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The Swiss company TAG Heuer, maker of luxury watches, is part of the LVMH group (Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton). In 2015, CEO Jean-Claude Biver is deciding whether to launch its first-ever fully connected Swiss watch, manufactured in partnership with Google and Intel. Entering this new market presents an unprecedented challenge: making a watch based on a technology (microprocessors) that the Swiss have not mastered. Is TAG Heuer ready to compete in the digital space - and potentially without the traditional 'Swiss Made' label? Case B takes up the story following the successful launch of the TAG Heuer connected watch. Sales are beyond all expectations for the luxury Swiss watchmaker and its partners Intel and Google. There are a few surprises too - the consumers are older than they expected and the watches sell out far quicker than anticipated - hence the company runs into some supply chain issues. Please visit the https://cases.insead.edu/tag-heuer dedicated case website to access supplementary material.

The case describes General Electric's transformation from an industrial manufacturer to an industrial analytics giant. It opens in 2009 when CEO Jeff Immelt decides that GE, a hardware maker, needs to be more capable in software. The narrative traces his early efforts to consolidate and coordinate software capabilities in a central unit (GE Software Center) headed by Bill Ruh in Silicon Valley. It documents the realization of the potential for big data and analytics for customers to which GE has sold industrial equipment for decades. Opportunities related to 'predictive maintenance' seem attractive given the significant economic costs of unplanned maintenance and repair for GE customers. Equipment optimization through analytics also has potential to increase their margins, especially for those that face increased competition and lack pricing power. As GE roars down the runway to becoming the leading player in the digitization of industry,the question is can it reach the critical speed to break free of the tarmac and sustain flight?

In 2011, Partners Group is nearing the end of a year-long quest for a new mandate from a European pension fund, Future Plan. The fund has struggled with its 6-year old PE programme, consistently falling short of its target allocation to the asset class and generating poor returns, seemingly always one step behind the opportunity in the market. Future Plan has built its PE programme by investing in closed-end funds of PE products managed by two executives, one focused on European markets, the other on global markets. But the fallout from the global economic crisis wreaked havoc with Future Plan's PE programme and something has to change. With an interest in expanding its PE activity to include secondary and direct investment strategies, Future Plan begins a manager search process with one goal in mind: to achieve the target return to the asset class by 2014. The case charts Partners Group's role in the selection process and how its expertise and services, along with a novel holding structure, offer a way to achieve Future Plan's goals. Please visit the dedicated case website http://cases.insead.edu/partners-group to access supplementary material.

The case describes how Spanish entrepreneurs Daniel González de Vega and Javier Arroyo founded Smartick with the aim of tackling the poor level of math education in their native Spain. Smartick is a self-financed enterprise that combines social impact with profitability. The two entrepreneurs are up against stiff competition, notably from the education giant Khan Academy, who not only has major financial backing but also offers its service free of charge. After two years of developing and testing a mix of the leading offline methods and state-of-the-art web-based technologies, Smartick is ready to make a big push into the after-school math learning space. Javier and Daniel are mulling over three options for their long-term marketing strategy. They are looking to segment the market and find the right segment to implement the strong brand positioning necessary to impact Spain's math education culture and society. The three options are to focus on B2B through schools, a combination of B2B and B2C, and a B2C-only approach. They must also decide on a pricing model and a communication strategy.

The case describes how the Pro-invest Group - a boutique investment firm specialising in private equity real estate and real estate asset management - built its business and raised a first-time private equity fund. The Pro-invest founders had boot-strapped the business since its inception in 2013, but in-house funds were running out by mid-2014 and they needed third-party capital to take the venture to the next level. After deciding on a suitable fund structure, the Pro-invest team hits the fundraising trail. Turmoil erupts when a potential investor pulls out at the last minute, leaving the team in shock to re-evaluate its fundraising options. The case explores the pros and cons of each option in detail. Please visit the dedicated case website http://cases.insead.edu/pro-invest to access supplementary material.

This case examines a critical decision faced by the partners of a venture capital firm, Adara Venture Partners, in June 2013. In the course of raising their second fund, the partners face the prospect of an anchor investor pulling out because Adara had not yet assembled sufficient capital to meet the end-of-month deadline to complete the fund's first closing. As a consequence, the partners are evaluating the possibility of the GP itself underwriting a portion of the gap in the fund's total capital commitment-which involves weighing a host of critical issues at the heart of venture capital fund management: GP economics, fundraising strategy, investor relations and the fund's investment strategy.

Emerging markets are challenging and require special expertise. India in particular is known to be a tricky business environment. The case follows two senior executives from Alvarez & Marsal's India practice as they deal with an urgent request from one of their US private equity clients, Sapphire Capital. A former employee is claiming that irregular activities by senior management are at the root of the company's financial difficulties. The turnaround team needs to act quickly yet must tread carefully in case the accusations prove unfounded. The second part of the case describes how the A&M team deals with the situation and the action they take to restore and restructure the ailing Indian company.

Emerging markets are challenging and require special expertise. India in particular is known to be a tricky business environment. The case follows two senior executives from Alvarez & Marsal's India practice as they deal with an urgent request from one of their US private equity clients, Sapphire Capital. A former employee is claiming that irregular activities by senior management are at the root of the company's financial difficulties. The turnaround team needs to act quickly yet must tread carefully in case the accusations prove unfounded. The second part of the case describes how the A&M team deals with the situation and the action they take to restore and restructure the ailing Indian company.

