Publications

Editorial

Elon Musk's Unusual Compensation Plan Isn't Really About Compensation at All

By: George Serafeim

Earlier this year, Tesla shareholders approved likely the largest compensation package ever awarded to a CEO—for a CEO who clearly doesn’t need the money. Elon Musk is already incredibly rich and also doesn’t seem particularly motivated by further wealth. So why do it?... View Details

Keywords: Tesla; Elon Musk; Innovation; Investor Communication; Investor Relations; Short-termism; Long-termism; Disruption; Executive Compensation; Business and Shareholder Relations; Communication Intention and Meaning; Mission and Purpose

November 2007 (Revised January 2010)
Case

ThedaCare: System Strategy

By: Michael E. Porter and Sachin H. Jain

Over the 1980s and 1990s, America's changing health care payer environment resulted in mergers of numerous community hospitals into hospital systems. Based in Appleton, Wisconsin, ThedaCare stood out among community hospital systems in its pursuit of service... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Health Care and Treatment; Problems and Challenges; Innovation and Invention; Health Industry; Wisconsin

Rosabeth M. Kanter

Rosabeth Moss Kanter holds the Ernest L. Arbuckle Professorship at Harvard Business School, specializing in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change. Her strategic and practical insights guide leaders worldwide through teaching, writing, and direct... View Details

Keywords: accounting industry; advertising; airline; apparel; arts; automobiles; banking; beauty products; beverage; biotechnology; broadcasting; chemical; clothing; communications; computer; consulting; consumer products; e-commerce industry; education industry; electrical equipment; electronics; entertainment; fashion; fast food; federal government; financial services; food; food processing; grocery; health care; high technology; hotels ＆ motels; industrial goods; information; information technology industry; insurance industry; internet; legal services; management consulting; manufacturing; medical supplies; nonprofit industry; oil ＆ gas; petroleum; pharmaceuticals; professional services; publishing industry; real estate; recreation; restaurant; retail financial services; retailing; semiconductor; soft drink; software; sports; state government; telecommunications; textiles; tourism; toy; transportation; travel; utilities; wine

Linda A. Hill

Linda A. Hill is the Wallace Brett Donham Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and Faculty Chair of the Leadership Initiative. Hill is regarded as one of the top experts on leadership and innovation. Hill is... View Details

January 2005 (Revised November 2005)
Case

Irene Charnley at Johnnic Group (A) (Abridged)

By: Linda A. Hill and Maria Farkas

When she becomes chairperson of a large telecommunications board, Irene Charnley must transform the mostly white-led company to be more representative of South Africa's demographics. View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Demographics; Communication Technology; Telecommunications Industry; South Africa

August 2023
Supplement

Reimagining Hindustan Unilever (B)

By: Sunil Gupta and Rachna Tahilyani

In April 2023, as the CEO and MD of Hindustan Unilever (HUL), India’s largest fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) firm, prepared to hand over the firm’s reins to his successor, he proudly reflected on the last decade. His quest to digitally transform HUL into an... View Details

Keywords: Experimentation; Digital Transformation; Digital Strategy; Leading Change; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Business Strategy; Marketing; Performance; Competition; E-commerce; Consumer Behavior; Transformation; Distribution; Decisions; Consumer Products Industry; Asia; India

Summer 2012
Article

How to Become a Sustainable Company

By: Robert G. Eccles, Kathleen Miller Perkins and George Serafeim

Using field and survey data we identify the characteristics of sustainable companies, and we develop a two-stage model that can help companies develop a culture of innovation, trust, and the ability for transformational change. View Details

Keywords: Sustainability; Innovation; Leadership; Environmental Sustainability; Organizational Culture; Innovation and Invention; Trust; Organizational Change and Adaptation

Management

The goal of MANAGEMENT: AN INTEGRATED APPROACH, 2nd Edition, is to prepare students for leadership positions in 21st century companies by addressing the many facets involved in answering one key question: How are leaders successfully managing competitive... View Details

