Publications

February 2011
Exercise

Pitch Your Project!

By: Thomas Steenburgh

No matter what you do later in your career, you are going to have to learn how to pitch ideas. Perhaps you will want to convince a venture capitalist to invest in your new business idea. Perhaps you will want to convince your company to develop an innovative product.... View Details

Keywords: Business Plan; Change; Venture Capital; Governing and Advisory Boards; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Marketing; Product Development; Interests; Complexity; Chicago; New York (state, US)

28 Feb 2023
Research & Ideas

Can Apprenticeships Work in the US? Employers Seeking New Talent Pipelines Take Note

Many American companies have made a four-year degree a default qualification for entry-level jobs, elevating an expensive university education—with a smattering of internship experience—above paths that might prepare young talent for today’s workforce better. In a new... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

Teaching Interest

Strategy

Strategic management focuses on the concept of strategy analysis, formulation, and implementation by exploring the functions and nature of general management. The course serves as an opportunity to develop skills for strategic thinking and analysis, leadership,... View Details

2016
Working Paper

Global Talent Flows

By: Sari Pekkala Kerr, William R. Kerr, Çağlar Özden and Christopher Parsons

The global distribution of talent is highly skewed and the resources available to countries to develop and utilize their best and brightest vary substantially. The migration of skilled workers across countries tilts the deck even further. Using newly available data, we... View Details

Keywords: Migration; Talent; Diaspora; Diasporas; Talent and Talent Management; Immigration

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September 1993 (Revised January 1997)
Case

Serengeti Eyewear: Entrepreneurship Within Corning, Inc.

By: David A. Garvin and Jonathan West

An entrepreneurial division within Corning, Serengeti Eyewear, has grown rapidly in its brief 10-year history. Now it must decide whether to launch a new line of sunglasses and take on the industry leader. The company has prospered by developing and cultivating... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Design; Management Style; Competitive Strategy; Customer Relationship Management; Employee Relationship Management; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Talent and Talent Management; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Manufacturing Industry

03 May 2022
Research & Ideas

Desperate for Talent? Consider Advancing Your Own Employees First

Job openings in the United States continue to hover at record high levels, exacerbated by the Great Resignation and a sputtering emergence from the pandemic. Competition remains fierce among companies struggling to find qualified workers. Yet many employers,... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

May 2006
Module Note

Leading Culturally Diverse Teams

By: Robin J. Ely

Describes the Leading Culturally Diverse Teams module (eight class sessions), which teaches students the leadership perspectives and skills necessary to develop high-functioning, culturally diverse teams (teams diverse in, for example, race, ethnicity, gender,... View Details

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Diversity; Leadership; Groups and Teams; Perspective; Culture

Teaching Interest

Startup Operations

Startup Operations is designed to provide hands-on guidance through the early stages of building your business. Students will test assumptions and hypotheses to evolve their product, build their strategic and operating roadmaps, create organizational plans and... View Details

Research Summary

Experiential Learning and Knowledge Mentors

By: Dorothy A. Leonard

Dorothy Leonard’s research on innovation and knowledge transfer has always emphasized learning by doing. During the past several years, she has been exploring how organizations can foster faster skills learning. While there are generational differences in... View Details

Article

Leadership in Routine Emergencies and Crises: The Deepwater Horizon Incident

By: Arnold M. Howitt, Dutch Leonard and David W. Giles

Leadership in emergencies is a crucial element of becoming a high-performing Coast Guard officer. In this article, we argue that emergency leadership is not a single skill or uniform set of organizational competences. Instead, we identify a spectrum of emergency... View Details

Keywords: Emergency Preparedness; Crisis Management; Leadership; Safety; Performance Effectiveness

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November 2015 (Revised May 2016)
Case

Aspiring Minds

By: Karim R. Lakhani, Marco Iansiti and Christine Snively

By 2015, India-based employment assessment and certification provider Aspiring Minds had helped facilitate over 300,000 job matches through its assessment tools. Aspiring Minds' flagship product, the Aspiring Minds Computer Adaptive Test (AMCAT), used machine learning... View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Strategy; Higher Education; Technological Innovation; Employment; Technology Industry; India; China

February 1985 (Revised September 1988)
Case

Komatsu Ltd.

By: Christopher A. Bartlett

Reviews and updates the structure and characteristics of the earth-moving equipment industry presented in the companion case, Caterpillar Tractor Co. After revealing that CAT has suffered major financial losses during the period from 1981 through 1984, the case... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Machinery and Machining; Price; Growth and Development; Brands and Branding; Product Development; Production; Competitive Strategy; Global Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Industrial Products Industry

2015
Chapter

Design Thinking and Innovative Problem Solving

By: Srikant Datar and Caitlin N. Bowler

In 2012 we set out to answer two key questions. Can anyone, including MBAs and executives with superb analytical skills, learn to think more innovatively? If so, how might we go about developing these skills? Through close collaboration with individuals from major... View Details

Keywords: Design Thinking; Problem Solving; Innovation; Design; Innovation and Invention; Cognition and Thinking

February 1992 (Revised January 2002)
Case

BMW: The 7-Series Project (A)

By: Gary P. Pisano

Explores BMW's decision about how to manufacture prototype vehicles. Historically, BMW's prototypes were handcrafted by highly skilled artisans in the company's shop. A proposal has been made to alter the process so that prototypes are made in a way that can better... View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Research and Development; Design; Production; Strategy; Quality; Decision Making; Auto Industry; Manufacturing Industry; Germany

Fall 2016
Article

Global Talent Flows

By: Sari Pekkala Kerr, William R. Kerr, Çağlar Özden and Christopher Parsons

The global distribution of talent is highly skewed and the resources available to countries to develop and utilize their best and brightest vary substantially. The migration of skilled workers across countries tilts the deck even further. Using newly available data, we... View Details

Keywords: Geographic Location; Human Capital; Entrepreneurship; Global Range; Competency and Skills; Immigration

Read Now

June 2023 (Revised October 2024)
Teaching Note

Clash of Two Giants Simulation Exercise Teaching Note

By: Feng Zhu

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 623-092. Many markets are organized around platforms that connect consumers with complimentary applications and services. These platforms are two-sided because both sides—consumers and those providing applications or services—need access... View Details

Keywords: Platform Strategy; Customer Acquisition; Technology Platform; Competitive Strategy; Network Effects; Digital Platforms; Management Skills