In 2022, senior executives of Cambridge, MA-based Akamai Technologies met to consider whether and how to scale a successful technical training program. The program, Akamai Technical Academy (ATA), was launched in 2016 to address a key challenge at Akamai and in the technology industry at large-the need to create an inclusive and diverse workforce. ATA participants came from communities typically underrepresented in the tech industry. They went through six months of in-class training followed by a six-month on-the-job contract working with Akamai project teams. By early 2022, nearly 150 ATA graduates from the U.S., Poland, and Costa Rica had converted to full-time employment, and internal hiring managers were interested in recruiting future ATA graduates. Ultimately, the company wanted to build a robust and diverse global talent pipeline, as well as promote inclusion and diversity in the global technology industry. If ATA were to be a catalyst for these changes, it would need to scale. As they prepared for their meeting, the ATA executives grappled with whether and how to scale the ATA to meet growing internal demand, while also building the platform to transform Akamai and the global technology industry.
The case deals with the century-old Canadian peat industry, whose activities take place far from major urban centres. The case is set in the early 1990s, a defining point in the history of peat extraction in Canada, when key decisions were made to ensure the industry's sustainability. On the other side of the Atlantic, the actions of British peat producers were damaging their industry's reputation, and something had to be done to prevent the Canadian industry from suffering the consequences. The case discusses the major challenges faced by companies and industrial sectors whose practices are questioned: achieving social acceptability, preventing and managing controversy, and maintaining legitimacy.
The case deals with the century-old Canadian peat industry, whose activities take place far from major urban centres. The case is set in the early 1990s, a defining point in the history of peat extraction in Canada, when key decisions were made to ensure the industry's sustainability. On the other side of the Atlantic, the actions of British peat producers were damaging their industry's reputation, and something had to be done to prevent the Canadian industry from suffering the consequences. The case discusses the major challenges faced by companies and industrial sectors whose practices are questioned: achieving social acceptability, preventing and managing controversy, and maintaining legitimacy.
Many companies recognize the importance of increasing diversity and inclusion within decision-making teams, but providing opportunities for diverse employee populations to participate involves more than just offering them a seat at the table. Employees must also have the ability to truly impact team and organizational decisions, also known as shared impact. The authors suggest actions leaders can take to ensure that company decisions integrate and apply input from diverse groups.
New Zealand-based One Ring is an early entrant in the digital "after death" or "immortality technology" market. Using animation tools and AI technology, One Ring captures the digital footprint of deceased individuals (from social media posts, emails, videos) and uses the data to create chatbots that mimick their communication patterns. In this way, friends and family "never have to say goodbye" - they can continue having conversations with loved ones beyond the grave. The case illustrates how senior executives find it challenging to embrace creative ideas from new hires or employees lower down the chain of command. Ironically, these are precisely the employees most likely to have new ways of seeing and solving problems (even if they have difficulty exerting an influence). The case consists of two versions. The Penny version gives the students a sense of the challenges that executives have when they need to make choices on creative ideas under realistic pressures: deadlines, budgets, and audience expectations. The Andy version highlights the precarious position of employees in the lower/middle levels of the organization who seek to champion ideas and convince those at the top. Instructors can choose between the executive (Penny) version, or the new/junior employee (Andy) version. The teaching note includes crucial information on what the case reveals in the classroom.
In today's fast-paced business world, automation is essential for companies to remain competitive. The use of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has proven to be a game-changer for many organizations, including multinational consumer retail companies. However, implementing RPA at an enterprise-wide scale can be a daunting task. In this real life case study, we take a deep dive into the process of scaling RPA in a multinational consumer retail company. We cover topics such as exploring various scaling options routes, creating governance structure, right-sizing RPA team, and managing change and adoption across multiple geographies and business units. Through this case study, we provide practical insights and best practices for successful RPA implementation. We also explore the benefits of RPA, including increased efficiency, reduced costs and improved accuracy. Whether you're a business leader, an IT professional, or an RPA practitioner, this case study will add value for anyone looking to scale RPA in a multinational company. With our guidance, you'll be able to successfully navigate the complex challenges of implementing RPA at an enterprise-wide scale and take your organization to the next level of automation.
