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- 18 Mar 2013
- HBS Case
HBS Cases: LEGO
LEGO toys have captivated children and their parents for 80 years. But managing the enterprise has not always been fun and games. Professor Stefan H. Thomke explains the lessons behind a new case on the company. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 20 Feb 2013
- Research & Ideas
Big Deal: Reflections on the Megamerger of American and US Airways
The proposed marriage between American Airlines and US Airways would create the nation's largest airline. Professors Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Stuart Gilson reflect on a megamerger. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 07 Jan 2013
- Lessons from the Classroom
Culture Changers: Managing High-Impact Entrepreneurs
In her new Harvard Business School course, Creative High-Impact Ventures: Entrepreneurs Who Changed the World, professor Mukti Khaire looks at ways managers can team with creative talent in six "culture industries": publishing, fashion, art-design, film, music, and food. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 07 Nov 2012
- HBS Case
HBS Cases: Sir Alex Ferguson--Managing Manchester United
For almost three decades, Sir Alex Ferguson has developed the Manchester United soccer club into one of the most recognized sports brands in the world. Professor Anita Elberse discusses the keys to Sir Alex's long-time success. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Oct 2012
- Research & Ideas
America Needs a Manufacturing Renaissance
In their new book, Producing Prosperity: Why America Needs a Manufacturing Renaissance, Harvard Business School professors Gary P. Pisano and Willy C. Shih discuss the dangers of underinvesting in the nation's manufacturing capabilities. This excerpt discusses the importance of the "industrial commons." Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 15 Oct 2012
- Research & Ideas
Why Business IT Innovation is so Difficult
If done right, IT has the potential to completely transform business by flattening hierarchies, shrinking supply chains, and speeding communications, says professor Kristina Steffenson McElheran. Why, then, do so many companies get it wrong? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Aug 2012
- Research & Ideas
Strategic Intelligence: Adapt or Die
In his new book, Strategic IQ, Professor of Management Practice John R. Wells explains why adapting to changing circumstances isn't only smart, it's also a matter of survival. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Sep 2011
- Research & Ideas
Cheese Moving: Effecting Change Rather Than Accepting It
In his new business fable, I Moved Your Cheese, Professor Deepak Malhotra challenges the idea that change is simply something we must anticipate, tolerate, and accept. Instead, the book teaches readers that success often lies in first questioning changes in the workplace and, if necessary, in effecting new changes ourselves. Q&A plus book excerpt. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 25 Jul 2011
- Research & Ideas
How Disruptive Innovation is Remaking the University
In The Innovative University, authors Clayton M. Christensen and Henry J. Eyring take Christensen's theory of disruptive innovation to the field of higher education, where new online institutions and learning tools are challenging the future of traditional colleges and universities. Key concepts include: A disruptive innovation brings to market a product or service that isn't as good as the best traditional offerings, but is less expensive and easier to use. Online learning is a disruptive technology that is making colleges and universities reconsider their higher education models. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 07 Jul 2011
- What Do You Think?
So We Adapt. What’s the Downside?
Summing Up Jim Heskett's readers ponder the question of whether the virtues of adaptability in a chaotic world undermine an organization's ability to commit. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 18 May 2011
- Working Paper Summaries
Embracing Paradox
CEOs are often innovation cheerleaders, hoping that new ventures will eventually help reshape the industry for the better. But in tough economic times, the other senior company executives often choose to ignore innovative ventures and focus instead on the traditional core business, which reliably generate cash flow. This leads to a situation in which the CEO turns into more of a broker than a leader—trying to negotiate deals between the heads of the core units and the new units. That's a recipe for failure, according to Michael L. Tushman, Wendy K. Smith, and Andy Binns, who argue that firms can thrive only if the whole senior management team can embrace the tensions between the new and the old. In this paper, they introduce three guiding principles to help executives grow their core businesses while still nurturing their new ones. Key concepts include: Principle 1: Develop an overarching identity. The corporate identity should be broad enough to inspire both the core as well as the nascent business. Principle 2: Hold tension at the top. Innovation business units should report to the top management team. The strategic battles about old versus new businesses should be fought at the top of the corporate food chain. Principle 3: Embrace inconsistency. The senior management team needs to recognize that innovative and core businesses require very different, often inconsistent operating modes and measures of success. Still, the company must make a point of leveraging resources that are common between the new and older businesses. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 Apr 2011
- HBS Case
Reinventing the National Geographic Society
How do you transform a 123-year-old cultural icon and prepare it for the digital world? Slowly, as a new case on the "National Geographic Society" by David Garvin demonstrates. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 31 Mar 2011
- Research & Ideas
From SpinPop to SpinBrush: Entrepreneurial Lessons from John Osher
