Jugnoo started its journey in 2014 as an autorickshaw aggregator providing ride-hailing services in India. Since then, the brand had grown and expanded to include hyperlocal services and business solutions. By May 2018, Jugnoo had five services under its umbrella that were offered primarily through applications and covered both business-to-consumer and business-to-business markets. Jugnoo found itself in a very different market space from where it had started. A company co-founder wondered how Jugnoo would continue to sustain its strategy of disrupting traditional markets, given the fast-paced growth it was experiencing. How would it manage to build consumers' trust with such diverse business verticals and so much reliance on technology? With the company's growing numbers and opportunities, the co-founder wondered whether Jugnoo's use of word-of-mouth communication would continue to be possible, especially considering the aggressive communication tactics adopted by other players in the market.
The owner of Leisure Gardens, a restaurant and accommodation business in a small town in Ghana, faced problems with his business. Approximately 40 per cent of his restaurant customers were paying on credit and not paying on time, causing cash flow problems. His sole employee was unreliable, often absent when the restaurant was busy. This two-part problem hindered the restaurant's success and owner’s ability to expand the business. Moreover, the owner faced external pressures from competitors in the restaurant market. The owner was considering three options to sustainably reduce bad-debt accounts and ensure profitability in the future: implementing an employee contract, changing the payment options, and expanding the business to generate more revenue. Which option would be the best course of action for the future of Leisure Gardens?
In January 2018, the Philippine cement industry changed forever with the entry of the 100-per-cent Filipino-owned cement manufacturing company Big Boss Cement Inc. (BBCI). When the company decided to set up shop with a cheaper, eco-friendly manufacturing process that promised less carbon emission, competition became fierce. BBCI planned to expand its capacity to take advantage of a growth in both infrastructure projects and local demand for cement, but it had to analyze the macro-environmental and competitive forces relevant in the context of its entry in the cement industry. It had to ascertain whether it could differentiate its product based solely on ecological appeal. BBCI also had to ensure that its environmentally-friendly brand promise would work, and anticipate potential obstacles to its success and determine how to counter these hurdles.
The University Club at the University of Regina was in financial distress. The club had been losing money for several years and was being subsidized by the University of Regina. However, due to budget cuts by the Saskatchewan government, the university was no longer in a position to subsidize the operations of the club. The board of the club had to make some tough decisions at this time. Could the club exist without university subsidy? Should the board increase membership fees, increase the number of members, or simply close the club? To make an informed decision they needed to perform a detailed analysis of the financial statements. An accounting professor, who had recently joined the club’s board, suggested performing ratio analysis to assess the problem areas.
As the world continues its digital evolution, more aspects of our lives are dependent on data and digital devices. This shift has required technology manufacturers to emphasize encryption and robust security in their evolving designs. While this pursuit of security is necessary to keep users' critical personal information safe, criminals and terrorist organizations are using these same security technologies to make it difficult or even impossible for authorities to access that data. Law enforcement agencies claim that they need the technical ability to lawfully access digital data, while many technology and privacy advocates hold that authorities should never, under any circumstances, force companies to weaken or circumvent security.<br><br>The conflict between privacy and security is examined in this case, starting with the 2016 legal challenge when, after a mass shooting, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation sought a court order directing Apple, Inc. to create software that would unlock the suspect's iPhone. Although that legal challenge was dismissed, the issues remain live and pressing.
In November 2013, the chief executive officer (CEO) and the senior vice-president of Real Estate and Development of TLO Developers (TLO) were considering various options relating to a large, company-owned plot of land in downtown Calgary. The plot was being leased out to another company that used it as a parking lot. TLO had many vacant land holdings in its portfolio, and the company was starting to place a stronger focus on developing commercial properties on them. The major development alternatives that they considered were the construction of a high-class hotel or a multi-storey office building. If these were not chosen, the CEO considered remaining with the status quo, running the parking lot internally, or selling the business.
This exercise places the reader in the position of an investor, who, before 2017, had invested for almost 20 years. Since the financial crisis in 2008-09, this investor had stayed away from the US market. The investor's return from the previous year stood at a mere 2 per cent. Given that many political events would likely occur in 2017, the investor hoped to revise their investment strategies at the time by developing a more internationalized portfolio. Specifically, the investor was considering how to allocate capital among the existing 10 broker-recommended exchange-traded funds traded on the Singapore stock exchange and two exchange-traded funds in alternative assets traded in the US market. The investor also needed to provide additional cash flows for the education of their two daughters from year two onward for a total of four years. The investor was also willing to reshuffle the investment portfolio to put more weights into the US market. However, before making the revised investment decision, the investor needed to consider the expected returns and risks.
