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Green Consultant, a Singapore-based environmental consulting firm, had worked with several financial institutions before 2023 and was aware that many were interested in expanding their loan portfolios to include more environmentally inclined clients. In January 2023, one such client, a Singapore-based small and medium enterprise (SME) named Chang & Lee Manufacturing (CLM), approached Green Consultant to prepare a business proposal on how the SME could transition to solar energy. A green finance analyst at Green Consultant had one month to deliver a proposal to CLM. He had to consider the type of solar business model, the financing option, and the CLM stakeholders to engage, alongside CLM’s operational and financial conditions, to recommend the most economically feasible solar solution for CLM.

Derrin Raffey, chief financial officer at St. Thomas More College (STM) in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, oversaw STM’s investment trust. With a value of more than CA$22 million, managing the trust required careful consideration of various factors, including management fees, performance, the appropriateness of the holdings, and relationships with investment managers.<br><br>At times, the trust had held investments that were not appropriate, given the college’s religious values. However, with the hiring of a new investment manager, switching from pooled fund investment to discretionary investment became an option. As STM did not have a formal process or template for reviewing investment managers, developing these was a priority. Finally, there was the question of what strategy STM should adopt—was it possible for STM to balance its need for growth and returns against other factors such as the college’s religious ethos and the wishes of its various stakeholders?

Uno Minda Ltd. (Uno Minda) was a leading manufacturer of automobile components for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of vehicles running on an internal combustion engine. The Indian company had a strong relationship with automobile manufacturers and long-standing international partners for joint manufacturing of auto components. The Indian market was rapidly adopting electric vehicles (EVs). In November 2021, Uno Minda was determined to establish itself as a leading manufacturer of components for EVs. The company could develop its expertise by investing in in-house research and development, acquiring a domestic or international EV component manufacturer, or forming a joint venture with a renowned domestic or international player in the EV component space. All three options had their pros and cons. Uno Minda had to choose among these.

Aashica Khanna, the director of Ananda in the Himalayas, an internationally famed Indian luxury wellness resort, was mulling over her options to grow the luxury wellness brand. Could Ananda’s Indian tradition based wellness solutions, hospitality, and cuisine pillars be replicated? While Khanna and Ananda’s leadership team had constantly innovated and created a differentiation in the luxury wellness space, should the focus be on consistency in the Ananda luxury wellness experience or uniqueness? Would they be able to recreate the Ananda experience at another location while preserving the luxury wellness brand’s promise?

In Kolkata, India, in 2021, a car battery failed at a crucial moment. Witnessing this, the research and development director at Exide Industries Limited (EIL) pondered creating an Internet of Things (IoT)-integrated smart battery solution to enhance customer experience by proactively monitoring battery health. The dilemma for EIL's cross-functional team was multifaceted: Could they innovate without compromising data privacy while maintaining sustainability? The team debated market receptiveness, return on investment, and compliance with environmental standards. The business situation was complex: Could EIL redefine customer experience, align with sustainability goals, and navigate the challenges of data security and market risks?

Cathay Pacific was founded in Hong Kong in 1946. As of July 2023, Cathay Pacific passenger and cargo airlines offered scheduled services to 81 destinations in 30 countries and regions worldwide, including 14 destinations in the Chinese Mainland. The group also served an additional 131 destinations in 21 countries and regions through code-share agreements. Effective January 1, 2023, Lavinia Lau was appointed chief customer and commercial officer and executive director on the board of Cathay Pacific. In August 2023 she faced the decision of what to propose to position Cathay Pacific to achieve its ambitious vision of becoming one of the world’s greatest service brands. What was the current positioning of Cathay Pacific relative to other airlines? Who should its target customers be? What should its message be to appeal to those target customers?

In 2012, the Jamaican economy was in a crisis. It had an estimated debt-to–gross domestic product ratio of 147 per cent. To alleviate the crisis, the Jamaican government signed both an extended fund facility for US$948 million, in 2013, and a precautionary stand-by arrangement for US$1.64 billion, in 2016, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). As a condition of the IMF loan, the Jamaican government agreed to an economic reform agenda with requirements that included the harmonization of prudential standards across all deposit-taking institutions (DTIs) and consolidated supervision. Consequently, in 2014, the Government of Jamaica passed the Banking Services Act (BSA), which became effective September 30, 2015. Prior to the BSA, the financial services sector was fragmented. Banks and DTIs were regulated by the Bank of Jamaica (BoJ), Jamaica’s central bank; building societies, though supervised by the BoJ, were governed by the Building Societies Act, while credit unions were self-regulated through the Jamaica Co-operative Credit Union League.<br><br>In December 2020, Courtney Campbell was the chief executive officer of the Victoria Mutual Building Society (VMBS), a mutual company (i.e., a company owned by its depositors). He had to decide on the future direction of the company under the new regulations and the pending implementation of new measures. The decision came at a time of great external uncertainty, as COVID-19 was still ravaging the world and there was no vaccine yet approved.

