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In Praise of Uncertainty
Decision making and problem solving Magazine ArticleThe information technology explosion was set off by visionaries who thrive on uncertainty. Today that innovation-fueling uncertainty is in danger, a victim of its own success and excess. IT producers have historically built platforms that are useless standing alone, inviting others to parlay them into a variety of useful applications. The first PC makers shipped […] -
Match Your Innovation Strategy to Your Innovation Ecosystem
Innovation Magazine ArticleSuccessful innovation requires tracking your partners and potential adopters as closely as you track your own development process. -
Crap Circles
Analytics and data science Magazine ArticleThe most dubious business plan can look solid—even smart—if it’s cast as a virtuous circle. “See, we invest our profits in innovation to create delightful products that customers buy—which generate profits that we invest in innovation!” Who could argue with that? Indeed, the merit of self-reinforcing systems seems so obvious that businesspeople instinctively describe their […] -
The Strategic Power of Saying No
Entrepreneurship Magazine ArticleThe hardest part of being an entrepreneur can be learning to turn down business. It is also the only way to survive—and grow. -
How to Buy/Sell Professional Services
Managing people Magazine ArticleIn recent years, there has been a marked increase in the buying of professional services by management. This is true for a broad range of advisory activities, such as financial, economic, public relations, advertising, legal, personnel, research, and many others. By the same token, there has been a marked growth in the firms selling these […] -
Consulting on the Cusp of Disruption
Competitive strategy Magazine ArticleThe industry that has long helped others sidestep strategic threats is itself being upended. -
It’s Time to Retire Retirement
Retirement planning Magazine ArticleLong-standing human resource practices invest heavily in youth and push out older workers. This must change—and public policy, too—or companies will find themselves running off a demographic cliff as baby boomers age. -
Biogen Unchained
Marketing Magazine ArticleWhen the biotech pioneer had to get a blockbuster drug to market fast, it didn’t lock itself into a rigid supply chain. It joined with partners to become a virtual manufacturer. -
7 Principles to Attract and Retain Older Frontline Workers
Leadership & Managing People Digital ArticleTakeaways from interviews and a survey of 35,000 older U.S. employees. -
Research: Are Clients Loyal to Your Firm, or the People in It?
Talent management ResearchPredicting what happens when employees leave. -
Breaking the Trade-Off Between Efficiency and Service
Operations strategy Magazine ArticleService businesses struggle with a reality that is foreign to manufacturers: Customers “interfere” with their operations. To deliver consistent quality at sustainable cost, companies must learn to manage that involvement. -
The Lean Service Machine
Operations strategy Magazine ArticleThe power of lean operations has transformed manufacturing. Jefferson Pilot Financial proves that service companies can use the same principles to push their performance to new heights. -
Taking the Bias Out of Bean Counting
Accounting Magazine ArticleProposed changes by the SEC don’t go far enough to guarantee impartial audits by the accounting profession. -
How Gig Work Pits Customers Against Workers
Society and business relations Digital ArticleApathy among customers has made tactics like boycotts and petitions far less effective in the gig economy. -
Riding the Celtic Tiger
Strategic planning Magazine ArticleIreland’s booming economy lured John Dooley home six years ago. Is it strong enough to keep him there? -
Get Your Money's Worth from Consultants
Organizational Development Digital ArticleHave you ever hired a consultant or been asked to work with one? If not, you're a distinct minority. Management consulting is a $160 billion industry,... -
What Makes People Follow Reluctant Leaders
Leadership & Managing People Digital ArticleA new study finds three traits that help people rise to the top. -
Reckoning with the Pension Fund Revolution
Finance and investing Magazine ArticleFifteen years after it was first chronicled, the “unseen revolution” transforming corporate ownership in the United States is now visible to all. The 20 largest pension funds (13 of them funds of state, municipal, or nonprofit employees) hold around one-tenth of the equity capital of America’s publicly owned companies. All told, institutional investors—that is, primarily […] -
Building a Direct-to-Consumer Strategy Without Alienating Your Distributors
Sales and marketing Digital ArticleThree ways to minimize risk. -
Inner Life of Executive Kids: A Conversation with Child Psychiatrist Robert Coles
Organizational Development Magazine ArticleIn the last 20 years, business has become the dominant institution in American society, in many respects usurping the role once played by religion. As...
