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One key lesson from the global pandemic crisis is that funding for medical research is woefully inadequate. The author argues that we must do better. The problem is, traditional innovation incentives such as research grants won't cut it. What is needed are Advanced Market Commitments (AMCs). The author defines the term and shows how AMCs work. The funding for innovation for medical research is a fraction of that devoted to other threats - notably national security. As the author indicates, our experience in 2020 suggests that our attention has been misfocussed.

Leaders are facing unprecedented uncertainty. But history clearly shows that no matter how stark the crisis, there are always opportunities to innovate and grow. The authors present four 'lenses' and ten questions that leaders can use to enable innovation. The lenses include a future-back strategy; jobs to be done; and encouraging innovation habits. Ultimately, they show that using the four lenses and asking 10 particular questions helps to bring clarity in the midst of a crisis by cutting through the fog of massive uncertainty.

In an excerpt from his latest book, the author argues that the outsized success of a few outlier companies points to four steps that every business can take to contribute positively to the future of democratic capitalism: turn your back on reductionism; recognize that slack is not the enemy; guard against surrogation with multiple measurements; and realize that monopolization is not a sustainable goal. It won't be easy for executives to get started on this agenda, because it will mean unlearning ideas and beliefs that are deeply embedded. But as he shows, the unique results and competitive differentiation will be well worth the effort.

Even in severe economic downturns and recessions, some companies are able to gain advantage. In the past four downturns, 14% of large companies increased both their sales growth rate and their EBIT margin. A shock like the Covid-19 pandemic can produce lasting changes in customer behavior. To survive and thrive in a crisis, begin by examining how people are spending their time and money. Challenge traditional ideas and use data to actively seek out anomalies and surprises. Next, adjust your business model to reflect behavioral changes, considering what the new trends might mean for how you create and deliver value, whom you need to partner with, and who your customers should be. Finally, put your money where your analysis takes you and be prepared to make more-aggressive, dynamic investments.

To make it through the downturn and return to growth, companies will need to rewire operations, reallocate resources, and in some cases reinvent business models. Joint ventures and partnerships can help many firms with those efforts. In this article, three consultants outline how companies can shore up their existing JVs through capital-raising, cost-reduction, and synergy-tapping techniques that often aren't available to wholly owned entities. The authors then describe how parent companies can strengthen their own financial positions by using JVs and partnerships to make partial divestments, consolidate businesses, and collaborate on capital-light, low-risk growth initiatives. JVs are already ubiquitous in sectors under pressure, like energy, and in innovative industries such as life sciences. At numerous firms, they drive a large share of earnings. Given that their returns have been climbing, their impact is quite likely to remain strong or even increase in the foreseeable future.

Many companies can dramatically improve their products and services by using machine learning-an application of artificial intelligence that involves generating predictions from data inputs. Amazon, Google, and other tech giants are already experts at taking advantage of this technology. Smaller enterprises and late entrants, however, may be unsure how to do likewise to gain market share for themselves. This article suggests that early movers will be successful if they have enough training data to make accurate predictions and if they can improve their algorithms by quickly incorporating feedback derived from customers' behavior. Latecomers will need a different approach to be competitive: The secret for them is to find untapped sources of training or feedback data, or to differentiate themselves by tailoring predictions to a special niche.

In January 2020, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Salt n Soap, an online retailer of food and groceries in Kolkata, India, was reviewing the company's strategy and business model. Salt n Soap had been in operation for six years, and now offered nearly 15,000 food and grocery (F&G) products of 1,000 distinct brands through its online retailing website. However, the Indian online F&G retail industry was highly competitive. Salt n Soap had a limited business footprint, mainly concentrated in Kolkata, India and unlike its competitors, it had not raised external equity funding. The CEO had to quickly reassess the current business model and strategy and prepare for the oncoming challenges from an increasingly competitive business environment. The decision had to be made before the end of the month so that any strategic changes could be implemented within the current financial year.

In 2019, after one year in the position, H. Lawrence Culp Jr., the first outsider chief executive officer (CEO) of General Electric Company (GE) was faced with the task of gaining the stock market's faith in his ability to turn GE around. During the tenure of his two predecessors (from 2001 to 2018), GE's stock price had declined significantly, and investors were concerned. The new CEO introduced the lean management philosophy and restructured divisions like GE Power to enhance free cash flow (FCF), a key concern of GE investors. By October 2019, analysts believed that strategies taken by him were not enough to improve GE's stock market performance. Could he, as an outsider, prove to be a better CEO than the insiders had been? How should he manage GE's business units? How could he increase FCF and the market valuation of GE? Should he continue with lean management?

