In 2014, the founders of a jewelry company, Foxy Originals, needed to decide how best to increase sales. The company sold its jewelry both online and through retailers across the United States and Canada. The founding partners had to decide whether they should focus more of their time and money on developing online sales or continue attending trade shows that attracted additional retail locations for Foxy Originals' products. Both partners wanted to ensure that they achieved a healthy work-life balance.
Screen Microtech Inc., a capacitive touch screen manufacturer, had seen significant growth over the past year: it had moved its manufacturing plant, expanded operations, built a larger client base and seen an unprecedented increase in sales. Its chief executive officer was preparing an initial public offering that could lead to a significant bonus and stock shares for himself and for the company’s chief financial officer. This could be enough to induce them to secure improved financial results through any means necessary. Certainly, it could bias their approach to accounting policy choices. Was the company’s accounting ethical? Did it feature earnings management or earnings manipulation? What was the difference between the two, if any? What was the effect of such accounting practices on the financial markets?
On a mission to "automate the on-demand economy," Harvard Business School classmates Marcela Sapone and Jessica Beck launched Hello Alfred in 2013 to provide subscribers with an "Alfred" to complete various chores for a monthly fee. In early 2016, the company has built an infrastructure, including a mobile app, to develop Alfreds' routes and respond to customer requests in conjunction with other service providers, for example grocery delivery services, in what the founders describe as their "B2B2C" business model. Alfred won the coveted TechCrunch San Francisco Disrupt Cup in 2014, and by April 2015 had secured $12.5 million in seed and Series A funding. The founders must determine the best growth strategy for Alfred. Should they expand Alfred beyond their present operating cities, New York and Boston, or should they focus on their current markets? Should they increase public visibility to attract more customers, or should they enroll landlords in Alfred and reach consumers in that way?
This case comprises two parts. In "Kraft Foods Inc. and Cadbury PLC - Part A - A Nutritious Association?", an investor wonders whether the acquisition of Cadbury is based on sound business sense and whether it will be beneficial to him as a Kraft Foods shareholder. He also puzzles over the value of the mixed payment offered to Cadbury's shareholders. Details are provided about Kraft Foods's activities and businesses, followed by a description of Cadbury. Each company's historical financial statements are appended. Kraft Foods's rationale for the acquisition is provided, together with the structure of the original and final offers. "Kraft Foods Inc. and Cadbury PLC - Part B - A Sweet Divorce?", which focuses on the subsequent "demerger" of the Snacks division less than two years later, can be analyzed in its own right as a second step. Alternatively, the instructor can use it as a conclusion to highlight points related to strategy and disclosure or to the ex-post measurement of synergy effects.
This case comprises two parts. In "Kraft Foods Inc. and Cadbury PLC - Part A - A Nutritious Association?", an investor wonders whether the acquisition of Cadbury is based on sound business sense and whether it will be beneficial to him as a Kraft Foods shareholder. He also puzzles over the value of the mixed payment offered to Cadbury's shareholders. Details are provided about Kraft Foods's activities and businesses, followed by a description of Cadbury. Each company's historical financial statements are appended. Kraft Foods's rationale for the acquisition is provided, together with the structure of the original and final offers. "Kraft Foods Inc. and Cadbury PLC - Part B - A Sweet Divorce?", which focuses on the subsequent "demerger" of the Snacks division less than two years later, can be analyzed in its own right as a second step. Alternatively, the instructor can use it as a conclusion to highlight points related to strategy and disclosure or to the ex-post measurement of synergy effects.
The founders of a jewelry company, Foxy Originals, needed to decide how best to increase sales. The company sold its jewelry both online and through retailers across the United States and Canada. The founding partners had to decide whether they should focus more of their time and money on developing online sales or continue attending trade shows that attracted additional retail locations for Foxy Originals' products. Both partners wanted to ensure that they achieved a healthy work-life balance.
Snapdeal.com had launched as a platform for online discount coupons, then revamped its business model in the evolving Indian e-commerce sector to become one of India's largest e-commerce retailers. In India's rapidly growing market, the major players jockeyed for the top position and used various business models and strategic initiatives. Now, the entry of Amazon into the industry challenged the market dynamics and Snapdeal.com faced challenges of funding, positioning, and consumer dissatisfaction. How could it address these challenges to sustain its position as a leading Indian e-retailer? Would it be able to face the growing domestic and global competition? Would it be acquired by a global player, such as eBay, which was already a stakeholder and was perhaps waiting for the right moment to make its strategic move in India? Was coming out with an initial public offering a possible step in the future?
Johansen's has just completed its first year under a new scorecard system for evaluation of manager performance. The manager of Store 51 has traditionally been one of the company's top-performing managers from a financial standpoint, but his overall performance rating has declined due to performance in nonfinancial dimensions. The managers at the performance summit must discuss his performance in the context of a new performance evaluation system, measurement issues around the nonfinancial metrics, and retention concerns. An alternative version of this case, (UVA-C-2349) takes a less conventional role-play pedagogical approach to the same material.
