Cold Call
by HBR Presents / Brian Kenny
Latest episode
How the CEO of Rolls-Royce Turned an Underperforming Company Around
How the CEO of Rolls-Royce Turned an Underperforming Company Around
About this podcast
Cold Call distills Harvard Business School's legendary case studies into podcast form. Hosted by Brian Kenny, the podcast airs every two weeks and features Harvard Business School faculty discussing cases they've written and the lessons they impart.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 300 episodes
- How the CEO of Rolls-Royce Turned an Underperforming Company Around · 30 min · Episode 296In early 2023, Tufan Erginbilgiç took over as CEO of the U.K.’s legendary jet engine and power systems giant Rolls-Royce. Despite its legacy and a culture steeped in engineering…
- Restructuring Mobile Game Giant Supercell for a Turnaround · 37 min · Episode 295Founded in 2010, Supercell was a Finland-based mobile gaming company that had developed and launched five global hit mobile games. The company’s early philosophy was that it…
- Getting Your Boss to Buy into Your Strategy (from “Coaching Real Leaders”) · 51 min · Episode 294You have a strategy you believe in. But what happens when your boss doesn’t? “Cold Call” presents this bonus episode from the podcast “Coaching Real Leaders,” where host and…
- Considering the Future of the BBC and Its Funding Model · 28 min · Episode 293With viewership of the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) in decline, the country’s Culture Minister must recommend a new funding model for the venerated public institution which…
- Dare to Be Bad at Something (from Fixable) · 26 min · Episode 292Sometimes the only way to win is by finding the courage to lose. Cold Call presents a special episode from TED’s Fixable podcast. In it, the show’s hosts, Leadership Coach Anne…
- How GEO Is Changing the Role of Brand Manager · 31 min · Episode 291AthenaHQ, a startup that helps brands monitor, protect, and optimize their visibility across conversational AI engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini was founded in 2025…
- Best of Cold Call: The Bumpy Road to Expanding a Fleet of Electric School Buses · 32 min · Episode 290How do you scale innovation in a fragmented system you don’t fully control? That is the challenge Highland Electric Fleets faced as it worked to replace diesel school buses with…
- Can an AI-Powered Scribe Curb Physician Burnout? · 24 min · Episode 289In 2024, Mass General Brigham, the largest health system in Massachusetts, piloted an AI-powered, ambient note-taking and transcription program among a subset of clinicians to…
- Why Metaphysic AI Looked to Hollywood for a Digital Rights Model · 24 min · Episode 288Founded in 2021, AI generative video company Metaphysic first rose to fame through viral deepfake videos. It achieved a significant milestone with "Here," the first major film to…
- How a Museum Marketing Team Used AI to Bring People Closer to Art · 27 min · Episode 287In 2025, Harvard Art Museums considered using generative AI in a marketing campaign to increase visitor engagement and membership. Looking to boost attendance and appeal to a…
- Are We Entering a New Age of Creativity with the Help of AI? · 30 min · Episode 286In March 2024, The Atlantic announced a strategic content and product partnership with artificial intelligence giant OpenAI. OpenAI would license The Atlantic’s content to train…
- How School of Rock Created Structure in Order to Scale with Agility and Creativity · 37 min · Episode 285In the summer of 2021, School of Rock was a youth-oriented music education company with 291 franchise- and company-owned schools globally. Before Rob Price became CEO in 2017…
- The Founder Mindset: Tim Ferriss on Experiments, Risk, and Freedom · 33 min · Episode 284What does it take to be a founder? In this episode of The Founder Mindset, produced by Harvard Business School Foundry and hosted by Senior Lecturer Reza Satchu, Satchu sits down…
- How Strong Teams Leverage Different Personality Types · 27 min · Episode 283Harvard Business School Professor Len Schlesinger and TypeCoach President Rob Toomey join Brian Kenny to discuss the two mini cases, Night Two in Hanoi: Team Dynamics Under…
- Microsoft’s Path to Adopting and Scaling AI Across its Sales Organization · 27 min · Episode 282In early 2024, six months after the highly anticipated launch of Microsoft Copilot across the 62,000-person Microsoft Customer and Partner Solutions (MCAPS) organization—one of…
