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A consultant with CARE Enterprise Partners (CEP) is tasked to provide consulting for three social enterprises in different stages of development, each benefiting from CEP funding and support. CONASE - an oatmeal manufacturer selling to the government's vaso de leche free breakfast program - asked for advice on strategic analysis and creative approaches to customer relations. Seviagro - a market linkage social enterprise aggregating produce from smallholder artichoke farmers for resale to a large processing and export company - requested support with cost analysis and accounting. Corporacion Solar - initially established as a buyer and reseller of spinach produced by Andean farmers but currently transitioning from a market linkage model to a hybrid model - was looking for assistance in reshaping its growth strategy to target major buyers in Lima with a more diversified product offering. The three for-profit social enterprises profiled in this case sample a new breed of locally-reliant, market-driven models, which could further Peru's rural development in mountainous regions like the Ancash province. Their success could be tremendously influential in charting a new approach to development in the Andes. Success here could also endorse CEP's pioneering approach to development around the world. But despite careful start-up planning and very promising triple-bottom line projections, each enterprise confronted unexpected challenges in customer relations, cost management, sourcing and distribution. As these social ventures were getting off the ground, their founders' ability to simultaneously meet their social goals and remain economically viable was in jeopardy. The case asks students to put themselves in the consultant role and reposition these social ventures for sustainable growth.

Underserved urban and rural areas have found venture capital support via U.S. Community Development Venture Capital institutions, which numbered 68 and managed $870 million as of 2008. Suitable for MBA, undergraduate, and executive learners studying venture capital, urban development, and private equity, this stand-alone backgrounder is also an excellent companion to cases about specific venture capital organizations. CDVCs face challenges unique in the field of private equity, including where they operate and how much lower their rates of return and compensation are.

Healthcare, the largest industry in the United States, is in crisis, and threatens to bankrupt the nation's economy. Medical errors kill an estimated 98,000 people per year, and accessibility to adequate healthcare is an increasing problem for much of the country's citizenry. Despite being one of the most important keys to resolving this crisis, a national electronic healthcare network (eHealth) is under-appreciated and under-exploited, and faces several formidable barriers to implementation. Current and prospective national political leadership has focused narrowly on a subset of issues, in the belief that the crisis cannot be addressed holistically due to political interests. Yet the barriers that greatly impede eHealth's potential to help solve the crisis can only be removed in a timely manner by a comprehensive, national framework that reshapes the legal, operational, and economic landscape for eHealth. Only a greater public awareness that encourages national legislative action can enhance eHealth's potential to improve the quality and accessibility of healthcare while reducing its cost.     

This case analysis traces the establishment and subsequent operation of FIJI Water LLC and its bottling subsidiary, Natural Waters of Viti Limited, the first company in Fiji extracting, bottling and marketing, both domestically and internationally, artesian water coming from a virgin ecosystem found on Fiji's main island of Viti Levu. The case reviews the growth and market expansion of this highly successful company with the brand name FIJI Natural Artesian Water (FIJI Water). The company has grown rapidly over the past decade and a half, and now exports bottled water into many countries in the world from its production plant located in the Fiji Islands. In 2008, FIJI Water was the leading imported bottled water brand in the United States. In the context of great marketing success of the FIJI brand, particularly in the U.S. market, the case focuses on how the company has responded to a number of corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues, including measuring and reducing its carbon footprint, responsibilities to key stakeholders, and concerns of the Fiji government with regard to taxation and transfer pricing issues. The case provides a compelling illustration of how CSR challenges may jeopardize the sustainability of a clever marketing strategy.

This case series is designed to illustrate the specificities of competition in poor and developing economies and, more specifically, competition at the Base of the Pyramid. It is composed of four documents: two company cases, a country note, and an industry note. The company cases describe the competitive dynamics between two international telecom companies, Orange and MTN, in the Cameroonian telecom market. Each company case begins with a brief history of the company, followed by a description of the company's global strategy and of its entry into Cameroon. It goes on to describe the competitive dynamics in Cameroon from the company's perspective, and, particularly, the moves and counter-moves undertaken by each competitor to gain market share. Finally, the case describes the company's Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, globally and in Cameroon. The case series also includes two background notes. The first note describes the evolution and the basic technical characteristics of the cell phone industry. The second note provides an introduction to the geography, history, and economy of Cameroon, with a particular focus on the socio-economic conditions of the country's population. Taken together, this case series allows a discussion of competition at the Base of the Pyramid, including both business and ethical aspects.

