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Zibusiso Mkhwanazi, chief executive officer of Avatar South Africa, looked out of his office window in Johannesburg. Mkhwanazi was contemplating whether he should stay at Avatar or move on to new things. This question was triggered by a media briefing that South Africa's Minister of Health had just given in which he outlined the rollout for the COVID-19 vaccine. Avatar had been directly involved with the communication strategies the president of South Africa and the Ministry of Health used to reach the majority of the population in a country in which access to the internet was not equal. The work had been innovative, challenging, and a matter of life and death. Mkhwanazi had enjoyed and thrived on the work, and felt it had been the outstanding achievement of his career. Mkhwanazi had never stayed in a job when the job had stopped challenging him. He started his career when computer technology was disrupting the way organizations worked and communicated. Initially, he was motivated by money. However, he had achieved his goals and now had different motivations. At Avatar, he had helped develop a culture through faith-driven leadership, but Avatar no longer gave him the joy and fulfilment of working on the cutting edge of technology. His dilemma was whether he should stay at Avatar with the people he had come to love and care about, or leave to find something that would satisfy his passion for innovative and creative work.

Amid rising online content, modern consumers want a personalized online shopping experience and to be presented with products, services, and deals that are relevant and specific to them. Anil Bains launched Attryb to create a hyper-personalization stack to deliver a meaningful experience to each website user. Using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and statistical models, Attryb's predictive intelligence model could assess thousands of customer signals to create meaningful segments that increased acquisition, engagement, and sales for online sellers. However, small and medium companies establishing direct-to-consumer websites often lacked strong technological capabilities and were preoccupied with starting their businesses. How could Attryb convince these prospective clients about the economic benefits of its solution and communicate the value without being overly technical?

This case, described as the last big merger in the global beer industry, involves a valuation of the merged company using a basic discounted cash flow (DCF) methodology. Students are asked to calculate and compare the value of the merged entity with the standalone valuations of the respective companies to see if there is indeed value in merging. An additional consideration is the impact of a large net cash position on the company's stock price when growth stalls.

Strategy is as much for nation states as it is for companies, a point clearly demonstrated by El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele. Bukele set out to shift El Salvador from a violent red ocean of gang violence and low growth to a blue ocean of growth, prosperity, and hope as well as the start of reverse migration. The once 'homicide capital of the world' has emerged as the 'bitcoin capital of the world' and a worldclass surfing destination - gangs eradicated, peace restored after decades of violence, tourism flourishing, FDI and GDP on the rise, and citizen's earnings and well-being improved. And while some of Bukele's actions have been criticized by international organizations and media, El Salvadoran citizens' response: Bukele secured a landslide re-election victory in 2024 with 84% of the vote from across the political spectrum. The case illustrates how with a shift in perspective, strategic logic and actions, differentiation and low costs can be achieved to break out of the red ocean at a national level. It also demonstrates how, by identifying and leveraging factors of disproportionate influence, a major strategic shift can be executed fast while conserving resources. The case discusses Nayib Bukele's shift in the country's national strategy and challenges students to assess the pros and cons of the strategic shift he has forged for the country. It also asks students to reflect on possible alternative solutions to the dire national situation the country faced as the 'homicide capital of the world,' which had persisted for decades prior to Bukele.

The case showcases a variety of innovations at Ganga Hospital, a trauma care center located in Coimbatore, India. These innovations have helped the hospital handle large patient volumes. The DNA of innovation at Ganga is traced to the enterprising mindset of the founders and their sons. Trauma surgeries rely on precision. The case depicts the fallout of a clinical complication on the patient as well as the treating surgeon. By investing in technologies like computer-assisted 3D navigation, the directors have created a conducive atmosphere for consultants to safely undertake challenging surgeries. The principle of patient-centricity governs all activities at Ganga. The case elaborates on the factors helping the diffusion of these innovations.

PeriFerry is a pioneering social enterprise working toward creating sustainable livelihood opportunities and inclusive workplaces for transgender persons in India. Originally located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, PeriFerry has upskilled 320 transgender persons and sensitized more than 30,000 employees about their inclusion in the workplace. PeriFerry's founder and chief executive officer, Neelam Jain, does not believe in an extravagant showcase of effort. Instead, since she founded PeriFerry in 2017, her approach was that when transgender persons wished to transform their lives, they could locate and reach out to PeriFerry via the internet and various social media platforms like LinkedIn, X, Facebook, or Instagram or meet on-ground community representatives. But Jain is looking forward to PeriFerry's next five years and contemplating whether this approach will be relevant to scale social impact. Alternatively, Jain is considering adopting a proactive stance in reaching out to transgender people. This could involve extending its geographical coverage to include other cities in India and introducing a diverse range of services to provide holistic support for transgender persons. The new approach will allow PeriFerry to scale wide by reaching out to more trans people who are dispersed in various geographical locations in India who find it difficult to locate PeriFerry due to a lack of technological amenities. But Jain would also have to figure out the resources and capabilities required to scale its social impact. Jain must determine which strategy PeriFerry should pursue in the next 23 years.