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Financial Reporting at Mattel
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details In September 2020, Diana Ferguson was nearing her first Audit Committee meeting as the newly appointed Audit Committee chair of Mattel, Inc. Mattel was... -
Common Ground Coworking: Building a Sustainable Coworking Social Enterprise
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Case Study11.95View Details This case illustrates the challenges, particularly cash flow, experienced by a team of entrepreneurs as they deal with startup issues in a coworking social... -
Conroy's Acura: Customer Lifetime Value and Return on Marketing
Sales & Marketing Case Study11.95View Details In the fall of 2006, the president of Conroy's Acura was examining reports of the company's quarterly sales. He was concerned that despite a healthy economy,... -
San Francisco International Airport and Quantum Secure's SAFE for Aviation System
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details In 2008 San Francisco International Airport (known by its three-letter airport code, SFO) had announced a $383 million plan to renovate and reopen Terminal... -
Vendedy: The World's Street Markets in Your Pocket
Leadership & Managing People Case Study11.95View Details Vendedy was the world's first mobile network connecting global travellers to local street markets. Inspired by the emergence of the sharing economy, Vendedy's... -
Neat and Clean Solutions: The Growth Challenge
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details In 2018, Neat and Clean Solutions (Neat and Clean), a cleaning services start-up in Gurgaon, India, had grown steadily in its 10 years of operations.... -
Godrej Security Solutions Ltd: Moving Consumers to Action
Sales & Marketing Case Study11.95View Details Godrej Security Solutions (GSS) offered both physical security products (such as safes, lockers, etc.) and electronic security products (such as cameras... -
India Post
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details The advent of the world wide web and the entry of private players in India's post-liberalization era resulted in India Post losing a substantial volume... -
KOSÉ: The New Challenges in China
Management Case Study11.95View Details In May 2023, KOSÉ Corporation (KOSÉ) was facing three ominous factors in the Chinese market: declining sales due to weak consumer spending in China following... -
Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy
Global Business Case Study11.95View Details With an almost forty-year history as a business in China, the Wanxiang Group has navigated through the significantly different political and economic... -
Uber(US): The Push for Autonomous Vehicles
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details Since early 2015, Uber had been investing heavily in research and development for its autonomous vehicles to revolutionize the ride-hailing industry and... -
Service Corp. International
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details The CFO of a high-growth company in the low-growth and fragmented funeral services industry must decide how to optimize capital structure and earnings... -
FirstConnect Solutions - Gig Working to Solve the Leaking Bucket
Management Case Study11.95View Details Founded in May 2020, FirstConnect Solutions is a micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) focused on providing recruitment and staffing solutions. When... -
Zhongke Xinke: How Does the Foreseeing Unicorns Project Create Shared Value?
Management Case Study11.95View Details Zhongke Xinke (Beijing) Technology Co. Ltd. (Zhongke Xinke), founded in November 2016, enjoyed a high reputation in China's makerspace industry. Miao... -
DailyFish: Reinventing Customer Service Management
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details DailyFish was an emerging e-commerce enterprise that was started in 2016 by Baby Marine Ventures, one of the largest exporters of frozen seafood from... -
Emeritus: Achieving Impact, Providing Access (A)
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Case Study11.95View Details In June 2019, Emeritus cofounders Ashwin Damera (HBS MBA 2005) and Chaitanya Kalipatnapu were thrilled with the rapid growth of Emeritus. Damera and Kalipatnapu... -
PDQ Manufacturing, Inc.
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details A small manufacturer of car wash facilities has been unable to develop management systems because of rapid growth. Now size dictates the need for such... -
Self-Motivation of Entrepreneur Lu Chengdui
Organizational Development Case Study11.95View Details It was September 2009 when 21-year-old entrepreneur Lu Chengdui first considered entering the partnership that led to his becoming the chairman and general... -
Singapore Post Ltd.: Recurrent Service Failures
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details For 160 years, Singapore Post had been one of Singapore's main postal service providers, delivering trusted and reliable postal services to homes and... -
Organizational Design at iQmetrix: The Holacracy Decision
Organizational Development Case Study11.95View Details Software development company iQmetrix Software Development Corporation (iQmetrix), headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, had enjoyed success and growth...
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Financial Reporting at Mattel
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details In September 2020, Diana Ferguson was nearing her first Audit Committee meeting as the newly appointed Audit Committee chair of Mattel, Inc. Mattel was... -
Common Ground Coworking: Building a Sustainable Coworking Social Enterprise
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Case Study11.95View Details This case illustrates the challenges, particularly cash flow, experienced by a team of entrepreneurs as they deal with startup issues in a coworking social... -
In Praise of Uncertainty
Decision making and problem solving Magazine ArticleThe information technology explosion was set off by visionaries who thrive on uncertainty. Today that innovation-fueling uncertainty is in danger, a victim of its own success and excess. IT producers have historically built platforms that are useless standing alone, inviting others to parlay them into a variety of useful applications. The first PC makers shipped […] -
Match Your Innovation Strategy to Your Innovation Ecosystem
Innovation Magazine ArticleSuccessful innovation requires tracking your partners and potential adopters as closely as you track your own development process. -
Conroy's Acura: Customer Lifetime Value and Return on Marketing
Sales & Marketing Case Study11.95View Details In the fall of 2006, the president of Conroy's Acura was examining reports of the company's quarterly sales. He was concerned that despite a healthy economy,... -
San Francisco International Airport and Quantum Secure's SAFE for Aviation System
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details In 2008 San Francisco International Airport (known by its three-letter airport code, SFO) had announced a $383 million plan to renovate and reopen Terminal... -
Crap Circles
Analytics and data science Magazine ArticleThe most dubious business plan can look solid—even smart—if it’s cast as a virtuous circle. “See, we invest our profits in innovation to create delightful products that customers buy—which generate profits that we invest in innovation!” Who could argue with that? Indeed, the merit of self-reinforcing systems seems so obvious that businesspeople instinctively describe their […] -
The Strategic Power of Saying No
Entrepreneurship Magazine ArticleThe hardest part of being an entrepreneur can be learning to turn down business. It is also the only way to survive—and grow. -
Vendedy: The World's Street Markets in Your Pocket
Leadership & Managing People Case Study11.95View Details Vendedy was the world's first mobile network connecting global travellers to local street markets. Inspired by the emergence of the sharing economy, Vendedy's... -
How to Buy/Sell Professional Services
Managing people Magazine ArticleIn recent years, there has been a marked increase in the buying of professional services by management. This is true for a broad range of advisory activities, such as financial, economic, public relations, advertising, legal, personnel, research, and many others. By the same token, there has been a marked growth in the firms selling these […]