- How a Family-Owned Greek Cement Company Evolved Its Leadership While Pivoting Its Product Portfolio · 35 min · Episode 281Over 26 years at the helm, Dimitri Papalexopoulos, fourth-generation CEO of TITAN Cement, has turned the company from a domestic player into an internationally diversified group…
- The Challenges of Scaling a Technology for Social Good · 30 min · Episode 280In 2021, a breakthrough in sanitation technology – developed under the Gates Foundation’s “Reinvent the Toilet” challenge – stood ready for commercialization. The Single User…
- Should Wasabi Technologies Make the Move from Direct Sales to a Channel Strategy? · 28 min · Episode 279After launching Wasabi Technologies, a successful cloud storage company, founder and CEO David Friend was ready to scale the venture rapidly. The company had focused primarily on…
- How Software Startup InsightSquared Wrestled with Creating an Optimal Sales and Marketing Strategy · 32 min · Episode 278Software startup InsightSquared had recently hit $2 million in revenue and secured an $8 million round of venture capital. However, the founders disagreed on the path ahead…
- Why the Commonwealth Bank of Australia Opened Up to Customers about Credit Card Risks · 25 min · Episode 277A bank’s decision to experiment with being more transparent with about credit card drawbacks might help customers make better choices, but would those choices come at the expense…
- Innovations in Olympic Speed Skating: When to Reveal a Novel Approach · 22 min · Episode 276The U.S. Men’s Olympic speed skating team devised a new approach to the team pursuit event following their disappointing performance in the 2018 Winter Olympics. The team saw…
- If and How to Scale the Acquired Podcast · 42 min · Episode 275By 2025, the business podcast Acquired was getting one million listeners per episode, having doubled the audience year over since Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal started it in…
- How Italian Luxury Brand Golden Goose Determined Its Next Phase of Growth · 26 min · Episode 274In 2025, Golden Goose, the Italian brand known for its handcrafted, distressed sneakers, was at a crossroads. CEO Silvio Campara had grown the label from a cult favorite into a…
- How Equitable Confronted Its Inertia After 160 Years in Business · 35 min · Episode 273In 2019, Equitable’s CEO, Mark Pearson, set out to change how the 163-year-old financial services firm gets work done. He wanted the firm to speed up decision-making and empower…
- Climate Rising: Extending Apparel Lifespan with ThredUp · 37 min · Episode 272In this special holiday crossover episode from Harvard Business School’s Climate Rising podcast, Professor Mike Toffel talks with ThredUp CEO James Reinhart about the company’s…
- Inside Coinbase’s Mission-First, Remote-First Bet · 28 min · Episode 271In 2020, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase made two bold organizational moves: going fully remote and banning political discussion at work. These decisions, aimed at reinforcing a…
- BrandBastion Mixes AI and Human Judgment to Build Trust at Scale · 27 min · Episode 270Jenny Wolfram founded BrandBastion to help companies manage the risks of social media by combining AI with human moderation. She joins HBS professor Julian De Freitas and…
- Apollo Global Management’s Business Model Transformation · 29 min · Episode 269Apollo Global Management has transformed itself from a traditional private equity giant into an insurance-fueled credit powerhouse—thanks to its acquisition of life annuity…
- Inside India’s Energy Transition: Tata Power’s Net Zero Strategy · 36 min · Episode 268Tata Power stood at the forefront of India’s energy transition. The firm’s long history was deeply intertwined with the country's development. As Mumbai’s power needs increased…
- Tim Ferriss at a Career Crossroads: How Should He Shape His Next Chapter? · 50 min · Episode 267In April 2024, writer, podcaster, and entrepreneur Tim Ferriss—known for his hugely popular podcast “The Tim Ferriss Show” and NYT-bestselling books like The 4-Hour…
- How Dollar Tree Plans to Thrive Despite Breaking the Buck · 21 min · Episode 266For 35 years, Dollar Tree, a discount retail chain selling general merchandise, had held its fixed price point steady, charging $1.00 for its ever-changing assortment of…
- How Lyft’s CEO Got the Company Moving Again · 27 min · Episode 265In the winter of 2023, Lyft was facing declining market share and financial pressures. Enter new CEO David Risher, who took the helm amid low morale and limited resources. His…
