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<p align="justify">James Urdang, founder of Education Africa, registered the non-profit organization (NPO) in 1992. While the dismantling of apartheid laws and legacies began in the early 1990s, the systemic impact of centuries of oppression required more than just a change in political leadership. The education system, challenged by the historical injustices of apartheid (and its colonial precursors), had been deeply impacted. Urdang set up Education Africa with the objective of contributing positively to the goal of equitable and quality education and aligned with the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goal of quality education for all. One of Education Africa’s flagship programs was the South African Model UN (SAMUN).<br><br\>As an NPO, Education Africa relied on donor funding for its projects. A corruption scandal in 2010 left the organization severely financially compromised. While most of the NPO’s projects, such as the Early Childhood Development project, had sufficient funding to be sustainable, SAMUN had not been able to run since 2017 due to a lack of funding. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in much of the organization’s funding coming to an end in 2020. The pandemic’s effect on global travel further exacerbated the sense that it would be difficult to reinstate SAMUN. How could Urdang source funding for SAMUN in the global pandemic context and financial constraints to ensure the long-term financial sustainability of Education Africa?<p/>

Managers at the Chinese state-owned hydropower development company Jiuzhaigou Hydropower Development Co. (JHDC), in Sichuan Province, were considering using photovoltaic (PV) power generation in the wake of carbon-emission regulations. After JHDC was founded in 2003, it built five hydropower stations, its original and traditional power-generation mode. When China proposed its double-carbon policy, JHDC’s general manager realized it was time to explore new approaches to electricity generation, and the breeze and sunshine of the Jiuzhaigou Valley led him to consider wind and PV power. Following a lengthy discussion among its board of directors and shareholders, JHDC made a strategic decision to expand its capacity by embracing new methods of electricity generation. Now the key question was, What was the best strategy for JHDC, as a traditional utility company, to adopt this new technology?

In 2021, the Vancouver-based Universal Outreach Foundation (UOF) collaborated with the Rocky Mountain Soap Company (RMS), a Canadian natural beauty products company, to launch a soap-making venture for Liberia Pure, a business established by UOF and owned by and for Liberians. RMS then contributed a one-time donation to support the distribution of soap during Global Handwashing Day. This case highlights the different forms and levels of sustainability associated with corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects. Students consider how to make CSR a strategic advantage for the firm, rather than relying on regulatory incentives or emotion to ensure continued corporate support. It further looks at the sustainability of the impact on the recipients after the firm leaves.

In early 2022, Rajendra Jaiswal was in a quandary about the future of the collective enterprise Diwak Mata Farmer Producer Company Limited (Diwak Mata), which his organization, Prakriti Foundation for Natural Resources Regeneration (Prakriti), had helped incubate and grow. Since Diwak Mata’s registration in 2018, Prakriti had helped it develop connections with various value chain participants and overcome the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. With a supportive Board of Directors (BoD) and an able chief executive officer (CEO) in Rakesh Sen, Diwak Mata was recognized as one of the better-performing producer companies in the region and had growing revenues with fluctuating profits. Looking at the figures of the audited balance sheet, Jaiswal wondered whether Prakriti should withdraw its support to the producer company. Were Diwak Mata’s BoD of farmers and the CEO strong enough to chart the organization’s own path? Could they create sufficient ownership from the stakeholders for sustained growth in Prakriti’s absence? Should Prakriti remain loyal to Diwak Mata or exit and continue its core activities with other communities?

The cannabis industry in Canada has experienced unprecedented growth since the Cannabis Act came into effect in 2018. It is widely expected that cannabidiol (CBD) will be classified as a food and natural health ingredient in Canada, the European Union, and other jurisdictions in the near future, which will open up a significant market. In 2023, Dr. Jacqueline Shan, the CEO of PBG BioPharma, made a long-term strategic decision to enter the cannabis consumer health market by launching a series of CBD consumer health products once the cannabis regulations in Canada are relaxed. In preparing to launch its own consumer product line, PBG BioPharma is developing its marketing strategy and analyzing potential challenges in managing its supply chain.

