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Accounting & Management

Accounting & Management

  • Faculty
  • Curriculum
  • Seminars & Conferences
  • Awards & Honors
  • Doctoral Students
Overview Faculty Curriculum Seminars & Conferences Awards & Honors Doctoral Students
    • March 2021
    • Article

    The Customer May Not Always Be Right: Customer Compatibility and Service Performance

    By: Ryan W. Buell, Dennis Campbell and Frances X. Frei

    This paper investigates the impact of customer compatibility – the degree of fit between the needs of customers and the capabilities of the operations serving them – on customer experiences and firm performance. We use a variance decomposition analysis to quantify the relative importance of customer, employee, process, location, and market-level effects on customer satisfaction. In our models, which explain roughly a quarter of the aggregate variance, differences among customers account for 96-97% of the explainable portion. Further analysis of interaction-level data from banking and quick service restaurants reveals that customers report relatively consistent satisfaction across transactions with particular firms, but that some customers are habitually more satisfied than others. A second set of empirical studies provides evidence that these customer-level differences are explained in part by customer compatibility. Customers whose needs, proxied by differences in demographics and product choices, diverge more starkly from those of their bank’s average customers report significantly lower levels of satisfaction. Consistently, banks that serve customer bases with more dispersed needs receive lower satisfaction scores than banks serving customer bases with less dispersed needs. Finally, a longitudinal analysis of the deposit and loan growth of all federally insured banks in the United States from 2006-2017 reveals that customer compatibility affects a firm’s financial performance. Branches with more divergent customers grow more slowly than branches with less divergent customers. Institutions serving customer bases with more dispersed needs have branches that exhibit slower growth than those of institutions serving customer bases with less dispersed needs.

    • March 2021
    • Article

    The Customer May Not Always Be Right: Customer Compatibility and Service Performance

    By: Ryan W. Buell, Dennis Campbell and Frances X. Frei

    This paper investigates the impact of customer compatibility – the degree of fit between the needs of customers and the capabilities of the operations serving them – on customer experiences and firm performance. We use a variance decomposition analysis to quantify the relative importance of customer, employee, process, location, and market-level...

    • February 2021
    • Case

    Measuring Impact at JUST Capital

    By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Ethan Rouen

    • February 2021
    • Case

    Measuring Impact at JUST Capital

    By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Ethan Rouen

    • February 2021
    • Case

    Marie Curie: Changing the World

    By: Robert L. Simons and Shirley Sun

    This case describes the rise of Marie Curie from a poor family in Poland to the pinnacle of scientific fame. The case describes how Curie, as a young woman interested in science, found a way to earn a doctorate at the Sorbonne and perform pathbreaking research on radioactive materials that won her two Nobel Prizes. Students will learn how Marie Curie navigated life’s choices to leave a lasting impact on the world.

    • February 2021
    • Case

    Marie Curie: Changing the World

    By: Robert L. Simons and Shirley Sun

    This case describes the rise of Marie Curie from a poor family in Poland to the pinnacle of scientific fame. The case describes how Curie, as a young woman interested in science, found a way to earn a doctorate at the Sorbonne and perform pathbreaking research on radioactive materials that won her two Nobel Prizes. Students will learn how Marie...

About the Unit

The Accounting & Management unit at Harvard Business School strives to be the worldwide leader in research, course development, and teaching on top managements' use of performance measurement systems to:

  • Communicate with external investors to ensure that their firms' securities are fairly priced and that they are able to access capital,
  • Measure and evaluate their firms' economic performance,
  • Improve resource allocation and strategy implementation within their firms, and
  • Build accountability for performance through effective external and internal governance.

Unit research, course development, and teaching fall into two broad areas: Financial Reporting and Analysis and Management Accounting. Our research helps scholars and educators understand current best practices for the design and use of performance measurement systems that help managers to build more effective, value-creating organizations. Our teaching materials enable us to bring the results of this research into the classroom, and to practice.

