In early 2011, the founder of REfficient, an asset recovery service based in Hamilton, Ontario, was thinking about how she should manage the rapid growth that seemed just around the corner. Founded in 2010 to help cable firms generate value from their stock of surplus equipment, REfficient, with no direct competitors in the Ontario market, had grown rapidly and had a list of corporate customers, two warehouses and five employees. The company was positioned as the efficient way for customers to recover value from their surplus assets; it would collect and inventory them, provide an online list and track the environmental impact of selling or discarding them. The company was now looking to secure a pilot project with the Ontario provincial government. Innovative in the “green” sense because of its innovative reuse, recycle or resell model, as well as its integrated carbon footprint estimator, REfficient was a good match for the program. But how would it deal with an increasingly large variety of items, given its limited resources and space?
The founder and president of Sport-Fresh was in the middle of a four-state road trip to meet his firm’s U.S. distributors and sales representatives. He had just returned from an international trade show in Germany, and was eager to update his agents about the incredible response the company product Sport-Fresh, a disinfecting equipment spray, had received. But he was worried about the time commitment required to follow up on all the leads he had received, and juggle his normal workload at the same time. The president looked at the challenges and opportunities in front of him. He had built a growing brand and he felt as if he was at a crossroads. Sport-Fresh was the only disinfectant spray on the market; all of its other direct competitors were odor masking and perfume sprays. There was potential for growth, if he could find a way.
A privately managed school in Raipur, India, is faced with concerns from parents regarding long commutes faced regularly by students. The school has grown from a modest 89 students and 12 faculty members in 1993 to more than 2,700 students. Today, student commutes range from a few steps to several kilometres on school buses of varied capacities. While the transportation manager has been making adjustments to bus routes and capacity at the beginning of each term, the issue has become too large for one person to manage. In response, management decides to hire a consulting firm specializing in supply chain modeling to find a solution that would reduce not only students’ travel times but also fuel consumption and greenhouse gases emitted by the buses, thereby reducing the school’s carbon footprint.
The director of Lands and Economic Development in the Ministry of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) must make recommendations on how to handle challenges around a large farming company that leases land from First Nations communities in Western Canada. New Horizon Farms (NHF) has already leased over 180,000 acres from First Nations communities and plans to grow to one million acres. An immediate challenge is the leasing process whereby INAC must review and sign leases and receive lease payments, which are later turned over to the First Nations. The process slows the partnering process and the speed of cash flow to First Nations and many First Nations object to government control over their land on principle. However, without INAC involved, the leases are not legally enforceable, an essential factor for NHF and its public parent company. NHF provides leasing revenue but also training, employment, and shares in the company to the First Nations it partners with. On the surface it looks like a good opportunity, but it raises several questions for policy makers. Will NHF’s control of one million acres of First Nations land be seen as a form of economic colonialism? How does this kind of initiative fit with INAC’s and First Nations’ mandates to improve economic and social conditions among First Nations communities? How will the provinces and neighbouring communities perceive and react to the situation?<br><br>New Horizon Farms also needs to consider its long-term strategy. Will the operation meet its target of one million acres? What are the risks for the company? How should it approach the training issue now that funding has finished?
The president of Image Pipeline Services, a pipeline flushing and inspection firm, is taking a step back from the past few weeks, where he has spent virtually all his waking time working on his new business in Edmonton’s oil sands industry. A few months after starting his business, he controls virtually the entire market, but competitors will be encroaching soon. One competitor has offered to purchase his business and the president wants to weigh his options before agreeing to sell or continuing to compete.
Rapid increases in obesity and chronic disease rates are stressing health care systems and government budgets globally. They are also causing individuals, governments, and businesses to examine closely the relationship between food and health. The issue is complex and involves many stakeholders from government and non-governmental agencies, as well as businesses. Food and health can have both positive and negative impacts on the food industry.<br><br>As the director of strategic policy at the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Mike Walters has to decide whether to engage his ministry in the issue and, if so, what approach to use. He must carefully assess the risks and rewards for the government, the ministry, and himself. As part of his strategy on food and health, he has to make an immediate decision on partnering with the Lawrence Centre for Policy and Management at the Ivey School of Business on a proposed food and health policy workshop.