The head of the South African subsidiary of the US consulting firm McKinsey & Company (McKinsey), has to address the implications of the firm's involvement in a corruption scandal. The South African office was implicated in a scandal involving its local partner, Trillian Capital Partners (PTY) Ltd. (Trillian), and Eskom, a South African state-owned enterprise (SOE). McKinsey was required to partner with a local company as a condition of any contract with a South African SOE. McKinsey took on Trillian as its local partner after Trillian was recommended by a former client. Trillian was, however, associated with the Guptas, a family that the South African Public Protector (an ombudsman) had accused of using its influence with the South African president, Jacob Zuma, and his family for corrupt activities. The partnership (first with a company named Regiments Capital (PTY) Ltd. [Regiments] and then, following restructuring, with Trillian) directly benefited the Gupta family. More than three years into the relationship, McKinsey claimed to have discovered that its partner was politically exposed and under investigation by the South African authorities. McKinsey's new global managing partner attempted to limit the damage to the company's reputation by issuing an apology. However, the South African public appeared skeptical about the apology, and questions remained regarding McKinsey's integrity. The questions left unanswered included the following: Was Sneader's apology enough to enable McKinsey to quell the attack on its reputation? Should McKinsey do more to enhance its standing within the South African business community, or should it accept that its reputation had suffered irreparable harm?

The case highlights how global dynamics impact both regional economic development and the organizational growth of a market-leading pork producer with a promising yet uncertain future. A key Western Canadian pork production industry stakeholder was tasked with assessing existing environmental complexities as well as global supply and demand factors in an effort to address changing consumer preferences. After determining that global factors could either support or limit further industry investment, the aforementioned stakeholder had to evaluate company resources and firm risks to identify the qualitative and quantitative factors that would influence two specific expansion opportunities and the associated income projections within the local industry.

El Celler de Can Roca (CCR), a small family business, is one of the best restaurants in the world. Its evolution can be characterized by its bet on innovation, respect for tradition and family culture. The case commences before the third BBVA tour and after the restaurant was voted, for the second time in June 2015, the world's best restaurant by "The World's 50 Best Restaurants". The case analyses the importance of the three Roca brother's leadership as well as the loyalty and commitment of everyone who plays a role in the organization. When the Roca brothers planned the BBVA Tours, one of their terms was that they would do them with the El Celler team. The case's main dilemma is whether the restaurant should continue with the BBVA world tours in 2017, which require a large amount of time to be invested in them, or whether the brothers should focus on developing the Roca brothers' foundation as well as projects that are entered on improving the restaurant.

By the end of 2019, Trōv, Inc. (Trōv) had ceased to sell its flagship direct-to-consumer single-item coverage insurance product. Going forward, Trōv would no longer compete as an insurance company, but would instead focus on expanding its technology in order to equip established insurance companies, financial institutions, and technology companies with the modern, all-digital insurance apps required to remain competitive and/or gain market share. In doing so, Trōv offloaded the enormous financial burden associated with customer acquisition. Heading into 2020, Trōv's business was divided into two main units-Trōv Enterprise and Trōv Mobility. As a result of this strategic shift from a business-to-consumer (B2C) strategy to a business-to-business (B2B) strategy, Trōv's leaders were faced with a new set of questions. Should they implement a fee structure that would allow Trōv to achieve profitability as a B2B technology provider? Were Trōv's new products designed to respond to its clients' desired customer segmentation? How should Trōv allocate resources between its Enterprise and Mobility businesses?

Technology doping accusations were made when several athletes wearing Nike, Inc.'s (Nike's) ZoomX Vaporfly 4% Flyknit running shoes won sporting events in 2018 and 2019. In December 2019, the International Association of Athletics Federations was investigating the issue and was considering banning Vaporfly shoes from the Olympics and other sporting competitions. Soon, Nike's competitors, including Adidas AG, Reebok International, and Saucony, counteracted with their own versions of an innovative midsole component. With technological advancements taking place in several spheres of sports shoes, experts demanded that boundaries be drawn in terms of both innovation and the high price of athletic shoes such as the Vaporfly, whose ban could have financial implications for Nike. Could Nike leverage innovation to fight a competitive battle? How could it promote the use of the Vaporfly shoe, given the controversy surrounding the technology? What streams of innovation should Nike pursue for its growth?

