Bail funds, organizations that collect money to post bail for community members who are eligible for cash bail to stay out of jail until the time of their trial, have grown throughout US history, buoyed by major civil rights events such as the Red Scares, Civil Rights movements, Vietnam War Protests, among others. Given the volume of potential community members who would benefit from bail fund assistance and the plethora of defendant information required to process the bail payments, such funds like the Springfield Bail Fund face a logistical and management challenge.
Bail funds, organizations that collect money to post bail for community members who are eligible for cash bail to stay out of jail until the time of their trial, have grown throughout US history, buoyed by major civil rights events such as the Red Scares, Civil Rights movements, Vietnam War Protests, among others. Given the volume of potential community members who would benefit from bail fund assistance and the plethora of defendant information required to process the bail payments, such funds like the Springfield Bail Fund face a logistical and management challenge.
Bail funds, organizations that collect money to post bail for community members who are eligible for cash bail to stay out of jail until the time of their trial, have grown throughout US history, buoyed by major civil rights events such as the Red Scares, Civil Rights movements, Vietnam War Protests, among others. Given the volume of potential community members who would benefit from bail fund assistance and the plethora of defendant information required to process the bail payments, such funds like the Springfield Bail Fund face a logistical and management challenge.
Bail funds, organizations that collect money to post bail for community members who are eligible for cash bail to stay out of jail until the time of their trial, have grown throughout US history, buoyed by major civil rights events such as the Red Scares, Civil Rights movements, Vietnam War Protests, among others. Given the volume of potential community members who would benefit from bail fund assistance and the plethora of defendant information required to process the bail payments, such funds like the Springfield Bail Fund face a logistical and management challenge.
Constrained by both the complexities inherent in the sport and league regulations, the National Football League (NFL) in America has been slow to use analytics capabilities to enhance team performance. This case provides students with a brief introduction to the rules and regulations of American football as well as a history of analytics at the NFL. The case further explores what opportunities exist to derive real value using analytics to create a decision support system for NFL coaches.
AI-driven text mining, a relatively new business analytics tool, allows users to unlock troves of information contained in documents and make them searchable by content and metadata. The ability to analyze documents requires a number of intricate steps. First, optical character recognition must be used to convert a document image into machine-readable text. The text must then be converted to a format in which it can be analyzed. Finally, information must be extracted from the documents. This case takes students through some of the theory behind and examples of text analysis. This case is a companion to Evisort: An AI-Powered Start-up Uses Text Mining to Become Google for Contracts (Case ID: CU251)
Start-up Evisort was cofounded by two law students seeking to create AI-enhanced software providing contract management and processing solutions for attorneys and business professionals. For a small software start-up like Evisort with a single product in the marketplace, there was a relatively narrow spectrum of options for future development and tapping new sources of revenue: On one end of that spectrum was pure, client-driven development, i.e., the product could evolve based solely on feature requests from Evisort's current and future customers. On the other end was what the founders thought of as the "vision" approach, i.e., the product could evolve based on their conception of the ideal client solution for managing and processing contract data. While still considering the best path forward, the founders learn of an opportunity to work with a big life sciences company with headquarters in the Boston area-a client that would require a number of custom modifications to accommodate its desired workflows. The sale would be significant, perhaps Evisort's largest to date. There was no doubt that Evisort could customize the software for this client. The real question was whether to do so.
Cargo's mission is to help "rideshare drivers earn more money by providing complimentary and premium products to passengers." Cargo sources goods from suppliers to provide a platform for gig economy drivers to run small convenience stores out of their vehicles. Drivers earn additional income, and riders enjoy convenient and affordable access to products during their rides. As the company grew, Cargo faced a number of supply-chain-related challenges including determining the product mix in the Cargo box, replenishment of the product, and the cost of carrying inventory. In particular, would the replenishment decision be driven by the company or the driver and who would bear the responsibility for the inventory cost? The founders also considered how to most efficiently manage its suppliers: Would a centralized or decentralized model best serve Cargo and its drivers? And, how might supply chain contracts with its suppliers help support the company's profitable growth?