In October 2021, the founder and chief executive officer of Microsign Products Ltd. in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India, was planning to expand the company, but wanted to ensure consistency for employees with disabilities. The company was planning to increase its list of products and expand its market by partnering with foreign companies. Despite his expansion plans, the founder wanted to continue his company's mission to "Able the disabled." He had been committed to social responsibility since launching the company in 1987 by hiring individuals with disabilities. He was now wondering if he needed new employee policies to support his vision of hiring people with disabilities into mainstream workplace positions and promote career growth for his employees. How would his expansion plans affect the company's work culture? How could he be sure to retain the "family" workplace model he had always promoted?

Akshali Shah, the promoter of Parag Milk Foods, was excited about the success of her brand, 'Pride of Cows,' which, despite being super-premium, was growing fast in the Indian market. The other two brands- 'Gowardhan' and 'Go' brands were performing well. However, her mind was continuously distracted with the thought of scaling up and 'What next for Parag Milk Foods (PMF)'? The Indian dairy market had been primarily about liquid milk and was highly commoditized due to a lack of differentiation and premiumization. She had to make decisions on how to scale up. Should the company introduce more products or consolidate the existing ones?

The accounts manager at the Commercial Bank of Canada, was reviewing a loan application from Pasquale's Pizzeria, located in Sarnia, Ontario. The business owner was ready to expand his family's business to London, Ontario, having requested a $300,000 long-term loan to finance the renovations and equipment to begin operations in London. They also requested a $20,000 line of credit to help fund the day-to-day operations of the business. The restaurant had never requested a loan of such magnitude, nor had the business undergone an expansion in its lifetime. With COVID-19 changing the food delivery landscape, the accounts manager was confident in his ability assess whether or not Pasquale's was ready to take on this expansion plan.

Serena Khan, a fictional analyst at an investment management firm, was tasked with evaluating a potential investment in Robinhood Markets, Inc. in March 2023. Known for its sleek interface and zero-commission trades, Robinhood aimed to "democratize finance" by making investment products widely accessible. The company saw a surge in users during the COVID-19 pandemic but came under fire for its role in the meme-stock craze and its revenue model based on payment for order flow. Robinhood had struggled since its 2021 IPO as the number of active users declined and shares fell over 80% from their highs. This case encourages students to explore key themes relevant to a broad range of fintech companies and provides an opportunity to discuss the role of wholesale market makers in trade execution, the economics of PFOF, and the gamification of investing.

Founder Duncan McIntyre developed an innovative service-based business to electrify transportation fleets for school districts and scale through public-private partnerships while contributing to climate change solutions. The case covers the rationale for electric school buses, the leadership of its founder, its growth from one customer to many over five years, and relationships with multiple stakeholders in a complex system. Highland Electric Fleets contracted with school districts in the U.S. and Canada to supply and service electric school buses, offering to lower costs for the districts, even those who were not climate action supporters. Ancillary benefits included providing power back to the electric grid, reducing the use of fossil fuels and emission of greenhouse gases, and cleaner air for children. But just as McIntyre was envisioning expanding to electrify other transportation fleets, supply chain challenges leave McIntyre with the dilemma of how to deal with the possible defection of its largest customer because of buses failing to be delivered in time.

In late November 2023, OpenAI's new board of directors took stock of the situation. The company, which sought to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI)-computer systems with capabilities exceeding human abilities-was looking to regain its footing after a chaotic leadership and governance crisis that played out a week earlier. The previous board had stunned observers by firing CEO Sam Altman and removing him from the board for unspecified reasons. Days later, Altman was back as CEO, directors resigned, and a new three-person board formed with Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo, the only continuing director. The new directors faced an urgent set of issues-around OpenAI's governance, how to build out the board, AI ethics and safety, and their relationship with a CEO one of them had helped fire. Their quandary was complicated by OpenAI's unique mission to create AGI to benefit all of humanity and by its unusual structure as a non-profit controlling a for-profit entity. The AI it sought to develop had the potential to be world-changing-for better, or for worse-and the world was watching closely as the board sought a path forward.

"Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Personalization" (HBS No. 524-052) investigates algorithmic bias in marketing through four case studies featuring Apple, Uber, Facebook, and Amazon. Each study presents scenarios where these companies faced public criticism for algorithmic biases in marketing interventions, encompassing promotion, product, price, and distribution. The case is designed to enhance students' understanding of algorithmic bias in personalized marketing. It encourages discussions on its causes and strategies for detection and mitigation. A key learning is that such bias is often unintentional and can occur without data errors or underrepresentation in the sample. A central theme is the trade-off between optimization and fairness in algorithmic decision-making. Overall, these case studies provide comprehensive discussions on the causes, implications, and solutions to algorithmic bias in personalized marketing, complemented by the technical note "Algorithm Bias in Marketing" (HBS No. 521-020) that accompanies the case.

