Mission and Purpose - Publications - Faculty & Research

25 May 2011
HBS Case

QuikTrip’s Investment in Retail Employees Pays Off

year visiting stores and employees and personally responds to any e-mail they send him." All of these factors have made QuikTrip a regular on Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For. Yet the company's... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail

21 Dec 2011
Research & Ideas

The Most Common Strategy Mistakes

"Michael Porter didn't get to be a giant in the field of competition and strategy by hunting small game." Joan Magretta begins her new book on Harvard Business School's Michael Porter's work by noting that, from the start of his... View Details

Keywords: by Joan Magretta

12 Sep 2022
Research & Ideas

When Experts Play It Too Safe: Innovation Lessons from a NASA Experiment

for the US space agency’s Astrobee system in 2018. Entries proposed solutions to technical issues with a robotic arm for Astrobee, a free-flying robot that handles inventory, documents astronauts’ experiments, and moves cargo. Astrobee is... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Aerospace

2014
Working Paper

Better Deals Through Level II Strategies: Advance Your Interests by Helping to Solve Their Internal Problems

By: James K. Sebenius

Many negotiators have constituencies that must formally or informally approve an agreement. Traditionally, it is the responsibility of each negotiator to manage the internal conflicts and constituencies on his or her own side. Far less familiar are the many valuable... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Negotiation Tactics; Negotiation Participants; Negotiation Style

Citation

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05 Mar 2024

Student Perspectives: Spotlight on the Women's Student Association

It's Women's History Month! Join us for a panel discussion highlighting members of the Women's Student Association (WSA) at Harvard Business School. The WSA is a student-led organization for women in business, with a mission to connect,... View Details

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About - Race, Gender & Equity

Initiative whose mission is to accelerate the advancement of women leaders and promote gender and other forms of equity in business and society... View Details

28 Feb 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

Master the Team Meeting

are my tips on mastering the team meeting. Meeting Purpose Set a clear purpose for your team meeting. What do you want your team to get out of the time spent together? Do you want them to stay informed about... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Austin

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Executive Education - Global

Executive Education For nearly 75 years, Harvard Business School Executive Education has been fulfilling its mission of educating leaders who shape the practice of business and innovation around the world.... View Details

31 Oct 2018
What Do You Think?

What is the Function of Fear in Leadership?

high standards, commanded great respect, and the fear he created was entirely purposeful and positive.” John Hudson stated, “(It is) hard to find a business without fear of... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

January 2023 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Elon Musk at Tesla

By: George Serafeim and Amram Migdal

This case gives an overview of Elon Musk’s career arc through the lens of the 2003 founding of Tesla and its growth through 2022. Background information is included on Tesla’s unique strategic decisions, its operational and reputational struggles and successes, and the... View Details

Citation

Educators

Purchase

10 Aug 2009
Research & Ideas

High Commitment, High Performance Management

high commitment, high performance company. Martha Lagace: What differentiates HCHP firms and their leaders? Michael Beer: The leaders manage with a multiple stakeholder perspective. Contrary to many CEOs, HCHP leaders—with support from... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

09 Nov 2023
Blog Post

The No. 1 Character Trait You Will Need to Succeed in Business

purpose is just an act of futility,” as Joe Almeida, CEO of Baxter International, explained when I asked him what advice he would give to young people who wanted to cultivate a sense of courage. “When you are inexperienced, View Details

17 Sep 2012
Research & Ideas

Blue Skies, Distractions Arise: How Weather Affects Productivity

tends to be sunny one day and overcast the next. The purpose of the lab study was to determine whether the distraction created by the temptation of outside activities was indeed what caused a decrease in... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

09 Mar 2023
Blog Post

African American Student Union Spotlight on Joint Degrees

scaling its impact. This led me to seek out opportunities that would allow me to integrate my knowledge of technology, life sciences, and business. When I learned about the MS/MBA joint degree programs in Engineering Science View Details

Portrait Project

Jerome Fulton, Jr.

memory of my mother and dedicated to helping high school students impacted by gun violence. To date, I have awarded fifteen students over $15,000 in grants and scholarships. As I ascend, I will continue... View Details

12 Oct 2022
Blog Post

11 Stories from HBS PRIDE for National Coming Out Day

freaked out, but I had purposely limited the time for uncomfortable Q&A. I kept my phone off for some weeks to remove the hassle. I would still consider publicly coming out to be the easier step, at least compared to fully embracing... View Details

15 Sep 2021
Research & Ideas

Don't Bring Me Down: Probing Why People Tune Out Bad News

out negative information so they can plead ignorance and continue harmful behavior. Indeed, it may seem like people are purposely avoiding information to create an “excuse” that frees them from the... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

27 May 2022
Blog Post

Q&A with the HBS Armed Forces Alumni Association, MBA Class of 2023

The Armed Forces Alumni Association (AFAA) is a student-led club on campus for service members and veterans from all military branches and nations. The AFAA mission is to help... View Details

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Clubs - Business & Environment

expose the HBS community to a broad range of real estate industry topics, & provide social, career-oriented, & professional networking opportunities. Social Enterprise Club The mission of the Social Enterprise Club is to inspire, educate... View Details

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Executive Education | Social Enterprise | Harvard Business School

nonprofit CEOs and executive directors to lead their organizations effectively, this program provides a conceptual approach to shape the direction, mission, policies, and major programs of nonprofit... View Details

Publications