More from the Author

• Case | HBS Case Collection | September 2019 (Revised October 2019)

  Burunda Prince at The Farm, a Comcast NBCUniversal Innovation Hub (Powered by Boomtown)

  Linda A. Hill, Eric Mankin and Emily Tedards

  After a successful inaugural year, Burunda Prince, the Managing Director of Comcast’s startup business accelerator The Farm, was getting ready for an eventful 2019. Comcast was America's largest cable and internet service provider, having built a profitable business bundling television content and delivering it via cable networks to more than 20 million households. The business was changing rapidly with the rise of streaming services, and The Farm was an initiative spearheaded by Comcast’s Central Division to introduce innovation into the Division’s culture. The case describes Prince’s approach in building The Farm from her arrival in August 2017, with discussions around how she chose participants for The Farm’s programs, how she worked with Comcast and with her employer, Boomtown Accelerators, who was under contract to run The Farm for Comcast, and how she developed her Atlanta ecosystem of startups, investors, and mentors. Should the business accelerator maintain its position as a general business accelerator, or should it focus on areas specific to Comcast? Should it maintain the same curriculum structure for its accelerator programs? This case can be taught as a standalone case, or with its counterpart, “Bill Connors and The Farm, a Comcast NBCUniversal Innovation Hub (Powered by Boomtown)” which precedes this one and focuses on Comcast’s rationale for launching a corporate startup accelerator.

  Keywords: innovation; accelerator; entrepreneur; Startup; outsourcing; hiring; Talent; culture; ecosystem; digital; women; African Americans; Leadership; Innovation and Invention; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Management; Diversity; Selection and Staffing; Organizational Culture; Media; Entertainment; Transformation; Atlanta;

  Citation:

  Hill, Linda A., Eric Mankin, and Emily Tedards. "Burunda Prince at The Farm, a Comcast NBCUniversal Innovation Hub (Powered by Boomtown)." Harvard Business School Case 420-057, September 2019. (Revised October 2019.)  View Details

  CiteView DetailsEducators

  Related

• Case | HBS Case Collection | June 2008 (Revised September 2019)

  Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (A)

  Geoffrey Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki, Geoffrey Jones, Masako Egawa and Mayuka Yamazaki

  Considers the entrepreneurial career of the founder of Mitsubishi, Yataro Iwasaki, who built a large shipping company against the opposition of powerful Western incumbents. Although sometimes supported by the Japanese government, and often times opposed, the case identifies Iwasaki's entrepreneurial talent and organization-building skills as key drivers of success. This case provides a vehicle for examining the entrepreneurial factors behind Japan's remarkable transition from a feudal to a modern society in the second half of the nineteenth century.

  Keywords: History; Leadership; Business History; Organizational Structure; Entrepreneurship; Business and Government Relations; Japan;

  Citation:

  Jones, Geoffrey, Masako Egawa, and Mayuka Yamazaki. "Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (A)." Harvard Business School Case 808-158, June 2008. (Revised September 2019.)  View Details

  CiteView DetailsEducatorsPurchase

  Related

• Case | HBS Case Collection | June 2008 (Revised September 2019)

  Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (A)

  Geoffrey Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki, Geoffrey Jones, Masako Egawa and Mayuka Yamazaki

  Considers the entrepreneurial career of the founder of Mitsubishi, Yataro Iwasaki, who built a large shipping company against the opposition of powerful Western incumbents. Although sometimes supported by the Japanese government, and often times opposed, the case identifies Iwasaki's entrepreneurial talent and organization-building skills as key drivers of success. This case provides a vehicle for examining the entrepreneurial factors behind Japan's remarkable transition from a feudal to a modern society in the second half of the nineteenth century.

  Keywords: History; Leadership; Business History; Organizational Structure; Entrepreneurship; Business and Government Relations; Japan;

  Citation:

  Jones, Geoffrey, Masako Egawa, and Mayuka Yamazaki. "Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (A)." Harvard Business School Case 808-158, June 2008. (Revised September 2019.)  View Details

  CiteView DetailsEducatorsPurchase

  Related