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On the morning of June 30, 2019, the Orlando Magic had only a few hours to make a major decision, before the National Basketball Association free agency period was set to begin at 6 p.m. The management team needed a recommendation regarding whether to offer a new contract to the team's current player, Terrence Ross, or pursue a free agent replacement, such as Rudy Gay. With extensive analytical data available, a thorough analysis was needed to predict which player was most likely to contribute to the Orlando Magic's future success.

Spreadsheet Supplement for Case W27081

In February 2021, the Indian government announced new regulations to increase the accountability of social media companies for misusing their platforms in spreading fabricated news, misinformation, and obscene material. The new rules were not welcomed by some prominent social media companies, including Twitter. The giant microblogging network claimed that the new rules were designed to suppress freedom of speech among the citizens of India, one of the largest democracies of the world. However, Indian regulators argued that the new rules were required to prevent abuse on open social media networks. Twitter contended that it was self-regulated and argued that its users' voices should not be regulated because it would clearly amount to suppression of the right to free expression. In a changing political and legal environment, how could Twitter meet increasing demands from regulators to moderate content, while remaining aligned with its mission, vision, and ethical standards? Were the self-regulatory mechanisms of social media companies adequately effective without interference from external forces?

Cyberattacks on corporations are an increasingly common phenomenon that imposes significant costs on shareholders, customers, and management. It is instrumental for corporations to both invest in appropriate precautionary security measures and have a comprehensive cybersecurity incident response plan (IRP), led by a skilled incident response team, that defines what procedures to follow. This fictional case is framed from the perspective of Ida Inglewood, the chief information security officer (CISO) of Abank, a midsized financial institution that has experienced a massive and unprecedented cyberattack in which $450 million of customer funds were stolen. The case begins with a 2:00 a.m. phone call in which the CISO informs Abank's CEO of the incident. Abank's IRP is activated, and the CISO provides a detailed report to the bank's management team, explaining the legal, regulatory, and financial implications of the cyberattack. The case culminates in the following critical decision: whether to restore full access to the deposits of Abank's customers at the beginning of the business day, or to keep operations closed until a full investigation of the cyberattack has been completed. This case is taught at Darden in a course on "Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work"; it would also be well suited for in-person or online MBA courses in banking and financial markets, new technologies, or communication and crisis response.

This case follows a fictional hedge fund manager as she works to finalize an investment thesis on Comerica Incorporated to present to her manager, who is undecided as to whether the fund should buy (go long) or sell (short) the stock. Assessing Comerica's value and outlook is complex. She needs to have a view on Comerica's future earnings, which are clearly linked to the gravity and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resiliency of the banking sector as a whole. This case is taught at Darden in a course on "Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work"; it would also be well suited for in-person or online MBA courses in banking and financial markets, new technologies, or communication and crisis response.

2021 was a banner year for Elon Musk. CEO of the electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla, the aerospace manufacturer SpaceX, and a few smaller startups, Musk became the richest person on Earth after Tesla reached a market capitalization of $1 trillion and SpaceX a private valuation of $100 billion. Both companies made bet big on risky technologies. Now that they were leaders in booming industries, the task was to retain their lead. Musk had proposed a round of big new bets for each company: Tesla was to work with partners to rapidly expand battery production with a focus on lithium-iron phosphate batteries, and SpaceX was to launch thousands more of its Starlink satellites aboard Starship, the largest launch system ever devised. Meanwhile, Tesla faced litigation related to SEC complaints and safety concerns about its Autopilot driver-assistance system, and SpaceX's growing Starlink constellation similarly raised safety concerns. For Musk, the question was: should he consolidate gains and fix the operational, legal, and political problems before launching new initiatives, or should he proceed full speed ahead?

In January 2022, Microsoft announced its $69bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard, a leading producer in the gaming sector, which has grown quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. Activision was a main player in mobile gaming as well as cloud gaming, an emerging technology that allowed individuals to stream videogames via Internet-connected devices. In this case, students will learn about Microsoft's organic and acquisitive growth in gaming as well as discuss the strategic acquisition of Activision.

When Timothy Yu and Katherine Cheung, Snapask's CEO and Chief Marketing Officer, respectively, decided to enter the Indonesian market, they knew that this wouldn't be a snap. Snapask was an education technology company that applied machine learning and mobile cloud services to make education more effective, personalized, and accessible to everyone. After an uncertain kickoff in Hong Kong SAR, a very successful entry in China Taiwan, and relevant experience in the Southeast Asian region, Timothy and Katherine had learned that an in-depth knowledge of their stakeholders and the target educational context were key for their success. During the two-month pilot program in Indonesia, Katherine found out that their existing subscription model did not fit the market. Instead of monthly or yearly subscriptions, the Indonesian students expected to pay by prepaid cards. How could Snapask market and price its product in this different context? In Indonesia, Katherine had to adjust the strategy and formulate a proposal for Timothy accordingly.

