This highly engaging strategy formulation exercise allows participant to unlock their creativity through the systematic five-step process of blue ocean shift. We reverse the learning process of case method by combining it with a group exercise. Participants will formulate their own market-creating strategy first by actively applying the concept, framework, and process of blue ocean shift to one of the most competitive industries - the travel industry. Then, they will be introduced to a real-life case that challenged the travel industry's long existing assumptions and successfully opened new market space. In analyzing the case, a three-part video series walks participants through the same blue ocean shift process applied in their group exercise, which will reinforce their learnings from the exercise and enhance the understanding of the case.This case is excellent for running a half-day or one-day workshop on creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship.The case comes with a teaching note, lecture slides, worksheets, a one-page summary and a three-part movie based on first-hand research and face-to-face interview with the CEO of a Korean company who created a blue ocean in the travel industry. The teaching material can be downloaded from https://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/teaching-materials/blue-ocean-shift-exercise/ The case is also available in Chinese and Korean.
The case describes Operation "Lava Jato" (Car Wash) in Brazil, one of largest anti-corruption investigations in the world. Operation Car Wash brought to light the shady relationships between government contractors, political campaign agencies and high-profile politicians in what were known as 'pay-for-play' schemes - bribes and campaign contributions paid by major corporations to government officials and political parties in exchange for lucrative government contracts which were over-invoiced to 'cover the costs'. By March 2018, 123 defendants had been convicted (their cumulative prison sentences amounting to 1,861 years), many from the highest echelons of government and business.
Supplement to case SMU413. This case is a two-part series on the value of faculty teaching forums and peer coaching programmes in resolving conflicting pedagogical philosophies. Case A is set in September 2009, shortly after James Nelson, assistant professor at Singapore Management University sought guidance from practice associate professor Harry Denon on the issue of declining student ratings of his teaching performance. Den then observes Nelson's lectures, and has in-depth discussions with him on his teaching style. The discussions prove very helpful to Nelson, who is now able to decide how he should approach his class and to what extent he needs to alter his teaching approach. The case looks at the value of feedback received by faculty through various lenses: students, peer and self-reflection. It is highly suitable for faculty development and executive education courses that cover different pedagogical philosophies and the effectiveness of student appraisal processes. In Case B, Nelson reflects on his peer coaching experience and how his thought process has evolved through the course of the coaching programme. He also describes some of the changes he made in his instructional strategy and course assessment methods, and reveals how he has refined his teaching philosophy.
The AirAsia India 2017 (AAI) case presents the situation faced by Tony Fernandes, the CEO of the AirAsia group of companies, in 2017, when he had to respond to the changes in aviation policy made by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MCA). As per the changes, an airline operating in India could start its international operations without having five years of domestic flying experience provided it deployed 20 of its aircraft or 20% of the total capacity, whichever was higher, for domestic operations. The objective of this case is to help discuss issues relating to sustaining late entry and exploring new growth opportunities in the context of regulatory changes.
This case examines the role of Cisco led by John Chambers in facilitating web filtering in China. It begins with tracing the origins of Cisco as a pioneer of networking equipment. John Chambers, who had worked as a sales manager at IBM and Wang Laboratories, joined Cisco in 1991 and became CEO in 1995. The company expanded rapidly thereafter, acquiring many firms and growing globally, including in China, where it virtually created the internet. The case explores how the firm facilitated surveillance and monitoring of the internet in the Golden Shield project launched in 2000, and in 2004 served as a key participant in the CN2 upgrade which greatly enhanced official capability to filter content online. The case ends in 2007 with Chambers announcing further capital expenditure in China, but facing growing criticism in the US Congress and elsewhere for its human rights record. At the same time Cisco faced a power domestic competitor, Huawei, which had grown rapidly investment in innovation even as Cisco had focused on share buy-backs after experiencing a sharp fall in its share price following the end of the dot.com bubble. The case provides a vehicle for exploring the ethical and human rights responsibilities of corporations in the technology sector, and the impact of the internet on democracy.
Beijing Jieyue United Information Consulting Co., Ltd. (Jieyue), a Chinese peer-to-peer (P2P) company established in mid-2013, offered financial services to investors through wealth management stores and an online service platform-xiangshang360.com. The platform served online customers, while the stores focused on those who had no interest in managing their wealth online. For borrowers, Jieyue provided offline services only, and it also performed credit checking through offline channels. Jieyue believed that the offline channels, particularly in third-, fourth-, and fifth-tier cities, could be the foundation for its sustained development, as well as a barrier for competitors. However, China's P2P industry was facing the toughest regulatory supervision in history in 2016, and it was estimated that only 10 per cent of P2P companies could survive the increased regulatory supervision. Jieyue needed to make a decision: should it revise its business strictly according to the supervision rules or should it follow its original direction with a few minor adjustments to its business?
