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Setting Up Shop in a Political Hot Spot (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
Chun, Patrick; Coleman, John; El-Hage, NabilArticle HBS-R1010P-EStrategyThe CEO of a watchband manufacturer based in Seoul is considering opening a factory in the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC), a South Korean manufacturing zone in North Korea. Such an operation is appealing on several counts: The costs of labor are low, capital risk is also low because of South Korean government guarantees, and the KIC, as the largest area of economic cooperation between the two Koreas, could be a step toward a unified peninsula. ...Starting at €8.20
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How Managers' Everyday Decisions Create--or Destroy--Your Company's Strategy
Bower, Joseph L.; Gilbert, ClarkArticle HBS-R0702C-EStrategyThis article includes a one-page preview that quickly summarizes the key ideas and provides an overview of how the concepts work in practice along with suggestions for further reading. Senior executives have long been frustrated by the disconnection between the plans and strategies they devise and the actual behavior of the managers throughout the company. This article approaches the problem from the ground up, recognizing that every time a manag...Starting at €8.20
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Just in Time for the Holidays (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
McNulty, Eric; Johnson, M. Eric; Brandstatter, Horst; Hausman, Warren H.; Omrod, AnneArticle HBS-R0512A-EService and Operations ManagementIt's the busiest time of year for North Pole Workshops. Production is in high gear, and the elves are on overtime in the sprint toward Christmas. But an unexpected spike in demand for one toy may leave children around the world disappointed on Christmas morning, whether they've been naughty or nice. At the same time, another toy's popularity threatens to plummet, leaving Santa and his elves faced with the prospect of millions of unloved plaything...Starting at €8.20
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Oil and Wasser (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
Reimus, Byron; Bruner, Robert F.; Cosmides, Leda; Tooby, John; Pragnell, Michael; Schweiger, DavidArticle HBS-R0405A-EStrategyIt was supposed to be an amicable "merger of equals," an example of European togetherness, a synergistic deal that would create the world's second-largest consumer foods company out of two former competitors. But the marriage of entrepreneurial powerhouse Royal Biscuit and the conservative, family-owned Edeling GmbH is beginning to look overly ambitious. Integration planning is way behind schedule. Investors seem wary. But for Royal Biscuit HR he...Starting at €8.20
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Trouble in Paradise (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
Xin, Katherine; Pucik, Vladimir; Jugier, Eric; Turowski, Dieter; Xu, David; Beamish, Paul W.Article HBS-R0308A-EEconomicsMike Graves, the general manager of a U.S. apparel company's 50/50 joint venture with a Chinese manufacturer, has made the joint venture into a big success, at least in the eyes of its Chinese executives and local officials. Zhong-Lian Knitting has turned around three money-losing businesses and has increased its payroll from 400 to 2,300 employees. But Mike's boss, the CEO of the U.S. company, Heartland Spindle, doesn't share the rosy view. He's...Starting at €8.20
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Tug-of-War (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
Sheffi, Yossi; Mozaffar, Shakeel; Moffat, Robert W., Jr.; Blascovich, John D.; Lahowchic, NickArticle HBS-R0509A-EService and Operations ManagementJack Emmons, the CEO of Voici Brands, knew his apparel company needed a supply chain overhaul. Over the past couple of years, sales had dropped because of late deliveries, stock-outs, and other supply problems. Meanwhile, a major competitor had significantly reduced its time to market and boosted its bottom line by outsourcing all its product lines to a dazzlingly efficient "supply chain city" in Shanghai. Unfortunately, Jack's company was just t...Starting at €8.20
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Mumbai's Models of Service Excellence
Thomke, StefanArticle HBS-R1211K-EService and Operations ManagementThink you need exceptional employees, advanced IT, or rigid controls to build a high-performance organization? The dabbawalas of Mumbai prove otherwise. Six days a week, these 5,000 self-managed, semiliterate workers deliver upwards of 130,000 lunches from customers' homes to their offices with astonishing precision--negotiating the crowded city by train, bicycle, and handcart, without the aid of any technology or even cell phones. The 100-year-o...Starting at €8.20
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A Better Way to Tax U.S. Businesses
Desai, Mihir A.Article HBS-R1207N-EEconomicsThe U.S. corporate tax code is broken. High rates and perverse incentives drive capital away from the corporate sector and toward other uses and countries. This is bad news for U.S. workers, because corporations aren't making investments that would increase productivity and real wages. And while one might think higher rates lead to higher revenues, the U.S. actually collects less in taxes (as a percentage of GDP) than most other developed nations...Starting at €8.20
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Enriching the Ecosystem
Kanter, Rosabeth MossArticle HBS-R1203P-EEconomicsTo remain a leader in innovation, the United States needs the support of foundational institutions that help seed, grow, and renew enterprises. Historically, these institutions--such as universities, venture creators, labor markets, and job-training programs--have tended to operate in silos. But they are far more effective when they're networked. By collaborating to bridge the gaps between them, business, academic, and policy leaders can help gen...Starting at €8.20
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Does America Really Need Manufacturing
Pisano, Gary P.; Shih, WillyArticle HBS-R1203G-EService and Operations ManagementToo many U.S. companies base decisions about where to locate production largely on narrow financial criteria. They don't consider whether keeping manufacturing at home makes more sense strategically or take into account the impact it might have on their ability to innovate. The result has been an exodus of manufacturing from America, which has weakened the capabilities that domestic firms need to keep inventing high-quality, cost-competitive prod...Starting at €8.20