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All HBS Web
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- Faculty Publications (165)
- 2021
- Working Paper
CRM and AI in Time of Crisis
By: Michelle Y. Lu and Navid Mojir
A crisis can affect the incentives of various players within a firm’s multi-layered sales and marketing organization (e.g., headquarters and branches of a bank). Such shifts can result in sales decisions against the firm’s best interests. Motivated by the backlash to...
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Keywords:
CRM;
Artificial Intelligence;
AI;
B2B Marketing;
Decision Authority;
Crisis Marketing;
Intra-organizational Conflict;
COVID-19 Pandemic;
Customer Relationship Management;
Technological Innovation;
Decision Making;
Strategy;
Health Pandemics;
Crisis Management;
AI and Machine Learning
Lu, Michelle Y., and Navid Mojir. "CRM and AI in Time of Crisis." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 22-035, November 2021.
- October 2021 (Revised November 2021)
- Case
Bodega Aurrera: eCommerce at the Base of the Pyramid
By: Michael Chu, Álvaro Rodríguez Arregui, Carla Larangeira and Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago
Bodega Aurrera, serving the base of the pyramid and Walmart’s main Mexican format, is considering launching a full eCommerce channel as Covid-19 has erupted in the country. In 2019, Bodega Aurrera accounted for 45% of revenues and 2,748 of Walmex’s 3,416 stores. Having...
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Keywords:
Ecommerce;
Bottom Of The Pyramid;
Digitalization;
Omnichannel;
Walmart;
Business Model;
Internet and the Web;
Marketing Channels;
Technology Adoption;
E-commerce;
Retail Industry;
Latin America;
Mexico
Chu, Michael, Álvaro Rodríguez Arregui, Carla Larangeira, and Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago. "Bodega Aurrera: eCommerce at the Base of the Pyramid." Harvard Business School Case 322-059, October 2021. (Revised November 2021.)
- September 2021 (Revised December 2023)
- Case
On the Bubble: Startup Bootstrapping
By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Tom Quinn and Annelena Lobb
Bubble was a software company in the low-code/no-code market, making tools that allowed users without traditional programming backgrounds or technical skills to build software. The case covers cofounder Joshua Haas’s engineering background, as he experienced a high...
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Keywords:
Business Startups;
Business Growth and Maturation;
Business Model;
Business Plan;
Disruption;
Transformation;
Trends;
Customer Focus and Relationships;
Customer Relationship Management;
Cost vs Benefits;
Decisions;
Entrepreneurship;
Venture Capital;
Equity;
Executive Compensation;
Recruitment;
Selection and Staffing;
Disruptive Innovation;
Technological Innovation;
Job Interviews;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Ownership Stake;
Opportunities;
Applications and Software;
Technology Adoption;
Technology Industry;
Web Services Industry;
New York (city, NY);
California;
France
Bussgang, Jeffrey J., Tom Quinn, and Annelena Lobb. "On the Bubble: Startup Bootstrapping." Harvard Business School Case 822-033, September 2021. (Revised December 2023.)
- April 2021
- Case
Distinct Software
By: Das Narayandas, Arijit Sengupta and Jonathan Wray
Distinct Software (disguised name), a global enterprise software company, is at an important point in its growth trajectory where the luster of its mantra of “grow and win at any cost” has dimmed with increasing competition and margin pressures. To help navigate its...
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Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence;
Marketing;
Sales;
Performance Productivity;
Technological Innovation;
AI and Machine Learning
Narayandas, Das, Arijit Sengupta, and Jonathan Wray. "Distinct Software." Harvard Business School Case 521-101, April 2021.
- March 2021 (Revised August 2022)
- Case
Seeding and Selling Asana
By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Susie Ma and Amram Migdal
In December 2019, Oliver Jay, Asana’s Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), was reconsidering his go-to-market (GTM) strategy. Asana was cloud-based work management software that enabled users to break up projects into discrete tasks that could be assigned, scheduled, and...
