experiment; AI and Machine Learning; Groups and Teams; Competency and Skills; Performance Productivity; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Product Development

SSRN

19 May 2009
First Look

First Look: May 19, 2009

Working PapersDon't Just Survive—Thrive: Leading Innovation in Good Times and Bad (revised) Authors:Lynda M. Applegate and Bruce Harreld Abstract Battered by contracting markets and frozen credit, many businesses today are fighting for survival. Indeed, the current... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

November 2015 (Revised October 2017)
Case

Dollar General Bids for Family Dollar

By: Jonas Heese, Paula A. Price, Suraj Srinivasan and David Lane

In spring 2015, Dollar General's CEO Rick Dreiling was looking ahead to retiring at year's end but worried about ensuring continued growth for the company he had built since 2008 into a market leader in the U.S. discount retail world. Dollar General operated over... View Details

Keywords: Dollar General; Family Dollar; Dollar Tree; Antitrust; Board Of Directors; Activist Investors; Federal Trade Commission; Acquisition; Valuation; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry; United States

October 2014
Supplement

Quiet Logistics (B)

By: Robert Simons and Natalie Kindred

This two-part case focuses on how to identify and manage strategic uncertainties in an innovative, entrepreneurial start-up company. In the (A) case, students learn about Quiet Logistics, an e-commerce fulfillment company working with high-end apparel retailers such as... View Details

09 Sep 2009
First Look

First Look: September 9

Working PapersOperational Failures and Problem Solving: An Empirical Study of Incident Reporting Authors:Julia Adler-Milstein, Sara J. Singer, and Michael W. Toffel Abstract Operational failures occur in all industries with consequences that range from minor... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

14 Feb 2011
Research & Ideas

Clay Christensen’s Milkshake Marketing

half hour as the children tried to work the milkshake through a straw. In that case, a different, thinner milkshake was in order. Proven Success And Purpose Branding Several major companies that have succeeded with a jobs-to-be-done mechanism: FedEx, for example, View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Retail; Service; Consumer Products; Food & Beverage

28 Jan 2019
Research & Ideas

Forget Cash. Here Are Better Ways to Motivate Employees

is not expensive for a company to do and makes the act of appreciation in the workplace habitual and easy, Whillans says. “It also builds social connections in a workplace, which helps people feel more fulfilled at work.” Make the... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

October 2011 (Revised May 2015)
Case

The American Repertory Theater

By: Rohit Deshpande, Allen S. Grossman and Ryan Johnson

When Diane Paulus, artistic director and CEO of the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) first started in 2008, she attracted media coverage around an aesthetic that aimed to give the audience more ownership over the theater experience, excited theatergoers by... View Details

Keywords: Advertising Campaigns; Arts; Business Model; Leading Change; Media; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Nonprofit Organizations; Competitive Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; North and Central America

Fall 2018
Article

The Value of Fit Information in Online Retail: Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment

By: Santiago Gallino and Antonio Moreno

Online channels generate frictions when selling products with nondigital attributes, such as apparel. Customers may be reluctant to purchase products they have not been able to try on, and those customers who do purchase may return products when they do not fit as... View Details

Keywords: Supply Chain Information; Fit Uncertainty; Online Retail; Randomized Field Experiment; Virtual Fitting Room; Digital Retail; Customization and Personalization; Internet and the Web; Value; Performance Improvement; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Retail Industry

Find at Harvard

September 2023 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Kaspi.kz: Building Trust through Innovation

By: Sandra J. Sucher, Fares Khrais and Marilyn Morgan Westner

This case is written to help students explore how companies can maintain and develop trust while innovating, how to identify and respond effectively to warning signs that they may not be as trusted as they believe, and how being trusted can aid in expanding and growing... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Organizational Culture; Trust; Technology Adoption; Innovation and Invention; Banking Industry

2013
Book

What You're Really Meant To Do: A Road Map for Reaching Your Unique Potential

By: Robert Steven Kaplan

How do you create your own definition of success—and reach your unique potential? Building a fulfilling life and career can be a daunting challenge. It takes courage and hard work. Too often, we charge down a path leading to "success" as defined by those around us—and... View Details

Keywords: Career Planning; Vocational Guidance; Job Satisfaction; Satisfaction; Personal Development and Career; Customization and Personalization