This case series is designed to illustrate the specificities of competition in poor and developing economies and, more specifically, competition at the Base of the Pyramid. It is composed of four documents: two company cases, a country note, and an industry note. The company cases describe the competitive dynamics between two international telecom companies, Orange and MTN, in the Cameroonian telecom market. Each company case begins with a brief history of the company, followed by a description of the company's global strategy and of its entry into Cameroon. It goes on to describe the competitive dynamics in Cameroon from the company's perspective, and, particularly, the moves and counter-moves undertaken by each competitor to gain market share. Finally, the case describes the company's Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, globally and in Cameroon. The case series also includes two background notes. The first note describes the evolution and the basic technical characteristics of the cell phone industry. The second note provides an introduction to the geography, history, and economy of Cameroon, with a particular focus on the socio-economic conditions of the country's population. Taken together, this case series allows a discussion of competition at the Base of the Pyramid, including both business and ethical aspects.

This case series is designed to illustrate the specificities of competition in poor and developing economies and, more specifically, competition at the Base of the Pyramid. It is composed of four documents: two company cases, a country note, and an industry note. The company cases describe the competitive dynamics between two international telecom companies, Orange and MTN, in the Cameroonian telecom market. Each company case begins with a brief history of the company, followed by a description of the company's global strategy and of its entry into Cameroon. It goes on to describe the competitive dynamics in Cameroon from the company's perspective, and, particularly, the moves and counter-moves undertaken by each competitor to gain market share. Finally, the case describes the company's Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, globally and in Cameroon. The case series also includes two background notes. The first note describes the evolution and the basic technical characteristics of the cell phone industry. The second note provides an introduction to the geography, history, and economy of Cameroon, with a particular focus on the socio-economic conditions of the country's population. Taken together, this case series allows a discussion of competition at the Base of the Pyramid, including both business and ethical aspects.

This case series is designed to illustrate the specificities of competition in poor and developing economies and, more specifically, competition at the Base of the Pyramid. It is composed of four documents: two company cases, a country note, and an industry note. The company cases describe the competitive dynamics between two international telecom companies, Orange and MTN, in the Cameroonian telecom market. Each company case begins with a brief history of the company, followed by a description of the company's global strategy and of its entry into Cameroon. It goes on to describe the competitive dynamics in Cameroon from the company's perspective, and, particularly, the moves and counter-moves undertaken by each competitor to gain market share. Finally, the case describes the company's Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, globally and in Cameroon. The case series also includes two background notes. The first note describes the evolution and the basic technical characteristics of the cell phone industry. The second note provides an introduction to the geography, history, and economy of Cameroon, with a particular focus on the socio-economic conditions of the country's population. Taken together, this case series allows a discussion of competition at the Base of the Pyramid, including both business and ethical aspects.

Implementing a sustainability strategy requires firms to consider economic, strategic, environmental, and community perspectives. Suitable for MBA, undergraduate, and executive learners, this sustainability case covers innovation, intrapreneurship, and strategy. A technical note entitled, "Corporate Greenhouse Accounting: Carbon Footprint Analysis" (UV2027) is an effective complement. Frito-Lay's Arizona facility pilots a program to take its snack chip manufacturing off the grid. Decision makers discuss operating, financial, marketing, and corporate strategy as the facility calculates its carbon footprint, converts to non-fossil-fuel energy sources, and stops relying on the scarce local water supply.

For over 25 years, Cristobal Colon, La Fageda's founder and president, had managed this cooperative that primarily produced yogurts and dairy puddings and employed a large share of La Garrotxa's mentally challenged population. Colón had been able to position these yogurts made in a small town far from Barcelona's commercial hub right next to Danone products, the undisputed dairy sector leader in Spain, on supermarket and hypermarket shelves. La Fageda had accomplished this feat by producing a quality yogurt that consumers viewed as a farm product: natural and wholesome. By late 2007, Colón's overriding concern was how to keep La Fageda's yogurts in distribution circuits. On the one hand, large food multinationals had ever-increasing leverage with retailers; on the other hand, some leading chains were prioritizing their own brands. Colón wondered if La Fageda could maintain its competitive positioning while upholding its founding spirit. For him, it was paramount to preserve the jobs that enabled La Fageda to ensure social and labor integration for people with mental disabilities.

Stakeholder climate change actions worldwide have prompted companies to measure their greenhouse gas emissions and reduce their carbon footprints by decreasing energy and fuel use. In the process, they are cutting costs, decreasing exposure to severe weather, reducing energy vulnerability, and potentially opening up revenue sources for carbon credit sales in the emerging markets for carbon trading. This note is effective in MBA, undergraduate, and executive education courses on clean commerce innovation, carbon markets, sustainability, and environmental and regulatory issues. This technical note stands alone and also works as a companion note to "Frito-Lay North America: The Making of a Net-Zero Snack Chip" (UV2025). For instructors, a teaching note is available, along with a supplemental Excel spreadsheet for use in performing carbon emissions calculations.