Radius Synergies International Pvt. Ltd. (RSIPL), which came into existence in 2010, was a pioneer in implementing prepaid smart metering solutions in Delhi, National Capital Region (NCR), India. RSIPL was created as an independent entity to focus on harnessing contemporary technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, cloud computing, and mobility and leveraging them for the energy market that its parent, Radius Group (Radius), had been serving through conventional products and solutions for more than two decades. Though the company faced many challenges with respect to the use and acceptance of the new technology, it had still been successful in implementing the solutions and had been able to achieve consistent growth in its annual revenues. On March 21, 2022, Mr. H. S. Singh, RSIPL's managing director, had a meeting with his executive management team to discuss the strategy for expanding RSIPL's smart metering solutions and leveraging the IoT platform developed for additional potential business opportunities. Should the company try to obtain external funding? Should it focus on increasing market reach for existing products and solutions or venture into new products or services that could be spin-offs of the IoT platform and expertise developed so far?
The case highlights the challenges encountered by a corporate life and health insurance leader while dealing with an underperforming employee, Tina Smith, in 2016 in Toronto, Ontario. It provides an overview of the process involved in performance management, including steps associated with exiting an employee from an organization. The protagonist in this case, Alexandra Thorn, also encountered challenges in her working relationship with Smith. Thorn was a lesbian and was open about this fact with her team and clients. Smith felt that in sharing information about her sexuality, Thorn jeopardized her business relationship with their clients; consequently, Smith suggested that Thorn not accompany her to meetings with clients in their Southwestern Ontario region, which included a large, traditional farming community. During a client meeting, Thorn witnessed Smith displaying inappropriate behaviour that stemmed from Smith's implicit bias and discomfort with diversity. After Thorn reported her concerns to the company's human resources (HR) partner, however, she was informed that the incident did not warrant intervention. As a values-based leader aligned with the organization's commitment to diversity and inclusivity, Thorn had to consider how to proceed.
Women entrepreneurs (WEs) operate at all levels of society in Morocco. But, what it is really like to be a self-employed woman in this emerging economy? Does it matter where you live if you want to start your own business? What skills do you need? Where and how can you get start-up funds? Will anybody help you? Taking a marketing approach, this case study explores factors in the business environment of this emerging economy that Moroccan WEs face as they start their own businesses and struggle to become successful. Students will analyze elements of the operating environment of a wide range of WEs in Morocco. Then, they will integrate their understanding of women's entrepreneurship in an emerging economy by developing a set of recommendations for a social marketing campaign for the government. Goals for this campaign are to promote and support women's self-employment as entrepreneurs in Morocco in the short- (1-2 years) and long-term (5-10 years).
In September 2020, Pradeep Kakkattil was facing difficult questions about his team's strategic direction. In the two years since he had founded the Office of Innovation at UNAIDS - the United Nations agency for coordinating global action on AIDS - the team had grown from two people to six and had established over 100 partnerships globally. With a dual goal to make UNAIDS more innovative and drive innovation in healthcare worldwide, their flagship initiative, the Health Innovation Exchange platform, had brought together innovators, investors/donors and government partners to support innovation in healthcare. Yet Pradeep, as director, felt they had failed to overhaul UNAIDS internal culture and processes, prompting him to question the existing strategy and structure of an innovation unit within such a bureaucratic organization. UNAIDS was itself undergoing strategic changes aimed at decentralizing operations and focusing on gender issues. How would his team fit into the restructured organization, and if it could not, what were their options?
Patagonia's change of ownership from a privately held company to a perpetual purpose trust and 501(c)(4) nonprofit in order to use the company's profit to fight the environmental crisis and be a model for future businesses.
The mission of Edmonton Opera Association (Edmonton Opera), a not-for-profit arts organization founded in 1963, was to bring the community together through meaningful artistic experiences. In 2017, when Edmonton Opera developed a strategic plan, it incorporated this mission into the plan and used it as the basis for a new direction for the next five years. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed the way Edmonton Opera carried out its mandate, and as a result, it had to suspend the implementation of the 2017–2022 strategic plan. But with a return to pre-pandemic operations in late 2021, Edmonton Opera’s management and board members were eager to restore the original five-year strategic plan, and the board was eager to assess the strategic initiatives and effectiveness of Edmonton Opera's mission. The plan had, at its core, the four dimensions of the balanced scorecard system—finances, customers, learning and growth, and internal business processes—but management would have to devise their own balanced scorecard measures.
