Agricultural commodities often are characterized by two aspects, viz., seasonality, and shelf life of the produce. Further, in countries such as India there are significant public policy dimensions (governmental regulation on pricing and markets etc.) that critically influence production, distribution, and marketing of several agricultural commodities. Furthermore, unlike their counterpart in manufacturing, agricultural commodity supply chains typically are not well-organized in such countries. Therefore, prevalence of cooperatives as an organization structure for managing several supply chain activities is also a common feature. This case has contextually been set under these conditions and it deals primarily with the issue of marketing of tea. In addition to the above-mentioned issues pertaining to marketing of agricultural commodities, tea poses unique challenges arising out of numerous varieties/grades. Owing to several of these aspects understanding the factors that influence profitability of a firm engaged in procurement, production, marketing and brand creation of tea makes an interesting study for a student of management. The case thus offers a multidimensional perspective to the problem of improving the profitability and points to various alternatives in the hands of the management to address the same. The case can be used in the core marketing course, perhaps, as a capstone case toward the end to highlight the interrelationships among different elements of marketing. The case can also be used in other courses to introduce challenges of managing cooperatives, use of auction as the procurement mechanism and also to illustrate the use of Internet as a primary marketing channel.
Having analyzed more than 1,100 companies across a range of industries and geographies, the authors outline four strategies firms are using to make smart use of new forms of communication, depending on their tolerance for uncertainty and the levels of results sought.
Can you have both respect and power? Having researched hundreds of corporate leaders, the authors conclude that it's hard to gain both: Fair managers are often perceived as less powerful than others (less in control of resources, less able to reward and punish) and this may hurt their odds of gaining certain key, contentious leadership roles. But companies would benefit by placing more value on fairness: Studies show that the success of change initiatives depends largely on fair implementation.
Despite recent progress creating more-welcoming environments for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees, fully 48% of LGBT respondents surveyed report remaining "closeted" at work. Research shows that they are less likely than "out" workers to be promoted and more likely to leave their job within three years. For talent managers, creating a hospitable climate for all workers should be a key goal.
Professor Stefano Puntoni set out to prove that breast cancer awareness campaigns were more effective when they incorporated the color pink. Instead, his studies repeatedly showed that pink made women less likely to recognize their risk of cancer and less likely to donate to research. And that led him to explore the surprising effects of gender cues in marketing messages.
Collaboration among competitors is an unnatural act, but sometimes it's the best way to reduce costs, leverage strength, accelerate scale, or amplify influence-as unlikely allies in the world of social enterprise have demonstrated. The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, for example, has worked with 19 other philanthropies to create a $120 million pool of growth capital for three of its leading grantees, providing inspiration for the Obama administration's Social Innovation Fund.
The use of Groupons, the online coupons that consumers purchase to obtain deep discounts on goods and services, is skyrocketing. But many businesses struggle to understand what makes a Groupon promotion effective. For clues, take a look at the data maps of Paul Butler, which capture the gross revenue generated by every Groupon deal.
This case looks at an important business task: forecasting a new product. The case can be used to teach finance, marketing (new product introduction), and healthcare strategy. The product is one of Amgen's most important new products: denosumab. On the surface, the case is fairly easy: students simply have to do some simple mathematical calculations. However, the challenges of forecasting quickly become apparent: every forecast depends on some critical assumptions, and the answer can vary dramatically.
Jonathan Miller appeared in September 2009 on "Shark Tank", the ABC television reality show featuring entrepreneurs versus angel investors in a discussion of the business value proposition and to win a negotiation for an investment from one of the 4 Sharks. The company he founded, Element Bars, a maker of custom energy bars, needed investment capital. Prior to appearing on the show, Miller had considered several financing options available to entrepreneurs: loans and other debt capital and equity capital, each of which are evaluated in the case. Miller had a good feel for the different types of capital to use for this new venture, having started several ventures in the past and winning the Kellogg School of Management business plan competition, the Kellogg Cup, in 2008. The case includes Miller's decision to forego the investment offer he won on television, instead he pursued lower cost of capital equity.
The Moncton Flight College (MFC) has grown significantly since its days as a flying club in the Golden Age of Aviation and become one of Canada's foremost pilot training schools. In late 2005 - after having weathered several setbacks (both internal and external) that have depleted the organization's resources - Principal Mike Doiron is faced with the challenge of determining a plan of action that can be presented to the Board of Directors. Several alternatives exist, including the maintenance of the status quo, international expansion into the Chinese market, retrenchment in Canada, greater commitment to existing European efforts, or some combination of these. Mike must also determine whether the College has the resources to pursue whatever plan is decided upon.