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Keywords:
SaaS;
Customer Journey;
Business Model;
Business Organization;
Change Management;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Growth Management;
Marketing Channels;
Marketing Strategy;
Product Marketing;
Organizational Change and Adaptation;
Organizational Design;
Organizational Structure;
Digital Platforms;
Internet and the Web;
Technology Industry;
United States
Rayport, Jeffrey F., Susie Ma, and Amram Migdal. "Seeding and Selling Asana." Harvard Business School Case 821-054, March 2021. (Revised August 2022.)
- March 2021 (Revised March 2024)
- Case
M-KOPA: Empowering Lives
By: V. Kasturi Rangan, Wale Lawal and Pippa Tubman Armerding
The Pay As You Go solar power company in East Africa had sales of $71 million in 2019. It wished to grow to $300 million by 2025. M-KOPA, founded by three entrepreneurs in 2011, had grown nicely in Kenya and Uganda to reach nearly 750,000 households with an innovative...
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Keywords:
Mobile Payment;
Go-to-market Strategy;
Business At The Base Of The Pyramid;
Business Growth;
Social Entrepreneurship;
Renewable Energy;
Business Model;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Expansion;
Marketing Strategy;
Developing Countries and Economies;
Kenya;
Uganda;
Nigeria
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Wale Lawal, and Pippa Tubman Armerding. "M-KOPA: Empowering Lives." Harvard Business School Case 521-085, March 2021. (Revised March 2024.)
- Article
Selling After the Crisis
Like perishable goods in grocery stores, sales models have a sell-by date. As product standards evolve and new entrants emerge, buyers have more choices and demand more in terms of quality and performance across vendors. Firms that fail to adjust to changing customer...
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Cespedes, Frank V. "Selling After the Crisis." Harvard Business Review 99, no. 2 (March–April 2021): 52–57.
- Article
New Sales Realities
Business leaders need to understand that it’s the fit of People, Process, Pricing, and Partners that drives sales effectiveness. As firms confront new buying processes, required sales competencies affect hiring, training, and development (People). Without a coherent...
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Cespedes, Frank V. "New Sales Realities." International Journal of Sales Transformation 7.1 (April 2021): 26–27.
- February 2021
- Case
Threadless: The Renewal of an Online Community
By: Shane Greenstein, Karim Lakhani and Christian Godwin
Threadless, an online apparel company and artist community which Jake Nickell founded in 2000, continued to maintain its status as a top company in the online apparel industry during its second decade. From 2010 to 2020, Threadless continued to operate its...
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Keywords:
Business Model;
Decision Making;
Entrepreneurship;
Innovation and Invention;
Leading Change;
Management;
Marketing;
Product Launch;
Operations;
Supply Chain;
Distribution;
Networks;
Sales;
Strategy;
Adaptation;
Information Technology;
Applications and Software;
Digital Platforms;
Apparel and Accessories Industry;
Technology Industry;
North America
Greenstein, Shane, Karim Lakhani, and Christian Godwin. "Threadless: The Renewal of an Online Community." Harvard Business School Case 621-056, February 2021.
- Article
How Real Sales Learning Happens: In the Flow of Work
By: Yuchun Lee, Mark Magnacca and Frank V. Cespedes
Most learning in sales is through peer learning in task-specific contexts, and the effects are cumulative because modeling behavior is a big driver of how salespeople develop. This is very different from the experience in most training seminars, especially if the...
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Lee, Yuchun, Mark Magnacca, and Frank V. Cespedes. "How Real Sales Learning Happens: In the Flow of Work." Learning Solutions (February 15, 2021).
- February 2021
- Case
Yellow Digital Retailers: Providing Solar Electricity to Transform Rural Africa
By: Lynda M. Applegate, Frank V. Cespedes and Michael Norris
In 2020, Mike Heyink and Maya Stewart, co-founders of the Pay-as-you-Go Solar company Yellow were considering how to grow their startup. They had achieved some success in their first market, Malawi, and had recently entered Uganda, where business was slower. What did...
