Publications

October 2018
Supplement

African Bank Investments Limited (B)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

Less than a year after joining the board of African Bank Investments Limited (ABIL), the newest director finds himself in difficult discussions with other directors about removing the struggling company’s CEO. The case is set in South Africa in mid-2014 as shares in... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Personal Finance; Corporate Accountability; Governing and Advisory Boards; Corporate Governance; Crisis Management; Insurance; Leadership; Management; Risk Management; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry; Insurance Industry; Africa; South Africa

February 2015
Case

Beckman Coulter, 2011

By: John R. Wells and Galen Danskin

In early 2011, Danaher was contemplating the acquisition of Beckman Coulter. With $3.7 billion of revenues in 2010 and $431 million in operating profits, California-based Beckman Coulter was a global leader in blood cell count diagnostic systems and also supplied a... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Strategy; Decision Choices and Conditions; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

February 2023
Teaching Note

Bear to Bull? An Analyst’s Journey with Netflix

By: Aiyesha Dey and Joseph Pacelli

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 123-001. Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said “hell freezing over” was more likely than him upgrading the “sell” rating he had maintained on movie and television streaming giant Netflix since 2011, despite meteoric subscriber... View Details

Keywords: Equity; Analysis; Stock Shares

January 2, 2020
Article

Medicare for All or Public Option: Can Either Heal Health Care?

By: Regina E. Herzlinger and James Wallace

The United States has serious health care problems: More than 27 million uninsured people, costs that are growing faster than income, and a staggering $37 trillion of unfunded liabilities in the Medicare program. Perhaps most alarming: The US ranks lowest among... View Details

Keywords: Healthcare; Public Option; Medicare; Health Care and Treatment; Insurance; Cost Management; Problems and Challenges; United States

Read Now

March 2019
Supplement

KITEA (E): IKEA's Opening Day

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Gamze Yucaoglu

The case opens in 2016 as Amine Benkirane, CEO of the furniture retailer KITEA, observes KITEA’s dormant sales on the day IKEA opens its first store in Morocco. It then provides information on IKEA’s Morocco store, as well as a detailed pricing comparison between IKEA... View Details

Keywords: Private Sector; For-Profit Firms; Business Strategy; Strategic Planning; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Adaptation; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry; Africa; North Africa; Morocco

November 2015 (Revised February 2016)
Case

Lipman: Vertical Integration in Fresh Tomatoes

By: José B. Alvarez and Carin-Isabel Knoop

Lipman, the largest open field fresh tomato grower and marketer in the United States, has been successfully pursuing an aggressive strategy of acquisitions over the last several years. End-market consolidation in the retail space has driven vertical integration in the... View Details

Keywords: Tomatoes; Fresh Produce; Vertical Integration; Agribusiness; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States; Cuba; Central America

14 Nov 2017
News

Can We Trust Our Government To Save The Planet?

January 2006 (Revised February 2006)
Case

Deutsche Borse and the European Markets

By: Dwight B. Crane and Monika Stachowiak

In December 2004, Deutsche Borse proposed an offer for the London Stock Exchange. Some shareholders opposed the acquisition, leading to the offer's withdrawal and replacement of management, including the CEO and board members. Written from the viewpoint of Deutsche... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Strategy; Governing and Advisory Boards; Capital Structure; Stocks; Valuation; Corporate Governance; Price; Change Management; Commercialization; Financial Services Industry; Europe

Find at Harvard

March 2001
Article

Strategy and the Internet

By: M. E. Porter

Many of the pioneers of Internet business, both dot-coms and established companies, have competed in ways that violate nearly every precept of good strategy. Rather than focus on profits, they have chased customers indiscriminately through discounting, channel... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Online Technology

Find at Harvard

February 2005 (Revised November 2006)
Case

Hewlett-Packard (A)

By: Rohit Deshpande and Seth Schulman

Since its controversial merger with Compaq, Hewlett-Packard had been under pressure by analysts and some stockholders to divest itself of its low-margin PC business. For CEO Carly Fiorina and others on HP's management team, however, PCs seemed integral to the company's... View Details

Keywords: Problems and Challenges; Customer Focus and Relationships; Mergers and Acquisitions; Information Infrastructure; Business Strategy; Price; Computer Industry

October 2008 (Revised September 2011)
Supplement

PepsiCo's Bid for Quaker Oats (C)

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

Third in a series of PepsiCo's bid for Quaker Oats. Describes the auction for Quaker Oats including terms of the bids. After winning the auction, Coke's stock price fell dramatically. Coke's Board then refused to approve the deal and withdrew. Quaker then approached... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Stocks; Governing and Advisory Boards; Auctions; Bids and Bidding; Negotiation Tactics; Valuation; Food and Beverage Industry

August 2008 (Revised September 2008)
Supplement

The Flaxil Label (C): Debrief and Endnotes

This case focuses on the 2001 negotiation between Mytex Pharmaceuticals and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The outcome of the negotiation would determine the new label for Mytex's blockbuster drug for arthritis, Flaxil. The negotiation is quite... View Details

Keywords: Safety; Value Creation; Negotiation; Health Care and Treatment; Sales; Pharmaceutical Industry