Publications

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August 2011 (Revised November 2011)
Case

The U.S. Military Academy at West Point

By: Anat Keinan

The case examines an iconic institution's decision on whether or not to undertake a branding initiative. Founded in 1802, West Point has played a key role in America's history. It is one of the nation's oldest institutions of higher learning and is well known for... View Details

Keywords: Surveys; Resource Allocation; Brands and Branding; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Competitive Strategy; Education Industry; United States

10 Jan 2005
Research & Ideas

The Knowledge Coach

over a new job or leave an old one, there is an immense waste of knowledge. Not that a newcomer wants to use everything that was in her predecessor's head—some of it was mere flotsam and jetsam, and some was... View Details

Keywords: by Dorothy Leonard & Walter Swap

30 Mar 2003
Research & Ideas

The Future of IT Consulting

taking shape. Until recently, there had been an IBM de facto industry standard for the operating system, and a de facto standard in the use of... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Johnston; Consulting

September 1975 (Revised June 1983)
Background Note

Note on the Structural Analysis of Industries

By: Michael E. Porter

Provides a framework for the analysis of industry structure. Identifies the major structural features that influence the profit potential in industries and some illustrative implications of these for strategy formulation. Can be used as a reference note for business... View Details

Keywords: Industry Structures; Business Strategy; Profit

19 Mar 2007
Research & Ideas

Handicapping the Best Countries for Business

important and what are the keys to analyzing and understanding a country's near-term direction? A: Any business person is interested only in the future—in where View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

August 1983 (Revised March 2011)
Case

Honda (A)

Describes the history of Honda Motor Company from its beginning through its entry into and subsequent dominance of the U.S. market. The history is explained primarily in terms of strategic factors and quoted from two sources: an earlier case and Boston Consulting Group... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Global Strategy; Business Strategy; Auto Industry; Japan; United States

Forthcoming
Article

Bank Risk-Taking and the Real Economy: Evidence from the Housing Boom and Its Aftermath

By: Antonio Falato, Giovanni Favara and David Scharfstein

We present evidence that pressure to maximize short-term stock prices and earnings leads banks to increase risk. We start by showing that banks increase risk when they transition from private to public ownership through a public listing or an acquisition. The increase... View Details

Keywords: Ownership Type; Risk and Uncertainty; Financial Markets; Banks and Banking; Transition; Price

01 Sep 2018
News

Ask the Expert: Delivering the Goods

Image by Edmon de Haro The US Postal Service prides itself on delivering through rain, sleet, and snow—but what about serious debt? After 11 straight years of losses and declining first-class mail volumes,... View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint

01 Dec 2020
Blog Post

Hiring a Career Switcher: The Value of the MS/MBA

In the fall of 2019, Kaelyn Griffin and Adam Palay entered HBS as two of 30 students in the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program, a joint degree... View Details

Keywords: All Industries

21 Aug 2000
Research & Ideas

From Emerging Economies to the Global Market: The Case of Embraer

participants. Questions they considered: What key elements of strategy and competitiveness will help a firm from an emerging market suceed internationally? How can a government assist a company without smothering it? Another point of... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Manufacturing

26 Oct 2009
Lessons from the Classroom

The New Deal: Negotiauctions

You've held your own while negotiating dozens of successful deals. Even so, you want to take your game to the next level. What's the next step? There are plenty of guides that offer tips on negotiation... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

12 Jun 2018
Research & Ideas

In a Landscape of 'Me Too' Drug Development, What Spurs Radical Innovation?

ubingruo New research finds that large pharmaceutical companies, typically conservative in their pursuit of novel drug development, are more willing to undertake radical innovation after receiving an unexpected cash windfall. View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Health; Pharmaceutical

19 Apr 2004
Research & Ideas

Birth of the American Salesman

the salesman's role in promoting goods was different from that of advertising. To use a military analogy common in View Details

Keywords: by Laura Linard

01 Mar 2006
News

The Producers

vertically integrated,” he notes. “Studios used to be stand-alone companies that were run like fiefdoms. Now they’re run like major corporations answering to shareholders.” Skyrocketing fees for star actors coupled with View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries; Information

March 2011 (Revised February 2014)
Case

Cree, Inc.: Which Bright Future?

By: David J. Collis, Mary Furey and Matthew Shaffer

After its founding in the late 1980s, Cree Inc. quickly grew into a major player in the emerging LED market. By 2007, technological improvements in LEDs had made them suitable for TV, computer, and mobile "backlighting"; and concerns over global warning led to calls to... View Details

October 2011 (Revised September 2014)
Case

Music and the (Real) World: Thirty Years of MTV

By: Mukti Khaire and Eleanor Kenyon

The case is useful for teaching students the structure of creative industries - especially fashion - and the issues to consider when attempting disruptive innovation and entrepreneurship in these industries. View Details

Keywords: Industry Structures; Entrepreneurship; Disruptive Innovation; Internet and the Web; Networks