Link REIT, Asia's largest real estate investment trust and the second largest of its kind globally, holds a position of infamy in Hong Kong, its headquarters and primary market. A decade on from its formation, which occurred through the divestiture of what were previously public retail assets, Link REIT has been both lauded by investors for its superior returns and vilified by the general public as an agent of the city's gentrification. Critiques have raised two sets of allegations against Link REIT: that their approach to redeveloping the city's public markets has made these spaces unaffordable to the poor, previously the markets' principal patrons; and that many of the markets' legacy vendors, themselves also often impoverished, have been forced to leave their businesses post-renovation, unable to afford refurbishment. Redeveloped wet markets are now more upmarket and almost European, with Link REIT targeting a decidedly more bourgeois patron. But at what cost to the city's social fabric? And should this be a material concern? The story's protagonist, Calvin Kwan, is the General Manager of Sustainability at Link REIT and has spent his tenure attempting to demonstrate that sustainability has a place in the corporate boardroom. Now tasked with rethinking his company's approach to managing these assets, Calvin must consider to whom Link REIT holds obligations and how outside approaches to urban redevelopment might generate sources of value that are both financially accretive and socially beneficial. Faced with heightened levels of public scrutiny, Link REIT's response may shape their continued right to operate within the city.

In the first half of 2020, worldwide lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic brought explosive growth to the Zoom Video Communications platform, as people replaced in-person work and social events with videoconferencing. Months into the pandemic, CEO Eric Yuan reflects on his company's newly central role in society, and considers how to leverage the platform's broad adoption into sustainable future growth. The case also discusses Zoom's internal culture -- which prioritized employee and customer happiness -- as well how both the company and its customers faced the transition to remote work.

In October 2019, BYD Company Limited (BYD), a leading Chinese company in the new energy vehicle industry, was pursuing the goal of building a business ecosystem. The firm and its partners jointly launched a blockchain-enabled green ecosystem that delivered new value to customers by issuing carbon points to users who had made efforts to reduce their daily carbon emissions. Users could spend carbon points at partner merchants and get rewards. Blockchain, as the core infrastructure of the project, provided an ideal environment to cultivate a healthy and efficient business ecosystem that benefitted all stakeholders, including the firms, its users, and the environment. With the program still in its early stages, how could BYD and its partners further utilize the green ecosystem's potential to achieve greater economic and environmental value?

In 2019, the president of On Track St. Thomas (OTST), was considering the future of St. Thomas Elevated Park, a public park built on an abandoned railway bridge and now under the care of OTST. The park was built after much lobbying and community fundraising, and a decision had to be made on its future. What was going to happen to the park? Who would take responsibility for it? The president's options were to recommend a gift of it to the city of St. Thomas, create a paid membership for members of the community, or attract corporate sponsors.

In 2016, Grupo Vidawa, a small Colombian software company, launched KANAN Cloud, a freemium software service targeted at small- and medium-sized businesses. The software aimed to help these businesses meet new occupational health and safety (OHS) regulations that were to come into effect in January 2017. A year after launch, KANAN Cloud had only 500 free users and six paying customers. Software use was also extremely low. A few circumstances seemed to explain these results: the OHS regulations appeared overly complex to most small business owners, the regulations kept changing throughout 2017, and the OHS service market became saturated with cheap "quick fix" offers that did not meet legal requirements but fit the immediate needs and tiny budgets of many small businesses. Given this, Grupo Vidawa had to decide the next steps for KANAN Cloud.

This case aims to give participants an understanding of how Sterlite Power (Sterlite) successfully differentiated itself using technology in an otherwise traditional sector in an emerging economy. Sterlite deployed technological innovations to reduce inefficiencies in power transmission projects. The major challenges for the Indian power sector are the use of obsolete technology and high cost coupled with a low profit margin model. These make power evacuation difficult and inefficient, resulting in frequent power shortages in a country that actually generates surplus power. Although many private players had entered the power sector, there were no significant changes in the way projects were carried out. Realizing that products alone wouldn't improve its business prospects, Sterlite used technology as a disrupter and a differentiator to provide solutions in the power sector. The case shows how an Indian firm revolutionized project execution to get an edge in the Indian market. Having succeeded in India, the company turned its sights on the Brazilian market. The case invites participants to explore the following questions: What could be the possible challenges that lay ahead for Sterlite and how could it leverage its learning from India in Brazil? How challenging is it for companies to use technology as a point of differentiation and to monetize it in the long run, and in different markets?

In August 2019, Fair Trade Jewellery Co., a mid-size jewellery retailer based in Toronto, Canada, was wondering how to ensure that its customers received responsibly sourced gold and diamond jewellery. The company had already devoted considerable amounts of time, energy, and expense to develop a responsible supply chain. Its activities toward that goal had included various initiatives beyond jewellery retail, such as providing inventory financing for artisanal miners in the Democratic of Congo. After discovering that a key US partner along the supply chain may have not been following a clear chain-of-custody system in its refinery, the company was unsure how to proceed. Responsibly sourced gold was potentially being contaminated by other gold at the refinery, which led Fair Trade Jewellery Co. to consider opening its own local small-scale refinery. However, that initiative could mean considerable strategic risk and financial burden for the company. It could also have potential effects on its employees, who relied on the company for their livelihood. Did the company's ethical mission require vertically integrating to such a considerable extent?