Jerry Pilon, owner and sole operator of S.K.I.L Dojo, was evaluating strategic options he believed would assist in growing his business in 2023. Pilon taught his students both Okinawan karate and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, with many students dedicating years to their craft. He wanted to increase student retention rates and increase profits, both of which had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although those effects were subsiding, the cost of living in Canada was now increasing. Pilon struggled to decide which strategy would best suit his business. He would need to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze his strategic choices and create a suitable implementation strategy for the choices he made.
In March 2024, Olivia Hicks, clinical manager of the cancer centre at Blackburn Regional Hospital (Blackburn), was working to resolve arising issues surrounding the amalgamation of Blackburn’s cancer centre with the Lakeview Hospital (Lakeview) cancer centre. Nursing staff members and patients were taking issue with numerous aspects of the merger and were voicing their displeasure. Hicks understood that in her new role she would need to be proactive in her management of the situation. The two cancer centres would be merged in six months, and Hicks needed a focused staff to ensure patient care was not sacrificed.
The accounts manager at the Commercial Bank of Canada, was reviewing a loan application from Pasquale’s Pizzeria, located in Sarnia, Ontario. The business owner was ready to expand his family’s business to London, Ontario, having requested a $300,000 long-term loan to finance the renovations and equipment to begin operations in London. They also requested a $20,000 line of credit to help fund the day-to-day operations of the business. The restaurant had never requested a loan of such magnitude, nor had the business undergone an expansion in its lifetime. With COVID-19 changing the food delivery landscape, the accounts manager was confident in his ability assess whether or not Pasquale’s was ready to take on this expansion plan.
In January 2023, Adam Pierce, co-owner and operations manager of Lambton Custom Flooring (LCF), eased back in his home-office chair in Sarnia, Ontario, after another day installing flooring. He looked at his calendar: In one week he would meet with his business partner, Marlin Jervis, to discuss the coming year’s strategic vision for LCF. Last year’s decreased profits concerned Pierce. He questioned whether a change was necessary to offset this trend, and, with the ever-present economic turmoil, he wondered if lower profits were here to stay. Pierce was uncertain if investing in advertisements would be enough, or if he should take more drastic measures, such as expanding the business’s installation services or even buying out his partner. Whatever his decision, Pierce would have to lay the groundwork for the following week’s meeting.