• Article

Competition for Scarce Resources

By: Peter Eso, Volker Nocke and Lucy White

We model a downstream industry where firms compete to buy capacity in an upstream market that allocates capacity efficiently. Although downstream firms have symmetric production technologies, we show that industry structure is symmetric only if capacity is sufficiently... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Natural Environment; Technology; Production; Business Cycles; Forecasting and Prediction; Cost; Demand and Consumers; Industry Structures; Performance Capacity

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Eso, Peter, Volker Nocke, and Lucy White. "Competition for Scarce Resources." RAND Journal of Economics 41, no. 3 (Fall 2010): 524–548.

• January 2004
• Article

Corporate Venturing: The Origins of Unilever's Pregnancy Test

By: Geoffrey Jones and Alison Kraft

The relative ability of different sizes of firm and organisational designs to develop and sustain dynamic capabilities in innovation and create new businesses remains a matter of contention. While Chandler among many others has emphasised the pre-eminent role of large... View Details

Keywords: Business Ventures; Organizational Design; Technological Innovation; Business Startups; Venture Capital; Brands and Branding; Multinational Firms and Management; Product Development; Product Launch; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Great Britain

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Jones, Geoffrey, and Alison Kraft. "Corporate Venturing: The Origins of Unilever's Pregnancy Test." Business History 46, no. 1 (January 2004): 100–122.

Birth of a Salesman

This book chronicles the remarkable metamorphosis of the American salesman from itinerant amateur to trained expert. From the mid-nineteenth century to the eve of World War II, the development of sales management transformed an economy populated by peddlers and... View Details

• December 1992
• Case

BASF: Corporate Advertising for 1992

By: Stephen A. Greyser and Norman Klein

Describes BASF's corporate advertising program in the United States. In 1992, BASF's U.S. companies extended an existing corporate advertising campaign to continue to build awareness of the German-based multinational's corporate identity. The core theme of the campaign... View Details

Keywords: Advertising Campaigns; Marketing Communications; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Corporate Strategy; Consumer Products Industry; United States; Germany

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Greyser, Stephen A., and Norman Klein. "BASF: Corporate Advertising for 1992." Harvard Business School Case 593-021, December 1992.

• 19 Feb 2008
• Research & Ideas

Radical Design, Radical Results

When furniture designer Herman Miller presented a prototype of its sleek, mesh Aeron chair to a consumer focus group, many asked if they could see a finished, upholstered version. Innovative product design can be a risky proposition. Yet... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Consumer Products

• Article

Entry into Platform-based Markets

By: Feng Zhu and Marco Iansiti

This paper examines the relative importance of platform quality, indirect network effects, and consumer expectations on the success of entrants in platform-based markets. We develop a theoretical model and find that an entrant's success depends on the strength of... View Details

Keywords: Platform-based Markets; Winnter-take-all; First-mover Advantage; Indirect Network Effects; Video Game Industry; Quality; Network Effects; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

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Zhu, Feng, and Marco Iansiti. "Entry into Platform-based Markets." Strategic Management Journal 33, no. 1 (January 2012): 88–106.

• August 2020 (Revised May 2021)
• Case

PayPal: The Next Chapter

By: Michael Porter, Mark Kramer and Annelena Lobb

Can a social purpose and stakeholder capitalism confer a powerful competitive advantage in the age of COVID-19? For PayPal, the answer is yes. After spinning off from eBay in a 2015 IPO, the company declared its purpose as "democratizing financial services" by ensuring... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Finance; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Social Entrepreneurship; Competitive Advantage; Financial Services Industry

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Porter, Michael, Mark Kramer, and Annelena Lobb. "PayPal: The Next Chapter." Harvard Business School Case 721-378, August 2020. (Revised May 2021.)

• February 2014
• Technical Note

Mobile Broadband and the Telecommunications Industry in 2011

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Kerry Herman and Christine Snively

Mobile broadband carriers provide network access to the Internet for a range of devices (typically portable or mobile), including consumer devices such as smartphones, tablets and E-Readers, but also a host of new emerging devices. Mobile broadband networks enable data... View Details

Keywords: Telecommunications; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Telecommunications Industry; Information Technology Industry; Technology Industry; Communications Industry

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Applegate, Lynda M., Kerry Herman, and Christine Snively. "Mobile Broadband and the Telecommunications Industry in 2011." Harvard Business School Technical Note 814-009, February 2014.

• September 2007 (Revised October 2010)
• Case

DermaCare: Zapping Zits Directly

By: Richard G. Hamermesh and Lauren Barley

DermaCare has developed an innovative new product for the treatment of acne that they hope to sell to consumers via direct-response television. The unconventional nature of the product and its distribution has led the company to seek angel financing. The Silicon Valley... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Venture Capital; Investment; Innovation and Invention; Product; California

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Hamermesh, Richard G., and Lauren Barley. "DermaCare: Zapping Zits Directly." Harvard Business School Case 808-064, September 2007. (Revised October 2010.)

• September 2003 (Revised June 2005)
• Case

Learning from LeapFrog: Creating Educational and Business Value

By: Lynda M. Applegate, Christopher Dede and Susan Saltrick

Explores the success factors leading to one's company's rise to the number three ranking in the aggressively competitive toy industry. LeapFrog has made the strategic decision to exploit its educational model in two industry sectors: consumer toys and educational... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Decisions; Education; Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Invention; Growth Management; Media; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Research; Value Creation

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Applegate, Lynda M., Christopher Dede, and Susan Saltrick. "Learning from LeapFrog: Creating Educational and Business Value." Harvard Business School Case 804-062, September 2003. (Revised June 2005.)

• 15 May 2021
• News

Is Inflation a Problem Now? Maybe, but More Likely Not