The major challenge of the 21st century was climate change. The goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement (PA) were to curtail global temperature increases this century to below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The PA included the 20/20/20 targets: to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent, increase the renewable energy market share by 20 per cent, and improve energy efficiency by 20 per cent. Green bonds served as essential financial instruments to help countries meet the targets set by the PA. While the PA provided the impetus for a green bond market, in late 2023, many investors were still unaware of green bonds and their key characteristics. A critical question was whether investors could expect returns on their green bond investments comparable those of conventional bonds.
As managers face a flood of data, it is very important that they effectively analyze and interpret the available data to make decisions. Plotting data will help them in their analysis and interpretation of raw data. The same is true for students in business programs. However, students in business programs (and managers) often do not see the importance of plotting data. This exercise presents a typical classroom scenario in which the professor of data visualization quotes statistician John W. Tukey to his students and tries to drive home the importance of plotting data. A representative student understands about presenting summary statistics and running some statistical tests, but questions the usefulness of plotting points as well. The professor must decide how to teach the class about the merits of plotting data. The professor gives the student an assignment with data and instructions, and tells the student to report the class the next day. The student is unaware that he has been given the Anscombe quartet, and he becomes convinced of the benefits of plotting data.
In 2019, after completing her postgraduate work in dentistry in Mangalore, India, an entrepreneur decided to set up a chain of clinics in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. She was not considering any partnerships for her venture, which she planned to fund with personal capital and a bank loan. The entrepreneur consulted her long-time friend, an independent business consultant, who introduced her to the manager of the Indian government-owned Syndicate Bank. The bank agreed to review her detailed financial and marketing plans, and consider funding the venture. The independent business consultant offered to help with the task of financial forecasting for the development of a marketing plan to increase foot traffic to the proposed clinics.
In June 2018, Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services, Ltd., one of the largest infrastructure and financial services companies in India, shocked the investment community by defaulting on several debt repayments. Its previously highly-rated debt instruments were downgraded, triggering fears of a market liquidity crisis. In an attempt to defuse the crisis, the Government of India appointed an interim board of directors comprised of industry professionals. The new board faced the difficult task of getting the company back on track, but it first needed to answer several questions: What governance and intermediation failures led to this crisis? What was the company’s current financial position? What options were available to remedy the situation?
Kingfisher Airlines, a leading airline company in India, had incurred substantial losses and its net worth had been eroded. This news was widely covered by Indian and international press. Analysts and media were of the opinion that Kingfisher needed equity infusion to steer it through the distress. Because of its financial difficulties, the company’s stock was trading at near historic lows and its equity value was, in fact, negative. Yet company management was emphatic that Kingfisher was on the road to recovery although it was negotiating a second debt restructuring with banks. Would this restructuring prove more successful than the last? Could anything save Kingfisher from this dire financial situation?