- Partnerships Power Highland Electric’s Expanding Fleet of School Buses · 31 min · Episode 264How do you scale innovation in a system where critical pieces are out of your control? That is the challenge Highland Electric Fleets faced as it worked to replace diesel school…
- Atlassian Anchors Remote Flexibility in Structured Daily Practices · 34 min · Episode 263Atlassian promised employees they could work from anywhere, permanently. By 2024, its data-driven routines and workplace experiments were shaping both its culture and its…
- Disrupting the Freezer Aisle: Dr. Bombay Ice Cream · 34 min · Episode 262When Happi Co. CEO Sam Rockwell partnered with Snoop Dogg and his son, Cordell Broadus, to launch Dr. Bombay Ice Cream, the team set out to disrupt a stagnant market with bold…
- Shake Shack’s Digital Playbook: More Tech, Same Hospitality? · 29 min · Episode 261Shake Shack began in 2001 as a single hot dog cart in New York City and grew into a global fast-casual chain known for quality ingredients and a strong hospitality ethos. In…
- At Booking.com, Innovation Means Constant Failure (Summer Repeat) · 27 min · Episode 260During a busy travel season, digital travel platform Booking.com tried a risky experiment that meant changing the site’s landing page. Then CEO Gillian Tans made the decision to…
- Ensuring Boston Ballet Stays Relevant · 31 min · Episode 259Ming Min Hui, executive director of Boston Ballet, is unique in her field. As a young, Asian American woman with a HBS MBA and a background in finance, she focuses on ensuring…
- How Bill Wilson Cofounded Alcoholics Anonymous and Created a Lasting Social Movement · 24 min · Episode 258Bill Wilson was an incredibly entrepreneurial young man with tremendous potential. He was also a drunk, until an epiphany made him sober. With his personal drive and fellowship…
- How Keurig Brewed a Return to Growth · 23 min · Episode 257Keurig Green Mountain (KGM) invented a category and became a household name in at-home coffee brewing in North America. But by the early 2010s, the public company suffered a…
- Mattel’s Barbie Playbook: Replicating Success Across the Company’s Portfolio · 31 min · Episode 256The 2023 movie Barbie and its accompanying marketing blitz reinstated a celebrated icon at the forefront of cultural conversation. This sudden goodwill stood in contrast to…
- How Duolingo Aims to Diversify Beyond Language Learning · 35 min · Episode 255Launched in 2011, Duolingo grew into the most downloaded education app in the world. Its gamified approach to language learning and use of adaptive AI technology helped it reach…
- The Nuqul Group Works to Preserve Its Founder’s Legacy · 30 min · Episode 254In 1952, Palenstinian refugee Elia Nuqul started a trading business in Jordan. Nuqul Group subsequently grew into one of the country’s largest family businesses. Its flagship…
- Calyx Global: Improving the Quality of Carbon Credits · 39 min · Episode 253In 2021, Donna Lee and Duncan van Bergen founded Calyx Global to improve the quality of carbon credits sold in the voluntary carbon market. Organizations buy those credits for…
- How Lanco Medical Group Fosters Workforce Happiness to Motivate Employees and Grow Fast · 27 min · Episode 252How important is it to maintain a happy workforce? With this question in mind, Lanco Medical Group, a small but fast-growing pharmaceutical distributor serving Latin America…
- The Evolution of Luxury Brand Porsche · 28 min · Episode 251Porsche has reigned as a leading sports and luxury car company for nearly 80 years. Central to the German automaker’s growth strategy is creating great products, such as the…
- Should Google Stay in the Cloud Gaming Business? · 35 min · Episode 250Google formally announced the innovative video game service Stadia at the 2019 Game Developer Conference. The company invested substantial resources to support the demanding…
- Celebrating 10 Years of Cold Call · 13 min · Episode 249Cold Call is celebrating its tenth year of distilling Harvard Business School case studies. To kick off the 2025 anniversary, the podcast’s production team has curated three…
- Managing the Future of Work: Microsoft’s AI Perspective · 43 min · Episode 248Artificial intelligence is changing how we live and work in ways large and small. And it's why today we’re sharing an episode of Harvard Business School’s Managing the Future of…
- The Leadership Style of Football Legend Deion Sanders · 30 min · Episode 247In 2022, Deion Sanders, known as “Coach Prime,” was hired as head coach of the University of Colorado football team, which had only one winning season in the previous 15 years…