Wilo SE, headquartered in Dortmund, Germany, was a leading supplier of pumps and pump systems for the building services, water management and industrial sectors, which was doing business in more than 50countries. Based on current global developments in politics, economy, and society, Oliver Hermes, President and CEO of Wilo Group, saw a de-coupling of three tectonic plates centered in China, USA, and Western Europe. At the Wilo management conference in September 2020 Hermes informed stakeholders about the decision to establish a 2nd headquarters in Beijing within the next few months, and possibly to open a 3rdheadquarters in the following year in the USA. He stated: "With the opening of a 2nd headquarters I want to set a sign. Wilo has to keep up with current global developments - whether we like them or not. A stronger regionalization of Wilo is necessary to continue our global success." The case text introduces the key measures to establish the 2nd headquarters in China.

This note provides an update on the space financing state of play in 2021.

On March 10, 2021, Ralph Mupita the new CEO of MTN Group, Africa largest telecommunications company, presented the group's 2020 annual results and unveiled a new strategy to "drive growth and unlock value." Despite MTN's leadership in most of its markets, the company's share price was trading at 15-year lows putting Mupita under pressure to accelerate a turnaround. The case considers his plans to execute against the new strategy by spinning off MTN's fintech business and creating more shared value in its markets while at the same time building valuable technology platforms and delivering industry-leading connectivity. Could MTN's leadership team achieve all four priorities within five years as promised, or were they trying to do too much too quickly? Did they have the right structure and team in place to do so? Although Mupita was convinced that swift action and dramatic change were needed to succeed, there were skeptics both inside and outside the firm.

On November 11, 2016, Xi Dan, Senior Vice President of Tencent, and Ma Yongwu, Dean of Tencent Academy, were discussing how Tencent could develop new capabilities to sustain its growth miracle and entry into new technologies, expansion into B2B businesses, and internationalization.

Benchmarking and executive expertise don't necessarily determine the best key performance indicators (KPIs). Data-driven companies increasingly employ predictive analytics such as machine learning to help identify and refine key strategic measures. More finely tuned KPI measures lead to behaviors that are better aligned with strategic objectives.

This is the story of how Agoda, a subsidiary of the Booking Holdings online travel group, made its way to a single "KPI + constraint" model that helps run a good bit of the business. It took some trial and error to get there; the KPIs that were developed and tested along the way promoted both positive and counterproductive behaviors and outcomes. But the business found its guiding principles, implemented them, improved performance, and fostered learning and cooperation in the process.

Successful digital transformations require leaders to frame performance targets around data-defined business objectives rather than technological capabilities. The authors share a four-component leadership framework they developed for KPI-driven digital transformation that enables a virtuous cycle of improvement. They also discuss how to design effective strategic KPI portfolios.

Many Chinese family businesses are facing a succession crisis due to the lack of succession planning. Contrary to this finding, Chen Koon-yaw, the fourth-generation owner of the Hop Lion Feather Works Corporation, had planned early and handed the leadership role over to the next generation well before his retirement age. Hop Lion is a supplier of processed down and feathers to well-known consumer brands specialising in beddings and winter coats, including Canada Goose, Moncler, The North Face, and many others. Founded in 1908 and headquartered in Taiwan, the century-old family business had faced multiple crises that threatened its survival in the early 1990s - family separation, employee betrayal, loss of major clients and a highly volatile business environment. Chen's experience of an abrupt takeover of the family business after the demise of his father had led to his decision of not leaving succession planning to chance, and grooming his son as the next leader well in advance. Even after officially handing over to his elder son in 2015, there were doubts on whether he would truly let go. At 61, he had stepped down earlier than most Taiwanese CEOs. Should he continue to exert control over his successor to influence decision-making?

Today's challenges of digital transformation, coupled with the pandemic, call for a shift in leaders' mindsets so that they can revamp their businesses for the better. The author discusses four common assumptions about driving transformation and suggests ways leaders can rethink them to help their companies thrive when challenged with constant global change.

The case Reviving Edwards Lifesciences provides a vehicle to understand the evolution of Edwards Lifesciences (EL) as a leader in the heart valve replacement industry, with solutions for aortic, mitral, and tricuspid valves. The company has been at the forefront of innovation specifically in the research, design, and manufacturing of multiple generations of valves used in transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). The case describes the various components of strategy and organization that EL successfully integrated to manage the process of continuous innovation, and to create and deliver outstanding value over an extended period to customers, partners, and shareholders, thereby earning the admiration of analysts and management experts.