Publications

July 2005 (Revised April 2006)
Case

Idea Village (A)

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and Dan Heath

Andy Khubani, the CEO of Idea Village, a company that markets to consumers via direct-response TV ads, must decide whether to launch a campaign touting a hair removal product for women. Explains the direct-response industry and contrasts its methodology with... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Channels; Gender; Consumer Products Industry

21 Jun 2018
Video

KPMA HBX Live: Cracking the Data Aggregation Problem - Paul Giusti

28 Jul 2020
Video

Sizwe Nxasana

Sizwe Nxasana, the founding partner of SizweNtsalubaGobodo, the largest Black accounting firm in South Africa, as well as the former CEO of Telkom and FirstRand Group, describes the actions he took to develop a... View Details

23 Oct 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, October 23, 2018

construct narratives explaining the dynamics of three nascent technical systems: early aircraft, high-speed steel in machine tools, and container shipping. Download working paper: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=55140 Assessing the Impact of View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

March 2024 (Revised April 2024)
Case

Coursera's Foray into GenAI

By: Suraj Srinivasan, Michael Parzen and Radhika Kak

In early 2023, Maggioncalda, CEO of US EdTech firm Coursera, launched Project Genesis to develop a strategy for incorporating GenAI capabilities into the firm's offerings, asking his teams to focus on value to the firm and cost of implementation. The team identified... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; AI and Machine Learning; Brands and Branding; Business Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Technological Innovation; Education Industry; Technology Industry; United States

October 2000 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Cost of Capital at Ameritrade

By: Mark L. Mitchell and Erik Stafford

Ameritrade Holding Corp. is planning large marketing and technology investments to improve the company's competitive position in deep-discount brokerage by taking advantage of emerging economies of scale. In order to evaluate whether the strategy would generate... View Details

Keywords: Developing Countries and Economies; Asset Pricing; Cash Flow; Cost of Capital; Investment; Marketing; Mathematical Methods; Competition; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Financial Services Industry

Research Summary

Management of Succession

By: Joseph L. Bower

An outgrowth of the work on the corporate office has been a more focused study on the management of succession. This work identified the reasons why the management of CEO succession has proved so difficult for so many companies as well as the way the best companies are... View Details

November 1993 (Revised April 2007)
Case

Continental Airlines--1992 (Abridged)

By: Stuart C. Gilson

The CEO is preparing a recommendation to the board regarding several potential outside investments in the company, which is currently operating in bankruptcy. In making his decision, the CEO has to consider various financial and strategic factors, including possible... View Details

Keywords: Capital Structure; Cash Flow; Cost of Capital; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Investment; Taxation; Risk and Uncertainty; Valuation; Aerospace Industry; United States

November 2013 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Man Jit Singh at Sony Entertainment Television (A)

By: Linda A. Hill, Dana M. Teppert and Allison J. Wigen

Explores the role of CEO Man Jit Singh and his senior management committee in leading Multi Screen Media Pvt. Ltd. (formerly SET Pvt. Ltd.), a leading television broadcaster in India. Describes Singh's decision to evaluate employees based on values as well as... View Details

Keywords: Performance Appraisals; Performance Management; Performance Evaluation; Leadership Style; Managerial Roles; Organizational Culture; Groups and Teams; Management Teams; Change Management; Decision Making; Emerging Markets; Media and Broadcasting Industry; India

28 Jun 2018
Cold Call Podcast

L.A. Philharmonic Shows the American Symphony Orchestra Isn’t Dead Yet

Keywords: Re: Rohit Deshpande; Entertainment & Recreation; Fine Arts

April 1984
Supplement

Johnson & Johnson (B): Hospital Services, James Burke, Video

By: Francis Aguilar

James Burke, chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson, discusses the decision to establish a hospital services company. The problem is that this new unit, created to serve 14 Johnson & Johnson companies, runs counter to the corporate culture where autonomy and... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Decision Making; Organizational Culture; Problems and Challenges; Health Industry

21 Jul 2021
News

A Conversation on Organizational Trust With Punit Renjen

20 Oct 2017
News

At GE, A New Urgency To Return To Industrial Roots

2010
Chapter

Women and Leadership: Defining the Challenges

By: Robin J. Ely and Deborah L. Rhode

We use the experience of Carly Fiorina as an introduction to the continued challenges faced by women in top leadership roles. Although Fiorina, on becoming CEO of Hewlett Packard in 1999, asserted that "there is not a glass ceiling," her memoir eight years later... View Details

Keywords: Prejudice and Bias; Leadership; Perception; Behavior; Attitudes; Gender

08 Nov 2018
Cold Call Podcast

Could Big Data Replace the Creative Director at the Gap?

Keywords: Re: Ayelet Israeli; Fashion; Retail

August 1999 (Revised October 2000)
Case

Millennium Media, Inc. and John Voorenberg

By: David A. Thomas

Millenium Media's CEO reviews the company diversity report and considers the challenges of maintaining a diverse workforce in light of the news that three individuals, two of whom are people of color, are leaving for opportunities with a competitor. View Details

Keywords: Diversity; Employee Relationship Management; Resignation and Termination; Retention; Leadership Style; Problems and Challenges; Competition

December 2021 (Revised May 2025)
Case

Bed Bath & Beyond: The New Strategy to Drive Shareholder Value

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel W. Fisher

At one time, Bed Bath & Beyond was one of the most successful specialty retailers in the United States—its growth and profit margins far exceeded both peer retailers in the home goods market as well as many other discount retailers. But in 2014, its stock price peaked,... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Value Creation; Diversification; Corporate Governance; Leading Change; Performance Evaluation; Valuation; Investment Activism; Retail Industry; Consumer Products Industry; United States

January 2017 (Revised March 2017)
Case

IBM Transforming, 2012–2016: Ginni Rometty Steers Watson

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jonathan Cohen

To transform IBM for the next technology wave, Ginni Rometty, who became CEO in 2012, led divestment of declining businesses, made acquisitions in digital innovation and cloud computing, formed partnerships with former competitors such as Apple and tech startups, and... View Details

Keywords: Digital; Technological Change; Artificial Intelligence; Data; IBM; Watson; Internet Of Things; Innovation and Invention; Management; Sales; Information Technology; Technological Innovation; Transformation; AI and Machine Learning

October 2018 (Revised January 2019)
Case

The Financial Crisis: Hank Paulson in 2008

By: Adi Sunderam, Robin Greenwood, Sam Hanson and David Scharfstein

On the afternoon of Monday October 13, 2008, Hank Paulson Jr., the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, walked into the large conference room across the hall from his office in the Treasury Department. Joining him were Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke,... View Details

Keywords: Bailout; Regulation; Financial Crisis; History; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Decision Making; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Real Estate Industry; United States