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- October 2023
- Case
Loris
By: Shunyuan Zhang, Das Narayandas, Stacy Straaberg and David Lane
In December 2022, Loris’s executive team considered their go-to-market strategy. Loris was an artificial intelligence (AI) software startup for the customer service industry with two products on the market: 1) Agent Assist which provided customer service agents (CSAs)...
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- October 2023
- Article
Finding New Business and Developing Relevant Sales Capabilities
There are few alternatives to growth for most companies. It’s the rare firm whose goal involves getting smaller and, for employees, there is a strong correlation between their company’s growth rate, promotion opportunities, and job satisfaction. But a growth strategy...
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Keywords:
Growth and Development Strategy
- September 2023
- Case
Accelerating with Caution: Forecasting and Managing birddogs’ Growth
By: Mark Egan
As 2017 was drawing to a close, birddogs’ founder and CEO, Peter Baldwin, was working with his CFO Jack Sullivan to prepare for 2018. Their task at hand? To predict the demand for their product in the coming season, determine the appropriate investments in working...
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- September 2023
- Supplement
Accelerating with Caution: Forecasting and Managing birddogs’ Growth (B)
By: Mark Egan
As 2017 was drawing to a close, birddogs’ founder and CEO, Peter Baldwin, was working with his CFO Jack Sullivan to prepare for 2018. Their task at hand? To predict the demand for their product in the coming season, determine the appropriate investments in working...
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- 2023
- Working Paper
Beyond the Hype: Unveiling the Marginal Benefits of 3D Virtual Tours in Real Estate
By: Mengxia Zhang and Isamar Troncoso
3D virtual tours (VTs) have become a popular digital tool in real estate platforms, enabling potential buyers to virtually walk through the houses they search for online. In this paper, we study home sellers’ adoption of VTs and the VTs’ relative benefits compared to...
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- May 2023 (Revised May 2023)
- Case
Arcos Dorados: Decarbonizing McDonald’s in Latin America
By: George Serafeim, Michael W. Toffel, Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago and Mariana Cal
This case describes the decarbonization strategy of Arcos Dorados—McDonald’s largest independent franchisee, operating in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean—and how the company measured its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, including those...
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Keywords:
Accounting;
Environmental Accounting;
Agribusiness;
Animal-Based Agribusiness;
Plant-Based Agribusiness;
Change Management;
Forecasting and Prediction;
Environmental Sustainability;
Food;
Growth Management;
Supply Chain;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Strategy;
Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Green Technology Industry;
Consumer Products Industry;
Latin America;
North and Central America;
South America
- May 3, 2023
- Article
What Top-Performing Sales Managers Do Differently
By: Mike Schultz and Frank V. Cespedes
Sales managers hire reps, influence their training, provide (we hope) feedback and so reinforce good selling behaviors, and are key in the execution of growth and change initiatives. In a study of more than 1,000 sales managers and sellers across industries, we found...
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- April 18, 2023
- Article
The Rebirth of Software as a Service
By: Frank V. Cespedes and Jacco van der Kooij
Traditional sales models focus on customer acquisition and the “funnel” or “pipeline” metrics that dominate talk about sales. But this approach falls short when applied to a recurring revenue business, where the customer life cycle looks more like a bowtie, not a...
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- April 2023 (Revised July 2023)
- Case
Fermenting Accounting Problems at Vermont Kombucha Corp.
By: Tatiana Sandino and Marshal Herrmann
Founded in 2005, Vermont Kombucha Corp. (V-Ko) was an early mover in the fledgling U.S. market for kombucha, a drink brewed for its health benefits. Early on, the company captured more than 90% of market share. Under the leadership of its founder and CEO, Joe Williams,...
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- March 2023
- Case
Mirakl: Growing The Marketplace Economy
By: Antonio Moreno, Santiago Gallino and Emilie Billaud
Mirakl provided the technology and seller network required for companies like Macy's, Best Buy, Walmart, Siemens, or Carrefour to simply design, launch, and administer a marketplace that included products from third-party sellers. What began as a basic business idea in...
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- March 2023
- Case
On
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karolin Frankenberger and Sascha Mader
Founded in 2010, in just one decade, the Swiss company On had established itself as a main player in global sports footwear and apparel. Based on an unconventional strategy which one of the founders labeled as “obsessively distinct,” On grew its sales with a compound...
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- February 2023 (Revised June 2023)
- Case
Doing Business in Nairobi, Kenya
By: Archie L. Jones, Leonard A. Schlesinger, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Kuria Kamau
This case examines the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Nairobi, Kenya. It highlights Kenya's economic transformation in the decades leading up to 2023 in the context of its history, culture, and politics. The case gives an overview of some of the main...
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- February 22, 2023
- Article
How to Seed Organic Marketing in a Video-First World
By: Ayelet Israeli, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Matt Higgins
Early direct-to-consumer (DTC) companies relied on plentiful capital and low-cost digital marketing to power growth. But as this sector has matured, capital is more constrained, social media is more cluttered, and customer acquisition costs are rising. DTC companies...