This is a condensed version of the Handpresso case series #5841. It describes the development from concept to production of the world's first and smallest hand-held espresso machine. It explains the design process and how the product is brought to market. The CEO of Nielsen Innovation, Henrik Nielsen, decides not to license it as he has with other designs but to create a spin-off company for the Handpresso machine. The final chapter finds the team in a quandary, Henrik Nielsen's untimely death leaves his wife at the helm. With two new machines ready for launch within a couple of months, it describes how the product is brought to market through partnerships and alliances. Having made a conscious decision to take this route, an agreement is signed with leading coffee roaster Lavazza, who in turn negotiates an exclusive agreement with the auto giant Fiat.

Spreadsheet Supplement for INS364

Case A describes the development from concept to production of the world's first and smallest hand-held espresso machine. It shows the importance the role of prototyping plays in developing an innovative product, capturing the phases and decisions involved along the design path. The machine is ready for tooling and the CEO of Nielsen Innovation must decide to bring the product to market. Should it be licensed as they had done with other products they had designed? Or should they create a stand-alone business? Case B describes how and why the team started a spin-off company for the Handpresso machine, and managed to grow the business in a short space of time.

Vendex KBB is at crisis point at the end of 2004, especially its flagship V&D department stores. A consortium of private-equity investors led by KKR, who bought the business a year earlier, persuade retail veteran Tony DeNunzio to take on the challenge of turning the diversified holding company around. Reluctant at first, he agrees, but only for three years and thereafter for 18 months part time. His mandate is clear: to turn around the iconic Dutch business by adding value to all stakeholders, not just the PE firm, a mission made more difficult by the reputation PE firms have recently acquired as 'barbarians at the gate'. About to embark on his first 100 days, what should he do on his first day? Please visit the dedicated case website http://cases.insead.edu/vendexkbb-maxeda/ (copy and paste the url into a browser) to view video interviews and other support material.

Case A describes the creation and growth of Nuru Energy. Starting from nothing, the founder 'bootstraps' a social venture with the goal of providing affordable and effective lighting solutions for 800 million people without access to the electricity grid in sub-Saharan Africa and India. The case narrates the challenges involved in developing a social enterprise with a dual aim of turning a profit and making a social impact. It focuses in particular on the finanical challenge and provides a context to discuss difference financing options and their implications. It looks at the different business model alternatives - market-based and donor-based. The central theme is to assess the merits and drawbacks of the different funding alternatives. Case B is an update that explains what financing option the founder chose and its implications. It sets the stage for a discussion about trade-offs in the geographical expansion of social ventures.

Case A describes the creation and growth of Nuru Energy. Starting from nothing, the founder 'bootstraps' a social venture with the goal of providing affordable and effective lighting solutions for 800 million people without access to the electricity grid in sub-Saharan Africa and India. The case narrates the challenges involved in developing a social enterprise with a dual aim of turning a profit and making a social impact. It focuses in particular on the finanical challenge and provides a context to discuss difference financing options and their implications. It looks at the different business model alternatives - market-based and donor-based. The central theme is to assess the merits and drawbacks of the different funding alternatives. Case B is an update that explains what financing option the founder chose and its implications. It sets the stage for a discussion about trade-offs in the geographical expansion of social ventures.

Case A describes the development from concept to production of the world's first and smallest hand-held espresso machine. It shows the importance the role of prototyping plays in developing an innovative product, capturing the phases and decisions involved along the design path. The machine is ready for tooling and the CEO of Nielsen Innovation must decide to bring the product to market. Should it be licensed as they had done with other products they had designed? Or should they create a stand-alone business? Case B describes how and why the team started a spin-off company for the Handpresso machine, and managed to grow the business in a short space of time.

Case A describes the development from concept to production of the world's first and smallest hand-held espresso machine. It shows the importance the role of prototyping plays in developing an innovative product, capturing the phases and decisions involved along the design path. The machine is ready for tooling and the CEO of Nielsen Innovation must decide to bring the product to market. Should it be licensed as they had done with other products they had designed? Or should they create a stand-alone business? Case B describes how and why the team started a spin-off company for the Handpresso machine, and managed to grow the business in a short space of time.

This case tells the story of successful corporate entrepreneurship bringing sustainable value innovation to agribusiness. It recounts the history of EADS-Astrium, subsidiary Infoterra and the development of a new product-service called Farmstar to help farmers reduce costs and increase yields. The case describes the creation of uncontested market space through the successful development of an innovative product that increases private benefits (profits) on adoption. Farmstar also generates public benefits (lowers pollution) by reducing the negative externalities of intensive agriculture. The process of simultaneously increasing public and private benefits through productivity increase and cost reduction is known as sustainable value innovation (SVI).

The Mexican microfinance bank Compartamos Banco took the industry by surprise in 2007 with a successful IPO that valued the bank at more than US$ 1 billion. Although it was not the first listing of a microfinance organisation, the 10,000% rate of return for the initial investors and managers created controversy as many believed that these returns were possible because of the high interest rates charged to poor borrowers. This controversy divided the microfinance industry and still rages today. The case tells the story of Compartamos and its IPO, and outlines the different arguments from both sides, setting the scene for a lively debate-style session..

The case describes the launch, growth and current challenges of two innovative ventures in the nascent social lending market. It shows how these organisations are using the concept of online micro lending to eradicate poverty. While operating in the same market space, the two companies have fundamentally different business models: Kiva is based on good-will while MYC4 is based on market incentives. Which model is more likely to succeed?

This set of two cases describes how two MBA alumni acquired a long-established business in France, and, despite all their efforts to modernise it, grow it and apply best practices as learned in business school (Case A), finally turned it into a loss-making and cash-bleeding company (Case B).