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- November 2023
- Case
Tata Group in 2021: Pursuing Profits through Purpose
By: Tarun Khanna, Krishna G. Palepu and Vidhya Muthuram
October 8, 2021: Tata Sons won a bid to acquire India’s national carrier Air India, marking the airline's return to its original owners after 68 long years. The winning bid of $2.4 billion gave Tata Sons full ownership of the airline and its coveted network of 6,200...
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- October 2023
- Case
Nelson Mandela: Changing the World
By: Robert L. Simons and Shirley Sun
This case traces the rise of Nelson Mandela from his tribal home in South Africa to president of the country. Rejecting expectations that he would be a tribal leader, Mandela instead dedicates his life to fighting Apartheid. After peaceful approaches fail, he joins...
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- September 2023
- Teaching Note
Patagonia: 'Earth Is Now Our Only Shareholder'
By: Brian Trelstad, Nien-hê Hsieh, Michael Norris and Susan Pinckney
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 323-057. Patagonia’s change of ownership from a privately held company to a perpetual purpose trust and 501(c)(4) nonprofit in order to use the company’s profit to fight the environmental crisis and be a model for future businesses.
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Keywords:
Trusts;
Business Ventures;
Business Organization;
Family Business;
Restructuring;
Change;
Disruption;
Transition;
Decision Making;
Ethics;
Values and Beliefs;
Finance;
Financial Management;
Governance;
Corporate Governance;
Investment Activism;
Innovation Leadership;
Labor;
Law;
Common Law;
Management;
Goals and Objectives;
Organizations;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Organizational Change and Adaptation;
Organizational Culture;
Ownership;
Ownership Type;
Family Ownership;
Private Ownership;
Social Enterprise;
Nonprofit Organizations;
Society;
Social Issues;
Wealth and Poverty;
Value;
Value Creation;
Apparel and Accessories Industry;
United States
- September 2023
- Teaching Note
Fighting the Battle of the Bulge—Evaluating Do Good/Do Well Innovations in Morbid Obesity Treatment
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 304-009. The case is part of the first module of the Innovating in Health Care course. Its purpose is to demonstrate how to evaluate the “do good” and do well” potential of a health care innovation.
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- September 2023
- Article
Corporate Purpose in Public and Private Firms
By: Claudine Gartenberg and George Serafeim
Analyzing data from approximately 1.5 million employees across 1,108 established public and private US companies, we find that the strength of employee beliefs related to purpose is weaker in public companies. Among public companies, those beliefs are stronger for...
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- August 2023 (Revised August 2023)
- Case
Raya Partners: Profitability and Purpose
By: Arthur Segel and Ephraim Mernick
Raya Partners, a private equity firm, faces a crucial decision regarding Asa Specialty Coatings Company (ASCC). The dilemma involves shifting ASCC's manufacturing operations to Mexico, a move that would boost profitability and reduce emissions but result in significant...
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- 2023
- Working Paper
LALIGA—From a Soccer Competition Organizer to a Global Player in the Sports and Entertainment Industry
By: Stephen A. Greyser, Kenneth Cortsen and Juan Fuentes Fernández
LALIGA, the first- and second-tier professional soccer league (known as “football” outside of the U.S. and Canada) in Spain, enters its 100th soccer season later this decade. The most popular game in the world (Giulianotti, 2012) has gone through many changes since...
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- August 2023
- Technical Note
Two Ways of Pursuing a Calling
By: Leslie Perlow and Hannah Weisman
Work can be a means to a financial end, a stepping stone to higher-level jobs, or a meaningful end in itself: a calling. The technical note provides an overview of two different ways people can pursue a calling: with an internal focus or external focus.
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- July 2023
- Supplement
Reimagining Enel: Enabling Sustainable Progress (A)
By: Michael Tushman and Kerry Herman
This case describes the transformation of Enel from a traditional “brown” or fossil fuel energy firm to a sustainable and green firm focused on renewables, and finally to an energy supplier and integrated energy services firm. It describes a set of capabilities...
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- July 2023
- Case
Schuberg Philis: From Success to Significance
By: Thomas J. DeLong and Daniela Beyersdorfer
The founders of Dutch professional services firm Schuberg Philis, and the new leadership team entrusted with the day-to-day management, must set the path forward in 2019. The company has grown into a €70 million revenue strong IT provider with top ranks in the...
