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In 2017, the French automaker Groupe PSA (PSA) agreed to buy loss-making Opel/Vauxhall units from General Motors Company. PSA had just recovered one year earlier from losses it had sustained since the global financial crisis. With the recovery, PSA had launched a new strategic plan with aggressive goals for sustainable profitable growth. However, PSA’s sales were continuing to drop in the important Chinese market due to fierce competition, and the newly acquired units were still making losses. The use of electric cars was on the rise, and the European Commission had proposed a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. PSA was planning to re-enter the United States, and in Britain, it was facing ambiguous Brexit negotiations, raising concerns about increased costs with importing and exporting parts and finished vehicles. In light of all of these challenges, how could PSA still reach its aggressive goals for sustainable growth?

In October 2017, the co-founder of Australian social enterprise Illumination Solar was rethinking his company’s Give Power campaign. After five marginally profitable years designing and supplying portable solar lanterns to some of the world’s most energy impoverished communities, including refugee camps, the co-founder had decided to market his products to Australian customers for outdoor uses such as camping and hiking. Under the Give Power campaign, Illumination Solar donated one solar lantern to a community in need for every solar product purchased by Australian customers. However, this strategy was not successful. The co-founder’s main goal for his company was to sustainably provide good quality solar lanterns to impoverished people in developing countries. To reach that goal, he wondered which strategy to follow; should he return to the original business model, re-structure the Give Power campaign, or come up with something entirely new to generate higher profits?

In 2013, a high-school graduate began work as a construction labourer. His upbringing included experience driving and fixing various machines, which, combined with his hard work, led to a job operating a small loader. After working with three different construction companies on big equipment, he was considering whether or not to buy his own backhoe and start his own excavation business. He had investigated the cost of buying a backhoe, operating costs, financing, and the potential demand. In late 2014, he needed to decide whether or not to proceed with his own business.

Hosoo was a kimono and textile company, established in 1688 as a traditional Nishijin weaving company. The 11th generation president of the company, Masao Hosoo, had transformed the business from a producer of premium kimono fabrics and kimonos for the luxury market in Japan to a globally respected textile producer for some of the world’s top brands. A great deal of the company’s success in the global market could be attributed to the master craftspeople of Japan. This innovative spirit guided endless improvements to weaving and textile development, allowing the highly specialized Nishijin textiles to be woven for use beyond the kimono market. Inspired by the results of their innovation and their global success, and driven by the collapsing kimono market in Japan, Masao and his son, Masataka, set a goal in 2018 to establish Hosoo as an iconic, international house of kimono, relying on innovation to reinterpret what a kimono was, how it was used, and what it meant within a global fashion market.

This case is set in 2018, when Veriown, a pay-as-you-go Internet connected solar service provider, was preparing to launch in its first and potentially the most important market - India. Steve Johanns, the founder CEO of the company had pinned his hopes on the success of this launch to establish the viability of Veriown's business model, its scalability within India, and expansion into sub-Saharan Africa. Established in 2016, Veriown's primary objective was to bridge the infrastructural gap in energy that existed in developing countries by providing a safer and cleaner alternative to kerosene, a non-renewable fossil fuel that was detrimental to health and the environment. Besides energy, Veriown aimed to facilitate digital connectivity and access to financial services to help enable socio-economic development and financial inclusion of the impoverished rural communities. Empowered by a strong team, and supported by global partners, Veriown had developed an advanced solar energy-based solution that brought electricity, the Internet and micro-finance services together on the same platform, and followed the 'pay-to-consume' model of the kerosene transactions that consumers at the bottom of the pyramid (BoP) preferred. It had also tied up with local companies with expertise in distribution and installation of solar energy solutions in rural India for on-ground support during the launch. However, despite all the planning, Johanns was concerned about the operational capability of Veriown in meeting the high consumer demand of the market. He wondered if its service levels and frequency would be able to keep up with the demand, and effectively resolve any issues as and when they appeared. In addition, would the company be able to scale up soon after the launch, if required? Would leveraging its partners' networks curtail the extent of control Veriown could wield over customer experience on the ground?