In 2022, the India-based patient-centred integrative oncology start-up ZenOnco was struggling with brand equity and impact. The company had introduced two innovative apps—Ziopar and CANNECT—to help empower, educate, and enable patients and caregivers to access scientifically-based information and support on cancer treatment. However, the company had yet to become the most sought-after platform for cancer guidance. More than a dozen oncology start-ups were springing up across India’s fragmented, disorganized, and complex cancer-care industry, known for service-delivery issues and high drug costs. ZenOnco’s biggest challenge was brand building and navigating the customer service journey to become the preferred destination for free and low-cost, fact-based cancer-care guidance, counselling, and support.

<p align=”justify”>US-registered Emerging Markets Development Group (EMDG), a small but successful international consulting firm that provided development assistance in emerging and post-conflict regions, bet big on a project in Southeast Asia in 2008 that was financed by a Small Business Administration (SBA)-guaranteed loan issued by a local bank. The project failed, with catastrophic results. After seven years of attempting to dig themselves out of the hole, the principals were out of cash and needed to either significantly restructure the balance of EMDG’s outstanding loan or shut the firm down. Complicating the situation was the possibility that a former partner, who had left the firm over nine years before, might be held liable for the current debt.</p>

A female entrepreneur in Ghana developed a transportation company that provided services for national and large multinational organizations in the country. A key service that Pergah Transport Limited (Pergah) offered was vehicles and drivers for the executive expatriates of multinationals. The drivers for that service were employed by Pergah but embedded with the contracting companies. Pergah’s remaining employees—mechanics, other drivers, and support staff—were based out of the company’s premises in Accra.<br><br>The employees at Pergah’s premises were paid above the employment standards for Ghanaians; however, the drivers who were embedded with the multinational companies were compensated according to the standards established by those companies. The variance between local and multinational standards for employees of the same company led to differences in job satisfaction, motivation, and compensation. The Pergah-based employees were paid fairly, and increasing their rate to the multinational level would have posed financial challenges to the company. How, then, could Pergah address the discrepancy and resolve these issues?

Nreach Online Services Private Limited (doing business as Xoxoday) is a technology company that builds digital infrastructure for rewarding employees, customers, and partners through perks, incentives, and disbursement payouts. Incorporated in 2018, it has grown at a scorching pace; in just a little over three years, it has acquired more than one thousand clients that leverage their technology infrastructure to run rewards programs for about two million end-users. Xoxoday has built a sizable suite of reward, recognition, and motivation products for three target segments: (1) corporate workforces, (2) customers and channel partners, and (3) sales teams. The product lines for these three client groups are called Empuls, Plum, and Compass, respectively.<br><br>Employee well-being, both physical and emotional, has been a challenge for Xoxoday’s Empuls (corporate workforce) clients. These challenges have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Another issue apparently catalyzed by the pandemic—and with which corporate employers were grappling, given that most of their workforce had been working remotely since 2020—was that of attrition. Xoxoday’s Empuls clients are looking for novel solutions to stem the tide of what is now famously called the “Great Resignation.” Should Xoxoday implement gamification as a strategic solution to encourage well-being behaviours among the workforce of its corporate clients and to arrest attrition? Why and how could Xoxoday demonstrate responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) while deploying gamification as a strategic solution for addressing the two key human resources management (HRM) challenges of employee well-being and attrition? How can trust pose a potential challenge to the implementation of AI-based HRM solutions? Which approach to business model innovation should Xoxoday adopt while offering such solutions?

Sharmaji’s Canteen was the only cafeteria on the campus of a prominent management institute in Gurgaon, India. The business had been operating since 1990 and its success depended on a captive residential population of primarily students and staff. The lockdowns imposed by the Government of India in March 2020 to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus led to the closure of the academic programs. During the pandemic, students had become accustomed to more choices offered by online food delivery that they felt Sharmaji’s Canteen did not match. The business was losing sales and profitability was eroding. The owner needed to decide between three different revival strategies based on the data collected.