In late 2015, Jeff Seabright, Chief Sustainability Officer at Unilever, had to report to Unilever CEO Paul Polman on the effort to transform the cultivation of oil palm. Historically, palm oil was produced using unsustainable methods that included burning large tracts of forest land which destroyed wildlife habitats, displaced native populations, and emitted greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Global demand for palm oil was increasing which made the situation worse. Unilever was the largest single buyer of palm oil, purchasing about 3% of global production, and had been an active promoter of sustainable palm oil production. In 2015, 60% of globally traded palm oil was covered by sustainability commitments, up from 5% in 2008, but there was more to be done. Palm oil-driven deforestation and different kinds of social issues continued across the world, especially in Indonesia and Malaysia, which produced 80% of palm oil. The case discusses the sustainability strategy implemented by Unilever across time with regards to palm oil, together with the efforts implemented by other organizations such as the Consumer Goods Forum, the Roundtable On Sustainable Palm Oil, social and environmental NGOs, Unilever's competitors and the local governments in Southeast Asia. What more could Unilever do to advance the diffusion of sustainable palm oil?
Women of Worth (WOW) is an organization that seeks to empower women through training and workshops. The organization has also fought against discrimination based on the color of a person's skin through its "Dark is Beautiful" campaign-endorsed by well-known actor-director Nandita Das. However, despite the recent guidelines on advertising of skin-lightening products, many Indians still aspire to have fair skin. The sale of fairness creams continues to contribute to over 50% of the facial care market. Given this, what should WOW do to fight skin-color based discrimination?
Computerization of a government department is a very challenging process, as it involves multiple stakeholders and power-centers. Stakeholder identification, as well as designing a system specific to the needs of a particular department can be a complex process. The computerization of police department in ASWI was initiated in mid 90's but it was not successful. The case illustrates the challenges of computerization process in a bureaucratic environment. With multiple touch points and interdependent processes, designing and implementing a technology solution for such environment could be a major challenge.
This case describes the teaching and learning processes in Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine as explained by Vaidya Hardikar. He practised the system of diagnosis through 'Nadi Nidan', pulse reading and treated patients according to the principles of Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of Medicine. The transfer of knowledge happened through formal and informal processes where he assisted his father and other practitioners in preparing medicines, interrogating the patients and pronouncing diagnosis. The participants can identify and analyze the various processes in the transfer of tacit and explicit knowledge.
Michael Milken, an investment banker who dominated the junk bond market in the 1980s, was sentenced to jail in 1990 after pleading guilty to a number of securities and tax related felonies. In the preceding decade, Milken had helped usher in a new wave of leveraged buy outs (LBOs) and greatly changed the structure of corporate America. By the late 1980s though, Milken and junk bonds became more heavily scrutinized, and Milken was eventually implicated in a number of felonious acts. Even after his admission of guilt, however, observers remained divided on what Milken's true impact had been. Was he simply a misunderstood financial innovator who democratized access to capital? Or was he driven purely by greed and by nefarious personal financial motives?
This case should be taught after (A) case. This case study discusses how the stakeholders of the (A) can sit together can discuss prepare first the activities of the project, draw the network diagram, develop a critical path. The discussion further proceeds when these stakeholders through the discussion develop risk sources, assigns probabilities and computes the impact and likelihood rating.
The case is about a micro to small manufacturing setup, Microsign Products, which has been in existence for the last thirty five years. Microsign Products has been growing year on year and generates a modest revenue of a little over Rs. 50 million. It delivers the highest quality products to its clients. The feature that distinguishes it and makes it special is the workforce employed by Microsign. Fifty percent of the employees in Microsign are differently-abled. The case describes how Microsign, over the last 25 years, has been able to include employees with disability.
In June 2014, the co-founder and chief executive officer of the fast-growing, Shanghai-based online food ordering and delivery service ele.me, was wrestling with multiple growth-related questions. He had lofty ambitions for his venture but was facing the first major competitive threat in the form of a diversifying entrant. In the face of this threat, and with his inexperience as a business manager, he was unsure about how quickly to try to scale up the business, and how exactly he should implement his growth plan for ele.me. The company's success had attracted considerable venture capital financing. Should the company seek growth by sending head office managers to new regional offices, by hiring local regional managers and staff, or by franchising the brand in target cities?
Two undergraduate business students wanted to assess the feasibility of starting a business that would sell an all-natural and completely biodegradable alternative toothbrush — the Miswak. A total of $50,000 had already been secured for the initial investment; however, the young partners wondered whether this investment would be sufficient to sustain the cash flows of the business for its first three years of operations and, if not, how much additional funding would be needed. To discover whether their proposed venture would be feasible, the pair set out to perform a variety of qualitative and quantitative analyses.
In June 2014, the co-founder and chief executive officer of the fast-growing, Shanghai-based online food ordering and delivery service ele.me, was wrestling with multiple growth-related questions. He had lofty ambitions for his venture but was facing the first major competitive threat in the form of a diversifying entrant. In the face of this threat, and with his inexperience as a business manager, he was unsure about how quickly to try to scale up the business, and how exactly he should implement his growth plan for ele.me. The company's success had attracted considerable venture capital financing. Should the company seek growth by sending head office managers to new regional offices, by hiring local regional managers and staff, or by franchising the brand in target cities?