This technical note discusses issues related to carbon markets: Emissions Trading Approaches (Cap-and-Trade, Baseline-and-Credit, and Offsets), Regulatory Framework (Kyoto Protocol), and two key mechanisms of credits creation, Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation; creation and trading of carbon credits (CERs) (markets such as OTC and organized exchanges such as the Chicago Climate Exchange); examples of investors in the carbon market (carbon funds) and carbon indices established; recent developments in the carbon markets in the United States such as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and the Western Climate Initiative; and investment considerations and factors affecting pricing in the carbon markets.

This case describes how carbon credits are created via planting Mallee Eucalypt trees by CO2 Australia. The case provides useful background to go along with the technical note "Carbon Credit Markets" (UV2543), which discusses in greater detail the regulatory frameworks as well as the various mechanisms that exist to allow carbon credit creation and trading.

Based on their use of a shared computer and the Internet ads that keep popping up, two co-workers suspect that another co-worker is HIV-positive or has AIDS. Using this story platform, the case explores Internet marketing, especially the powerhouse search engine Google and how it tracks its users' habits. The history of Google is chronicled, as well as the privacy issues that have mushroomed as the Internet and its technology have developed.

This technical note begins with the resolution of the "Google and Internet Privacy" case (UV1354) (disturbed by the office reaction to him, Charlie resigns), and then discusses the privacy issues the case addresses. Although "personal privacy" is a difficult concept to define, academics and social commentators continue to struggle with that definition as well as the value of "personal privacy." For an individual, privacy is a significant factor in determining one's autonomy and independence. This technical note discusses the concept of personal privacy from a Utilitarian and a Kantian perspective.

The director of a research coalition and the founder/coordinator of an NGO consortium meet to discuss the possibility of jointly drafting a proposal for an integrated research and development project in the Congo River basin. Approved projects will receive an annual operating budget of $2 million. Together they must develop a joint plan for how the money should be spent.

The director of a research coalition and the founder/coordinator of an NGO consortium meet to discuss the possibility of jointly drafting a proposal for an integrated research and development project in the Congo River basin. Approved projects will receive an annual operating budget of $2 million. Together they must develop a joint plan for how the money should be spent.

Describes an architecture firm founded and run by a husband and wife team, Sharukh and Renu Mistry, that emphasizes "green" building. The firm presents an unusual mix of projects - spanning the spectrum from larger corporate projects to small private homes. The mix also includes more profitable work and projects deliberately selected for social good, including the design of orphanage communities for SOS Childrens International and other non-profit organizations. The mix engages teams of young architects in different kinds of learning opportunities, and allows them to manage these projects with an unusually high level of independence. The firm's founders are dedicated to being both very client-oriented and environmentally responsible. This can lead to some difficult choices and the case illustrates one example. The firm has been commissioned by SOS to design homes for some villages destroyed in the December 24, 2004 tsunami. The preferred design is thatch roofs which is in keeping with the local environment. However, the villagers want a more functional (and more expensive) reinforced cement concrete roof. Sharukh must decide which of his principles is to dominate in this situation. A (B) case presents and explains the decision. A (C) case discusses future plans for the firm.

This case is a follow-up of Mistry Architects: Innovating for Sustainability (A) (Case 609-044). In Case (A) Sharukh and Renu Mistry found and run an architectural firm dedicated to being both client-oriented and environmentally responsible. The case uses a difficult design decision in a tsunami rehabilitation project to illustrate the challenges faced by professional services firms, and the role of innovation in meeting the needs of multiple stakeholders. The specific design decision is to make a choice between thatch roofs which are environmentally friendly, versus reinforced cement concrete roofs that the villagers desire for its functionality. Case (B) reveals and explains the firm's choice, while describing how the community rebuilds itself after the tsunami, as well as how the firms evolves. A (C) case discusses the future plans of the firm including growth and succession issues.

This case is a follow-up of "Mistry Architects: Innovating for Sustainability" (A) (Case 609-044) and (B) (Case 609-086). In Case (A) Sharukh and Renu Mistry founded and run an architectural firm dedicated to being both client-oriented and environmentally responsible. The case uses a difficult design decision in a tsunami rehabilitation project to illustrate the challenges faced by professional services firms, and the role of innovation in meeting the needs of multiple stakeholders. The specific design decision is to make a choice between thatch roofs which are environmentally friendly, versus reinforced cement concrete roofs that the villagers desire for their functionality. Case (B) reveals and explains the firm's choice, while describing how the community rebuilds itself after the tsunami, as well as how the firms evolves. The (C) case discusses the future plans of the firm including growth and succession issues.