個案資料

The present case examines new challenges, associated risks, and the bold decisions that start-up leaders may need to make to navigate through an environment filled with volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA). Sanjib Jha, a seasoned entrepreneur with experience in several start-up firms, is confronted with this predicament in May 2020. Varun Dua and Devendra Rane started Coverfox Insurance Broking Private Limited (Coverfox) in 2013 as an insurtech start-up with the aim to radically change the Indian insurance market. The company’s founders quit in November 2016, leaving a leadership void. The new management continued focusing on the top line by running the business model, but they lost sight of the runway and cash burn, which put the organization’s future at risk. Coverfox wanted to be the Razorpay in the insurance ecosystem aggregator. Coverfox had already been dealing with issues such as investor exit, cash burn, and operating costs far exceeding the budgeted levels, and the COVID-19 pandemic further compounded these issues. When the existing management’s ability to turn the business around was called into question, the investors appointed Jha, an investor of Coverfox, as its chief executive officer (CEO). In May 2020, a few months after becoming CEO, Jha was faced with a decision dilemma. He had to make a firm choice- to suspend the business operations, sell it off or lower the monthly cash burn of US$1.1 million significantly thus increasing runway and continue toward break even and profitability. How can Jha, the new CEO, manage the confidence of investors, optimize cash burn, increase the runway, and envision Coverfox’s future?

This case is meant for students studying entrepreneurship, strategic management/leadership, and change management in senior graduate and graduate level management programs. This case can be used in courses on start-up, entrepreneurship, and marketing of insurance services to discuss the strategies of insurance distribution in a fintech environment. Since the case has an interdisciplinary flavour, instructors may augment the teaching note with course-specific material of their own to enrich the teaching and learning experience. The purpose of this case is to highlight issues that entrepreneurs face in their start-up journey, such as attracting investors, managing cash burn, organizational crisis, and the need to make changes in business strategy. It also highlights the importance of leadership for decision-making. Thus, after going through this case, the students should be able to do the following:<br><br><ul><li>Understand concepts of runway and cash burn.</li><li>Understand the challenges and bold decisions that start-up leaders need to take to navigate through a VUCA environment.</li><li>Study the leadership qualities of Jha and the impact of his leadership on Coverfox.</li><li>Analyze the financial viability of business units (BUs) and how to make a concurrent course correction.</li><li>Understand the issues and challenges faced in turning around a company.</li></ul>

• Startup, Insurance, Cash Burn,Leadership