Publications

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May 20, 2024
Article

Porter’s Five Forces and Competitive Advantage in Web3

By: Scott Duke Kominers and Liang Wu

Competitive strategy — the art of crafting and executing plans to achieve an advantageous position in the market — is integral to any business, and especially relevant for platforms because it determines their ability to achieve network effects and scale. But web3... View Details

Keywords: Five Forces Framework; Competitive Strategy; Business Strategy; Network Effects; Digital Transformation

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18 Nov 2003
Other Presentation

The U.S. Homebuilding Industry and The Competitive Position of Large Builders

By: Michael E. Porter

Strategy presentation at the Centex Investor Conference, New York. Topics include: The structure of the homebuilding industry, the competitive advantages of large homebuilders, market assessment of homebuilding versus other industries and the role of investors in... View Details

Keywords: Industry Analysis; Five Forces; Strategy; Five Forces Framework; United States

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October 2004
Case

Sales Force Training at Arrow Electronics (A)

By: Jason R. Barro, Brian J. Hall and Aaron Zimmerman

In the mid-1980s, Arrow, the world's largest electronics distributor, implemented a college recruiting program to hire salespeople. The program was part of an effort to increase the professionalism and skill set of the sales force in an industry where few salespeople... View Details

Keywords: Human Resources; Compensation and Benefits; Recruitment; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Salesforce Management; Competition

20 Dec 2010
Research & Ideas

New Dean Sets Five Priorities for HBS

front of the stage, Nohria used his first reunion address to broadly outline five priorities that will shape the agenda for the School during his tenure: curriculum innovation, intellectual ambition, internationalization, inclusion, and... View Details

Keywords: by Roger Thompson; Education

06 Apr 2007
What Do You Think?

Will Market Forces Stop Global Warming?

Summing Up Debate on this month's questions occurred on at least three levels. Is global warming occurring? Do humans (primarily through CO2 emissions) have much to do with it? Should we rely on market forces to provide appropriate responses, or will this require... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett; Energy; Utilities

01 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Five Questions for James Austin

transactional, and integrative—although these stages are not necessarily linear, nor does every company move through each stage. What are the key factors that force (or encourage) companies to move from one stage to another? Austin:... View Details

Keywords: by Carla Tishler

01 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Five Questions for Stuart Gilson

ideally suited to teaching best restructuring practices, because it forces you to put yourself in management's shoes, and understand the issues and challenges that managers actually face in these situations. The case study method is all... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

June 2017
Teaching Note

Quiet Logistics (A) and (B)

By: Robert Simons and Jennifer Packard

Teaching Note for HBS Nos. 115-001 and 115-003. View Details

Keywords: Strategy And Execution; Management Control Systems; Five Forces; Risk; Adaptability; Distribution Industry; Technology Industry; United States

23 May 2012
Research & Ideas

Five Ways to Make Your Company More Innovative

In a hypercompetitive global economy, creativity has never been more important for success . But how do you create a company that unleashes and capitalizes on innovation? For answers, writers at the HBS Alumni Bulletin turned to five HBS... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons, Julia Hanna & Roger Thompson

August 2016 (Revised December 2016)
Module Note

Strategy Execution Module 2: Building a Successful Strategy

By: Robert Simons

This module reading describes the basics of building a successful strategy. Topics in this module include a discussion of the distinction between corporate and business strategy; how to conduct a SWOT analysis of market dynamics and internal capabilities; the use of... View Details

Keywords: Management Control Systems; Implementing Strategy; Strategy Execution; Business Strategy; Five Forces; Distinctive Capabilities; Emergent Strategy; Mission Statements; Strategy; SWOT Analysis; Competitive Advantage

09 Oct 2001
Research & Ideas

Five Questions for Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria

better way every day. These leaders were also fierce defenders of their companies, quick and forceful in defending their company against the media, Wall Street, and the competition. View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

22 May 2024
HBS Case

Banned or Not, TikTok Is a Force Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore

see you. It doesn’t rely on what you say. It observes what you do and choose not to do and builds a model of who you are. And as a consumer or a partner [what] you want most is to be seen.” He says that business leaders need to understand these View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Technology

February 2018 (Revised March 2019)
Case

Sandlands Vineyards

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Gregory Saldutte

Approximately 80% of the wineries in the U.S. break even or lose money. An even greater percentage lose money on an economic basis (i.e., after a charge for the cost of equity). Tegan Passalacqua is a successful, young, Californian winemaker who specializes in making... View Details

February 2019 (Revised September 2021)
Case

The a2 Milk Company

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher

The a2 Milk Company (a2MC) became the most valuable company listed on the New Zealand stock exchange in 2018 by capitalizing on a biochemical discovery related to the protein composition of cow's milk. Because many people find the A1 protein difficult to digest, and... View Details

April 2020 (Revised April 2023)
Case

TransDigm in 2017: The Beginning of the End or the End of the Beginning?

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher

TransDigm was a highly acquisitive company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and commercial customers. Over the ten years ending in 2016, its stock price had increased ten times, and both EBITDA and revenues had grown... View Details

January 2019 (Revised February 2019)
Supplement

The a2 Milk Company

By: Benjamin C. Esty, Daniel Fisher and Greg Saldutte

The a2 Milk Company (a2MC) became the most valuable company listed on the New Zealand stock exchange in 2018 by capitalizing on a biochemical discovery related to the protein composition of cow's milk. Because many people find the A1 protein difficult to digest, and... View Details

April 2019
Teaching Note

The a2 Milk Company

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher

The a2 Milk Company (a2MC) became the most valuable company listed on the New Zealand stock exchange in 2018 by capitalizing on a biochemical discovery related to the protein composition of cow's milk. Because many people find the A1 protein difficult to digest, and... View Details