This is part of a case series. Simon Cohen parked his Acura SUV outside his Monterrey office, let the fingerprint scanner check his ID to open the door, and jogged upstairs past the huge poster showing containers and cranes at the port of Manzanillo. He paused for a moment in the company's boardroom. Here, a week earlier he had agreed with his business partners how they would restructure the company's ownership, and build on the success of the last 10 years. 'How could Thomas change his mind?' he wondered. Simon shook his head and strode into his office, wondering what to do. Over the previous 10 years, Simon and his three business partners - his brother Jose, Manfred Jaekel and Thomas Kroeger - had built up a successful freight forwarding business, with offices in Monterrey and Guadalajara. Manfred and Thomas ran their own separate, and longer-established branch in Mexico City. Simon had won some large, multinational customers, and had benefited from the increase in imports from China. By focusing on customer service, and by building up a hard-working team, he had grown bigger than the original Mexico City operation. There had been some friction over the years, but Manfred had proposed combining the companies into a group, and after some negotiation a verbal agreement had been struck on 15 August 2007. But, a week later, Thomas had phoned to say that he would not go ahead with the deal they had agreed. Simon was forced to reconsider his options.
Supplement to case LBS119. This is part of a case series. Simon Cohen parked his Acura SUV outside his Monterrey office, let the fingerprint scanner check his ID to open the door, and jogged upstairs past the huge poster showing containers and cranes at the port of Manzanillo. He paused for a moment in the company's boardroom. Here, a week earlier he had agreed with his business partners how they would restructure the company's ownership, and build on the success of the last 10 years. 'How could Thomas change his mind?' he wondered. Simon shook his head and strode into his office, wondering what to do. Over the previous 10 years, Simon and his three business partners - his brother Jose, Manfred Jaekel and Thomas Kroeger - had built up a successful freight forwarding business, with offices in Monterrey and Guadalajara. Manfred and Thomas ran their own separate, and longer-established branch in Mexico City. Simon had won some large, multinational customers, and had benefited from the increase in imports from China. By focusing on customer service, and by building up a hard-working team, he had grown bigger than the original Mexico City operation. There had been some friction over the years, but Manfred had proposed combining the companies into a group, and after some negotiation a verbal agreement had been struck on 15 August 2007. But, a week later, Thomas had phoned to say that he would not go ahead with the deal they had agreed. Simon was forced to reconsider his options.
Supplement to case LBS119. This is part of a case series. Simon Cohen parked his Acura SUV outside his Monterrey office, let the fingerprint scanner check his ID to open the door, and jogged upstairs past the huge poster showing containers and cranes at the port of Manzanillo. He paused for a moment in the company's boardroom. Here, a week earlier he had agreed with his business partners how they would restructure the company's ownership, and build on the success of the last 10 years. 'How could Thomas change his mind?' he wondered. Simon shook his head and strode into his office, wondering what to do. Over the previous 10 years, Simon and his three business partners - his brother Jose, Manfred Jaekel and Thomas Kroeger - had built up a successful freight forwarding business, with offices in Monterrey and Guadalajara. Manfred and Thomas ran their own separate, and longer-established branch in Mexico City. Simon had won some large, multinational customers, and had benefited from the increase in imports from China. By focusing on customer service, and by building up a hard-working team, he had grown bigger than the original Mexico City operation. There had been some friction over the years, but Manfred had proposed combining the companies into a group, and after some negotiation a verbal agreement had been struck on 15 August 2007. But, a week later, Thomas had phoned to say that he would not go ahead with the deal they had agreed. Simon was forced to reconsider his options.
Supplement to case LBS119. This is part of a case series. Simon Cohen parked his Acura SUV outside his Monterrey office, let the fingerprint scanner check his ID to open the door, and jogged upstairs past the huge poster showing containers and cranes at the port of Manzanillo. He paused for a moment in the company's boardroom. Here, a week earlier he had agreed with his business partners how they would restructure the company's ownership, and build on the success of the last 10 years. 'How could Thomas change his mind?' he wondered. Simon shook his head and strode into his office, wondering what to do. Over the previous 10 years, Simon and his three business partners - his brother Jose, Manfred Jaekel and Thomas Kroeger - had built up a successful freight forwarding business, with offices in Monterrey and Guadalajara. Manfred and Thomas ran their own separate, and longer-established branch in Mexico City. Simon had won some large, multinational customers, and had benefited from the increase in imports from China. By focusing on customer service, and by building up a hard-working team, he had grown bigger than the original Mexico City operation. There had been some friction over the years, but Manfred had proposed combining the companies into a group, and after some negotiation a verbal agreement had been struck on 15 August 2007. But, a week later, Thomas had phoned to say that he would not go ahead with the deal they had agreed. Simon was forced to reconsider his options.
At a meeting in September 2007 of the executive committee of Bayer MaterialScience, Greg Babe knew he was expected to present a detailed plan for reducing overhead costs at the company's North American headquarters. Earlier that year the committee had suggested shutting down the headquarters altogether; to preserve the region's credibility-and his own position-Babe would have to find some impressive savings. And he did. The plan he presented would cut 25% from the $400 million in overhead costs. But Babe didn't stop there: He asked for $70 million in additional resources, which he would use to completely transform and grow the business. That bold proposal paid off. The committee endorsed his plan and granted the $70 million, giving Babe 18 months in which to deliver. Now he would have to lay off hundreds of employees, retrain 1,000 others, outsource many operations, roll out new IT systems, and modify the company's product offerings. Following the mantra "Simplify, standardize, automate," the members of his transformation team redesigned virtually every one of the company's business processes. But perhaps most important, they developed change-management skills within the organization.
