In September 2015, the owner of Jayman BUILT, a homebuilder and developer in Alberta, was fine-tuning his vision for a resort-style residential community in the outer suburbs of Calgary, Alberta. The development, Westman Village, would be a legacy project and the first of its kind in Calgary—a high-density, walkable, and amenity-rich community. Work on the development was planned for September 2016, and the owner was eager to showcase the innovative community; however, the economy was in a recession and a tough housing market was likely. How could the company develop a unique marketing strategy to convince prospective customers to buy into the one-of-a-kind project?
In February 2016, SpruceLand Properties Inc. (SpruceLand) faced a difficult decision that would determine the future of the company. SpruceLand had been founded as a community development company mandated to create financial returns while engaging in socially beneficial projects. Residents of the northern Alberta region could choose to be shareholders and invest in their own communities’ economic development. The company had grown successfully, but it had become a victim of its own success. It had diversified investments and continued to grow and be profitable, but the company’s initial mandates had long been achieved and the liquidity of shares remained a problem. What actions should the chief executive officer recommend to the board?
In June 2015, a new president and chief executive officer, Sandip Lalli, was hired by the board of directors of Keystone Excavating Limited (Keystone) to turn the company around and increase its value. In its 35 years of operations, Keystone had failed to articulate a purpose, and for the past five years it had been in double-digit decline. The economic downturn in Alberta from 2014 to 2016 had made the situation dire, and by September 2016 Lalli was going to recommend closing the company. But how should she do this? How should she tell the shareholders of this family-owned business that things were unlikely to improve and that there would be another challenge ahead? How could Keystone cease operations while retaining its legacy?
It was 2014, and the chief executive officer (CEO) of Knightsbridge Custom Homes Limited (Knightsbridge) had just purchased a site for his next project in the rapidly gentrifying East Village neighbourhood of Calgary, Alberta. He had built Knightsbridge on a commitment to three core values: finding great locations, catering to underserved markets, and providing niche products. Since it's founding in 1990, these values had remained the same, but the type of projects undertaken by Knightsbridge had changed dramatically. The company started by building infill homes in inner-city Calgary and estate homes on the city’s outskirts. Then it built multi-family homes in the suburbs and tackled a transit-oriented development in an established area. Now, the CEO was considering developing a no parking, high-rise condominium tower close to the downtown core. High-rise living without parking would be an entirely new concept in car-centric Calgary. Was developing a residential site without parking a viable plan in this growing city? Knightsbridge’s CEO needed to find an effective way to answer this question.
In 2007, the former Calgary mayor was preparing to make the case for a Community Revitalization Levy to secure financing to develop Calgary’s East Village, a downtown brownfield site. The East Village had a difficult history, and economic, social, and environmental issues abounded there. All previous attempts at redevelopment had failed. After doing meticulous research, the mayor presented to Calgary City Council his idea of the Community Revitalization Levy, the first of its kind in Canada, and it was approved. Next began the momentous task of carrying out the redevelopment, and the City of Calgary could not be directly involved. The mayor had to decide how the city could ensure the success of the redevelopment of the East Village.