Part A. In November 2016, Gibran Huzaifah, CEO of Indonesian firm eFishery that sells automated fish feeders for fish farmers, ponders a strategic pivot in the business-from hardware to data services. While his engineers struggle to develop a fish activity sensor to improve efficiencies and drive sales, Gibran ponders the option to develop new products to help farmers predict harvest levels (Fishbiz), signal quality to lenders (FishFax), and deploy platforms for inputs (Marketplace) and outputs (eCosystem). In addition, he is also considering whether it may be smarter to develop autofeeders for shrimp farmers, a market that is more geographically dispersed but with higher purchasing power. Part A ends by asking which direction Gibran should take for 2017. Part B. It is February 2018, and eFishery has moved into making automated shrimp feeders. Gibran seeks a roadmap to land investment funding and sees two paths to pivot into a viable platform business: 1) The "High Road of Quality Hardware" seeks a strong foundation for Marketplace and appeals to the engineering team. The CEO worries the High Road may increase unit costs, swell a bloated balance sheet, slow sales, and reinforce the firm's self-identity as a slow-scaling hardware company. It means redoubling work on the fish sensor, working with an outside firm to build a water quality sensor, and developing a P2P protocol and new data station to help the feeders talk to each other and send data to the cloud. 2) The "Low Road of Bootstrapped Disruption" seeks to get FishBiz and FishFax to market. Some sales staff share Gibran's vision, but most employees are used to hardware. Data capabilities remain weak and only major reallocations of scarce resources will make the new products strong enough to drive adoption.

Part A. In November 2016, Gibran Huzaifah, CEO of Indonesian firm eFishery that sells automated fish feeders for fish farmers, ponders a strategic pivot in the business-from hardware to data services. While his engineers struggle to develop a fish activity sensor to improve efficiencies and drive sales, Gibran ponders the option to develop new products to help farmers predict harvest levels (Fishbiz), signal quality to lenders (FishFax), and deploy platforms for inputs (Marketplace) and outputs (eCosystem). In addition, he is also considering whether it may be smarter to develop autofeeders for shrimp farmers, a market that is more geographically dispersed but with higher purchasing power. Part A ends by asking which direction Gibran should take for 2017. Part B. It is February 2018, and eFishery has moved into making automated shrimp feeders. Gibran seeks a roadmap to land investment funding and sees two paths to pivot into a viable platform business: 1) The "High Road of Quality Hardware" seeks a strong foundation for Marketplace and appeals to the engineering team. The CEO worries the High Road may increase unit costs, swell a bloated balance sheet, slow sales, and reinforce the firm's self-identity as a slow-scaling hardware company. It means redoubling work on the fish sensor, working with an outside firm to build a water quality sensor, and developing a P2P protocol and new data station to help the feeders talk to each other and send data to the cloud. 2) The "Low Road of Bootstrapped Disruption" seeks to get FishBiz and FishFax to market. Some sales staff share Gibran's vision, but most employees are used to hardware. Data capabilities remain weak and only major reallocations of scarce resources will make the new products strong enough to drive adoption.

The case is set the day after Grab Holdings ("Grab") announced the acquisition of its largest rival, Uber, on 26 March 2018, and traces back its evolution from a start-up struggling to gain traction in its target market to the region's first decacorn (start-up with $10 billion or more value). Within five years since its inception in 2012, Grab had established a wide-spanning footprint in 190 cities across eight countries of Southeast Asia. To keep pace with its growth, the company had moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2014. Commencing its debut in the Online-to-Offline (O2O) market with a prototype of its taxi-booking smartphone app in the company's hometown in Malaysia, Grab has come a long way. With its extensive range of personal transport service, the company has become synonymous with ride-hailing and has also forayed into other areas such as fintech and marketplace. Appropriately, in January 2016, the company rebranded itself to 'Grab', an umbrella under which all its services are now homed. When Uber, the US behemoth, flexed its muscles and posed a severe threat, Grab fought head-to-head and won over the giant by quickly altering its business model and adopting a hyper-local approach. Grab's focus on nurturing a congenial organisational culture, disruptive innovation, customer-centric services, and agility while fostering enterprising and innovative talent has helped to defend its position. While staying steady on its high-growth trajectory, Anthony Tan and Hooi Ling Tan, the founding CEO and the founding COO, respectively, want to fortify its competitive strength by enhancing its disruptive quotient while remaining entrenched in Grab's culture. How can they best go about doing so?

