They Said What?

This week, we again bring to you a barrage of quotes from the EC and the RC.

Please continue to submit all comments by email to quotes@mba2003.hbs.edu.

Prof. Richard Tedlow (Coming of Managerial Capitalism): [on teaching the railroad industry at HBS in the 1930s] “It’s the industry of the past, so we’re training people quickly for it.”

[on investing today] “You can sell what you’ve lost and offset it against the gains that you haven’t got.”

Aaron Miller (OD): “Hospital administrators are hopelessly incompetent.”

Dan Edwards (NG): [on Toshiba’s laptop production in TOM class] “Labor time… It’s about the amount of love put into a computer. If I’m a computer, it’s about being touched.”

Jack Guerrero (NI): [trying to respond to an all-encompassing FRC question within a 30 second time limit] “I feel like a mosquito in a nudist colony… I don’t know where to start!”

In LEAD class (NG):
Prof. Khurana: How would you change the Slade Plating Department culture?
Nathan Spunt: Well, the way we did it at GM..
Prof. Khurana: Yes, that is a masterpiece example of good labor relations.

Luke Johnson: Ok, this is completely random…
Prof. Khurana: Well, that’s a nice way to preface a comment.
Luke Johnson: Well, it may also be profound.


Prof. Riedl in FRC class (NA):
At the end of the case: “I hope I haven’t left you with a depressed feeling-any more than normal anyway.”

“So the SEC is out there to protect the average guy… who is actually sub-average in intelligence.”

Jamshed Kakalia (NH): “There is no such thing as employee loyalty – if you want loyalty get a German Shepherd.”

Prof. Godes in Marketing class (NA):
In Xerox case: “How many books could a book seller sell, if a book seller could sell books?”
In response to an unexpected comment: “Whoops, I dropped the chalk.”
“Second year in a row that my section has given me a massage.”

Prof. Ton (TOM): Do you think he [Clark from Fabritek] enjoys working overtime?
Young Chung (NG): Well, he has mixed emotions about it.
Prof. Ton: Did you guys have a LEAD case this morning?