個案總覽

In 2012, the director of a subsidiary campus of a national university was faced with many problems: he was personally overworked as both manager of the new campus and as a lecturer; there were too many part-time lecturers on staff, leading to a loss of commitment and morale; a decision had to be made about buying or leasing the newly renovated campus building; and, most importantly, all of his decisions were subject to approval by the main administration of the university. Without controlling the campus’s bank account, the director was unable to implement the initiatives he believed will allow the school to grow in a sustainable manner. The issues that arose as a direct result of this arrangement provided an interesting perspective on the difficulties involved in managing a small subsidiary of a large public organization.

The founder of a water purification, packaging and distribution company in Ghana, Africa, faced some operational issues. Demand has increased for the company’s water sachets, but the founder needed to develop strategies to increase the firm’s current operational capacities to meet this demand. He and the operations manager needed to determine how the company can position itself as a successful high-growth company in a developing and sometimes uncertain Ghanaian economy.

This three-part case highlights the strategic decision-making and growth management challenges in the suddenly liberalized Kenyan dairy industry. Following the 1999 collapse of the nation-wide distribution system on which small-scale dairy farmers in Kenya relied to reach the market, the resulting gap in the value chain between supply and demand created an opportunity for one entrepreneur. Cool Pastures Dairy was later founded in 1999 and rapidly expanded in an atmosphere of not only little competition but also corruption and lack of infrastructure, especially poor roads, limited banking, and almost non-existent cell phone accessibility. Although the company considered various alternatives to expanding, the business was overcome by problems with inefficient or corrupt retailers and accountants, as well as the owner’s lack of business experience, and went bankrupt. When conditions improved as the government invested in infrastructure, the entrepreneur considered restarting his business. Is this a viable enterprise in light of improved conditions? Which expansion alternative should the resuscitated company pursue? The B case 9B13M045 discusses managing corruption and the C case 9B13M046 re-considers the business model.

Part B of a three-part series. See 9B13M044 and 9B13M046.

Part C of a three-part series. See 9B13M044 and 9B13M045.

The co-founder of a Kenyan microfinance institution was troubled. Although his company had experienced great success in the past three years, it faced cash flow problems in June 2012. The co-founder had exhausted his personal resources and seeks an investor, local or international banks, or a process improvement program to ensure the company’s long-term success. The co-founder needed to evaluate his options and propose a solution to the other board members.

The co-founder of a Kenyan microfinance institution is troubled. Although his company has experienced great success in the past three years, it now faces cash flow problems. The co-founder has exhausted his personal resources and seeks an investor, local or international banks, or a process improvement program to ensure the company's long-term success. He needs to evaluate his options and propose a solution to the other board members.

Since early 2009, the information technology (IT) division of a leading manufacturer of semiconductor chips had noticed a growing trend among the company’s 80,000 employees worldwide to bring their own smartphones and storage devices to their individual workstations. Recognizing that Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) was not a passing fad but a growing phenomenon, the company decided in January 2010 to formally implement this initiative. As the company’s chief information security officer prepares for a full rollout of BYOD, he revisits the issue of ensuring security of corporate data stored on devices owned by individual employees. He also wonders how Intel should respond to the demand for e-Discovery, wherein a litigant could seek access to internal documents stored on devices not owned by the company. He also reflects on a more fundamental and strategic issue: How can Intel extract value from the BYOD initiative and turn this initiative into a new source of competitive advantage?

Since early 2009, the information technology (IT) division of a leading manufacturer of semiconductor chips had noticed a growing trend among the company's 80,000 employees worldwide to bring their own smartphones and storage devices to their individual workstations. Recognizing that Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) was not a passing fad but a growing phenomenon, the company decided in January 2010 to formally implement this initiative. As the company's chief information security officer prepares for a full rollout of BYOD, he revisits the issue of ensuring security of corporate data stored on devices owned by individual employees. He also wonders how Intel should respond to the demand for e-Discovery, wherein a litigant could seek access to internal documents stored on devices not owned by the company. He also reflects on a more fundamental and strategic issue: How can Intel extract value from the BYOD initiative and turn this initiative into a new source of competitive advantage?

Firms with higher information technology (IT) spending and expertise often achieve greater margins, yet many business leaders still lack IT savvy. Recent decades have witnessed the migration of information systems from specialized divisions to all parts of firms, but a lack of IT-savvy employees has led to underperforming IT investments. IT savvy is not a technical skill, but rather a basic understanding of technology, a knowledge of technology’s evolution, and an ability to scan the environment for new and innovative technological trends. Firms must gain familiarity with cloud technology, mobile platforms, digital strategies, social media, and big data. IT-savvy executives should include IT use in job descriptions, implement rewards and incentives that promote information and systems sharing, measure the performance of IT investments, create technical support functions, and create information systems and resources that are accurate, relevant, and shareable.

After successfully establishing more than 33 retail stores in large cities across China, Decathlon, a large French sporting goods manufacturer and retailer, planned to open its official online shopping website in China. The marketing department head of Decathlon China had experimented with several new social media platforms in China in order to increase the brand awareness among online shoppers. At the upcoming executive meeting, the marketing department head wanted to persuade the chief executive officer to dedicate more resources to social media to both increase online sales in the short term and market share in the long term.

After successfully establishing more than 33 retail stores in large cities across China, Decathlon, a large sporting goods manufacturer and retailer, planned to open its official online shopping website in China. The marketing department head of Decathlon China, has experimented with several new social media in China in order to increase the brand awareness among online shoppers. In the upcoming executive meeting, marketing department head would like to persuade the chief executive officer to dedicate more resources to social media to increase both online sales in the short term and market share in the long term.

