Measuring and Understanding Hierarchy as an Architectural Element in Industry Sectors
| Authors: | Jianxi Luo, Daniel E. Whitney, Carliss Y. Baldwin, and Christopher L. Magee |
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| Published: | August 27, 2009 |
| Paper Release Date: | June 2009 |
| Feature: | Working Papers |
In an industry setting, classic supply chains display strict hierarchy, whereas clusters of firms have linkages going in many different directions. Previous theory has often assumed the existence of the hierarchical relationships among firms, and empirical industry studies tend to focus on a single-layer industry, or a two-layer structure comprising buyers and suppliers. And yet, some industries have a multilayer structure with a multistep supply chain. Others comprise a cluster of complementary firms producing different parts of a large system. HBS professor Carliss Y. Baldwin and colleagues use network analysis to study multilayer industries both empirically (in the case of Japan) and theoretically and to explore how industries are organized at the sector level in an attempt to reveal the underlying rules that determine how industry architectures form and change.
Where Cash for Clunkers Ran Off the Road
| Published: | August 26, 2009 |
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| Feature: | Views on News |
Marketing professor John Quelch says the federal government's "Cash for Clunkers" program was poorly run and failed to meet its main objectives, proving again the government has no business trying to shape consumer behavior. Join the discussion.
GM: What Went Wrong and What's Next
| Published: | June 15, 2009 |
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| Feature: | Op-Ed |
For decades, General Motors reigned as the king of automakers. What went wrong? We asked HBS faculty to reflect on the wrong turns and missed opportunities of the former industry leader, and to suggest ideas for recovery.
The Challenges of Investing in Science-Based Innovation
| Published: | June 1, 2009 |
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| Feature: | Executive Education |
Smart science-based businesses view today's economic turmoil as an opportunity to stoke up research and innovation for long-term competitive advantage, says professor Vicki L. Sato. How about your business?
Published in 2008
Finding Success in the Middle of the Market
| Published: | March 19, 2008 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
Let's face it—the middle market isn't sexy. Sears isn't Victoria's Secret. But it can be very profitable to know how to play "midfield" adroitly, says professor and soccer enthusiast John Quelch.
Published in 2007
Why Global Brands Work
| Published: | October 17, 2007 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
Japanese automakers create single products and brands for worldwide consumption, while Ford customizes products for local markets. You know who won. Why do global brands work? What makes them work? Professor John Quelch provides some answers.
Published in 2006
CEO Succession: The Case at Ford
| Published: | November 22, 2006 |
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| Feature: | Views on News |
When Ford Motor Company looked to replace Bill Ford as CEO, it turned not to another auto industry insider but instead to Boeing's Alan Mulally. We talk with Harvard Business School professor Joseph L. Bower to better understand Ford's move and the larger issues of CEO succession.
HBS Cases: Porsche's Risky Roll on an SUV
| Published: | September 5, 2006 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
Why would any company in the world want to locate in a high-cost, high-wage economy like Germany? Porsche's unusual answer in a globalizing auto industry has framed two case studies by HBS professor Jeffrey Fear and colleague Carin-Isabel Knoop.
American Auto's Troubled Road
| Published: | April 10, 2006 |
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| Feature: | Views on News |
Harvard Business School faculty dissect where U.S. auto makers went wrong, and how they might again get on the road to growth. From HBS Alumni Bulletin.
Published in 2001
How Toyota Turns Workers Into Problem Solvers
| Published: | November 26, 2001 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
Toyota's reputation for sustaining high product quality is legendary. But the company's methods are not secret. So why can't other carmakers match Toyota's track record? HBS professor Steven Spear says it's all about problem solving.
How One Center of Innovation Lost its Spark
| Published: | July 23, 2001 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
It's no secret that innovation is what has always made places like Silicon Valley and Hollywood so special. Creativity and expertise centered in one location, it seems, spurs yet more innovation at ever increasing speeds. But what happens when the well runs dry?
Published in 1999
Decoding the DNA of the Toyota Production System
| Published: | October 12, 1999 |
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| Feature: | Research & Ideas |
How can one production operation be both rigidly scripted and enormously flexible? In this summary of an article from the Harvard Business Review, HBS Professors H. Kent Bowen and Steven Spear disclose the secret to Toyota's production success. The company's operations can be seen as a continuous series of controlled experiments: whenever Toyota defines a specification, it is establishing a hypothesis that is then tested through action. The workers, who have internalized this scientific-method approach, are stimulated to respond to problems as they appear; using data from the strictly defined experiment, they are able to adapt fluidly to changing circumstances.
