Jan Van Hasenbroek, an entrepreneur founder and managing partner of IG&H consulting firm, is in trouble. He is known in his company as the "red pencil" manager for his micromanagement of consultants' works, often with a red pencil correcting or modifying their presentations. That leadership was once tolerated but it has become increasingly dysfunctional leading to the departure of valued consultants and partners and a drop in the company's growth. Meanwhile, Jan's marriage has fallen apart due to his total devotion to his work at the expense of his family. The case raises choices faced by Jan, whether to step back and let someone else to lead IG&H, a company he has devoted his entire career to; or to stay on but with a different leadership behaviour-if he can or willing to make the change. The reader not only has to assess Jan's current leadership but also recommend an action that is in the interest of IG&H and its growth ambitions.
This 2-page case describes the decision Jan took to try to change the way he led IG&H, having been made aware of the harm his leadership was inflicting on the people he managed. He described this realization as "an emotional breakthrough." The case ends with his decision to attend an executive program on Leadership, raising the following questions for class discussion: Can a program change a career-long leadership behaviour? Why or why not? And what is possible and likely to change in Jan's case and what is not?
The case study is about a successful strategy formulated at Dow Corning for marketing commodity silicones, a chemical used in diverse applications. It deals with important issues in B2B marketing: refocusing on user needs and developing a "needs-based" segmentation of industrial customers; bundling and de-bundling of technical services; branding of commodity chemicals; web-based low price/no-frills value proposition; making money with commodities. The case also describes a "tipping point" in Dow Corning's history and strategy where their leadership in the silicone business was at stake; management had to chart radically new ways to compete in commoditized markets--what they call their "disruptive innovation". At the end the students are asked to look at the success of Xiameter (the company's web-based brand) and decide its future. The choices are: maintain status quo; incrementally fine tune the strategy; go for a major overhaul. Learning objectives: The Xiameter case can be used to: 1) show an example of using customer insights in successfully re-defining business and marketing strategies; 2) address issues of segmentation, value proposition and branding in industrial marketing; 3) demonstrate how two contrasting value propositions could be offered to industrial customers under different brands; 4) discuss value innovation in B2B markets ; 5) examine and analyze elements of a successful web-based business model; 6) learn how adversity can challenge an organization to re-define its business and marketing strategies for future success.
Describes a failed attempt to sell new packaging machinery to a key Italian customer facing declining sales and profits in its milk business. Tetra Pak's analysis leads them to propose a new product strategy that is summarily rejected by the customer. Raises the issue of Tetra Pak's strategy in the Italian milk market and the wisdom of its proposed customer strategy. The broader question is whether the company is serving the best interest of its key accounts.
Traces the development of the Nespresso System in a 100%-owned affiliate deliberately placed outside Nestle's main organizational structure. Highlights the team's successes and challenges in creating a new, small, niche segment in the mature coffee market and its prospects for growing the business from 150 million to 1 billion Swiss francs within the next decade. A radical departure from most Nestle lines of businesses targeted to the mass market, the Nespresso story offers provocative lessons about innovation in large, highly structured organizations.
Ericsson, the Swedish telecommunications products and systems company, is embarking on a first-ever global advertising campaign for its brand of mobile phones. The idea for consumer brand building, new to an otherwise technology-oriented, industrial company, has come about as a result of developments in the worldwide market for cellular phones: fast growth, entry of new consumer segments, declining product differentiation, and the growing pressure on prices and margins. The expensive campaign, aiming to cement a relationship with consumers, is notable for a total absence of product-related communication. Under the slogan "Make yourself heard," the ads feature a gallery of faces and a range of situations demonstrating the spirit of communication between people around the world. Some of the issues the case raises are: How do you build a strong brand for a product that is increasingly difficult to differentiate? Can pure brand values stand on their own merits without any references to products? What criteria should you use to evaluate advertising execution? A 2001 ECCH award winner.
A new product combining windsurfing and skiing runs into trouble during its first year of worldwide sales. A group of MBA students studies the problem and collects market data. The product's inventor is left with the task of taking action to save the invention from imminent disaster. What should he do?
Describes the selling activities of a sales engineer with respect to a key account. The loss of the order for a CT scanner provides the background for analyzing the dynamics of the buying situation and the salesman's handling of it. The issues raised are: Who are the cast of characters influencing the buying decision? What seems to motivate them? What sales strategy would be appropriate? This is a revised version of an earlier case.
In 1994, Sony's European operation moved to centralize its organization to improve operating efficiencies, implement pan-European marketing, and develop a unified position vis-a-vis Sony headquarters in Japan. In this transition, the powerful local country organizations lost much of their autonomy in key decision areas. Informally referred to as Big Bang, the radical organizational change ran into trouble almost from the beginning. This case provides the background to the organizational change, including important market forces that are reshaping the consumer electronics market in Europe. A 1999 EFMD award winner.
Describes the revised marketing strategy for a commodity chemical and the resulting salesforce opposition that confronts a new marketing manager. The changes in the strategy aim for: margin improvement, new segmentation, centralized decision making, and pan-European optimization. A 1993 ECCH award winner. This is a revised version of an earlier case.
In 1982, the West German company Henkel relaunched Pattex, an internationally accepted but stagnating contact adhesive. The relaunch was successful and Henkel attempted to duplicate it with Pritt, its glue stick. The strategy failed. The experience illustrates two pitfalls of global marketing: insufficient use of research and poor follow-up. Other pitfalls include overstandardization, narrow vision, and inflexibility in implementation. A committee of managers from headquarters and subsidiaries should oversee the global marketing process.