<p align="justify">In 2022, Emtec Inc., an information technology and digital services firm located in Florida, was at a critical juncture. The company had seen immense success as a hardware reseller and managed services provider to government agencies and midmarket companies in the US. But Dinesh Desai, the founder and former chief executive officer, was concerned about decreasing profit margins and intensifying competition in the current reseller and managed services business. Low barriers to entry were adding new entrants and competition on pricing as well as affecting the ability to acquire and keep talent. Furthermore, the pace of technological change influencing newer offerings such as cloud and custom development was creating significant uncertainty. For Desai, the question came down to the following: Stay the course and build upon established services or pivot to a different mix of offerings? The pressure to chart a new path was very important, given the uncertainty about the future and the cutthroat price-based competition in the market.

AbhiCure was an online health care platform facilitating consultation between patients and doctors. It enabled individuals to be treated by doctors from their own homes by phone call, online chat, or video consultation with doctors supported by AbhiCure’s team of paramedics. The company aimed to simplify the entire health-care ecosystem and add value for all stakeholders, including patients, doctors, pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals. However, with competition intensifying in the telemedicine sector, the company’s senior management was concerned about which growth strategy to adopt for the future and was considering product diversification, product development, market penetration, and market development strategies.

Shrikant Patel was the manager of Sabar Aart Farmer Enterprise Producer Company Ltd (SAFE), located at Khedbrahma, in the Sabarkantha district of Gujarat. Patel knew that members of the farmer producer organization (FPO) were working laboriously but were still not able to generate high incomes. Organic cultivation of only a single crop in fertile land once a year did not boost their incomes. Passionate about agriculture and social work, he wanted to encourage the FPO members to adopt multicropping and increase their incomes. He identified turmeric as one of the crops that was not grown in the Sabarkantha region. Thus, growing turmeric along with creeper vegetables would not only ensure a steady income for the FPO members but would also provide the FPO with first-mover advantage in organic turmeric cultivation in the region. Patel, not being an expert in accounting, needed support from advisers to determine an accurate price for the turmeric powder from one kilogram (kg) of raw turmeric input.

In late 2020, Harman Singh Arora, the chief executive officer of Gtropy Pvt. Ltd. (Gtropy), a logistics technology provider in the logistics and transportation space, was considering the company’s future. Gtropy had disrupted the market with its GPS based fleet management solutions complemented by exhaustive data analytics since it was formed in 2019. The company’s quarterly growth was 40 per cent and they had a network of 350+ partners. However, Arora found in customer satisfaction surveys and feedback, that their clients were looking for centralized platforms for making all payments digitally and seamlessly. Arora sets his eye on big-ticket financial technology segment. However, his senior leadership team were not in the favour of moving so fast on Arora’s risky and difficult plan. But in this digital world of up or out, it was time to focus on the elephant in the room: Where should they invest its time and resources?

This case explores the unique challenges social entrepreneurs face in balancing social impact and growing their market reach. Jane Bloom, founder of Caring Caps, is passionate about this social cause and built a culture of giving back into the mission and vision of the organization. But operating a non-profit with the goal of growing can create significant strain on a founder and volunteers. The organization in this case provides knitted caps for cancer patients and fully embraces the inclusion of social mission, purpose, and vision into its everyday operations to create a significant social impact of individuals battling cancer.<br><br>Caring Caps has had minimal awareness since its inception in 2013 and is looking to evolve into something beyond a community within a synagogue and to provide its “comfy” caps to more hospitals and cancer centers to reach those in need. One of the biggest challenges is to identify a growth model for Caring Caps to stay sustainable. What should Bloom do to position Caring Caps for future growth? What marketing should she consider?

Chengdu Jwell Co. Ltd. (Jwell) was established in July 2013 as a subsidiary of Pangang Group Investment Co. Ltd., a prominent state-owned enterprise. Jwell served as a comprehensive service platform, facilitating transactions, payments, and billing for various commodities, including steel, vanadium, titanium, and chemicals. Its digital transformation journey began in 2015 with the launch of its e-commerce platforms, and currently, its warehouse management relied on a smart warehouse chain based on digital warehouse technology. However, this approach faced challenges with respect to the real-time sharing of information about cargo and financial data and the lack of adequate support for security in e-commerce transactions, which hindered Jwell's further development.