The only female senior partner at a boutique management consulting firm has found out that she is paid less than half of what male partners were making who were younger, less experienced, and contributing less overall to the business. When she presented her case to the senior partners and explicitly asked if the pay discrepancy is become she was a woman, they would only respond to her through lawyers. The case is designed to bring students' instinctive decision-making tendencies to the surface. Thus, it is short enough to be read and responded to in class. Students are assigned readings and assignments related to the case after class discussion in which they are encouraged to reflect on their initial responses. The case is quite flexible and would work in any course that deals with leadership, ethics, difficult conversations, decision-making, organizational behavior, human resources, and related topics. It is appropriate for a range of levels and audiences, including undergraduate, MBA, and executive education.
Beijing Jieyue United Information Consulting Co., Ltd. (Jieyue), a Chinese peer-to-peer (P2P) company established in mid-2013, offered financial services to investors through wealth management stores and an online service platform—xiangshang360.com. The platform served online customers, while the stores focused on those who had no interest in managing their wealth online. For borrowers, Jieyue provided offline services only, and it also performed credit checking through offline channels. Jieyue believed that the offline channels, particularly in third-, fourth-, and fifth-tier cities, could be the foundation for its sustained development, as well as a barrier for competitors. However, China’s P2P industry was facing the toughest regulatory supervision in history in 2016, and it was estimated that only 10 per cent of P2P companies could survive the increased regulatory supervision. Jieyue needed to make a decision: should it revise its business strictly according to the supervision rules or should it follow its original direction with a few minor adjustments to its business?
A student pursuing his master’s degree in thermal engineering at Western University, in London, Ontario, was a self-proclaimed coffee snob. In his search to find a high-quality coffee he could make and take to go, he discovered no coffee maker, on the market, suited his exact needs. He began applying his knowledge of thermal fluids engineering in designing his own travel-friendly all-in-one coffee press, which he called the Pascal Press. After developing a functional prototype he thought there may be commercial value to his product design, and sought out assistance from a neighbouring business school professor to help him realize the business potential of his innovative design.Despite securing various streams of financial support, he had not been able to raise the full $60,000 he needed. One recommendation he had received early in the process was to secure his desired funding through Kickstarter—a dedicated web platform designed to bridge the funding gap of many start-up ventures by pre-selling products to a large pool of interested early adopters. In 2017, he set out to discover whether a crowdfunding option would work for his fledgling business.
The case discusses the decision of a hypothetical London-based hedge fund manager, Greg Rubin, who manages a fund primarily investing in emerging and frontier markets to decide whether to buy (or short) Safaricom, a Kenya-based telecom and financial services company that became globally known more than a decade ago (2007) for its use of technology to facilitate payments via mobile phones. There was a real need in Kenya for a different system of payments and money transfers, given the large underbanked population (almost 80% lacking a formal bank account) and the widespread use of cash. M-Pesa, the system introduced by Safaricom was an astounding success and quickly achieved a dominant position in the Kenyan marketplace. Kenyans embraced the use of mobile phones to transfer money and pay bills. More than 10 years later, at the time of the case (March 2018), Safaricom's dominance is challenged by a series of missteps expanding abroad (e.g., to South Africa), increased competition at home, as well as the introduction of 3G and advanced smartphone technology. The case allows for an examination of the investment thesis for Safaricom and its valuation. This requires the analysis of payment systems and their evolution in frontier markets as well as the analysis of country/political risk, among others. It is the combination of an innovative company from a frontier market and the introduction of new technologies that make this case interesting (and challenging) to analyze-by no means an obvious decision for Rubin.
Kroeker Farms Ltd. (Kroeker) had 500 acres of organic hemp in 2016 and planned to expand to 1,100 acres in 2017. Kroeker was one of the largest producers of potatoes in Manitoba, and hemp had become an important part of the crop rotation on its certified organic land. The agronomist responsible for all non-vegetable crops was looking at two equipment investment options because the equipment currently used for hemp was already at its maximum capacity. The first option was to invest in a new technology—a camera cultivator along with a new air seeder, which had to be imported from Europe. The second option was to simply invest in a larger version of the row-cropping equipment that had been used successfully for hemp on the farm. With the next seeding term approaching quickly, in Spring 2017, he needed to make this decision as he knew if he chose the new technology option, shipping from Europe would add additional logistical and timing concerns.