This note on supply chain management provides background for the seven class supply chain module in the Technology & Operations Management required curriculum course taught at the Harvard Business School. This module includes four broad topics: sourcing and supply chain structure, supply chain coordination, coping with uncertain demand, and supply chain visibility.
The supplementary dataset (courseware number 619-702) provides a disguised dataset to students. At the end of the case, summary data from that dataset is mentioned. (Bottom of page 13: Rahematpura, who had been running numbers, interjected: "According to some back-of-the-envelope calculations, by not increasing wait times now, we stand to lose $1.6 million in the six launch cities. That might outweigh the data collection concerns.")
This case illustrates how a leader's lack of self-awareness can derail his or her career and sabotage the performance of a company. It features Shai Agassi, founder and CEO of Better Place, a charismatic, visionary leader who promises a solution to the world's reliance on oil. His charisma and convincing rhetoric are initially very effective at attracting investor and policy maker support for his idea of a network of electric cars with rechargeable, swappable batteries. The case describes Agassi's journey from visionary founder to capital raising as one of the most successful startups in history. Agassi's charismatic personality is observed as he pitches his vision in a TED Talk video. The case explores Agassi's drivers and strengths by describing his background, including his family life, cultural context, and career history as an entrepreneur and senior executive at SAP. The case then outlines the unraveling of Agassi's business and how he becomes increasingly disconnected from his stakeholders' interests and the changing context. Agassi's meteoric rise in popularity among media, investors and potential consumers is subsequently derailed by signs of narcissistic behaviour, poor financial management and strategy execution and unbalanced stakeholder engagement. Agassi's bravado and defensive behaviours contribute to the loss of interest and commitment by partners, colleagues and investors and the eventual bankruptcy of the company. Agassi's blind spots in his relationships, neglect of specific sets of stakeholders, tendency towards over-conviction in the business model, and inability to adopt an agile mind set contribute to his career downfall. Learning objective: This case illustrates how business leaders' careers can be derailed by personal characteristics that may have initially attracted support. As the needs of the business change, the leader's low self-awareness and inability to learn and adjust to a changing context contribute to their downfall.
The SOGO department stores in Hong Kong are part of Lifestyle International Holdings Limited, a large-cap, publicly-listed company on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (HKEX). The case describes a company that has recently had to confront its own sustainability reporting practices due to updated requirements by the local stock exchange. Additionally, as a participant in local activities, such as Earth Day, it has also had to examine its own operations and re-assess how to best engage with its key stakeholders and to make sustainability part of its corporate culture.
Less than a year after joining the board of African Bank Investments Limited (ABIL), the newest director finds himself in difficult discussions with other directors about removing the struggling company's CEO. The case is set in South Africa in mid-2014 as shares in ABIL, which traded on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, are declining precipitously. The case describes ABIL's origins and evolution, including the acquisition and growth of its wholly owned subsidiary African Bank, a provider of unsecured loans to help individuals pay for expenses such as vehicle repairs, home renovations, funeral costs, medical bills, and education. As ABIL's profits rose and share price soared, it became the darling of analysts. However, when the South African economy turned sour, customers started defaulting on their loans, and ABIL and African Bank began to struggle. As ABIL's stock price dropped, the management team faced difficult questions about the company's lending practices, risk management processes, and plans to turn the business around. By 2014, the situation was grim, and pressure mounted from shareholders and market regulators for the board to take action. The case details the history of unsecured lending in South Africa, describes the regulatory, social, and legal contexts for the company and its business model, and explores the company's unique corporate structure and executive and director dynamics.