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- July 2023
- Supplement
Schuberg Philis: From Success to Significance (B)
By: Thomas J. DeLong and Daniela Beyersdorfer
Three years into their “Ambition” growth plan, in 2022, the management team of Dutch professional service firm Schuberg Philis is taking stock. The global COVID-19 pandemic and other headwinds required adjustments to their growth targets, but they believe that their...
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- July 2023
- Case
'Bugs' Burger Bug Killers
By: Ryan W. Buell and William Fulmer
In the height of its success, Bugs Burger Bug Killers (BBBK; Burger has a soft 'g' - it rhymes with merger) was the largest independent extermination company in America, growing at more than 20% per year. BBBK built its business on the promise of pest eradication,...
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- June 2023
- Case
Albert Einstein: Changing the World
By: Robert Simons and Shirley Sun
This case traces the rise of Albert Einstein from a small town in Germany to a towering intellectual leader who revolutionized the field of physics. The case describes his early education and his penchant for individual thinking and non-conformity. A committed...
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- May–June 2023
- Article
Should Your Start-up Be For-profit or Nonprofit?: A Guide for Social Entrepreneurs
By: Cait Brumme and Brian Trelstad
Years ago the line between nonprofit and for-profit enterprises was clear, but that has changed. Nonprofits now offer products that compete with those of the best for-profits, and for-profits can deliver as much social value as charities. Despite the blurred...
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- June 2023
- Teaching Note
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited: Global Leadership in Chipmaking
By: William C. Kirby and Noah B. Truwit
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 321-126. The general purpose of this case is to explore the evolving nature of business relations across the Taiwan strait, focusing on the prominence of Taiwan's high-tech industry. After the legendary founder of Taiwan Semiconductor...
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- May 2023
- Case
IBM’s Ginni Rometty: Leading with Good Power
By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Stacy Straaberg
In March 2023, Virginia (Ginni) Rometty published Good Power: Leading Positive Change in our Lives, Work, and World, which covered her personal history and career at International Business Machines (IBM). Rometty was IBM’s ninth and first woman CEO from 2012–2020. Her...
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Keywords:
Transformation;
Acquisition;
Trends;
Gender;
Diversity;
Education;
Training;
Values and Beliefs;
Profit;
Revenue;
Leadership Style;
Leading Change;
Business or Company Management;
Negotiation;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Mission and Purpose;
Organizational Change and Adaptation;
Organizational Culture;
Family and Family Relationships;
Business and Community Relations;
Business and Government Relations;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Business and Stakeholder Relations;
Personal Characteristics;
Perspective;
Social Issues;
Adaptation;
Business Strategy;
Commercialization;
Competition;
Corporate Strategy;
Information Infrastructure;
Information Technology;
Health Industry;
Information Technology Industry;
Manufacturing Industry;
Service Industry;
Technology Industry;
New York (city, NY);
United States
- May–June 2023
- Article
A New Approach to Building Your Personal Brand: How to Communicate Your Value
By: Jill Avery and Rachel Greenwald
For better or worse, in today’s world everyone is a brand. Whether you’re applying for a job, asking for a promotion, or writing a dating profile, your success will depend on getting others to recognize your value. So you need to get comfortable marketing...
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- 2023
- Working Paper
How Wicked Problems Drive Business Performance: A Review of the Academic Literature
By: Caroline Adelson, Charlotte Kuller, Cate Tompkins, Ellora Sarkar, Samantha Price and Marco Iansiti
Recent years have seen a rise in the number of businesses engaged in the pursuit of “purposeful” activities – that is, activities that engage with the broader community in ways that expand beyond the pursuit of shareholder value. Many of these activities involve...
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- 2023
- Working Paper
Firm Purpose and Problem Wickedness: A Review of the Academic Literature
By: Caroline Adelson, Charlotte Kuller, Cate Tompkins, Ellora Sarkar, Samantha Price and Marco Iansiti
Our understanding of the firm’s role in society has evolved greatly over the past 70 years, with more recent years seeing a sharp rise in interest for how firms can contribute more than profits to society – that is, have a purpose beyond profits. Businesses engaged in...
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