In 2016, ING Group began an overhaul of its company culture, culminating in a code of conduct dubbed "The Orange Code."

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 1 defines and provides an overview of family business. It corrects various misconceptions of family businesses, highlights the advantages of this organizational form, and demonstrates the prevalence of family businesses worldwide.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 2 explores the many differences between a family-owned business and a nonfamily­-owned business. Several significant differences are apparent between family and nonfamily firms. Family businesses often have a long-­term view; a lasting mission, vision, and purpose; a desire to create a nurturing, caring community and to act as stewards; and an ability to build relationships, bonds, and con­nections with customers, suppliers, and other outsiders.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 3 explores the major theories about family businesses, such as life cycles, agency theory, the resource-based approach, stakeholder theory, and the stewardship approach.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 4 discusses how family firms make business decisions. The decision-making process changes over time, especially as succeeding generations take over owning and managing the business.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 5 explores the significant issues prevalent in a family firm, such as nepotism, compensation, conflict, and communication.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 6 explores the most problematic issue in family firms: succession, or the transfer of ownership to the next generation. The ability to carry on a successful intergenerational transfer of owner­ship and leadership (succession) is by far the single most important family business issue. Most family businesses do not have a successful transition of ownership from the founding generation to the second generation.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 7 focuses on effective family business governance and the use of advisors and boards to shed light on the complexities of family business. There are three basic forms of family business governance: the controlling owner, the sibling partner­ship, and the cousin consortium.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 8 explores key success tips for long-lasting family firms. To survive for multiple generations, a family business needs enough flexibility to accept transition and the ability to recognize opportunity when the markets or business environment has changed. A family-owned business must address issues surrounding family employment policies.

This book introduces readers to the family business, which is the most prevalent form of business in the world. The differences between family and nonfamily businesses are emphasized in this book. This book has several key audiences and can be used as a supplemental text for university undergraduate or graduate level courses such as small business management, introduction to business, entrepreneurship, and family studies. This book focuses on family businesses in both the United States and other countries. Chapter 9 discusses trends and further research in family business, including the increasing role of women in running these companies, the importance of a university education for successors, and the roles that family foundations can play.

Diogenes pioneered the use of technology to support trustees and boards in their role as fiduciaries of employee retirement funds. Typically, a multinational corporation with operations in 30-40 countries may have hundreds of pension plans, each with their own characteristics. Common among all of them is the opportunity to demonstrate conformance with globally recognized fiduciary best practices. The Diogenes Fiduciary Compliance System gathers and curates all relative documents and compares that information with the 21 practices and the 82 criteria of the ISO 9000 based Fi360 Prudent Practices. Using sophisticated statistical techniques including Bayesian Inference, the software continuously evaluates conformance to the Prudent Practices and reports on areas which need to be addressed. Reporting by exception, the user starts with a global view and can drill down by region, country, company, and plan to review the issues. A continuous audit log provides management with the information to support their role as fiduciaries by continuously monitoring their investments as required by the US Supreme Court's guidelines in the 2015 Tibble v. Edison International case. Board members can rest easily knowing that management meets the highest level of quality in support of their employees and shareholders.

The chief executive officer of Scotbar Proprietary Limited (Scotbar) in Queensland, Australia, decided to develop a process to convert sandstone to sand, a technique that large multinational mining companies failed to perfect. The stakes could not have been higher, with global environmental disaster looming and the world quickly depleting its reserves of construction sand, severely affecting coastal communities and destroying marine ecosystems in the process. After spending years and millions of dollars on research, Scotbar appeared to have developed a process to produce construction sand, although more expensive than natural sand. Scotbar decided not to patent its process in hopes that more companies would adopt it and thereby reduce the harmful impact of mining on the environment. Was Scotbar’s approach to sustainability through innovation an effective response to the environmental legacy of more traditional mining processes? Was the company’s approach to intellectual property appropriate in this context?