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Keywords:
Online Business;
Ecommerce;
E-commerce;
E-Commerce Strategy;
Omnichannel Retail;
Omnichannel Retailing;
Influencer Marketing;
Consumer;
Organic Growth;
Video Advertising;
Promotion;
Celebrities;
Online Advertising;
Online Channel;
Online Communities;
Online Community;
Go To Market Strategy;
Platform;
Media;
Media Content;
Digital;
Digital Culture;
Digital Influencers;
Direct To Consumer Marketing;
Direct-to-consumer;
Innovation ＆ Entrepreneurship;
Innovation;
Sales;
Digital Platforms;
Digital Marketing;
Digital Strategy;
Consumer Behavior;
Internet and the Web;
Advertising;
Business Model;
Growth Management;
Marketing;
Marketing Strategy;
Marketing Channels;
Marketing Communications;
Communication Strategy;
Innovation Strategy;
Retail Industry;
Consumer Products Industry;
Fashion Industry;
Advertising Industry;
Apparel and Accessories Industry;
Beauty and Cosmetics Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Media and Broadcasting Industry;
United States;
North America
- February 2023
- Case
Seemore Meats & Veggies
By: Lou Shipley, Patricia Favreau and Mel Martin
Cara Nicoletti was an emerging food entrepreneur that had recently launched her first product, a sustainably sourced, vegetable-infused meat sausage. Brooklyn, New York City-based Seemore Meats & Veggies had seen promising signs of success in local markets and pockets...
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- January 2023
- Case
Natura: Weathering the Pandemic at Brazil's Cosmetic Giant
By: Brian Trelstad, Pedro Levindo and Carla Larangeira
Brazil's Natura, a multi-brand cosmetics group, has taken several measures to safeguard the livelihoods of its thousands of employees and millions of sales representatives during the COVID-19 health and economic crisis. The company has also made strides in its efforts...
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Keywords:
COVID-19 Pandemic;
ESG Reporting;
Acquisition;
Customer Focus and Relationships;
Decision Making;
Social Entrepreneurship;
Environmental Sustainability;
Environmental Management;
Climate Change;
Ethics;
Moral Sensibility;
Values and Beliefs;
Global Strategy;
Corporate Governance;
Health Pandemics;
Human Resources;
Human Capital;
Crisis Management;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Marketing;
Distribution Channels;
Supply Chain;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Mission and Purpose;
Organizational Culture;
Customer Ownership;
Relationships;
Business and Community Relations;
Business and Stakeholder Relations;
Networks;
Partners and Partnerships;
Science-Based Business;
Reputation;
Human Needs;
Social Issues;
Strategy;
Equality and Inequality;
Beauty and Cosmetics Industry;
Brazil;
Latin America
- January–February 2023
- Article
External Interfaces and Internal Processes: Market Positioning and Divergent Professionalization Paths in Young Ventures
By: Alicia DeSantola, Ranjay Gulati and Pavel Zhelyazkov
We explore how the initial market positioning of entrepreneurial ventures shapes how they professionalize over time, focusing specifically on the development of functional roles. In contrast to existing literature, which has presumed a uniform march toward...
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- 13 Dec 2022
- Interview
Why Some Start-Ups Fail to Scale
By: Jeffrey Rayport and Curt Nickisch
Managing rapid growth is a huge challenge for young businesses. Even start-ups with glowing reviews and skyrocketing sales can fail. That’s because new ventures and corporate initiatives alike have to sustain profitability at scale, according to Harvard Business School...
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- December 2022 (Revised January 2023)
- Case
Cann: High Hopes for Cannabis Infused Beverages
By: Ayelet Israeli and Anne V. Wilson
Founded in 2018 by Jake Bullock and Luke Anderson, Cann sold “social tonics,” or cannabis-infused beverages. By 2022, the company had several notable celebrity investors and talent partners, had sold over 10 million beverages to consumers, was distributing in six...
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Keywords:
Stigma;
Product Innovation;
Product Introduction;
Product Differentiation;
New Products;
New Product Marketing;
New Product Management;
Brand Management;
Branding;
Packaging;
Positioning;
Growth Strategy And Execution;
Growth;
Cannabis Industry;
Purpose;
Purpose Brands;
LGBTQ;
Direct-to-consumer;
DTC;
Regulations;
Channels Of Distribution;
Product Development;
Product Marketing;
Product Positioning;
Product;
Innovation and Invention;
Brands and Branding;
Marketing;
Marketing Communications;
Marketing Channels;
Advertising;
Advertising Campaigns;
Digital Marketing;
Market Entry and Exit;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Consumer Products Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
United States;
Canada;
North America
- December 2022
- Case
Freelancer, Ltd.
By: Christopher Stanton, Karim R. Lakhani, Jin Hyun Paik and Nina Cohodes
Over the course of the 2010s, the rapid advancement of mobile technologies and the rise of online freelancing platforms seemed to portend a radical transformation of labor markets into on-demand, flexible talent pools. Even though several Fortune 500...
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- December 2022
- Supplement
Freelancer, Ltd. Case Supplement
By: Christopher Stanton, Karim R. Lakhani, Jin Hyun Paik and Nina Cohodes
Over the course of the 2010s, the rapid advancement of mobile technologies and the rise of online freelancing platforms seemed to portend a radical transformation of labor markets into on-demand, flexible talent pools. Even though several Fortune 500 companies,...
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Keywords:
Labor Markets;
Freelancers;
Change Management;
Corporate Entrepreneurship;
Globalized Firms and Management;
Human Capital;
Employment;
Digital Platforms;
Global Range;
Adoption;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Computer Industry;
Electronics Industry;
Employment Industry;
Information Industry;
Australia;
United States;
Philippines