Cross-functional management

This post is part of the HBR Insight Center Making Collaboration Work. Last week I arrived home from work to see my 8th grade son toiling away on a science...

Teamwork and collaboration are critical to mission achievement in any organization that has to respond quickly to changing circumstances. My research...

Peace and harmony are overrated. Though conflict-free teamwork is often held up as the be-all and end-all of organizational life, it actually can be the...

For professional services firms, the only way to address clients' most complex issues is for specialists to work together across the boundaries of their...

Editor’s Note: This post was written with Mark Sebell and Jay Terwilliger, managing partners of Boston-based Creative Realities, Inc. When we ask executives, What is the number one innovation killer at your company?, one of the first words we always hear, always, is “silos!” Recently, one executive even muttered, “fortresses.” Business silos, just like agricultural […]

Executing complex initiatives like acquisitions or an IT overhaul requires a breadth of knowledge that can be provided only by teams that are large, diverse,...

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple, in 1997, it had a conventional structure for a company of its size and scope. It was divided into business units, each...

As the world has become more complex, companies have steadily increased their performance requirements: Now they strive to offer low prices and high quality;...

This issue's Spotlight features three articles examining the crucial question of how to achieve and maintain growth. The first article, "How Fast Should...

Eric Holt had one responsibility as FireArt's director of strategy: to put together a team of people from each division and create and implement a comprehensive...

New CEOs are typically focused on creating and implementing a strategy, building a top team, and driving culture change. Optimizing administrative workflow...

Companies try all kinds of ways to improve collaboration among different parts of the organization: cross-unit incentive systems, organizational restructuring,...

Managers who commit their companies to designing more manufacturable products encounter the problem of how to organize their professional staff. How should...

To be a leader in global manufacturing in the 1990s, a company must excel in two seemingly contradictory ways. First, it must constantly build and refresh...

"Work-Outs" have only become more useful.

Knowing what the traps are can help you avoid them.

What's unique to your company?

And where many others go wrong.

Most of the time, the schedule is a joke.

It takes more than goodwill.

This case explores the very different paths taken by the Ford Motor Company and the General Motors Corporation in the first three decades of the twentieth...

Examines Beer's actions on assuming leadership of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, the world's sixth largest advertising agency, during a period of rapid industry...

The (A) case describes the launch of a new passenger vehicle in China, produced jointly by Nissan of Japan and by Chinese automaker Dongfeng. Early sales...

...

Describes the formation, selection, and experience of a task force with multidepartmental membership. The problems faced by the task force leader at the...

Investigates the challenges that Dr. Kenneth W. Kizer confronted in seeking to create organizational change at the largest integrated health care system...

Meg Whitman takes over as CEO of eBay from the founder. She must figure out how to lead the company through a stage of phenomenal growth without compromising...

Johannes Linden is the Director of the Washer and Dryer division of Fluss, a large Swiss appliance manufacturer. Soon after the company completes its...

Describes the industry context that has resulted in the development of efficient consumer response (ECR) within the grocery industry and its adoption...

Management is struggling to meet consensus quarterly earnings-per-share numbers. Discusses a number of accounting decisions. A report indicating internal...

In 2009, Whole Foods stands at a crossroads. Their incredible growth over the past 25 years has vaulted them into the ranks of the largest US supermarkets...

Describes the events surrounding Bain & Co.'s financial and organizational struggles between 1988 and 1991. Focuses on the role of Orit Gadiesh, then...

For the Novartis leaders, the decision to "use stretch budgets again next year" highlights the tension between candor and empowerment and command-and-control,...

Ctrip is a $437 million Chinese on-line travel services company with a scientific, data driven approach to management. The case explores Ctrip's founding...

Jonathan Geibel, Director of Systems at Walt Disney Animation Studios (hereafter referred to as Disney Animation), walked through the workspace occupied...

Starting in 2007 Milwaukee leaders from different areas (large established companies, civic organizations, public sector, academia, and entrepreneurs)...

Describes the problems facing a recent MBA graduate in his job as general manager of a mobile cellular company owned by a parent corporation. Raises issues...

Describes the challenges facing Jim Hackett, the newly appointed CEO of Anadarko Petroleum, an independent oil and gas exploration company. In addition...

This case explores the very different paths taken by the Ford Motor Company and the General Motors Corporation in the first three decades of the twentieth...

This post is part of the HBR Insight Center Making Collaboration Work. Last week I arrived home from work to see my 8th grade son toiling away on a science...

Examines Beer's actions on assuming leadership of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, the world's sixth largest advertising agency, during a period of rapid industry...

The (A) case describes the launch of a new passenger vehicle in China, produced jointly by Nissan of Japan and by Chinese automaker Dongfeng. Early sales...

...

Describes the formation, selection, and experience of a task force with multidepartmental membership. The problems faced by the task force leader at the...

Investigates the challenges that Dr. Kenneth W. Kizer confronted in seeking to create organizational change at the largest integrated health care system...

Meg Whitman takes over as CEO of eBay from the founder. She must figure out how to lead the company through a stage of phenomenal growth without compromising...

Johannes Linden is the Director of the Washer and Dryer division of Fluss, a large Swiss appliance manufacturer. Soon after the company completes its...

Describes the industry context that has resulted in the development of efficient consumer response (ECR) within the grocery industry and its adoption...