News & Highlights

  • November 2024
  • Cold Call Podcast

How Pernod Ricard Is Integrating AI into Its Workforce

Discover how Pernod Ricard, a global leader in premium spirits, is harnessing data and artificial intelligence to reimagine operations and expand into new markets. In this Cold Call Podcast episode, HBS Professors Iavor Bojinov and Edward McFowland III discuss their case “Pernod Ricard: Uncorking Digital Transformation,” supported by Nikolina Jönsson and Emer Moloney of the Europe Research Center. The case dives into the challenges of aligning digital initiatives with strategic goals, overcoming internal resistance, and fostering adoption across the organization.
  • October 2024
  • Event

Pioneering Europe’s Green Transition: A BiGS & ERC Paris Conference

On October 23-24, 2024, the Institute for Business in Global Society (BiGS) and the Europe Research Center hosted a landmark conference in Paris titled “Europe’s Green Transition: A New World of Risks & Opportunities.” Led by HBS Professor Debora Spar, the event brought together 70 C-suite executives, entrepreneurs, NGO leaders, public officials, and HBS faculty members. Panels, case studies, and breakout sessions explored topics from climate risk and financing strategies to innovative collaborations, creating a dynamic space for idea-sharing and networking.
  • HBS Business & Environment Blog
  • October 2024

Exploring High-Tech Greenhouse Innovations in the Netherlands

Explore how HBS MBA students immersed themselves in cutting-edge sustainable production practices during their January 2024 journey through Denmark and the Netherlands. Led by HBS Professors Willy Shih and Mike Toffel as part of the Decarbonization & Sustainable Production Immersive Field Course (IFC), students visited innovative greenhouses, including Syngenta Tomato Vision, leveraging AI and DNA sequencing for advanced tomato breeding; Van den Ende Rozen, employing sensors and automation for sustainable rose cultivation; and Koppert Cress, pioneering geothermal energy and drone-based pest control for microgreens and edible flowers. Discover what the students learned about the future of agriculture driven by innovation and sustainability.

New Research on the Region

  • January 2025
  • Case

Food for Thought: Exiting Russia? (A)

By: Clayton S. Rose, Hugo Etchegoyhen and Lena Duchene

In September 2022, the French food companies Bonduelle and Danone each grappled with the difficult decision of whether to exit Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February. Both companies were deeply embedded in Russia’s agricultural supply chains and local economies, employing thousands and playing a key role in regional food security. At the start of the war, each company had decided to continue operations in Russia, however they were now facing mounting pressure to exit the market, especially after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s declaration that “peace is more important than income” reverberated globally, leading to heightened scrutiny and intensifying pressure from European governments, consumers, and shareholders. Public sentiment began to view companies continuing operations in Russia as in some ways supporting the war effort. A rapid exit would mean abandoning decades of investments and risking the potential seizure of assets by the Russian government.

  • January 2025
  • Teaching Material

Food for Thought: Exiting Russia? (B)

By: Clayton S. Rose, Hugo Etchegoyhen and Lena Duchene

The (B) case examines the actions of Bonduelle and Danone as they responded to ongoing pressure to reevaluate their presence in Russia. While the (A) case explored the ethical and strategic dilemmas both companies faced after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the (B) case highlights Bonduelle’s decision to maintain operations despite public backlash and Danone’s decision to sell its assets in Russia

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Paris Staff

Vincent Dessain
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