Precision medicine company Blueprint Medicines was building a successful track record for bringing drug therapies to market 40% faster than average. The company had spent $40 million dollars and two years building a compound library that became its drug development engine. Blueprint's drug development strategy was twofold-it focused on creating a single drug compound for multiple disease indications, while at the same time developing drugs to track a disease through its progression. The company's goal was to become a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company that could move from drug discovery to development to marketing. But it was increasingly challenging to prioritize and manage programs, personnel and partnerships.
This case describes the development of the Boeing 737 Max airplane model and the events leading up to two tragic plane crashes, in which a total of 346 people died: the crash of Lion Air flight 610 on October 29, 2018, in Indonesia, and the crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 on March 9, 2019, in Ethiopia. The evolution of Boeing's organization and management is described, focusing on the span from Boeing's 1997 merger with rival McDonnell Douglas through the development of the 737 Max and the crashes. The case examines the antecedents and possible causes of the crashes, both through the lens of industry and competitive dynamics and through the lens of corporate culture and development processes at Boeing. The development of the 737 Max is described in detail, including the factors and decisions that led to the development of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), the system that ultimately led to the crashes. Information about Boeing's response and actions during the period between the two crashes is also included in the case.
Brewing Peace was a company based in the Philippines that sold coffee beans. Despite having a base of 80 customers, 70 per cent of its business depended on 9 key accounts; this included its biggest buyer, Concepcion Coffee Enterprises Limited (CCEL), which accounted for 20 per cent of Brewing Peace's revenues. After a ₱30 million order from CCEL with a profit margin of less than 20 per cent, a payment period of 90 days, and a short delivery time, the co-founder of Brewing Peace was forced to review its relationship with its biggest client. The dilemma facing Brewing Peace was that it could not accept this order on CCEL's terms without jeopardizing the company's payment terms with its vendors and affecting the supply for orders, worth ₱25 million, to its other customers.
In 2018, the Singapore-based real estate agency OrangeTee launched a new, online platform in response to disruptive innovation in the real estate sector. Property Agents Review allowed clients to rate and review OrangeTee's agents upon the completion of a real estate transaction. After a hard-fought campaign to overcome initial resistance to the idea, agents credited the new platform with an increase in referrals. OrangeTee proudly championed Property Agents Review as an example of embracing technology and a future-focused outlook. Nevertheless, the management team understood that there was more work to be done. For example, the platform's technology could be easily copied by competitors. What could they do to stay at the forefront of technology?
In late 2016, it had been three years since Blackstone Group Inc. (Blackstone) had completed its last public-to-private leveraged buyout (LBO), and it had US$45 billion of capital available for investment, called "dry powder." Blackstone's head of private equity (PE) blamed this public LBO drought on "historically high multiples of cash flow." Blackstone submitted a preliminary offer to acquire a firm they had previously acquired 11 years earlier and exited in 2009. The banks committed to provide a senior credit facility, consisting of a seven-year Term Loan B, a revolver, and junk bonds; management provided forecasts of revenue and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization. The four-week exclusivity period was set to expire, and previous bidders in a recent takeover battle could re-emerge. Blackstone had to determine a final offer based on their LBO model.
Based in the Canadian Prairies, Promotions Manufacturing had been manufacturing promotional items for over 40 years. The organizational structure consisted of four manufacturing units and the administration department, each with its own distinctive staffing needs and cost structure; consequently, profitability calculations and operations management had become increasingly difficult. In June 2018, the question of how to allocate the overhead and administration costs to each manufacturing unit became a pressing concern. The different cost allocation methods resulted in diverse profitability levels. Subsequently, decision-making with regard to production priorities, operation scheduling, and staffing needs had become unsystematic, often resulting in missed deadlines and disappointed customers. The general manager had to make a decision: which cost allocation method would offer the most accurate profit centre profitability, provide guidelines in reorganizing operations, and result in higher efficiencies?
In late 2016, it had been three years since Blackstone Group Inc. (Blackstone) had completed its last public-to-private leveraged buyout (LBO), and it had US$45 billion of capital available for investment, called “dry powder.” Blackstone’s head of private equity (PE) blamed this public LBO drought on “historically high multiples of cash flow.” Blackstone submitted a preliminary offer to acquire a firm they had previously acquired 11 years earlier and exited in 2009. The banks committed to provide a senior credit facility, consisting of a seven-year Term Loan B, a revolver, and junk bonds; management provided forecasts of revenue and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization. The four-week exclusivity period was set to expire, and previous bidders in a recent takeover battle could re-emerge. Blackstone had to determine a final offer based on their LBO model.