February 2023 (Revised February 2025)
Case

Doing Business in Accra, Ghana

By: Hakeem Belo-Osagie, Leonard Schlesinger and Namrata Arora

This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Ghana. It highlights Ghana economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2024 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case gives an overview of some of the main obstacles... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Business and Government Relations; Technological Innovation; Foreign Direct Investment; Economic Growth; Financial Crisis; Agribusiness; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Ghana

January 2018
Case

Trian Partners' Proxy Contest at Procter & Gamble

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher

In July 2017, activist hedge fund Trian Partners announced that it was launching a proxy fight at U.S. consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble. P&G would be the largest company ever subjected to a proxy fight, as Trian sought to have its CEO, Nelson Peltz, elected to the... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Corporate Governance; Institutional Investing; Investment Activism; Business and Shareholder Relations; United States

03 Jan 2023
What Do You Think?

How Would the Leadership Style of Girl Scouts' Frances Hesselbein Fare Today?

success. They included changing the white, middle-class “Betty Crocker” image of the organization, reversing membership levels, expanding leadership, building diversity, and fundraising. Declining membership... View Details

Keywords: Re: James L. Heskett

October 2007 (Revised August 2009)
Case

Perfect Storm over Zurich Airport (A)

By: Michael L. Tushman and David Kiron

Josef Felder, CEO of Zurich Airport, faces several crises as he tries to transform the Airport from a slow-moving, conflict-ridden, government-owned entity into a privatized, world-class airport. View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Transformation; Leading Change; Crisis Management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; State Ownership; Privatization; Air Transportation Industry

30 May 2024
Video

BiGS Voices from Latin America: An interview with Fulvio Pagani of Grupo Arcor

16 Nov 2020
News

Tech jobs spring up as companies adapt to new world of work

Christopher T. Stanton

Christopher Stanton is Marvin Bower Associate Professor of Business Administration in the Entrepreneurial Management Unit. Professor Stanton's research streams focus on personnel economics, organizational economics, labor markets, and entrepreneurship. His MBA... View Details

October 1999
Case

Royal Dutch/Shell in Transition (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine

After the Brent Spar episode and the 1995 events in Nigeria, Shell undertakes an intensive review of its values and business principles. At the same time, it conducts the largest multi-stakeholder consultation in its history in an effort to better understand society's... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Governance; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Social Issues; Public Opinion; Moral Sensibility; Values and Beliefs; Transformation; Environmental Accounting; Energy Industry

March 2010
Case

Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2007

By: Jan W. Rivkin, Michael Roberto and Ranjay Gulati

In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Robert Mueller, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), sought to transform the storied Bureau. The FBI had long served as both the chief law enforcement agency and the main domestic intelligence wing of the... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Organizational Structure; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Government Administration; National Security; Corporate Strategy; Knowledge Acquisition; Law Enforcement; Public Administration Industry; United States

July 2001 (Revised September 2005)
Case

USA TODAY: Pursuing the Network Strategy (A)

By: Michael L. Tushman, Michael J. Roberts and David Kiron

Describes the evolution of USA TODAY Online, the electronic version of the newspaper, within the organizational structure of the newspaper. Describes the tensions and issues that develop and the pressure from the Online division to be spun off. At the same time, CEO... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Integration; Internet and the Web; Organizational Design; Groups and Teams; Newspapers; Innovation and Invention; Journalism and News Industry

February 2023 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Saudi Arabia: A Vision in Progress

By: Kristin Fabbe, Adel Hamaizia and Tom Quinn

In 2016, when Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced a long-range economic and social transformation plan called Vision 2030, he faced Western skepticism about how the oil-rich and religiously conservative country would accomplish its ambitious goals.... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Economies and Regions; Government Administration; International Relations; Leading Change; Privatization; Religion; Public Opinion; Saudi Arabia