Greenkraft Private Limited (Greenkraft) supplied artisanal products to global clients and was an India-based not-for-profit organization. The company worked to address the socio-economic needs of artisan women. For 800 women workers, the Greenkraft production unit symbolized independence and pride, motivating them to work and deliver quality output. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Greenkraft was compelled to adopt home production to supplement production unit operations to fulfil its supply obligations. With the rapid spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in January 2022, Greenkraft’s management had to choose a production and fulfilment strategy in the new normal. They considered adapting production unit operations with the COVID-19-related protocols, changing to complete home-based production, or adopting a hybrid model with part production unit and part home production. The change in the production strategy impacted Greenkraft's business viability and producers’ livelihood, needing careful thought and implementation.

AstraEye Pharma Pvt Ltd.: An Unsettling Dilemma (APP) was an ophthalmology pharmaceutical company that drew 80 per cent of its revenue from the artificial-tears segment. Elena Sanders was responsible for drafting a turnaround strategy for increasing market share by building prescription momentum, improving operational efficiency, and devising a renovated digital strategy. Based on the available options, Sanders had to decide between improving operational efficiencies for an existing brand—Rejuvenate at a 0.5 per cent carboxymethyl cellulose concentration—or launching a new product—Fresh Plus at a 0.3 per cent hyaluronic acid concentration—to cater to a greater number of patients. She was also tasked with sharing an important element of digital strategy: launching APP’s health-care-providers-and-practitioners engagement website or launching a microsite on a third-party online community platform for doctors (i.e., the Health Support Network for Professionals). The decision was urgent, as Sanders had to present her position during the annual strategy meeting scheduled for March 2022.

FlowerAura.com (FA)—established in 2010 in Gurgaon, India—was an online-first gifting company. FA offered door-to-door delivery of flowers, cakes, and gift items, along with personalized messages, across two hundred cities in India. In early 2022, the co-founder and chief executive officer of FA needed to revitalize the FA brand to drive sales and margins. He debated whether to (a) adopt a more aggressive sales initiative, which would elicit strong competitive retaliation, or (b) build the FA brand, which could increase the gross margins without a competitive response. The bottom line was that he had to make the best decision for his company in the short and long term.

Ehmke Manufacturing Company, Inc., a technical fabric products company established in 1929 in Philadelphia, United States, was facing challenges attracting and retaining employees. In the first half of 2022, issues such as critical open positions and an exponential number of resignations were being experienced across numerous industries around the globe. On June 1, 2022, the company’s chief executive officer met with his entire management team to discuss his company’s dilemma and various options, including the reputation of the company’s brand. He had to decide how to manage the increasing workforce challenge, despite unprecedentedly high demand for his company’s products and services. His company’s growth projections, from a relatively small company to a medium-size international business, did not account for customer disappointments due to product order delays, especially considering that the company manufactured products used for critical search-and-rescue, military, and other governmental applications in the United States and allied countries. The chief executive officer had three options: accept current conditions, increase wages and benefits, or outsource production.

In early 2020, Scarcity Labs Inc. (Scarcity Labs) was created as a spinoff from ViewFin Canada Corporation, a financial technology company providing a wide range of blockchain and cryptocurrency services. Scarcity Labs’ chief executive officer (CEO) and chief product officer (CPO) sat in the company’s Toronto office discussing potential opportunities for blockchain applications. In particular, they pondered the possibility of developing a non-fungible token (NFT) platform for artist, where works of art could be turned into NFTs, which people could then buy and sell. The CEO and CPO wondered what Scarcity Labs needed to do to successfully launch such a platform.

