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On May 27, 2018, Maryanne Trollope, the Learning and Development (L&D) manager for Anglo American South Africa, was considering her dilemma of handing over her brainchild to her successor. The Building Leaders and Shaping Talent (BLAST) program was a flagship talent management program for young graduates in South Africa, and she wanted to ensure a smooth transition for her successor and to ensure that the BLASTers (BLAST recruits) developed relationships with her replacement. Trollope was meeting with one BLASTer, who had been on an international BLAST placement in London, England. She had to decide when to introduce this recruit to the individual taking over the program and what information and insight she should recommend the recruit share with her colleague. What were the critical success factors of the talent management program, and how could Trollope ensure sustained success and a smooth handover process?

In late 2016, the board chair of T-Systems South Africa (TSSA), an information technology outsourcing company, faced a new challenge. As the previous chief executive officer (CEO) of the company, the board chair had moved the company from declining revenue toward growth and increased profitability. She accomplished the company's culture transformation and remarkable turnaround, in part, by capturing the interest of people with a vision about creating a company "with soul." She now needed to assist the new CEO in sustaining TSSA's culture change in a manner that would not intrude on his own ideas, leadership, and style.

In late 2016, the board chair of T-Systems South Africa (TSSA), an information technology outsourcing company, faced a new challenge. As the previous chief executive officer (CEO) of the company, the board chair had moved the company from declining revenue toward growth and increased profitability. She accomplished the company’s culture transformation and remarkable turnaround, in part, by capturing the interest of people with a vision about creating a company with soul. She now needed to assist the new CEO in sustaining TSSA’s culture change in a manner that would not intrude on his own ideas, leadership, and style.

Presentation for product 8B18C045.

Presentation for product 8B18M138.

In June 2017, a bancassurance director at South Africa's Liberty Group Limited (Liberty) was making his way to a public school in Soweto, south of Johannesburg. Liberty was an insurance company in South Africa, part of Liberty Holdings, a leading financial-services group with representation in 24 countries across the African continent. As he drove along the highway he wondered how he could encourage more business leaders at Liberty to get involved and ultimately contribute to improving the country's public-education system. He recognized that there were ethical implications in using the school in Liberty's marketing campaign-a campaign that would eventually contribute to a goal of sustainability. Various issues had to be considered that related to conducting business with people at the bottom of the pyramid and a decision had to be made.

In June 2017, a bancassurance director at South Africa’s Liberty Group Limited (Liberty) was making his way to a public school in Soweto, south of Johannesburg. Liberty was an insurance company in South Africa, part of Liberty Holdings, a leading financial-services group with representation in 24 countries across the African continent. As he drove along the highway he wondered how he could encourage more business leaders at Liberty to get involved and ultimately contribute to improving the country’s public-education system. He recognized that there were ethical implications in using the school in Liberty’s marketing campaign—a campaign that would eventually contribute to a goal of sustainability. Various issues had to be considered that related to conducting business with people at the bottom of the pyramid and a decision had to be made.

In June 2017, the managing director of T-Systems South Africa (TSSA) was considering how best to inspire stakeholders to join his movement towards contributing positively to nation building in South Africa. TSSA had experienced some success in setting up information and communication technology systems and academies to create jobs and to create shared value, but it needed to overcome a threshold to exert its influence over a broader level within the country. Specifically, the managing director wondered how TSSA could receive a positive sustainable return on its investments in environmental and social impacts during a time of cost-cutting.

In June 2017, the managing director of T-Systems South Africa (TSSA) was considering how best to inspire stakeholders to join his movement towards contributing positively to nation building in South Africa. TSSA had experienced some success in setting up information and communication technology systems and academies to create jobs and to create shared value, but it needed to overcome a threshold to exert its influence over a broader level within the country. Specifically, the managing director wondered how TSSA could receive a positive sustainable return on its investments in environmental and social impacts during a time of cost-cutting.

Presentation for product 8B18C015.

On December 5, 2017, Tony Mun-Gavin, the business unit head for Personal Care at Unilever South Africa, was leading an immersion experience for new team members in the Soweto township of Johannesburg. The immersion was part of an effort to continuously embed a culture of inclusive growth with new employees, and it aligned with the corporate social responsibility commitment of the parent company, Unilever Pty. Ltd. Mun-Gavin faced a conflict in marketing the company’s personal care brand, Lux, which had always been associated with glamorous female celebrities but that was no longer in line with the company’s commitments to sustainability, inclusive growth, and women’s empowerment. His team had to work to re-position the brand to celebrate the diverse roles of women in the 21st century. Would the re-positioning work, and would it be consistent with the company’s goals of embedding a culture of inclusive growth and ensuring sustainability across the organization?