The Forta Furniture case highlights the need to consider new market expansion to grow a firm. It demonstrates that simply doing what has always been done is not sustainable when other competitors enter the market with differentiated or potentially superior offerings. In addition, the case suggests there are many routes to global expansion; a firm could look to build a brand in these new markets or compete as a private label. Further, the case addresses the need to combine quantitative and qualitative analyses for making superior decisions. Additionally, this case touches on the need to understand differences in resources and customer preferences in different countries and how a company should consider these factors when defining its growth strategy in deciding whether, where, and how to expand internationally. This case can be used in an introductory marketing management course for undergraduates or MBA students that discusses new market expansion and/or global or multi-market marketing strategy. In addition, it could be used in an elective course on international marketing. The case also be used as an example of sales forecasting when a firm launches in a new market.
On December 19, 2002, the board of directors of the Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower) was contemplating the approval of the company's 2003 foreign exchange strategy to manage long-term currency risk exposure in the utility's U.S. dollar debt. SaskPower had borrowed extensively in the early 1990s, with maturities ranging from 10 to 30 years. The U.S. dollar exchange rate against the Canadian dollar had since increased, thereby increasing the effective burden of the debt and reducing the utility's net income. A change in accounting practices implemented in 2001 required SaskPower to recognize as a gain or a loss in the current year any translation differences in the value of its outstanding U.S. dollar debt resulting from fluctuations in the exchange rate during the year. This policy change led to a significant reduction in net income in 2001, followed by a significant increase during the first eight months of 2002. The volatility in earnings had complicated the task of setting rates for electricity and had proved politically difficult to justify. In late 2002, SaskPower had to decide whether and how to hedge its currency exposure in outstanding U.S. dollar debt.
Kroeker Farms Ltd. (Kroeker) had 500 acres of organic hemp in 2016 and planned to expand to 1,100 acres in 2017. Kroeker was one of the largest producers of potatoes in Manitoba, and hemp had become an important part of the crop rotation on its certified organic land. The agronomist responsible for all non-vegetable crops was looking at two equipment investment options because the equipment currently used for hemp was already at its maximum capacity. The first option was to invest in a new technology-a camera cultivator along with a new air seeder, which had to be imported from Europe. The second option was to simply invest in a larger version of the row-cropping equipment that had been used successfully for hemp on the farm. With the next seeding term approaching quickly, in Spring 2017, he needed to make this decision as he knew if he chose the new technology option, shipping from Europe would add additional logistical and timing concerns.
On December 19, 2002, the board of directors of the Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower) was contemplating the approval of the company’s 2003 foreign exchange strategy to manage long-term currency risk exposure in the utility’s U.S. dollar debt. SaskPower had borrowed extensively in the early 1990s, with maturities ranging from 10 to 30 years. The U.S. dollar exchange rate against the Canadian dollar had since increased, thereby increasing the effective burden of the debt and reducing the utility’s net income. A change in accounting practices implemented in 2001 required SaskPower to recognize as a gain or a loss in the current year any translation differences in the value of its outstanding U.S. dollar debt resulting from fluctuations in the exchange rate during the year. This policy change led to a significant reduction in net income in 2001, followed by a significant increase during the first eight months of 2002. The volatility in earnings had complicated the task of setting rates for electricity and had proved politically difficult to justify. In late 2002, SaskPower had to decide whether and how to hedge its currency exposure in outstanding U.S. dollar debt.
In 2018, New York Times writer Nicholas Kristof and his wife, former Times writer Sheryl WuDunn (HBS '86) who worked in finance, were planning for their next book. The couple's earlier books had given rise to social movements around gender equity and poverty issues. They hoped the next book would be equally powerful. What should the book focus on? What additional content should they create to make sure their writing had an impact?
This case is set in mid-2019, when Qualcomm was struggling with unwanted take-over battles, fights with Apple and the Chinese government, and internal dissension on the board of directors. Ten years earlier Qualcomm was hailed as a monopoly on CDMA technologies and its derivatives, it appeared to be positioned to become the next dominant technology company in the tradition of Microsoft and Intel. But as the industry changed, Qualcomm's competitive position seriously weakened. The purpose of the case is to explore central questions in strategy formulation: 1. how to build a long-term sustainable position based on technology; 2. how to design an IP strategy to lock-in customers for the long-run; 3. how to build a global standard and appropriate returns on that standard; and 4. how to respond when your historical business model starts to crumble.