個案資料

On July 4, 2016, the president of Pathfinder Career System Inc. (PCS), based in Montreal, Canada, was preparing to meet with his company’s advisory board to present a comprehensive plan mapping out the growth and financing strategy for the business, which he acquired in 2011. PCS was a career assessment system that used 85 behavioural attributes and 35 career themes to predict potential job performance. The company had sales of approximately $1.4 million at the end of 2015, and the president aimed to attain revenue of $22 million by the end of 2021; however, the company faced several challenges. PCS had limited organizational structures and resources. The company needed to raise investment capital; develop a marketing plan; instill a sales culture; define its customers; and establish a brand name, vision, and mission. PCS's president needed to finalize a plan to overcome these challenges by the launch date of September 2016.

This case was written for an undergraduate or graduate course on business ownership, to address the challenges of making decisions. It is also well suited for courses on strategy and marketing planning, where the emphasis is on treating the complete business as a system; that is, decisions made in one area will have a clear effect on other areas of the business. This case can be used at the beginning of the course to illustrate the complexities of the issues involved and to show students some of the areas that the course may cover. It can also be used at the end of the course to illustrate the interlocking dimensions of business decision-making. After completion of this case, students will be able to<ul><li>prioritize business decisions in an organization where challenges are interrelated;</li><li>identify the issues involved when marketing a premium service in a business-to-business context;</li><li>assess the impact on an organization as it tries to develop a marketing and sales mindset; and</li><li>understand the issues involved in raising capital for the early stages of a business.</li></ul>

• career, marketing, services, strategy, human resources