Recent Publications

The Customer May Not Always Be Right: Customer Compatibility and Service Performance

By: Ryan W. Buell, Dennis Campbell and Frances X. Frei
  • March 2021 |
  • Article |
  • Management Science
This paper investigates the impact of customer compatibility – the degree of fit between the needs of customers and the capabilities of the operations serving them – on customer experiences and firm performance. We use a variance decomposition analysis to quantify the relative importance of customer, employee, process, location, and market-level effects on customer satisfaction. In our models, which explain roughly a quarter of the aggregate variance, differences among customers account for 96-97% of the explainable portion. Further analysis of interaction-level data from banking and quick service restaurants reveals that customers report relatively consistent satisfaction across transactions with particular firms, but that some customers are habitually more satisfied than others. A second set of empirical studies provides evidence that these customer-level differences are explained in part by customer compatibility. Customers whose needs, proxied by differences in demographics and product choices, diverge more starkly from those of their bank’s average customers report significantly lower levels of satisfaction. Consistently, banks that serve customer bases with more dispersed needs receive lower satisfaction scores than banks serving customer bases with less dispersed needs. Finally, a longitudinal analysis of the deposit and loan growth of all federally insured banks in the United States from 2006-2017 reveals that customer compatibility affects a firm’s financial performance. Branches with more divergent customers grow more slowly than branches with less divergent customers. Institutions serving customer bases with more dispersed needs have branches that exhibit slower growth than those of institutions serving customer bases with less dispersed needs.
Keywords: Customer Compatibility; Satisfaction; Profitability; Service Operations; Customer Relationship Management; Customer Satisfaction; Performance
Citation
Find at Harvard
Read Now
Related
Buell, Ryan W., Dennis Campbell, and Frances X. Frei. "The Customer May Not Always Be Right: Customer Compatibility and Service Performance." Management Science 67, no. 3 (March 2021): 1468–1488.

Measuring Impact at JUST Capital

By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Ethan Rouen
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Educators
Purchase
Related
Wang, Charles C.Y., and Ethan Rouen. "Measuring Impact at JUST Capital." Harvard Business School Multimedia/Video Case 121-703, February 2021.

Accounting for Leases at American Airlines

By: Jonas Heese
  • February 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Purchase
Related
Heese, Jonas. "Accounting for Leases at American Airlines." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 121-704, February 2021.

Marie Curie: Changing the World

By: Robert L. Simons and Shirley Sun
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
This case describes the rise of Marie Curie from a poor family in Poland to the pinnacle of scientific fame. The case describes how Curie, as a young woman interested in science, found a way to earn a doctorate at the Sorbonne and perform pathbreaking research on radioactive materials that won her two Nobel Prizes. Students will learn how Marie Curie navigated life’s choices to leave a lasting impact on the world.
Keywords: Science; Research; Personal Characteristics; Mission And Purpose; Success; Work-life Balance; Higher Education
Citation
Educators
Related
Simons, Robert L., and Shirley Sun. "Marie Curie: Changing the World." Harvard Business School Case 121-059, February 2021.

Accounting for Leases at American Airlines (A)

By: Jonas Heese
  • February 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Purchase
Related
Heese, Jonas. "Accounting for Leases at American Airlines (A)." Harvard Business School PowerPoint Supplement 121-705, February 2021.

New England Baptist Hospital: Getting Paid for Value

By: Robert S. Kaplan, Mary Witkowski, Toby E. Emanuel and Syed S. Shehab
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Keywords: Healthcare; Healthcare Spending; Healthcare Innovation; Healthcare Industry; Health Care Outcomes; Health Care Delivery; Health Care Reform; Health Care And Treatment; Strategy; Health Industry; North America
Citation
Educators
Related
Kaplan, Robert S., Mary Witkowski, Toby E. Emanuel, and Syed S. Shehab. "New England Baptist Hospital: Getting Paid for Value." Harvard Business School Case 121-036, February 2021.