Radius Synergies International Pvt. Ltd. (RSIPL), which came into existence in 2010, was a pioneer in implementing prepaid smart metering solutions in Delhi, National Capital Region (NCR), India. RSIPL was created as an independent entity to focus on harnessing contemporary technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, cloud computing, and mobility and leveraging them for the energy market that its parent, Radius Group (Radius), had been serving through conventional products and solutions for more than two decades. Though the company faced many challenges with respect to the use and acceptance of the new technology, it had still been successful in implementing the solutions and had been able to achieve consistent growth in its annual revenues. On March 21, 2022, Mr. H. S. Singh, RSIPL’s managing director, had a meeting with his executive management team to discuss the strategy for expanding RSIPL’s smart metering solutions and leveraging the IoT platform developed for additional potential business opportunities. Should the company try to obtain external funding? Should it focus on increasing market reach for existing products and solutions or venture into new products or services that could be spin-offs of the IoT platform and expertise developed so far?

The case highlights the challenges encountered by a corporate life and health insurance leader while dealing with an underperforming employee, Tina Smith, in 2016 in Toronto, Ontario. It provides an overview of the process involved in performance management, including steps associated with exiting an employee from an organization. The protagonist in this case, Alexandra Thorn, also encountered challenges in her working relationship with Smith. Thorn was a lesbian and was open about this fact with her team and clients. Smith felt that in sharing information about her sexuality, Thorn jeopardized her business relationship with their clients; consequently, Smith suggested that Thorn not accompany her to meetings with clients in their Southwestern Ontario region, which included a large, traditional farming community. During a client meeting, Thorn witnessed Smith displaying inappropriate behaviour that stemmed from Smith’s implicit bias and discomfort with diversity. After Thorn reported her concerns to the company’s human resources (HR) partner, however, she was informed that the incident did not warrant intervention. As a values-based leader aligned with the organization’s commitment to diversity and inclusivity, Thorn had to consider how to proceed.

In May 2022, Ethiopian social entrepreneur Berhanu Gebeyehu had to decide on next steps for his clean drinking water business, Brightwater Ethiopia (Brightwater), which he had begun in 2019 in the southern town of Dilla. Ninety-six per cent of Dilla’s households had reported on surveys that the clean water available in the town was inadequate for their needs and that school-aged girls regularly missed class because they bore the burden of collecting water, often from unsafe sources. Following two successful years of business, during which Gebeyehu had striven to contribute to the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs) by providing clean drinking water and boosting gender equality while also making a profit, Gebeyehu now wanted to reduce his business’s dependency on the foreign non-governmental organization (NGO) that had helped fund and set up the business. He was also considering expanding his social enterprise’s model across Ethiopia as well as developing a capability that would deliver clean water in plastic bottles.

The mission of Edmonton Opera Association (Edmonton Opera), a not-for-profit arts organization founded in 1963, was to bring the community together through meaningful artistic experiences. In 2017, when Edmonton Opera developed a strategic plan, it incorporated this mission into the plan and used it as the basis for a new direction for the next five years. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed the way Edmonton Opera carried out its mandate, and as a result, it had to suspend the implementation of the 2017–2022 strategic plan. But with a return to pre-pandemic operations in late 2021, Edmonton Opera’s management and board members were eager to restore the original five-year strategic plan, and the board was eager to assess the strategic initiatives and effectiveness of Edmonton Opera's mission. The plan had, at its core, the four dimensions of the balanced scorecard system—finances, customers, learning and growth, and internal business processes—but management would have to devise their own balanced scorecard measures.

Lil Mixins was a Philadelphia-based infant health company founded in 2017 with a dual commitment to purpose and profit. Motivated by her experiences as a mother of a son who had several food allergies, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) developed and launched a product line of powders that could be mixed in infants’ diets to immunize them against food allergens. She kept the price low to make it easily endorsable by pediatricians and insurance payers and more available to lower-income households. After three years of operations, however, the adoption rate was slower than projected. The CEO considered introducing a new higher-priced product that could keep the business going, but it excluded the broader market she had hoped to serve. How could she preserve her company’s accessibility and social goals while ensuring Lil Mixins’ viability?