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In early 2018, the time seemed right for Zenefits investor and director Lars Dalgaard to reflect on whether Zenefits had the right board of directors to shepherd the company through its next stages of growth. For the company whose name combined the words "benefits," reflecting its human resources technology products, and "zen," loosely defined as a state of calm, the past few years were not entirely zen. Once heralded as one of the fastest growing software start-ups ever, the 5-year old company quickly achieved "unicorn" status-a term given to an elite handful of privately-held start-ups valued at $1 billion or more. But leadership and legal issues that emerged in 2015 had threatened to undermine its success and compelled Zenefits to appoint new board members, hire new executives, reformulate its business model, and transform its corporate culture and philosophy. With those changes in place, Dalgaard now turned his attention once again to the board. Did Zenefits have the board it needed to navigate the next stages of growth as it sought to further distance itself from its rocky past and focus on its future potential?

In early 2018, the time seemed right for Zenefits investor and director Lars Dalgaard to reflect on whether Zenefits had the right board of directors to shepherd the company through its next stages of growth. For the company whose name combined the words "benefits," reflecting its human resources technology products, and "zen," loosely defined as a state of calm, the past few years were not entirely zen. Once heralded as one of the fastest growing software start-ups ever, the 5-year old company quickly achieved "unicorn" status-a term given to an elite handful of privately-held start-ups valued at $1 billion or more. But leadership and legal issues that emerged in 2015 had threatened to undermine its success and compelled Zenefits to appoint new board members, hire new executives, reformulate its business model, and transform its corporate culture and philosophy. With those changes in place, Dalgaard now turned his attention once again to the board. Did Zenefits have the board it needed to navigate the next stages of growth as it sought to further distance itself from its rocky past and focus on its future potential?

In early 2018, the time seemed right for Zenefits investor and director Lars Dalgaard to reflect on whether Zenefits had the right board of directors to shepherd the company through its next stages of growth. For the company whose name combined the words "benefits," reflecting its human resources technology products, and "zen," loosely defined as a state of calm, the past few years were not entirely zen. Once heralded as one of the fastest growing software start-ups ever, the 5-year old company quickly achieved "unicorn" status-a term given to an elite handful of privately-held start-ups valued at $1 billion or more. But leadership and legal issues that emerged in 2015 had threatened to undermine its success and compelled Zenefits to appoint new board members, hire new executives, reformulate its business model, and transform its corporate culture and philosophy. With those changes in place, Dalgaard now turned his attention once again to the board. Did Zenefits have the board it needed to navigate the next stages of growth as it sought to further distance itself from its rocky past and focus on its future potential?

In early 2017, Jill Nadison, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the REED Foundation for Autism (REED Foundation) and executive director of REED Academy in New Jersey, was faced with the difficult decision of selecting among three alternatives to support the academy’s next venture, REED Next. REED Academy, a non-profit school for children with autism, provided innovative, highly individualized education based on principles of applied behaviour analysis and was supported by the REED Foundation.<br><br>REED Next was intended to support students who, at age 21, had aged out of REED Academy. The selected option would have to provide long-term, self-sustaining funding for students. Choices ranged from a less-risky option, expanding fundraising, to increasingly entrepreneurial ideas such as opening and operating either an event space or a vertical farm. The CEO was under pressure to make the decision in time for the initiative to begin operations before the 21st birthday of a REED Academy student who would need ongoing therapy to continue to enjoy a good quality of life.

Chatar Patar was a quick service eatery in India that prided itself on serving tasty panipuri that was prepared hygienically from healthy ingredients. The venture was started in 2012 with the plan to first develop a popular and established brand, and then to expand to a multi-store outlet in 2018. The team had prepared expansion plans, favouring franchising as the mode of expansion. Despite their research, in 2016, the team was still undecided about which expansion route to take. The managing director wondered whether it was too soon to expand, and whether the team and the company were sufficiently prepared. Should the company proceed with expansion? And if so, how should the managing director and his team proceed?

In April 2017, an entrepreneur in the tour operator industry faced a potential investment decision. Her company, Extraordinary Journeys (EJ), created custom luxury African safaris for a US-based clientele. While EJ had enjoyed dramatic growth since its founding in 2009, the entrepreneur worried that competitive pressures were increasing, as resource-rich companies had entered the market, drawn by the industry's rapid growth. In response to this growing competition, Gordon considered taking on one of three possible strategic opportunities: a public relations campaign, a direct marketing campaign, or a firm-optimization campaign that would use custom-built software to enhance employee productivity.

