Publications

September 1993
Supplement

Manufacturing at ALZA: The Right Prescription? (B)

By: Dorothy A. Leonard

ALZA, a drug delivery company, must decide what and for whom to manufacture. In the past, it has licensed to pharmaceutical companies its patented system for the slow release of drugs into the human system. Therefore the company has little experience in choice of drug... View Details

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Decision Choices and Conditions; Patents; Production; Pharmaceutical Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

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August 2023 (Revised May 2024)
Case

Dicerna Pharmaceuticals: Decision Making in Clinical Trial Design and Operations

By: Satish Tadikonda and Amanda McEwen

The success or failure of Dicerna Pharmaceuticals (Dicerna) as an emerging pharmaceutical company would likely hinge on its lead drug candidate Nedosiran and the company’s ability to see it successfully through clinical development. Ralf Rosskamp, Chief Medical... View Details

Keywords: Business Strategy; Health Testing and Trials; Product Development; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Pharmaceutical Industry

February 2015 (Revised November 2015)
Supplement

Building an Integrated Biopharma Company: Crucell (B)

By: Richard G. Hamermesh, Marianne Van Der Steen and Susan Harmeling

The Crucell (B) case updates events at Crucell since 2009. In September, 2009, Johnson & Johnson acquired 18% of Crucell for $400 million. This investment was part of a business development deal. Subsequently, in 2012, Johnson & Johnson acquired Crucell for $2.8... View Details

Keywords: Biotechnology; Biopharmacy Company; Licensing Agreements In Biopharmacy; Licensing; Human Cell-line Technology; Vaccine; Healthcare Innovation; Global Health; Entrepreneurship; Health Care and Treatment; Acquisition; Innovation and Invention; Pharmaceutical Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

March 1994 (Revised March 1995)
Case

Astra/Merck Group

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Marie Bell

Astra/Merck (A/M), originally a joint venture of AB Astra and Merck & Co., is preparing to be an independent company in 1993. Since the company does not engage in basic research and development of drugs, it is essentially a distribution organization. Fundamental to... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Marketing Strategy; Distribution; Performance Evaluation; Research and Development; Risk and Uncertainty; Sales; Competitive Strategy; Pharmaceutical Industry

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14 Jul 2021
Blog Post

From Colombia to the District of Columbia: Making an Impact with Paulina Llano (MBA 2022)

herself in Boston at Harvard Business School and is spending the summer interning for a Cambridge-based pharmaceutical and biotech company that has become a household name – Moderna. The contributions Llano... View Details

Keywords: Health Care

22 Sep 2015
News

Should Bank of America's CEO also be the chairman?

Video

Said Darwazah

Said Darwazah, Executive Chairman and CEO of Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC, argues that transitioning to a publicly held company ensures the continuity of a previously family-owned business. View Details

03 Apr 2006
Research & Ideas

The Competitive Advantage of Global Finance

In the process, he shows how organizations can best equip themselves to take advantage of potential sources of competitive advantage that arise in the global setting. In International Finance: A Casebook, Desai provides case studies on how large View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Financial Services

January 2011 (Revised January 2012)
Case

The Case of the Unidentified Healthcare Companies2010

By: Richard Bohmer, Ethan Bernstein, Margarita Krivitski and Srinidhi Reddy

This case presents financial statements and selected ratios for 14 unidentified healthcare organizations and asks that each set of financial information be matched with one of the following healthcare companies: a biotechnology firm, a community nursing company, a... View Details

Keywords: Financial Reporting; Financial Statements; Health Care and Treatment; Health Industry

11 Oct 2010
Research & Ideas

It Pays to Hire Women in Countries That Won’t

Call it corporate alchemy. New research finds that multinational companies can spin gender bias into gold by recruiting and hiring well-educated female managers in countries that traditionally discriminate... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

01 Oct 2011
News

Resistance Is Futile

26 Apr 2010
News

Pharma's Future Depends on These Three Trends

September 2014 (Revised February 2015)
Case

Pfizer and AstraZeneca: Marketing an Acquisition (A)

By: John A. Quelch and James Weber

In 2014, Pfizer proposed a friendly acquisition of AstraZeneca, but the AstraZeneca board resisted over price and strategy concerns. Was this good for pharmaceutical consumers? Pfizer, like pharmaceutical companies in general, faced difficulties in growing sales due to... View Details

Keywords: Health Care Policy; Mergers And Acquisitions; Marketing; Government Relations; Crisis Management; Decision Making; Growth and Development; Management; Markets; Strategy; Pharmaceutical Industry; United Kingdom; United States

09 Nov 2011
News

Resistance Is Futile

06 May 2014
News

Pfizer's bid for AstraZeneca: It's time to reform the U.S. corporate tax system

13 Nov 2012
First Look

First Look: November 13

finds that academic commentary on the BSC often ignores its role in strategy execution. The paper discusses how the BSC can be used in public sector applications, as well as for companies that want to internalize environmental, social,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

February 2017
Supplement

JCDecaux, 2016: Global Leader ... Again

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In 2016, JCDecaux was number one in the world in outdoor advertising. This was a far cry from the situation in 2003; at that time, JCDecaux had been unseated by Clear Channel from the number-one spot that it had held for decades, and it was fighting for second place... View Details

Keywords: JCDecaux; Clear Channel Outdoor; OUTFRONT Media; Lamar Advertising Company; Jean-François Decaux; Jean-Charles Decaux; Outdoor Advertising; Street Furniture; Airports; Billboards; Bicycles; Digital Devices; Digital Marketing; Bidding; Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; Family Business; For-Profit Firms; Joint Ventures; Design; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Global Range; Globalization; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Government Legislation; Business History; Human Resources; Laws and Statutes; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Product Marketing; Demand and Consumers; Supply and Industry; Operations; Distribution; Infrastructure; Logistics; Product; Product Design; Production; Organizational Structure; Property; Public Ownership; Renting or Rental; Problems and Challenges; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Family and Family Relationships; Sales; Situation or Environment; Luxury; Strategy; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Consolidation; Corporate Strategy; Customization and Personalization; Expansion; Segmentation; Mobile Technology; Wireless Technology; Air Transportation; Bicycle Transportation; Rail Transportation; Transportation Networks; Advertising Industry; France; Paris

October 2016 (Revised February 2017)
Teaching Note

Alvogen

By: Daniel Isenberg, William R. Kerr and Alexis Brownell

Alvogen is an Icelandic pharmaceutical company that makes and sells generic drugs. Founder and CEO Robert Wessman is deciding whether to take on private equity investors willing to buy out all shareholders, merge with a large and publicly-traded US pharmaceutical... View Details

Keywords: Biotechnology; Globalization; Entrepreneurship; Biotechnology Industry

January 2001
Case

Abgenix and the XenoMouse

By: Robert J. Dolan

Abgenix has a unique method for generating antibodies useful in treating a number of diseases, including cancer. In early 2000, the company's cancer has performed very well in animal testing and is moving to early stage human testing. Abgenix must decide whether to... View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Marketing Strategy; Health Testing and Trials; Risk and Uncertainty; Technological Innovation; Innovation Strategy; Science-Based Business; Biotechnology Industry