In 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act created a new federal agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to improve the functioning of consumer financial services markets. The Bureau is scheduled to open its doors in July 2011. Its first director will be responsible not only for setting the policy direction of the agency but also for establishing its organizational structure and management climate. In this open letter to the director, four professors-Campbell, of Harvard University; Jackson, of Harvard Law School; Madrian, of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government; and Tufano, formerly of Harvard Business School-offer advice on how to set priorities and craft policy responses. They suggest seven simple ways in which the new director can identify problems that deserve early attention: (1) Look for high stakes: Prioritize problems that put large numbers of households at material financial risk, (2) Look for confusion: Be concerned when consumers routinely misunderstand the terms of a financial product, (3) Look for regret: Big financial decisions are often made so infrequently that consumers do not become adept at them, (4) Look for folly: Some groups of people, for instance, routinely miss the opportunity to refinance their mortgages when interest rates drop significantly, (5) Look for suckers: Some financial products generate a large chunk of their profits from a small fraction of customers, (6) Look for rip-offs: If an expensive product survives in a very competitive market, it could mean that some consumers don't understand what they're buying, (7) Look for opportunities: Don't limit the focus to only problems-actively seek innovative products that will benefit consumers.
Since 1776, when Adam Smith described how the division of labor could spur economic progress, work has increasingly been broken into ever smaller tasks performed by ever more specialized workers. Now, however, as knowledge work expands and technology advances, we've entered a new era of hyperspecialization: Work previously done by one person is divided into more-specialized pieces done by multiple people, achieving improvements in quality, speed, and cost. For example, the start-up software firm TopCoder chops its clients' IT projects into bite-size chunks and offers them to its worldwide community of developers in the form of competitive challenges. The developers aspire to be ranked among the company's top coders, virtually guaranteeing quality in the winning end products. A company called CastingWords produces transcripts of audio files by farming out segments to remote workers for simultaneous transcription: Many hands make (extremely) fast work. The nonprofit Samasource sends data-entry work to marginalized individuals in the developing world, where tiny jobs lasting just minutes and paying just pennies give workers an economic boost while creating substantial savings for clients. Managers who want to capitalize on hyperspecialization's possibilities need to learn how best to divide knowledge work into discrete tasks, recruit specialized workers, ensure the quality of the work, and integrate the pieces into a final whole. Meanwhile, companies and governments must be aware of the potential perils of this new age: "digital sweatshops" and other forms of worker exploitation; nefarious schemes hidden behind task atomization; work that becomes dull and meaningless; increased electronic surveillance of workers. All these, the authors believe, could be ameliorated by global rules and practices and a new form of "guilds" to provide workers with a sense of community and support for professional development.
Social media and technologies have put connectivity on steroids and made collaboration more integral to business than ever. But without the right leadership, collaboration can go astray. Employees who try to collaborate on everything may wind up stuck in endless meetings, struggling to reach agreement. On the other side of the coin, executives who came of age during the heyday of "command and control" management can have trouble adjusting their style to fit the new realities. In their research on top-performing CEOs, Insead professors Ibarra and Hansen have examined what it takes to be a collaborative leader. They've found that it requires connecting people and ideas outside an organization to those inside it, leveraging diverse talent, modeling collaborative behavior at the top, and showing a strong hand to keep teams from getting mired in debate. In this article, they describe tactics that executives from Akamai, GE, Reckitt Benckiser, and other firms use in those four areas and how they foster high-performance collaborative cultures in their organizations.
For generations, we have operated on the assumption that human beings are fundamentally selfish, and so we have built systems and organizations around monetary incentives, rewards, and punishments. That hasn't always worked very well. Now the tide is starting to turn. In fields such as evolutionary biology, psychology, sociology, political science, and experimental economics, researchers are seeing evidence that human beings are more cooperative and behave far less selfishly than we have long assumed. The success achieved by such collaborative offerings as Wikipedia, Craigslist, Facebook, and open source software has, in fact, a scientific basis. Dozens of field studies have identified highly successful cooperative systems, which are often more stable than those based on incentives. Moreover, researchers have found neural and possibly genetic evidence of a human predisposition to cooperate. Evolution may actually favor people who collaborate and societies that include such individuals. Organizations would be better off helping us to engage and embrace our generous sentiments rather than assuming that we are driven purely by self-interest. We can build collaborative systems by encouraging communication, ensuring that claims about community are authentic, fostering a feeling of solidarity, being fair, and appealing to people's intrinsic motivations.