In May 2022, Ethiopian social entrepreneur Berhanu Gebeyehu had to decide on next steps for his clean drinking water business, Brightwater Ethiopia (Brightwater), which he had begun in 2019 in the southern town of Dilla. Ninety-six per cent of Dilla’s households had reported on surveys that the clean water available in the town was inadequate for their needs and that school-aged girls regularly missed class because they bore the burden of collecting water, often from unsafe sources. Following two successful years of business, during which Gebeyehu had striven to contribute to the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs) by providing clean drinking water and boosting gender equality while also making a profit, Gebeyehu now wanted to reduce his business’s dependency on the foreign non-governmental organization (NGO) that had helped fund and set up the business. He was also considering expanding his social enterprise’s model across Ethiopia as well as developing a capability that would deliver clean water in plastic bottles.
Mirakl provided the technology and seller network required for companies like Macy's, Best Buy, Walmart, Siemens, or Carrefour to simply design, launch, and administer a marketplace that included products from third-party sellers. What began as a basic business idea in 2012 had grown into a thriving venture ten years later. Mirakl expected to grow its $100 million revenue by fivefold during the next five years. But how was this to be accomplished? Mirakl had previously prioritized the development of solutions for marketplace operators, the "Macy's of the world". It was now working on a new solution, Mirakl Connect, with the goal of becoming the premier destination for third-party sellers. But, how should Mirakl monetize these services? Should they charge for them, and if so, to whom? Should Mirakl explore adjacent opportunities, such as financial services, fulfillment, or advertising? Finally, should Mirakl expand its services to marketplaces outside the Mirakl ecosystem?
In May 2022, Ethiopian social entrepreneur Berhanu Gebeyehu had to decide on next steps for his clean drinking water business, Brightwater Ethiopia (Brightwater), which he had begun in 2019 in the southern town of Dilla. Ninety-six per cent of Dilla's households had reported on surveys that the clean water available in the town was inadequate for their needs and that school-aged girls regularly missed class because they bore the burden of collecting water, often from unsafe sources. Following two successful years of business, during which Gebeyehu had striven to contribute to the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs) by providing clean drinking water and boosting gender equality while also making a profit, Gebeyehu now wanted to reduce his business's dependency on the foreign non-governmental organization (NGO) that had helped fund and set up the business. He was also considering expanding his social enterprise's model across Ethiopia as well as developing a capability that would deliver clean water in plastic bottles.
The mission of Edmonton Opera Association (Edmonton Opera), a not-for-profit arts organization founded in 1963, was to bring the community together through meaningful artistic experiences. In 2017, when Edmonton Opera developed a strategic plan, it incorporated this mission into the plan and used it as the basis for a new direction for the next five years. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed the way Edmonton Opera carried out its mandate, and as a result, it had to suspend the implementation of the 2017-2022 strategic plan. But with a return to pre-pandemic operations in late 2021, Edmonton Opera's management and board members were eager to restore the original five-year strategic plan, and the board was eager to assess the strategic initiatives and effectiveness of Edmonton Opera's mission. The plan had, at its core, the four dimensions of the balanced scorecard system-finances, customers, learning and growth, and internal business processes-but management would have to devise their own balanced scorecard measures.
The case is set in 2023. The protagonist is Laxman Narasimhan, Starbucks' CEO since April 1st, 2023. Starbucks is a multinational coffee company and restaurant chain with 36,000 locations worldwide, over $32 billion in revenues, and net income in 2022 of $3.3 billion. In the past five years, the company's performance has languished. CEO Narasimhan's task is to identify Starbucks' challenges as of 2023, prioritize them, and develop and implement a strategy to address them. With the U.S. in an economic downturn resulting from high inflation, Starbucks struggles to control costs. Low employee morale in the U.S. led to some 280 stores unionizing since 2021. Starbucks also bet big on China. With China lifting its zero-Covid policy, this country's revenue contribution will soon exceed 20% of Starbucks' total revenue.