Less than a year after joining the board of African Bank Investments Limited (ABIL), the newest director finds himself in difficult discussions with other directors about removing the struggling company's CEO. The case is set in South Africa in mid-2014 as shares in ABIL, which traded on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, are declining precipitously. The case describes ABIL's origins and evolution, including the acquisition and growth of its wholly owned subsidiary African Bank, a provider of unsecured loans to help individuals pay for expenses such as vehicle repairs, home renovations, funeral costs, medical bills, and education. As ABIL's profits rose and share price soared, it became the darling of analysts. However, when the South African economy turned sour, customers started defaulting on their loans, and ABIL and African Bank began to struggle. As ABIL's stock price dropped, the management team faced difficult questions about the company's lending practices, risk management processes, and plans to turn the business around. By 2014, the situation was grim, and pressure mounted from shareholders and market regulators for the board to take action. The case details the history of unsecured lending in South Africa, describes the regulatory, social, and legal contexts for the company and its business model, and explores the company's unique corporate structure and executive and director dynamics.
In August 2017, Commonwealth Bank of Australia was looking for ways to differentiate itself from competing banks, and was also trying to improve the financial wellbeing of its customers. One domain where this was particularly relevant was in its bank-issued credit card business, where customers routinely selected cards that although profitable for the bank could be a poor fit for customers' needs - leading to low satisfaction scores, cancellations, and occasionally, financial distress. To that end, the company's Behavioral Economics team had developed a provocative experiment dubbed "The Good and the Bad." Rather than just presenting the strengths of its various credit card offerings, they proposed also promoting each credit card's less-obvious drawbacks. Being transparent with customers might help them make better choices, but would those choices come at the expense of bank performance? Should a company choose to be in the sales prevention business?
Frustrated by an inability to convince existing venture capital firms to invest in companies led by women, people of color, and LGBT founders, Arlan Hamilton started her own firm, Backstage Capital, in 2015. Hamilton understood the untapped potential of companies run by underrepresented founders, a group historically excluded from venture capital funding, and was eager to demonstrate the significant returns on investment in such companies. This case explores Hamilton's nontraditional VC background, and her mission to fund startups where at least one founder of the company identifies as a woman, person of color, or LGBT. Now, three years after its founding, Hamilton is considering launching both an accelerator and a fund that will invest exclusively in Black women.
In October 2017, the co-founder of Australian social enterprise Illumination Solar was rethinking his company's Give Power campaign. After five marginally profitable years designing and supplying portable solar lanterns to some of the world's most energy impoverished communities, including refugee camps, the co-founder had decided to market his products to Australian customers for outdoor uses such as camping and hiking. Under the Give Power campaign, Illumination Solar donated one solar lantern to a community in need for every solar product purchased by Australian customers. However, this strategy was not successful. The co-founder's main goal for his company was to sustainably provide good quality solar lanterns to impoverished people in developing countries. To reach that goal, he wondered which strategy to follow; should he return to the original business model, re-structure the Give Power campaign, or come up with something entirely new to generate higher profits?
In 2017, the French automaker Groupe PSA (PSA) agreed to buy loss-making Opel/Vauxhall units from General Motors Company. PSA had just recovered one year earlier from losses it had sustained since the global financial crisis. With the recovery, PSA had launched a new strategic plan with aggressive goals for sustainable profitable growth. However, PSA's sales were continuing to drop in the important Chinese market due to fierce competition, and the newly acquired units were still making losses. The use of electric cars was on the rise, and the European Commission had proposed a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. PSA was planning to re-enter the United States, and in Britain, it was facing ambiguous Brexit negotiations, raising concerns about increased costs with importing and exporting parts and finished vehicles. In light of all of these challenges, how could PSA still reach its aggressive goals for sustainable growth?
Handu Group was an online fast fashion apparel brand established in 2006 with headquarters in Jinan, China. The company had successfully adjusted its business models since 2006, transitioning from an unknown seller on the shopping website Taobao into a leading enterprise that owned over 20 subsidiary brands. However, in 2015, fierce competition in the fast fashion apparel market had intensified, with an increasing number of traditional garment companies establishing online channels. Online brands without physical stores, such as Handu Group, lost their primary competitive advantage. Faced with a bottleneck in development, the founder of Handu Group had to consider another innovation in the corporate business model. Zhao was considering three options: continuing multi-brand expansion, building brick-and-mortar shops to open offline channels, or opening operating platforms to serve other brands.
In 2013, a high-school graduate began work as a construction labourer. His upbringing included experience driving and fixing various machines, which, combined with his hard work, led to a job operating a small loader. After working with three different construction companies on big equipment, he was considering whether or not to buy his own backhoe and start his own excavation business. He had investigated the cost of buying a backhoe, operating costs, financing, and the potential demand. In late 2014, he needed to decide whether or not to proceed with his own business.