A 19-year-old student had just started university studies and was confronted by the financial challenges that many young adults faced as they embarked on their own life away from home. Her parents provided for her education and many basic living expenses, but there were still many unexpected costs and social life expenses to plan for. After an interesting conversation about personal finances with her friends, the student decided to start her own financial plan to resolve some important questions and to set some key financial objectives for her future.
In June 2023, the director of corporate communication and digital services for Khalil Fattal et Fils SAL (a subsidiary of Fattal Group) was tasked with presenting a strategy for the company’s online activities. The family business was a fourth-generation diversified distributor of a large variety of products and many other items by well-known brands headquartered near Beirut, Lebanon. The director had started to explore online sales platforms after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, which was soon followed by a major political and economic crisis in Lebanon. The director was wondering which of two potential strategies she should present to the board of directors. She could recommend a B2C strategy to strengthen the company’s retail business or a B2B strategy to avoid potential conflicts among the company’s various independent retailers. The director had to make a decision before the next board meeting.
In June 2023, the director of corporate communication and digital services for Khalil Fattal et Fils SAL (a subsidiary of Fattal Group) was tasked with presenting a strategy for the company's online activities. The family business was a fourth-generation diversified distributor of a large variety of products and many other items by well-known brands headquartered near Beirut, Lebanon. The director had started to explore online sales platforms after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, which was soon followed by a major political and economic crisis in Lebanon. The director was wondering which of two potential strategies she should present to the board of directors. She could recommend a B2C strategy to strengthen the company's retail business or a B2B strategy to avoid potential conflicts among the company's various independent retailers. The director had to make a decision before the next board meeting.
The Beiteddine Art Festival (BAF) is a non-profit organization that manages an art and musical festival in Lebanon with the aim of using cultural activity to bridge the political divide in a country torn by war and neighboring countries' conflicts. As a non-profit, the BAF relied heavily on donated funds and grants, which were at many times uncertain on all levels (amount and collection), forcing the festival to resort to bank loans to close the gap in its financing needs, often at a heavy cost. The insecurity and instability of its revenues, coupled with escalating expenses that were usually opportunistic given a deteriorating political and security situation in Lebanon and the region, posed a serious threat to the financial sustainability of BAF. In early 2017, the management of the festival was facing an exceptional situation. On one hand revenues were shrinking considerably because of a deteriorating political and financial situation in the region with Lebanon on the verge of bankruptcy; on the other hand, costs were ever more erratic because of difficulty of planning and budgeting, and with additional taxes being levied by a struggling government. The team had to decide on whether they could sign upcoming contracts with artists, and if so, create a process to ensure that financial ends met, with a clear focus on preserving the quality of performances while maintaining the impact the festival had on the social, humanitarian, and economic levels.
<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER - MENA Business Cases category at the 2015 EFMD Case Writing Competition</strong></p><br>In September 2014, the chief executive officer of Michel Nassif et Fils, an importer and producer of food and printed goods headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, is trying to figure out what decisions he needs to take to ensure the development of the company that had been founded by his grandfather a century ago. At the age of 48, right after the birth of his first son, he realizes that he needs a plan to ensure a viable future for this family-owned company. He knows that succession planning will involve the entire management team, none of whom currently has a leadership position. As had his father and grandfather before him, he alone makes all decisions for the company. He is considering whether to pick a potential successor internally to be trained and prepared for senior management or to remain at the head of the company until his son is old enough to take over.
In September 2014, the chief executive officer of Michel Nassif et Fils, an importer and producer of food and printed goods headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, is trying to figure out what decisions he needs to take to ensure the development of the company that had been founded by his grandfather a century ago. At the age of 48, right after the birth of his first son, he realizes that he needs a plan to ensure a viable future for this family-owned company. He knows that succession planning will involve the entire management team, none of whom currently has a leadership position. As had his father and grandfather before him, he alone makes all decisions for the company. He is considering whether to pick a potential successor internally to be trained and prepared for senior management or to remain at the head of the company until his son is old enough to take over.