On December 5, 2017, Tony Mun-Gavin, the business unit head for Personal Care at Unilever South Africa, was leading an immersion experience for new team members in the Soweto township of Johannesburg. The immersion was part of an effort to continuously embed a culture of inclusive growth with new employees, and it aligned with the corporate social responsibility commitment of the parent company, Unilever Pty. Ltd. Mun-Gavin faced a conflict in marketing the company's personal care brand, Lux, which had always been associated with glamorous female celebrities but that was no longer in line with the company's commitments to sustainability, inclusive growth, and women's empowerment. His team had to work to re-position the brand to celebrate the diverse roles of women in the 21st century. Would the re-positioning work, and would it be consistent with the company's goals of embedding a culture of inclusive growth and ensuring sustainability across the organization?

In October 2016, the chief executive officer of Bidcorp Baltics, a food services company operating in the three Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, faced a dilemma. He needed to decide whether to expand the warehouse depot in Lithuania or in another location, and whether the company should diversify into products other than fresh fish and seafood. Because the company was part of the larger Bid Corporation Limited group, headquartered in South Africa, he had scheduled a teleconference with the head office. His challenge was to present a persuasive case for the parent company's capital investment in Bidcorp Baltics. What contextually relevant factors did the chief executive officer need to consider?

Presentation to accompany product 8B18C013.

In October 2016, the chief executive officer of Bidcorp Baltics, a food services company operating in the three Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, faced a dilemma. He needed to decide whether to expand the warehouse depot in Lithuania or in another location, and whether the company should diversify into products other than fresh fish and seafood. Because the company was part of the larger Bid Corporation Limited group, headquartered in South Africa, he had scheduled a teleconference with the head office. His challenge was to present a persuasive case for the parent company’s capital investment in Bidcorp Baltics. What contextually relevant factors did the chief executive officer need to consider?

In March 2017, Ajay Maharaj Bachulal was starting his new position as plant manager at SABMiller plc’s (SABMiller's) plant in Polokwane, South Africa. Bachulal had successfully led change at the company's brewery in another province, and he hoped to be as successful at the new plant. His dilemma was how to approach the workforce in Polokwane, and how to adapt to and make changes within the culture specific to that plant. While both plants adhered to SABMiller’s system, policies, and procedures, Bachulal sensed that the approach of each plant to work and life was different. How would Bachulal's own leadership development process and his efforts to change culture by empowering lower level employees in Polokwane help him in a different province with distinct ethnic compositions, languages, and cultures?

Presentation to accompany product 8B17C046.

In March 2017, Ajay Maharaj Bachulal was starting his new position as plant manager at SABMiller plc's (SABMiller's) plant in Polokwane, South Africa. Bachulal had successfully led change at the company's brewery in another province, and he hoped to be as successful at the new plant. His dilemma was how to approach the workforce in Polokwane, and how to adapt to and make changes within the culture specific to that plant. While both plants adhered to SABMiller's system, policies, and procedures, Bachulal sensed that the approach of each plant to work and life was different. How would Bachulal's own leadership development process, and his efforts to change culture by empowering lower level employees in Polokwane, help him in a different province with distinct ethnic compositions, languages, and cultures?

In early 2016, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Allergan South Africa had been leading his team through changes resulting from a number of mergers over the past four years. Allergan Inc. (Allergan) had been the third-largest generic drug maker in the United States after it combined with Actavis plc in 2015, and the company was depicted as an example of "merger mania" in the pharmaceutical sector. Operating in 40 countries, Allergan had gone through a total of five mergers between 2012 and 2015-a period that had included a hostile takeover bid, cost cutting exercises, and, eventually, an acquisition. The CEO at Allergan South Africa had been working with his human resources director to build a "supertribe" culture in response to the changes. Now, faced with the challenge of yet another anticipated merger, some of the executive team had resigned, unwilling to go through the turmoil of more acquisitions. How could the CEO keep his people engaged at the regional division? What leadership style would enable him to effectively make the needed changes?

Presentation to accompany product 8B16C044.