In September 2022, inspired by personal experiences, marketing executive Nicole Bezinski decided to set up GirlsTakeOver.org (GTO) after recognizing that teenage girls and young women in high schools and colleges in the United States were lacking coping mechanisms to help them manage increased stress and performance pressures. While schools received numerous new education program ideas annually, they were highly selective about which programs met the stringent criteria and were accepted. Consequently, Bezinski found herself with the challenge of proving that non-profit GTO offered students the self-management and coping benefits they needed. A high-impact proof-of-concept model was critical for GTO to receive serious consideration and acceptance by schools. Acceptance would lead to support, advocacy, and critical financial sponsorship from numerous stakeholders to enable GTO to launch and run operations in the first year. Bezinski had to finalize her proposal including the proof of concept before schools began accepting new education program applications.

In January 2024, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Neha Enterprises (NE), based in Meerut, India, faced challenges in operating his custom pipe-trading business due to declining profitability and resource constraints. NE was a customized pipe trading and manufacturing company that, over the last 30 years, had focused primarily on resolving customers’ problems through customization, precise cutting, and finishing of pipes. It had 900 small and 10 large, specialized customers. After the COVID-19 pandemic strained profit margins, the CEO was exploring new avenues such as offering contract manufacturing for gym equipment, e-rickshaws, and wall beds. Contract manufacturing provided profit margins that were much higher than those earned through traditional pipe customization, but the CEO quickly realized the risk of juggling both a traditional trading business and contract manufacturing. Now, he had to decide whether to disengage from the customized pipe business or continue with contract manufacturing. Should the company standardize or reduce its trading portfolio, form a new contract manufacturing firm, or focus on serving a few medium and large customers?

Over a decade ago, Jazz, Pakistan’s largest data operator, embarked on a transformative journey toward fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) within its organizational culture. Spearheaded by the vision of the chief executive officer and supported by a dedicated leadership team, Jazz undertook initiatives to create a gender-inclusive workplace. The organization introduced programs to support married women, women with children, and women returning to work after a career break. Despite significant progress, the leadership and DEI teams at Jazz believed there was more to achieve. In March 2024, Jazz leadership gathered at the Islamabad office to discuss what additional initiatives they could take to further improve the lives and livelihood of women in Pakistan.

By March 2022, the board of NTT DATA Group Corporation (NTT) had identified “innovation centers” as a critical investment priority of its midterm management plan. NTT, a multinational information technology services company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, provided a range of technology consulting services and industry solutions to large business customers. With the success of innovation centers in the US and Europe, NTT decided to explore whether to open innovation centers in countries such as India and China. If so, it needed to determine what capabilities to develop there. Hiroshi Furukawa, head of research and development (R&D) and innovation at NTT, had to identify the new innovation centers’ locations, define their formats, and plan for customer collaboration opportunities.

In 2018, Ali Elsakka, a senior employee in the planning and performance department at a Gulf Cooperation Council country public health care organization, embarked on the development of a new performance measurement system to enhance the organization’s health care services. Elsakka recognized the need to enhance the organization’s performance and decided to create a strategy map based on the four perspectives of the balanced scorecard framework. Through his research, he uncovered common challenges in implementing this performance measurement framework in the health care sector, including inadequate communication, limited employee empowerment, and lack of consensus. Determined to address these issues, Elsakka believed that involving leaders in the development process would enhance their engagement and commitment. He recognized the strategy map as a powerful tool to effectively communicate the organization’s objectives. However, Elsakka faced the daunting task of designing a strategy map for a large health care organization and obtaining the approval of its employees.

Sonali Saini was the founder of Sol’s ARC, a nonprofit organization that worked to benefit neurodiverse individuals. She had just returned from a meeting with senior representatives of a leading organization at which they expressed concerns about hiring neurodiverse people. She had managed to persuade them to agree to another meeting in 15 days, at which she planned to try to address their concerns. Saini was contemplating three strategic options: (a) developing a compelling business case by leveraging the past success stories of organizations that had benefited from hiring neurodiverse individuals, (b) channelling additional resources into advocacy and awareness efforts to change corporations’ perceptions of neurodiverse talent, and (c) offering additional services such as job mapping and carving jobs that are suited to neurodiverse individuals.

In May 2023, Lei Yang, general manager of Jiangsu Tianan Smart Science and Technology Co. Ltd. (Tianan), based in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, China, was deciding how to improve his company’s profitability. In its early days, Tianan had sold in-vehicle infotainment devices to automobile companies, and in 2014, it started installing in-vehicle software systems and driver terminals. But from 2010 to 2017, the company lost money. So when the Chinese government announced in 2018 its plan to create internet of vehicle (IoV) pilot zones throughout China, Yang recognized this as an opportunity to transform his company and get rid of its losses. He restructured Tianan’s team, integrated its hardware and software suppliers, took advantage of the government’s help, and turned Tianan into an IoV system service provider. Tianan was profitable in 2020, 2021, and 2022—but Yang was not yet satisfied. Despite the turnaround, the company’s revenue still came primarily from the government, its project delivery capacity was too low to increase sales volume, and its limited bargaining power led to high purchase costs from suppliers. Now, in 2023, what could Yang do to improve his company’s profitability?