Harvard Professor Discusses Mad Men’s Don Draper in Case Study
One of the defining features of the Harvard Business School‘s MBA program is its Case Method. According to the HBS website, “The case method is a profound educational innovation that presents the greatest challenges confronting leading companies, nonprofits and government organizations—complete with the constraints and incomplete information found in real business issues—and places the student in the role of the decision maker.” Professors present case studies to students to help them apply the skills that they are learning in the program to real world issues by analyzing the problem and presenting solutions to the issues.
Gautam Mukunda, a Harvard Business School professor recently wrote a case study that analyzes Don Draper, the protagonist from the AMC television series Mad Men. Don Draper is considered to be the most talented “ad man” in New York. However, he does present the companies that he works for with issues. The case study titled, “Don Draper: Is he worth it?” presents students with the problem that managers face with professionals who often make more problems for the company but whose talent usually out weighs the issues.
