Still Leading (B1): Hon. Bob McDonald—Profiting from Purpose

Rosabeth Moss Kanter; Ai-Ling Jamila Malone

Teaching Note | HBS Case Collection | January 2018

Still Leading (B1): Hon. Bob McDonald—Profiting from Purpose

by Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Ai-Ling Jamila Malone

Abstract

This case is included in the Still Leading series, which is part of an opening series of cases used in the Advanced Leadership Initiative at Harvard University. This case can also be taught as a standalone case as it is rich with many key leadership lessons that fall outside the series objective. McDonald’s career exemplifies a commitment to values. Throughout his career and life, he consistently maintained a set of values despite the changing context and periods of transition. His values seem to anchor him, especially during uncertain times. Teaching Note for HBS No. 318-050.

Keywords: Leadership; Personal Development and Career; Values and Beliefs; Transition;

Language: English

Format: Print

15 pages

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Citation:

Kanter, Rosabeth Moss, and Ai-Ling Jamila Malone. "Still Leading (B1): Hon. Bob McDonald—Profiting from Purpose." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 318-102, January 2018.

In 2018, CEO Lowell McAdam led efforts to transform Verizon through digital innovation, media acquisitions and integration, and changes to the company culture. He sought to manage change at the company as growth in traditional areas slowed, and position it as a leader in a 5G world.

Case | HBS Case Collection | February 2018 (Revised April 2018)

Haier: Incubating Entrepreneurs in a Chinese Giant

Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Nancy Hua Dai

CEO Zhang Ruimin must plan how to accelerate the growth of self-managed micro-enterprises. Platforms were Haier’s business platforms operating in five major sectors: white goods transformation, investment and incubation, financial holdings, real estate, and cultural industry. Platform owners incubated micro-enterprises on their platforms with the resources Haier had, but they were not the supervisors of micro-enterprises. His goal was to tear down the walls between the organization, shortening the time the company took to respond to users’ needs, with the ultimate goal of “zero distance” between employees and users. Haier had engaged in a series of organizational changes since 2005, the most recent of which started in 2012. His latest experimentation was turning Haier into a platform for entrepreneurship. Employees and those outside Haier could set up micro-enterprises on Haier’s platforms. Zhang thought Haier was on the right track, but the model had to prove itself in practice. He set a timetable: the micro-enterprises must reach the tipping point by September 20, 2018, which meant the micro-enterprise would have become a platform to which all resource providers would flock and stay loyal. There was no precedent of transformation like this anywhere. Would Haier succeed? What could Haier do to push the micro-enterprises to get to the tipping point?

Keywords: China; microenterprise; entrepreneurship; appliances; platform; Change; innovation; leadership; Opportunities; Entrepreneurship; Market Platforms; Transformation; Innovation and Invention; Leadership; Growth and Development Strategy; China;

Citation:

Kanter, Rosabeth Moss, and Nancy Hua Dai. "Haier: Incubating Entrepreneurs in a Chinese Giant." Harvard Business School Case 318-104, February 2018. (Revised April 2018.) View Details

Cite View Details Educators

The Still Leading case series includes an introductory note, “Still Leading (A): Issues in Transitioning to New Forms of Service Later in Life” and 10 supplementary cases that cover the transition of highly accomplished and prolific leaders (Hon. Robert McDonald, Hon. Mike Bloomberg, Gerry House, Lee Iacocca, General Claudia Kennedy, Sherry Lansing, Dr. Evelyn Murphy, Paul Newman, Hon. Colin Powell, and Louis Gossett Jr.). The Still Leading cases are part of an opening series of cases used in the Advanced Leadership Initiative at Harvard University. The cases document a number of individual’s lifetime personal and professional trajectories. They focus on the nature of career processes and transitions. The materials offer an opportunity for readers to inductively reason about the structure of significant career transitions and the developmental patterns across different arenas. The cases also create a context for participants to engage in introspection by asking them to reflect on patterns of development in their own career histories.

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Still Leading (B1): Hon. Bob McDonald—Profiting from Purpose

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