In May 2018, a China-born entrepreneur living in Canada was at a seaside market in Qingdao, China, inspecting inexpensive pearls. She wondered whether pearls presented a good market opportunity in the West. At markets in China, she consistently found cultured pearls that would cost far more in Canada. This experience led her to wonder whether or not it was feasible to sell pearls on a wholesale basis in Canada, or perhaps through one of many retail options. Or was there a reason why pearls—such a timeless product—did not present more of a dynamic market opportunity in the West?

This case is about the business, governance and leadership transformation of Merck - a 13th generation, family-owned, German multinational group operating in the pharmaceuticals, performance materials and life science industries. Established in 1668 as a pharmacy in Darmstadt, Germany, Merck ventured into the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals in 1827. Successfully overcoming several business and family challenges, it continued to grow. By 2017, Merck had a legacy of nearly 350 years of successful business operations, a presence in 66 countries and about 52,000 employees on its rolls. In 2017, Merck was led by Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp (69), an 11th generation member who was the Chairman of the executive board and the family board of E. Merck KG (the group's holding company). With his 70th birthday approaching, Frank wanted to identify an able successor who could help him build the group for the next 100 years and take the Merck legacy forward.

This case looks at the challenge the Maltese Ministry for Health faced. The public healthcare system of Malta was modeled after the British NHS and provided a comprehensive package of medical services. Healthcare was free at the point of delivery for all Maltese citizens. Operating in parallel was the Maltese private sector, which accounted for a third of total health expenditures and provided most primary care. Healthcare was undergoing a paradigm shift from a focus on disease to a focus on systems. Governments were, therefore, increasingly scrutinizing returns on healthcare expenditures and pushing health actors to reorganize inefficient and badly functioning public systems. Malta was no exception. Its healthcare system was at a crossroads. The country had two seemingly different healthcare value chains operating in parallel, an increased reliance on private care, an overburdened public care system, and a population with chronic health issues and a history of taking advantage of the system.

In 2010, Anne Charpentier, director of the Montreal Insectarium, a natural history museum dedicated to insects, was mandated to metamorphose her museum, whose dilapidated facilities were bursting at the seams. Much more than the story of a simple renovation project, this case focuses on the extraordinary project management approach adopted by Charpentier. Soliciting the input of a host of experts, she spearheaded a co-creation process to help develop the specifications for the architecture competition that would determine the architectural and functional design of the new museum. Against all odds, Charpentier launched a two-year process involving the museum staff, other Montreal museums, world-renowned experts (in entomology and experiential design), as well as the general public. This case presents the details of the approach used along with the thoughts of the director and her collaborators throughout the collective design process. The end result was a program of museum experiences - the centrepiece of the specifications presented to the architects. The case also discusses the challenges faced by Charpentier and her team. The case is divided into two parts (A and B) - the first centres on the context of the museum transformation and the second on the development and implementation of the co-creation process.

In 2010, Anne Charpentier, director of the Montreal Insectarium, a natural history museum dedicated to insects, was mandated to metamorphose her museum, whose dilapidated facilities were bursting at the seams. Much more than the story of a simple renovation project, this case focuses on the extraordinary project management approach adopted by Charpentier. Soliciting the input of a host of experts, she spearheaded a co-creation process to help develop the specifications for the architecture competition that would determine the architectural and functional design of the new museum. Against all odds, Charpentier launched a two-year process involving the museum staff, other Montreal museums, world-renowned experts (in entomology and experiential design), as well as the general public. This case presents the details of the approach used along with the thoughts of the director and her collaborators throughout the collective design process. The end result was a program of museum experiences - the centrepiece of the specifications presented to the architects. The case also discusses the challenges faced by Charpentier and her team. The case is divided into two parts (A and B) - the first centres on the context of the museum transformation and the second on the development and implementation of the co-creation process.