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Keywords:
Solar Energy;
Business Model;
Business Startups;
Developing Countries and Economies;
Alternative Energy;
Renewable Energy;
Social Entrepreneurship;
Green Technology;
Salesforce Management;
Diversification;
Expansion;
Energy Industry;
Africa;
South Africa;
Malawi;
Uganda
Applegate, Lynda M., Frank V. Cespedes, and Michael Norris. "Yellow Digital Retailers: Providing Solar Electricity to Transform Rural Africa." Harvard Business School Case 821-041, February 2021.
- 2021
- Working Paper
Crisis Interventions in Corporate Insolvency
By: Samuel Antill and Christopher Clayton
We model the optimal resolution of insolvent firms in general equilibrium. Collateral constrained
banks lend to (i) solvent firms to finance investments and (ii) distressed firms to
avoid liquidation. Liquidations create negative fire-sale externalities. Liquidations...
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Keywords:
Insolvent Firms;
Government Intervention;
Liquidation;
Econometric Models;
Insolvency and Bankruptcy;
Governance;
Policy
Antill, Samuel, and Christopher Clayton. "Crisis Interventions in Corporate Insolvency." Working Paper, February 2021. (Accept with Revisions, Journal of Finance.)
- September 2020 (Revised November 2020)
- Case
d.light
By: Michael Chu, Krishna G. Palepu and Dilyana Karadzhova Botha
Kenyan off-grid-solar pioneer d.light can power entire homes in rural Africa but must now decide how to fund the growth of its asset-heavy business model. Ned Tozun and Sam Goldman founded d.light in 2006 to transform lives through solar solutions enabling access to...
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Keywords:
Alternative Energy;
Business Model;
Capital;
Emerging Markets;
Expansion;
Financial Strategy;
Renewable Energy;
Strategy;
Social Entrepreneurship;
Energy Industry;
Africa;
Kenya;
India
Chu, Michael, Krishna G. Palepu, and Dilyana Karadzhova Botha. "d.light." Harvard Business School Case 321-069, September 2020. (Revised November 2020.)
- August 2020 (Revised March 2021)
- Case
Migros Turkey: Scaling Online Operations (A)
By: Antonio Moreno and Gamze Yucaoglu
The case opens in November 2019 as Ozgur Tort and Mustafa Bartin, CEO and chief large-format and online retail officer of Migros Ticaret A.S. (Migros), Turkey’s oldest and one of its largest supermarket chains, are contemplating what the best fulfillment format and...
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Keywords:
Retail;
Grocery;
Business Model;
Emerging Markets;
For-Profit Firms;
Strategy;
Digital Platforms;
Information Technology;
Technology Adoption;
Value Creation;
Globalization;
Competition;
Expansion;
Logistics;
Profit;
Resource Allocation;
Corporate Strategy;
Turkey
Moreno, Antonio, and Gamze Yucaoglu. "Migros Turkey: Scaling Online Operations (A)." Harvard Business School Case 621-026, August 2020. (Revised March 2021.)
- July 2020 (Revised January 2021)
- Case
Pattern Brands
By: Sunil Gupta, Elie Ofek and Julia Kelley
In March 2020, direct-to-consumer (DTC) company Pattern Brands needed to decide how to allocate resources across its different brands. Pattern Co-Founders Nick Ling and Emmett Shine hoped to avoid the pitfalls faced by some DTC companies—such as inability to scale and...
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Keywords:
Direct-to-consumer;
Brands and Branding;
Marketing Channels;
Marketing Strategy;
Product Marketing;
Product Launch;
Product Positioning;
Business Model;
Business Startups;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Demand and Consumers;
Business Strategy;
Diversification;
Competitive Advantage;
Consumer Products Industry;
Retail Industry;
North and Central America;
United States;
New York (city, NY);
New York (state, US)
Gupta, Sunil, Elie Ofek, and Julia Kelley. "Pattern Brands." Harvard Business School Case 521-009, July 2020. (Revised January 2021.)