In 2018, the Singapore-based real estate agency OrangeTee launched a new, online platform in response to disruptive innovation in the real estate sector. Property Agents Review allowed clients to rate and review OrangeTee’s agents upon the completion of a real estate transaction. After a hard-fought campaign to overcome initial resistance to the idea, agents credited the new platform with an increase in referrals. OrangeTee proudly championed Property Agents Review as an example of embracing technology and a future-focused outlook. Nevertheless, the management team understood that there was more work to be done. For example, the platform’s technology could be easily copied by competitors. What could they do to stay at the forefront of technology?
Based in the Canadian Prairies, Promotions Manufacturing had been manufacturing promotional items for over 40 years. The organizational structure consisted of four manufacturing units and the administration department, each with its own distinctive staffing needs and cost structure; consequently, profitability calculations and operations management had become increasingly difficult. In June 2018, the question of how to allocate the overhead and administration costs to each manufacturing unit became a pressing concern. The different cost allocation methods resulted in diverse profitability levels. Subsequently, decision-making with regard to production priorities, operation scheduling, and staffing needs had become unsystematic, often resulting in missed deadlines and disappointed customers. The general manager had to make a decision: which cost allocation method would offer the most accurate profit centre profitability, provide guidelines in reorganizing operations, and result in higher efficiencies?
Brewing Peace was a company based in the Philippines that sold coffee beans. Despite having a base of 80 customers, 70 per cent of its business depended on 9 key accounts; this included its biggest buyer, Concepcion Coffee Enterprises Limited (CCEL), which accounted for 20 per cent of Brewing Peace’s revenues. After a ₱30 million order from CCEL with a profit margin of less than 20 per cent, a payment period of 90 days, and a short delivery time, the co-founder of Brewing Peace was forced to review its relationship with its biggest client. The dilemma facing Brewing Peace was that it could not accept this order on CCEL’s terms without jeopardizing the company’s payment terms with its vendors and affecting the supply for orders, worth ₱25 million, to its other customers.
Haboydem was a second hand clothing store in Jerusalem that operated as a social enterprise by hiring and training individuals who were living with mental illness. The two store locations had successfully trained workers, and 70 per cent were able to find employment in mainstream businesses; however, in mid-2017, the co founders faced new issues. How should they deal with emerging competition from other second hand clothing retailers? How should they address the possibility of partnerships with other organizations? Should the company expand to additional locations or into additional activities? How should the co-founders measure Haboydem’s success? They needed to reflect on how to best address these challenges, and how their social enterprise could best move forward toward a long term future.
Over a 10-year period, from 2008 to 2018, Indian tire production increased from 80 to 180 million units. Indian tire companies were thriving and investing heavily abroad. Four Indian tire companies were among the top 30 tire makers in the world. Although India was expected to experience high or hyper-growth in tire manufacturing, growth at such a fast pace brought uncertainties and risks. In addition to competition from low-cost tires imported to India, the industry was challenged by volatile pricing for the raw materials used in tire production, government initiatives that were having unintended consequences on tire sales, environmental considerations, and protectionism in India’s largest export markets. What strategies did the industry need to reach profitability despite the ups and downs of the supply market, its dependence on large customers, changes in government policies, and environmental protection initiatives?
Career Karma is a startup focused on helping individuals looking to transition careers into computer engineering roles or similar fields by preparing them for formal technical training programs, or "coding bootcamps," that would lead to a successful career pivot upon graduating from the program. The platform also encouraged users to engage with each other in "squad" support groups and paired users with mentors (other users who successfully transitioned careers through Career Karma). This case explores the journey of Career Karma's three founders and navigating growth through an unexpected recession caused by a global pandemic.
The case describes widespread misconduct at Wells Fargo Community Bank in the period leading up to 2017 and the company's subsequent attempts to improve internal controls, company culture, and corporate governance. The case examines the potential causes of large scale customer related fraud in the Community Banking Division and across a range of businesses. The extent and length of time over which these misconduct events took place suggested a company that was fundamentally unable to ensure a compliance culture and customer focus among its employees. The case describes in detail the systems and practices that led to the systematic failures. Faced with withering political and regulatory scrutiny the company embarked upon a series of initiatives to improve systems and structure to prevent such misconduct and improve culture. The case describes these initiatives and the challenges faced in implementing them. The case also focuses on the role of the board in overseeing and improving internal control and corporate culture. The case ends with discussing entry of a new CEO amidst board turnover in March 2020.