At a panel discussion on entrepreneurship, professor William A. Sahlman and several successful start-up veterans discussed the case of John Osher, father of Dr. John's Products, Ltd., and the wildly popular battery-powered toothbrush, the SpinBrush. Key concepts include: Look for gaps in the existing market or product lines to exploit. Anticipate product knockoffs and plan accordingly. Raise money when you don't need it, so you'll have it when you do. Be quick to market with the initial product and improve as you go along. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 22 Feb 2011
- Research & Ideas
The Most Important Management Trends of the (Still Young) Twenty-First Century
HBS Dean Nitin Nohria and faculty look backward and forward at the most important business trends of the young twenty-first century. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 28 Jun 2010
- HBS Case
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
A recent Harvard Business School case by HBS professors Amy C. Edmondson and Anita Tucker explores how one hospital implemented its own version of health-care reform, taking overall performance levels from below average to the top 10 percent in the industry. From the HBS Alumni Bulletin. Key concepts include: The case offers valuable takeaways for future managers of any complex service organization. A key takeaway for students is the power of transparency as a mechanism for change. Benchmarking themselves to an internal standard helped the group get beyond rationalizing poor performance as an unavoidable consequence of the complexity of patient care. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 Apr 2010
- Research & Ideas
HBS Cases: iPads, Kindles, and the Close of a Chapter in Book Publishing
Book publishing is changing before our very eyes, even if the industry itself is fighting the transition with every comma it can muster. Harvard Business School professor Peter Olson, former CEO of Random House, wonders if books themselves may be in jeopardy. Key concepts include: The traditional book publishing and distribution system is under pressure to change to digital e-books. Publishers should consider a strategy of cooperation rather than competition with online retailers. Adding video and other multimedia capabilities will make e-books more attractive in the textbook industry. The fundamental question to be asked in the Internet age is, how popular will books remain? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Mar 2010
- Research & Ideas
Ruthlessly Realistic: How CEOs Must Overcome Denial
Even the best leaders can be in denial—about trouble inside the organization, about onrushing competitors, about changing consumer behavior. Harvard Business School professor Richard S. Tedlow looks at history and discusses how executives can acknowledge and deal with reality. Plus: Book excerpt. Key concepts include: Denial is the unwillingness to acknowledge and deal with reality. What is different today is that the cost of denial has become so high. Being ruthlessly realistic with oneself is one of the greatest challenges for any CEO. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 19 Jan 2010
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: Managing the Economic Crisis
The economic crisis is tapping the inner reserves of experienced leaders and introducing a new generation of managers to crisis management. These previous WK articles explore leadership, the role of the Board, the emotional needs of managers, and the risk to corporate giving programs. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 10 Dec 2009
- Working Paper Summaries
State Owned Entity Reform in Absence of Privatization: Reforming Indian National Laboratories and Role of Leadership
Is privatization necessary? In India and across emerging markets, state-owned entities (SOEs) continue to make up a large proportion of industrial sales, yet they lag behind private counterparts on performance measures. But SOEs may be able to significantly improve performance even in the absence of property rights, according to HBS doctoral candidate Prithwiraj Choudhury and professor Tarun Khanna. As they document, 42 Indian state-owned laboratories started from a base of negligible U.S. patents, yet in the period 1993-2006 (during which the Indian government launched an ambitious privatization program), the labs were granted more patents than all domestic private firms combined. The labs then licensed several of these patents to multinationals, and licensing revenue increased from 3 percent to 15 percent as a fraction of government budgetary support. Findings are relevant to firms and R&D entities around the world that depend on varying degrees of government budgetary support and government control, especially in emerging markets like India, where SOEs control up to one-third of all industrial activity. Key concepts include: Despite the absence of property rights, 42 Indian state-owned laboratories significantly increased U.S. patents and licensing revenue from multinationals without negatively affecting publication quality and quantity. This development may be due to incentive policy change and leadership change at the labs. U.S. patents as well as revenue from multinationals increased sharply in response to director changes, an event whose timing was dictated by rigid government employment rules. Private firms including multinationals can play a catalytic role in driving up revenue at SOEs. The state-owned labs leveraged the U.S. institutional context in effecting their turnaround. The general point is that organizations in emerging markets can leverage institutions from outside their location of origin, once they have some established source of competitive advantage (in this case, their R&D-generated know-how). Although the labs were able to commercialize projects without sacrificing publication quality and quantity, a question remains as to whether and why national labs should concern themselves with commercialization. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
HBS Faculty Remember Nelson Mandela
Harvard Business School faculty Nitin Nohria, Linda Hill, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, and Gautam Mukunda remember Nelson Mandela, a leader who truly made a difference in the world. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.