big business - Publications - Faculty & Research

May–June 2015
Article

Big Data: Big Deal or Big Hype?

Google Flu Trends article of November 2008 heralded a new age for big data where it is possible to leverage the vast amount of data to speak for itself, without theory or expert knowledge of the subject matter. However, in a short span the pendulum swung from big data... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Analytics and Data Science; Management Practices and Processes

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2021
Chapter

Building Small Business Utopia: How Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Can Increase Small Business Success

By: Karen G. Mills and Annie Dang

Small business lending has remained unchanged for decades, laden with frictions and barriers that prevent many small businesses from accessing the capital they need to succeed. Financial technology, or “fintech,” promises to change this trajectory. In 2010, new fintech... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Fintech; Artificial Intelligence; Small Business; Financing and Loans; Capital; Success; AI and Machine Learning; Analytics and Data Science

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2012
Book

Enterprise Analytics: Optimize Performance, Process, and Decisions Through Big Data

By: Thomas H. Davenport

This book, an edited collection of research papers from the International Institute of Analytics, addresses a wide variety of key topics in managing business analytics and big data at the enterprise level. It includes key applications of analytics, human and... View Details

Keywords: Business Analytics; Big Data; Business or Company Management; Analytics and Data Science; Management Practices and Processes; Mathematical Methods; Information Management

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2013
Book

Blockbusters: Hit-making, Risk-taking, and the Big Business of Entertainment

By: Anita Elberse

What's behind the phenomenal success of entertainment businesses such as Warner Bros., Marvel Enterprises, and the NFL—along with such stars as Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, and LeBron James? Which strategies give leaders in film, television, music, publishing, and sports an edge... View Details

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May 6, 2010
Other Article

How Big Business Can Regain Legitimacy

By: Michael E. Porter

Harvard Business School competitiveness guru Michael E. Porter urges large organizations to invest in small businesses in inner cities. View Details

Keywords: Society; United States

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12 Aug 2002
Op-Ed

Using Big Business to Fight Poverty

sufficient, say, to simply connect rural villages to the Internet; villagers must also be taught how to use it and have a reason to do so. That takes training, education, and motivation; corporations can provide all three. Corporations also enjoy remarkable access to... View Details

Keywords: by George C. Lodge

Winter 2017
Article

Why Big Data Isn't Enough

By: Sen Chai and Willy C. Shih

There is a growing belief that sophisticated algorithms can explore huge databases and find relationships independent of any preconceived hypotheses. But in businesses that involve scientific research and technological innovation, this approach is misguided and... View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Science-based; Science; Scientific Research; Data Analytics; Data Science; Data-driven Management; Data Scientists; Technological Innovation; Analytics and Data Science; Mathematical Methods; Theory

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First Quarter 2013
Article

Big Data in the Age of the Telegraph

By: Caitlin C. Rosenthal

Daniel McCallum's 1854 organizational chart for the New York and Erie Railroad resembled a tree rather than a pyramid. It empowered frontline managers by clarifying data flows. View Details

Keywords: Big Data; Telegraph; Organizational Charts; History; Data and Data Sets; Business History; Information Technology; Organizational Structure; Rail Industry

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February 2021 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Bairong and the Promise of Big Data

By: Lauren Cohen, Xiaoyan Zhang and Spencer C.N. Hagist

Bairong CEO Felix Zhang, in launching his credit scoring start-up that incorporates 74,000 variables per individual, found strong initial success. However, the shifting regulatory environment, growing breadth of competitors, difficulties in retaining top talent, and... View Details

Keywords: Fintech; Big Data; Artificial Intelligence; Credit Scoring; Finance; Credit; Business Startups; AI and Machine Learning; Analytics and Data Science; China

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Research Summary

Building Small Business Utopia: How Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Can Increase Small Business Success

By: Karen Mills

Small business lending has remained unchanged for decades, laden with frictions and barriers that prevent many small businesses from accessing the capital they need to succeed. Financial technology, or “fintech,” promises to change this trajectory. In 2010, new fintech... View Details

04 Feb 2013
Research & Ideas

Are the Big Four Audit Firms Too Big to Fail?

Are auditors becoming too big to fail? For over a decade, there have been articles and op-eds in the popular and business press arguing that the auditing industry, currently dominated by Deloitte &... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Accounting

March 8, 2016
Article

How Big Business Created the Politics of Anger

By: Mark R. Kramer

Years of enriching shareholders has come home to roost. View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Ethics

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25 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

Could a Business Model Help Big Pharma Save Lives and Profit?

reasonable profits and reduced Hepatitis C, and rates of which are expected to fall by 86 percent between 2020 and 2030, according to Egypt’s Ministry of Health. This real-world example demonstrates how a business model can help View Details

Keywords: by Esther Schrader; Pharmaceutical; Health

2020
Chapter

Islamic Capitalism and the Rise of Religious-Conservative Big Business

By: Kristin Fabbe, Űmit Őzlale and Efe Murat Balikçioğlu

This chapter argues that the rise of “Islamic capitalism” and the country’s so-called “conservative bourgeoisie” owes much to the pragmatism and agility of Islamic actors who are quick to seize upon new economic and political opportunities by leveraging religious... View Details

Keywords: Islamic Capitalism; Economic Systems; Religion; Values and Beliefs; Government and Politics; Power and Influence; Turkey

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September 2018
Case

Verisk: Trailblazing in the Big Data Jungle

By: Andrew Wasynczuk, Francesca Gino and Karim Sameh

This case revolves around Verisk Analytics' initiatives to drive innovation throughout the firm's many business verticals. Verisk, originally named ISO, started life as an insurance rating agency in the early 1970s, acting as an intermediary between insurance companies... View Details

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21 Feb 2007
Op-Ed

What a U.N. Partnership with Big Business Could Accomplish

Botswana, for instance—that the creation of profitable businesses is the key. They provide the jobs, income, and motivation for education and individual development that raise standards of living. Small- and medium-sized domestic... View Details

Keywords: by George C. Lodge & Craig Wilson

April 2006
Case

Big Bazaar

By: Ananth Raman and Laura Winig

Describes a high-growth Indian retailer, Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd., and two of the company's formats--Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar. Challenges students to debate the company's concept, its strategic decision on how quickly it would like to grow, and some key... View Details

Keywords: Business Units; Transformation; Growth and Development Strategy; Emerging Markets; Market Entry and Exit; Supply Chain Management; Competition; Corporate Strategy; Retail Industry; India

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30 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

Big Companies, Big Opportunities—Big Questions

rivalries. "Argentines and Brazilians don't get along that well," he said, "especially when soccer is the issue. So we decided not to market our beer as a Brazilian beer but as a beer for the youth—a beer connected to fun." Aguirre said View Details

Keywords: by Julie Jette

April 29, 2014
Column

Corporate Reporting in the Big Data Era

By: George Serafeim

Advancements in information technology can improve corporate communication with shareholders, but not through incessant data dumps. Instead, companies will more likely be poised for continued success if they use digital platforms for long-term oriented engagement and... View Details