Publications
Publications
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- All HBS Web
(10,198)
- Faculty Publications (1,982)
- January 1998 (Revised September 2000)
- Case
Neiman Marcus (A)
By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Marie Bell
The management of Neiman Marcus, a highly successful luxury goods retailer, is considering ways to grow the business and continue to return in excess of 15% on capital. Among the options on the table is a jewelry store concept called The Galleries. View Details
- January 1998 (Revised February 2006)
- Background Note
Creating Competitive Advantage
By: Pankaj Ghemawat and Jan W. Rivkin
A firm such as Schering-Plough that earns superior, long-run financial returns within its industry is said to enjoy a competitive advantage over its rivals. This note examines the logic of how firms create competitive advantage. It emphasizes two themes: First, to... View Details
- January 1998 (Revised November 2003)
- Case
Morgan Stanley and S.G. Warburg: Investment Bank of the Future (A)
By: James K. Sebenius and David T. Kotchen
Describes secretive negotiations that took place between the top executives of Morgan Stanley and S.G. Warburg in the fall of 1994, when the two firms were contemplating a merger that would create one of the world's most powerful investment banks. By December, in order... View Details
- January – February 1998
- Article
How High Is Your Return on Management?
By: R. Simons and Antonio Davila
Keywords: Management
- December 1997 (Revised September 1998)
- Case
Yale University Investments Office: November 1997
By: Josh Lerner
David Swensen, chief investment officer at Yale University, reviews the $6 billion endowment strategy, which places an unusually heavy emphasis on private equity and other illiquid securities. Changing market conditions in November 1997 cause him to rethink... View Details
- November 1997 (Revised December 1999)
- Case
Cinemex
By: James L. Heskett
The founders of Cinemex, the largest capitalized venture start-up in Mexican history, are debating several issues concerning the operations of their new chain of motion picture theatres in Mexico City. The first concerns whether some seats should be left unsold to... View Details
- September 1997 (Revised October 1997)
- Case
French Pension System, The: On the Verge of Retirement?
By: David A. Moss, Anne Dias and Bertrand O. Stephann
Surveys the French pension system, its particular institutional characteristics, and some of the critical challenges and opportunities facing French reformers. Like almost every other industrialized country, France has a large pay-as-you-go public pension system that... View Details
- September 1997
- Background Note
Note on Political Risk Analysis
By: Debora L. Spar
Describes the emergence and subsequent decline of the political risk analysis industry. Discusses what political risk means for multinational firms and various ways in which firms have tried to analyze and grapple with these risks. View Details
- July 1997 (Revised August 1997)
- Case
numeric investors l.p.
By: Andre F. Perold and Brian J. Tierney
Numeric Investors manages equity portfolios with the use of a momentum model and a value model. The momentum model is based on earnings surprise and analysts' revisions of their earnings estimates. The firm offers long-short as well as long-only strategies, and its... View Details
- July 1997
- Article
National Champions and Corruption: Some Unpleasant Interventionist Arithmetic
By: Alberto Ades and Rafael Di Tella
We present a hold-up model of investment where active industrial policy promotes both corruption and investment. Since corruption deters investment, the effect of industrial policy on investment is lower than when corruption is absent. We find evidence suggesting that... View Details
Keywords: Crime and Corruption
- June 1997 (Revised February 2000)
- Case
Walker and Company: Profit Plan Decisions
By: Robert L. Simons and Ramsey Walker
Ramsey Walker, a second-year MBA student, must decide how to control a family business as an absentee owner. After providing background details on the publishing industry, the case requires the reader to: 1) make a product segmentation decision; 2) prepare a profit... View Details
- June 1997 (Revised February 2012)
- Case
The Union Carbide Deal (Abridged)
By: Thomas J. DeLong
On November 3, 1986, after a three-hour board of directors meeting, Union Carbide decided to accept First Boston's proposal to embark on a $2.5 billion recapitalization program. Jameson and his associates' efforts had paid off. Jameson had reason to be excited: He had... View Details
- April 1997
- Background Note
Note on Value Drivers
By: Benjamin C. Esty
Presents a framework for analyzing strategic decisions. Takes as given the practice of value-based management whereby managers use value as a primary criterion when making financial, strategic, or investment decisions. Through a simple valuation model, it shows how... View Details
Keywords: Decisions; Equity; Financial Strategy; Investment; Profit; Framework; Growth Management; Value Creation
- March 1997 (Revised August 2017)
- Case
Compagnie du Froid, S.A.
By: Robert Simons and Antonio Dávila
The owner of an ice cream company must evaluate the performance of three regional businesses. To do the analysis, students must flex the budget by seasonal temperature; calculate revenue, volume, price, and efficiency variances; analyze the effects of transfer prices;... View Details
- March 1997 (Revised November 2013)
- Case
Purity Steel Corporation, 2012
By: Robert L. Simons and Antonio Davila
Managers introduce a new performance evaluation system based on sales growth and return-on-investment (ROI). A branch manager wonders whether his new warehouse should be leased to mitigate the impact on ROI. Formulas and performance calculations are provided. A... View Details
- February 1997 (Revised March 1998)
- Case
Smith Breeden Associates: The Equity Plus Fund (A)
By: Robert C. Merton and Alberto Moel
In early 1997, Smith Breeden Associates, a money management and consulting firm, was pondering the future of the Equity Plus Fund. The Equity Plus Fund was an S&P enhanced-index fund that tried to outperform the S&P Index by replicating the index using low-cost... View Details
- February 1997 (Revised April 1997)
- Case
Harrington Financial Group
By: Robert C. Merton and Alberto Moel
In early 1997, Harrington Bank, a small Indiana savings and loan (thrift) wondered what its next move should be. Harrington was acquired in 1988 by the principals of Smith Breeden Associates, a money-management and consulting firm specializing in the application of... View Details
- October 1996 (Revised March 2011)
- Background Note
Note on Valuation in Private Equity Settings, A
By: Josh Lerner and John Willinge
This note discusses several ways in which venture-backed firms can be valued, including comparables, net present value, decision-tree analysis, and the "venture capital method." View Details
- October 1996 (Revised April 2011)
- Module Note
Venture Capital and Private Equity: Module I
By: Josh Lerner, G. Felda Hardymon and Ann Leamon
Provides an overview of a module that focuses on how private equity funds are raised and structured. View Details
- October 1996 (Revised May 2011)
- Module Note
Venture Capital and Private Equity: Module II
By: Josh Lerner, G. Felda Hardymon and Ann Leamon
Provides an overview of a module that focuses on the interaction between private equity investors and the firms they finance. View Details