In 2016, the managing director of innogy Consulting GmbH (iCon), an international strategic consulting firm based in Germany, had many reasons to be delighted. The company had risen to second place in an annual ranking of internal consultancies after successfully expanding into four new countries. He now pondered new challenges and directions for iCon, after having led RWE Consulting—the predecessor to iCon—since 2007. As an internal consulting department within the RWE Group (RWE) in Germany, the consulting unit mainly conducted information technology implementation and project management within RWE. Although the managing director had led the consultancy unit into new geographic markets and toward new external clients, iCon faced many challenges, including tough competition in the external management-consultancy market. How could iCon take steps to compete away from home?

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?

Three generations of the Rubin family gathered around the dinner table for their usual Friday evening get-together. It was a perfect opportunity to discuss everything and anything about the business, the family and the world. The discussion quickly turned to the changing channels available to consumers. There had been many radical shifts before, and the family relished its agility and ability to regenerate itself regularly. Stephen's parents had arrived in Liverpool on ships from Eastern Europe and in 1932 set up a shoe wholesaler. Later, the Rubin family ventured into shoe manufacturing, first locally then became one of the first European companies to outsource production to Asia. Savvy investments, like the acquisition and divestment of a majority stake in Reebok, financially enabled them to progressively build a unique collection of sport brands, such as Speedo, Ellesse, Berghaus, Canterbury, Mitre and others. But venturing into retail with JD Sports Fashion was a radical departure from the family's B2B roots, and they still had to figure out all the implications of the move. Other topics of discussion included how digitalization and big data would impact the future of Pentland, the impact of global political shifts and the family generational transition, with the 2nd generation turning 80.

The purpose of this case is to look at Autodesk's cultural, organizational and technological challenges as the company undergoes a recent leadership transition. The case examines the strategic agenda enacted under Autodesk CEO Andrew Anagnost: the company's shift to a subscription business model, the digitization of the company's internal technology infrastructure and shift to cloud computing, and the disruptive convergence of the company's construction and manufacturing end-markets. Students will also be introduced to different methodologies regarding the optimal organizational design for technological innovation and product development. Students will additionally gain an understanding of the challenges a leader of a large, complex corporation faces to improve the company's culture and become a mission-driven organization.

Jugnoo started its journey in 2014 as an autorickshaw aggregator providing ride-hailing services in India. Since then, the brand had grown and expanded to include hyperlocal services and business solutions. By May 2018, Jugnoo had five services under its umbrella that were offered primarily through applications and covered both business-to-consumer and business-to-business markets. Jugnoo found itself in a very different market space from where it had started. A company co-founder wondered how Jugnoo would continue to sustain its strategy of disrupting traditional markets, given the fast-paced growth it was experiencing. How would it manage to build consumers' trust with such diverse business verticals and so much reliance on technology? With the company's growing numbers and opportunities, the co-founder wondered whether Jugnoo's use of word-of-mouth communication would continue to be possible, especially considering the aggressive communication tactics adopted by other players in the market.

The owner of Leisure Gardens, a restaurant and accommodation business in a small town in Ghana, faced problems with his business. Approximately 40 per cent of his restaurant customers were paying on credit and not paying on time, causing cash flow problems. His sole employee was unreliable, often absent when the restaurant was busy. This two-part problem hindered the restaurant's success and owner’s ability to expand the business. Moreover, the owner faced external pressures from competitors in the restaurant market. The owner was considering three options to sustainably reduce bad-debt accounts and ensure profitability in the future: implementing an employee contract, changing the payment options, and expanding the business to generate more revenue. Which option would be the best course of action for the future of Leisure Gardens?

In November 2013, the chief executive officer (CEO) and the senior vice-president of Real Estate and Development of TLO Developers (TLO) were considering various options relating to a large, company-owned plot of land in downtown Calgary. The plot was being leased out to another company that used it as a parking lot. TLO had many vacant land holdings in its portfolio, and the company was starting to place a stronger focus on developing commercial properties on them. The major development alternatives that they considered were the construction of a high-class hotel or a multi-storey office building. If these were not chosen, the CEO considered remaining with the status quo, running the parking lot internally, or selling the business.

The SOGO department stores in Hong Kong are part of Lifestyle International Holdings Limited, a large-cap, publicly-listed company on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (HKEX). The case describes a company that has recently had to confront its own sustainability reporting practices due to updated requirements by the local stock exchange. Additionally, as a participant in local activities, such as Earth Day, it has also had to examine its own operations and re-assess how to best engage with its key stakeholders and to make sustainability part of its corporate culture.