In-depth articles on the biggest case studies in modern management. Strategy, marketing, operations and finance — written for people who decide.
Why Tesla integrated the battery vertically when the entire market said to outsource. Fine & Whitney, Teece and dynamic capabilities applied to the $5B Gigafactory decision.
StrategyIn 2007, Reed Hastings had 6.7M DVD subscribers and the best retail margin in America. He chose to kill his own business. The story of 4 decisions and the book Hastings read as a survival manual.
StrategyWhy Uber subsidized drivers before riders, why it chose SXSW Austin as its second city, and why "liquidity" is the only metric that matters in the first 24 months of any marketplace.
StrategyIn 2013, Apple was preparing Apple Music. Spotify had less cash, less distribution, less time. It won by applying Rumelt's isolating mechanisms: data, personalization, and freemium as a cultural moat.
StrategyThe difference between "Cristiano Ronaldo" (the athlete) and "CR7" (the platform) is worth hundreds of millions. How Keller's brand equity pyramid, the Nike lifetime deal, and post-career vertical integration built the most profitable personal brand in sport.
OperationsIn 2003, LEGO posted the worst loss in its history. Ten years later it was the most profitable toy company in the world. The answer was in Porter ("strategic fit"), in Aaker (brand architecture), and in the courage to subtract.
StrategyIn 2007, Safaricom launched what looked like a simple microcredit tool. Eighteen years later, M-Pesa moves more than half of Kenya's GDP. The story of 4 strategic decisions that redefined financial inclusion.
OperationsHow Rocky Aoki turned a Japanese restaurant in New York into a case study taught in MBAs for over 50 years. The lesson: operations aren't boring — they are the product.
Crypto · ProtocolIn 2021, the first country in the world adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. The Chivo wallet, the Volcano Bond, the IMF critique and what network theory says about digital money.
Crypto · TreasuryMichael Saylor turned a B2B software company into the world's largest corporate holder of Bitcoin. Signaling theory, convertible notes and the reinvention of the corporate balance sheet.
Crypto · ExchangeIn April 2021 Coinbase gave up billions in new capital by choosing a direct listing instead of an IPO. Market microstructure and the business of trust in exchanges.
Crypto · DeFiIn May 2022, US$60 billion evaporated in 7 days. Diamond-Dybvig, mechanism design and the most expensive lesson ever charged in DeFi.
Crypto · GovernanceNine days for a US$32 billion exchange to turn to dust. Agency theory, commingling and what John Ray III documented upon taking over.
Crypto · InstitutionalizationThe world's largest asset manager brought Treasuries to Ethereum in March 2024. What this means for banks, DeFi and the future of financial infrastructure.
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