Enterprise Agility at Komerční Banka

By: Euvin Naidoo, Suraj Srinivasan and Sarah Gulick
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
In 2017, Jan Juchelka, the new CEO of Komerční Banka, identified long term goals for the bank’s progress. To do so, he began to shift the bank to an agile organizational structure. The case describes the bank’s transformation, including the timeline for each department’s move to agile, pitfalls, and the training and selection of managers. The case also describes the hiring of new employees in order to fill specialized IT roles, and the selection of McKinsey and Co. as advisors. The case asks what the next steps are for Komerční Banka, and what parts of the agile structure were still necessary to achieve.
Keywords: Agile; Agility; Transformation; Business Organization; Business Headquarters; Management Analysis, Tools, And Techniques; Management Systems; Banking Industry; Czech Republic
Citation
Educators
Related
Naidoo, Euvin, Suraj Srinivasan, and Sarah Gulick. "Enterprise Agility at Komerční Banka." Harvard Business School Case 121-020, February 2021.

Sarah Breedlove: Changing the World

By: Robert L. Simons and Max Saffer
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
This case describes the rise of Sarah Breedlove, who later called herself Madam C.J. Walker, from the cotton fields of Louisiana to the head of a successful, nationwide beauty company providing opportunity and hair care products to Black women. The case describes how Breedlove started her business, recruited sales agents, and built a strong customer base across the United States. Students will learn how Sarah Breedlove navigated life’s choices to leave a lasting impact on the world.
Keywords: Brands; Marketing; Customer Focus; Business Startups; Personal Characteristics; Values And Beliefs; Success; Work-life Balance; Beauty And Cosmetics Industry
Citation
Educators
Related
Simons, Robert L., and Max Saffer. "Sarah Breedlove: Changing the World." Harvard Business School Case 121-060, February 2021.
More Publications

In the News

    • 01 Mar 2021
    • Harvard Business School

    HBS Announces Spring 2021 Cohort of Executive Fellows

    Re: Len Schlesinger, Jeffrey Rayport, Eugene Soltes & Karim Lakhani
    • 09 Feb 2021
    • Harvard Business School

    SIPs in 2021

    Re: Frances Frei, Francesca Gino, Allison Mnookin, Martin Sinozich, Christina Wallace, Matthew Weinzierl, George Serafeim & Vikram Gandhi
    • 01 Feb 2021
    • PanAgora Asset Management

    PanAgora Asset Management Announces Winners of 19th Annual Dr. Richard A. Crowell Memorial Prize

    Re: George Serafeim
→More Faculty News

HBS Working Knowledge

    • 28 Feb 2021

    Measuring Employment Impact: Applications and Cases

    by Katie Panella and George Serafeim
    • 28 Feb 2021

    Connecting Expected Stock Returns to Accounting Valuation Multiples: A Primer

    by Akash Chattopadhyay, Matthew R. Lyle, and Charles C.Y. Wang
    • 11 Jan 2021

    Accounting for Product Impact in the Airlines Industry

    by George Serafeim and Katie Trinh
→More Working Knowledge Articles

Harvard Business Publishing

    • March 2014
    • Article

    Choosing the Right Customer

    By: Robert Simons
    • February 2021
    • Case

    Measuring Impact at JUST Capital

    By: Charles C.Y. Wang and Ethan Rouen
    • 2010
    • Book

    Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach for Better Execution

    By: Robert L. Simons
→More Harvard Business Publishing

Seminars & Conferences

Mar 08
  • 08 Mar 2021

Sean Cao, Georgia State University

Accounting & Management Seminar
→More Seminars & Conferences

Faculty Positions

Harvard Business School seeks candidates in all fields for full time positions. Candidates with outstanding records in PhD or DBA programs are encouraged to apply.
→Learn More

Contact Information

Accounting & Management Unit
Harvard Business School
Morgan Hall
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
A&M@hbs.edu

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