- June 2020
- Case
TransDigm: The Acquisition of Aerosonic Corp.
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel W. Fisher
In April 2013, TransDigm, a company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and commercial aircraft, announced an agreement to acquire Aerosonic Corporation for $39 million in cash (1.2 times Aerosonic’s sales of $31...
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Keywords:
Mergers and Acquisitions;
Growth Management;
Business Strategy;
Competitive Strategy;
Value Creation;
Valuation;
Negotiation;
Cash Flow;
Contracts;
Aerospace Industry;
Air Transportation Industry;
United States
Esty, Benjamin C., and Daniel W. Fisher. "TransDigm: The Acquisition of Aerosonic Corp." Harvard Business School Case 720-480, June 2020.
- June 2020
- Teaching Note
Armarium: Luxury Fashion Brands for Rent
By: Jill Avery and David Fubini
Armarium, a two-sided digital platform that offered consumers the opportunity to rent the most coveted, current season high fashion clothing and accessories from the top global luxury brands, had emerged from its first sales season with two distinct customer segments:...
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Keywords:
Luxury Brand;
Fashion;
Sharing Economy;
Two-sided Marketplace;
Target Market;
Customer Selection;
Marketing;
Brands and Branding;
Luxury;
Two-Sided Platforms;
Business Model;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Customer Value and Value Chain;
Fashion Industry;
Consumer Products Industry;
United States;
North America
- June 2020
- Article
Frenemies in Platform Markets: Heterogeneous Profit Foci as Drivers of Compatibility Decisions
By: Ron Adner, Jianqing Chen and Feng Zhu
We study compatibility decisions of two competing platform owners that generate profits through both hardware sales and royalties from content sales. We consider a game-theoretic model in which two platforms offer different standalone utilities to users. We find that...
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Keywords:
Compatibility;
Platform Competition;
Profit Foci;
Digital Platforms;
Competition;
Profit;
Decision Making
Adner, Ron, Jianqing Chen, and Feng Zhu. "Frenemies in Platform Markets: Heterogeneous Profit Foci as Drivers of Compatibility Decisions." Management Science 66, no. 6 (June 2020): 2432–2451.
- May 2020 (Revised June 2020)
- Case
TransDigm's Acquisition and Integration of Arkwin Industries
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel W. Fisher
In May 2013, TransDigm, a company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and civilian aircraft, announced it was buying Arkwin Industries for $286 million in cash (3 times Arkwin’s sales of $91 million). Having acquired...
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Keywords:
Business Model;
Value Creation;
Strategy;
Acquisition;
Integration;
Talent and Talent Management;
Aerospace Industry
Esty, Benjamin C., and Daniel W. Fisher. "TransDigm's Acquisition and Integration of Arkwin Industries." Harvard Business School Case 720-467, May 2020. (Revised June 2020.)
- April 2020 (Revised November 2020)
- Case
Ping An: Pioneering the New Model of ‘Technology-driven Finance’
By: Feng Zhu, Anthony K. Woo and Nancy Hua Dai
In mid-December 2018, Peter Ma, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. was considering whether the company should grow a fifth ecosystem of Smart City Services. Established in 1988, Ping An was one of the top 10 global financial...
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Keywords:
Business Ecosystems;
Fintech;
Finance;
Information Technology;
Business Model;
Expansion;
Competitive Strategy;
Financial Services Industry;
Technology Industry
Zhu, Feng, Anthony K. Woo, and Nancy Hua Dai. "Ping An: Pioneering the New Model of ‘Technology-driven Finance’." Harvard Business School Case 620-068, April 2020. (Revised November 2020.)