Publications

January–February 1994
Article

Financial Engineering at Merck

By: Timothy A. Luehrman

Keywords: Finance; Engineering; Health; Pharmaceutical Industry

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Awards

FAME Research Prize. International Center for Financial Asset Management and Engineering

By: Luis M. Viceira

Winner of the 1999 FAME Research Prize from the International Center for Asset Management and Financial Engineering and University of Lausanne for "Who Should Buy Long-Term Bonds? (with John Y. Campbell, American Economic Review, March 2001). View Details

December 1996
Background Note

Financial Engineering and Tax Risk: The Case of Times Mirror PEPS

By: Peter Tufano

Provides general background on the taxation of corporate securities, and shows how the inconsistent taxation of functionally-similar securities can permit financial engineers to bear tax risk to earn positive returns. Designed to be used with Times Mirror Co. PEPS... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Taxation; Corporate Finance

November 1993 (Revised March 1997)
Case

Romeo Engine Plant

By: Amy P. Hutton and Robert S. Kaplan

A newly reopened automobile engine plant has been organized along total quality and teamwork principles. Employees now is to solve problems and ensure quality, rather than watch parts being produced. New operating and financial systems have been installed to promote... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Motivation and Incentives; Management Practices and Processes; Groups and Teams; Performance Efficiency; Performance Improvement; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry

April 2024 (Revised August 2024)
Case

The Engine

By: Joshua Lev Krieger, Jim Matheson, Fiona Murray and Nicholas Christman

The Engine, a venture capital firm founded by MIT to fill a gap in the technology funding landscape by commercializing breakthrough science and technology. Led by managing partner and CEO Katie Rae, the Engine's unique approach involved an unusually longer fund life,... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development Strategy; Mission and Purpose; Venture Capital; Business Startups; Entrepreneurial Finance; Financial Services Industry

April 1997
Case

Romeo Engine Plant (Abridged)

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Amy P. Hutton

A newly reopened automobile engine plant has been organized along total quality and teamwork principles. Employees now solve problems and ensure quality, rather than watch parts being produced. New operating and financial systems have been installed to promote... View Details

Keywords: Cost Accounting; Cost Management; Groups and Teams; Employees; Performance Improvement; Auto Industry

April 2015 (Revised October 2024)
Case

The German Export Engine

By: Gunnar Trumbull, Jonathan Schlefer and Sophus A. Reinert

In fall of 2018, Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel had logged significant successes. Germany was the largest exporter in the world, had maintained low unemployment through the 2008 financial crisis, and was gradually reforming its welfare state to meet future pension... View Details

Keywords: Economy; Economic Growth; Success; Leadership; Problems and Challenges; Germany

January 1993 (Revised May 2004)
Case

Laurinburg Precision Engineering

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

A small manufacturer needs additional financing for expansion and production improvements. A bond issue would provide needed funds, and a zero-coupon bond would delay payments until funds provided by operations were available. Present value tables are included. View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Bonds; Financing and Loans; Interest Rates; Manufacturing Industry

28 Apr 2015
Blog Post

3 Reasons Engineers Thrive at Business School

Pursuing an MBA may not seem like the most obvious next-step for engineers, but many of our students come to HBS from engineering backgrounds. Engineers offer a unique perspective in our classrooms – one... View Details

April 1997
Case

Peoria Engine Plant (A): (Abridged)

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Amy P. Hutton

Describes the cost control system used at an automobile engine plant for labor and overhead costs. The finance staff prepares daily, weekly, and monthly variance reports against budgets. Department supervisors, finance staff, and the plant manager discuss the use and... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Cost Management; Financial Reporting; Performance Improvement; Budgets and Budgeting; Auto Industry

December 1992 (Revised March 1997)
Case

Peoria Engine Plant (A)

By: Robert S. Kaplan and Amy P. Hutton

Describes the cost control system used at an automobile engine plant for labor and overhead costs. The finance staff prepares daily, weekly, and monthly variance reports against budgets. Department supervisors, finance staff, and the plant manager discuss the use and... View Details

Keywords: Cost Management; Cost Accounting; Budgets and Budgeting; Earnings Management; Reports; Financial Reporting; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Performance Improvement; Performance Productivity; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Auto Industry

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Research Summary

Overview

By: Peter Tufano

Tufano’s research has focused on financial innovation and financial engineering—and for more than two decades, household finance. While he continues to study these topics, his current primary research is on the role of business in addressing climate change. With... View Details

Keywords: Financial Innovation; Financial Engineering; Household Finance; Leadership Transitions

November 2011 (Revised September 2012)
Case

Underwater Engineer at Intel Corporation

By: E. Scott Mayfield

Molly Miller, an Intel employee and shareholder, must decide whether to vote FOR or AGAINST Intel's proposed 2009 option exchange program. Given recent declines in Intel's stock price, more than 99% of Intel's outstanding employee stock options are "underwater," and... View Details

Keywords: Stock Options; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Semiconductor Industry

01 Dec 2019
News

Developing Leaders Who Bridge Business and Engineering

will provide financial aid for students in the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program, offered jointly by HBS and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied... View Details

07 Aug 2012
Working Paper Summaries

Financial vs. Strategic Buyers

Keywords: by Marc Martos-Vila, Matthew Rhodes-Kropf & Jarrad Harford

24 Oct 2013
News

Engineering a More Secure World

Harris took the idea nationwide by cofounding the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). As the NSBE approaches its 40th anniversary next year, its 400 chapters and 30,000 members make it the largest student-run organization in the... View Details

Keywords: Francis Storrs; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Professional Services

August 2014 (Revised March 2015)
Case

Molycorp: Morgan Brothers' Reverse Convertible Notes (C)

By: Benjamin C. Esty and E. Scott Mayfield

In August 2011, Morgan Brothers Bank was issuing a $2.5 million reverse convertible note with payoffs linked to the price of Molycorp's common stock. These financially engineered securities were just one of many kinds of structured notes available in the retail market.... View Details

Keywords: Structured Products; Reverse Convertible Notes; Replication; Option Pricing; Bond Pricing; Financial Engineering; Valuation; Metals and Minerals; Debt Securities; Finance; Investment; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Canada; California