This is the first of a three-case series that explores the challenges faced by Uniswap, a key player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. Founded by Hayden Adams, the case traces Uniswap's rapid growth from a simple idea inspired by a Reddit post to becoming one of the leading decentralized exchanges in Web3, with trading volumes peaking at $6 billion in the summer of 2020. The case zeroes in on a critical moment when Uniswap is threatened by a "vampire attack" from SushiSwap, a rival that forks Uniswap's open-source code to launch a competing service, threatening to drain its liquidity. Adams faces the dilemma of how he should respond to the rise of SushiSwap. The case delves into the competitive dynamics of the DeFi ecosystem, challenges of open-source software, and strategic responses to market disruptions.

Adam Shapiro and Graham Duncan launched East Rock Capital, LLC in 2006 with a seed investment from Stuart Miller, executive chairman of Lennar Corporation. East Rock managed long-term assets for high-net-worth families, primarily working with external managers who had proven themselves at larger firms and had recently launched firms of their own. This approach allowed the organization to build a network of small and mid-size investment firms that it viewed as a source of investing edge. Shapiro considered how East Rock should approach growth going forward.

Winter Storm Elliott was a major storm system that grounded air travel across the United States in the days before and after Christmas of 2022. While other major airlines recovered quickly and got passengers to their destinations, Southwest Airlines Co. struggled to recover, cancelling thousands of flights and stranding millions of people over the holidays. The president and CEO of Southwest, Bob Jordan, had only been in his position for about 10 months, and public pressures and media attention tested his leadership. This case explores Jordan's handling of the crisis and the internal and external responses it provoked. The case can be used for a discussion about the symbolic role of leaders during crises, as well as the impacts of making an authentic apology and working to restore trust.

This case addresses managing critical mineral supply chains by focusing on cobalt used in lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries and the impact of mining operations in Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Minespider, a Berlin-based start-up, tackled these issues with a blockchain platform. Following blockchain's evolution since Bitcoin in 2009 and Ethereum in 2015, Minespider developed the digital battery passport (DBP). Minespider's broad industry application highlighted its potential for tracking materials, ethical sourcing, and supply chain transparency. In 2017, Minespider focused on understanding the market, identifying ideal customers for their unique blockchain solution and partnerships, optimizing supply chain management, and showcasing blockchain's value in this sector in order to make the most impact.

The Indian Premier League (IPL), a Twenty20 cricket league, underwent a transformative shift in 2022 as the IPL governing council conducted an e-auction for media rights, valuing them at US$5.64 billion. Viacom18 secured digital rights for $2.57 billion, highlighting the growing significance of online platforms. Disney Star invested $3.02 billion in exclusive TV and over-the-top rights, contributing to the IPL's global popularity and revenue. Special packages, including weekend matches, attracted diverse investors, elevating the league to the second-highest globally-after the US National Football League. Unbundling media rights increased competition, emphasizing the elevated value of digital rights. Amidst competition between Disney+ Hotstar and Jio, strategic evaluation became crucial for the IPL's position in the evolving sports broadcasting landscape, raising questions about global reach, digital engagement, revenue enhancement, and the pivotal role of media rights in sports property growth and valuation.

In March 2020, the leadership team at Toronto General Hospital (TGH) needs to plan resources to accommodate the new influx of COVID-19 ICU patients. Key resources for ICU capacity include beds, physicians, nurses, and PPE. The current demand coming from two streams of patients (elective surgeries & emergencies) is expected to overwhelm the ICU capacity, but by slowing down elective surgeries, TGH can mitigate the situation. The optimal proportion of COVID to total ICU patients must be analyzed considering the impact on physicians, nurses, patients awaiting elective surgeries, and PPE. The case allows students to take the role of a hospital leader deciding on allocating capacity across resource pools and recommend an ICU action plan.

It was June 2023, when Dr. Himanshu Awasthi, founder of Prajiv Farm Solutions, considered expanding his business by addressing the challenges in the agricultural sector, particularly fodder production. Recognizing the issues faced by Indian farmers-low productivity, lack of technical knowledge, and reliance on monsoons-he had decided to specialize in cultivating green fodder crops for livestock feed. He understood that fodder crops improved soil fertility, reduced soil erosion, and diversified income streams. Starting in 2016, Prajiv Farm Solutions cultivated hybrid fodder crops including sorghum, berseem, and Napier grass on its 24-acre farm. Six years later, it was time to scale up. As a low-value, high-volume crop, the challenges differed for fodder cultivation. Delivery of green fodder was also a time-bound activity, and the company had found it challenging to reach distant markets. Awasthi wondered what the most suitable model would be for scaling up. Could he convince other farmers to take up fodder as a business? How could he reach more distant markets? Would a hub and spoke model be suitable? Awasthi also wondered whether forming farmer-producer organizations was a viable solution to address scalability. He had to consider the strengths and weaknesses of each option before deciding on the most feasible.