The manager of Visitor Services with Saskatchewan Park Services was thinking ahead to next year, even though 2011 was still four months away. Park Services had experienced a number of turbulent years around the provincial park campground reservation system. While the problems experienced were largely invisible to the public, over the years the behind-the-scenes actions required to process campground reservations had placed an onerous burden on Park Services staff, both in Regina (in Saskatchewan, Canada) and in the local provincial parks. Additionally, the present system severely limited the type of services that could be developed for tourists and campers due to the lack of quality data on campers. <br><br>While steps had been taken in 2009 and 2010 to address some of the major problems surrounding the campground reservation system, serious issues remained that required action. This was particularly true when the system in place in Saskatchewan was compared to new campground reservation systems recently employed in Alberta, Manitoba, and the federal national park system. The manager reflected on the turbulent 2008 season, the relative calm in 2009 due to the success of temporary fixes, and the new issues that had arisen in 2010. She needed to decide on a more permanent solution that resolved the operational problems of the present reservation system while also laying the foundation for improved services for campers.

The manager of Visitor Services with Saskatchewan Park Services (Park Services) was thinking ahead to next year, even though 2011 was still four months away. Park Services had experienced a number of turbulent years around the provincial park campground reservation system. While the problems experienced were largely invisible to the public placing reservations for campgrounds, over the years the behind the scenes machinations required to process campground reservations has placed an onerous burden on Park Services staff, both in Regina and the local provincial parks. Additionally, the present system severely limited the type of services that could be developed for tourists and campers due to the lack of quality data on campers. While steps had been taken in 2009 and 2010 to address some of the major problems surrounding the campground reservation system, serious issues remained that required action. This was particularly true when the system in place in Saskatchewan was compared to new campground reservation systems recently employed in Alberta, Manitoba and the federal national park system. The manager reflected on the turbulent 2008 season, the relative calm in 2009 due to the success of the temporary fixes and the new issues that had arisen in 2010. She was feeling the need to move forward and decide on a more permanent solution that resolved the operational problems of the present reservation system while also laying the foundation for improved services for campers.

In 2006, Mudra Communications, the third-largest advertising agency in India, is in the middle of an organizational transformation in which information technology (IT) is seen by the top management as pivotal. The IT setup is undergoing a transition at Mudra from manual systems to an Enterprise System (ES) which has been developed internally by the eight-member IT team led by executive vice president for technology Sebastian Joseph. As he gets ready to implement the first module of ES, known as Mudra Business Operations Support System (mBoss), covering 70 per cent of the activities of the agency, Joseph is facing some managerial dilemmas related to planning the roll-out, training the end users, and managing the change that the new system will bring to the agency. He is also facing choices between outsourcing the ES architecture or owning it, and between outsourcing the development of the remaining seven modules or developing them internally, as before.

In 2006, Mudra Communications (Mudra), the third largest advertising agency in India, is in the middle of an organizational transformation in which information technology (IT) is seen by the top management as an enabler. The IT set-up itself is witnessing a transition at Mudra from manual systems to an Enterprise System (ES) which has been developed internally by the eight-member IT team led by Executive Vice President (Technology) Sebastian Joseph. As he gets ready to implement the first module of ES, known as Mudra Business Operations Support System (mboss) covering 70 per cent of the activities of the agency, Joseph is facing some managerial dilemmas related to planning the roll-out, training the end-users and managing the change that the new system will bring to the agency. He is also making a choice between outsourcing the ES architecture and owning it and between outsourcing the development of the remaining seven modules and developing them internally, as before.

It was early 2010, and the Twitter Trio, the founders of Twitter, were faced with a changing market situation and pressures to make money. Twitter was a free service that had been operating without a viable business plan since 2006. In early 2010, Twitter was still not making enough money and it was time that Twitter showed a real return on investment. The Trio had to decide on a business model that was competitive. There was a data-mining project that could bring all the funds Twitter needed to stay in business, make profit, and compete with others. However, the founders were concerned that this project might be perceived to intrude on users’ privacy, even in a company that was founded on the basis of sharing information publicly.

In December 2007, the management of Mercedes-Benz India (MBI), a fully owned subsidiary of Daimler AG, the 12th-largest automobile manufacturer in the world, has decided to relocate to a new facility near Pune in western India. In overseeing the installation of information technology (IT) infrastructure at the new premises, the company’s chief information officer (CIO) must deal with some managerial choices pertaining to IT architecture, IT tools, and IT skill sets of the company. Each choice involves several trade-offs. The CIO’s decision on each will have a major effect on the revenues, margins, and competitive positioning of MBI in the Indian automotive industry.

In December 2007, the management of Mercedes-Benz India (MBI), a fully owned subsidiary of Daimler AG, the 12th-largest automobile manufacturer in the world, decided to relocate to a new facility near Pune in western India. In overseeing the installation of information technology (IT) infrastructure at the new premises, the company's CIO is dealing with some managerial choices pertaining to IT architecture, IT tools, and IT skill sets of the company. Each choice involves several trade-offs. The CIO's decision on each will have a major effect on the revenues, margins, and competitive positioning of MBI in the Indian automotive industry.

It was early 2010, and the Twitter Trio, the founders of Twitter, were faced with a changing market situation and a pressure to make money. Twitter was a free service that had been operating without a viable business plan since 2006. In early 2010, Twitter was still not making enough money and it was time Twitter showed real return on investment. The trio had to decide on a business model that was competitive. There was a data mining project that could bring all the funds Twitter needed to stay in business, make profit and compete with others. However, the founders were concerned that this project might be perceived to intrude on users' privacy, even in a company that was founded on the basis of sharing information publicly.