Fernwood Art Investments: Leading in an Imperfect Marketplace

Boris  Groysberg; Joel  Podolny; Timothy  Keller

Case | HBS Case Collection | September 2004 (Revised February 2006)

Fernwood Art Investments: Leading in an Imperfect Marketplace

by Boris Groysberg, Joel Podolny and Timothy Keller

Abstract

As Bruce Taub, founder of Fernwood, strolled past some of New York City's finest galleries, he pondered the unique challenges that Fernwood faced. Where others had seen the inefficiency of imperfect markets, Taub saw an opportunity to revolutionize the very nature of how Americans related to the fine art market. As its chairman and founder, Taub had built Fernwood to serve as a vehicle for his vision: to democratize investment in art such that "even my secretary could someday own (shares of art) in her 401(k)." As Taub walked through the doors at Christies, he knew that in the near future, he was going to decide the path that would initially guide Fernwood toward investors. He also knew that at least in the short-term, he needed the support of the art community, and he wondered what else he could or should do to win that support.

Keywords: Arts; Investment; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; Opportunities; New York (city, NY);

Format: Print

34 pages

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Citation:

Groysberg, Boris, Joel Podolny, and Timothy Keller. "Fernwood Art Investments: Leading in an Imperfect Marketplace." Harvard Business School Case 405-032, September 2004. (Revised February 2006.)

Case | HBS Case Collection | July 2020 (Revised September 2020)

The Honor Foundation: Accessing Special Operations Talent

Boris Groysberg and John Masko

In 2020, The Honor Foundation (THF), a nonprofit dedicated to helping U.S. military special operators to transition into civilian careers, was facing a series of strategic challenges. THF had been founded in 2013 by former Navy SEAL trainee Joe Musselman, who observed a disturbing pattern: once special operators left the military in their mid-30s or 40s, they tended to end up in jobs in which they were overqualified, underpaid, and unfulfilled. Musselman attributed this to fundamental disconnects between the world of special operations, whose members had unique and deep skill sets but little experience articulating them in the civilian world, and the world of business. THF’s programs gave transitioning special operators space to reflect on what they wanted out of their transition, and hard skills for interviewing, resume writing, and networking. Over seven years, its three month program had grown to serve over 200 transitioners per year on three campuses plus a virtual campus. But in early 2020, THF was not yet serving America’s largest contingent of special operators: the U.S. Army Special Forces. As the COVID-19 pandemic raged, THF CEO Matt Stevens was evaluating how best to incorporate Army special operators and fulfill THF’s mission of serving all the U.S. special ops community. Should THF build another physical campus? Should it use its virtual campus to incorporate Army special operators instead? Or should it take on government funding to scale quickly? Students who read this case will evaluate this strategic problem while becoming familiar with the unique skills of the Special Operations Forces community.

Keywords: Experience and Expertise; Talent and Talent Management; Curriculum and Courses; Executive Education; Social Entrepreneurship; National Security; Recruitment; Retention; Job Interviews; Job Search; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Crisis Management; Mission and Purpose; Retirement; Nonprofit Organizations; War; Education Industry; San Diego; Virginia;

Citation:

Groysberg, Boris, and John Masko. "The Honor Foundation: Accessing Special Operations Talent." Harvard Business School Case 421-006, July 2020. (Revised September 2020.) View Details

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Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook had begun to wonder whether it might be time to rethink their opportunistic approach to the expansion of their small restaurant empire in Philadelphia, CooknSolo. The pandemic, however, caused an abrupt and intense change of focus—the goal was no longer expansion, but survival. Solomonov had overcome much in his life, including addiction and the death of his younger brother; these experiences had given him the perspective to take on great challenges in his career, the COVID-19 pandemic being the greatest challenge yet. As the economy cautiously started to reopen in June 2020, how should Solomonov and Cook proceed? How should they think about their business in terms of survival through the duration of the pandemic and set themselves up to come back even stronger in the post-pandemic world?

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Fernwood Art Investments: Leading in an Imperfect Marketplace

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