個案總覽

In 2007, global building products company Lafarge purchased a dilapidated factory in northern Syria and invested $680 million to build and operationalize a cement plant, thus establishing a Middle East presence. But Lafarge did not foresee the political instability caused by the escalation of the Syrian civil war between President Bashar al-Assad's military and Syrian rebel groups. Additionally, the terrorist group known as Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) entered the region, utilizing brutal tactics such as capture, torture, and beheadings, to spread fear and gain territorial control. By 2012, Lafarge had a difficult decision to make: close the plant or keep it operational? Closing the plant would result in a lost investment and could put local Syrian workers and their families into dire financial situations. Conversely, keeping the plant operational could risk the safety of employees and raise critical questions about Lafarge's ethical responsibilities amid the crisis.

The case follows the evolution of EnerGaia, a technology firm pioneering rooftop production of spirulina (blue-green algae) in developing markets. The narrative and discussion questions focus on the strategic choices of CEO Saumil Shah. Core questions regard Saumil's options for positioning his company within the value chain and the trade-offs he faces in pursuing a mid-end market in Europe for dry spirulina powder versus lower cost spirulina in the developing markets of Asia. The case describes how Saumil leverages reputation to obtain resources. EnerGaia wins various awards from development organisations (Blue Ocean, USAID) that love its mission to help the poor with a new farming system. A social mission also helps attract quality interns and biologists. A challenge of these financial and reputational influxes is that they enable the firm to continue without necessarily becoming profitable and that they may risk pushing the firm in a specific direction that may not be sustainable in the long-run. Now the firm may appear to be "going corporate", deviating from its roots and "springboarding" on the reputational advantages of a socially-oriented start-up model to become a profit-seeking biotech firm. In identifying and realising an emergent strategy, Saumil and his staff must wrestle with sustaining a consistent identity, allocating scarce resources, and building scalable processes. The case concludes by asking which direction its CEO should take for 2018: should he continue working towards developing markets in multiple countries while chasing development grant money as a social enterprise, or should he focus on commercial partnerships? Also, while working with his scientists, should the CEO continue his pursuit of an Eternal Ocean breakthrough to empower scaling of the EnerGaia solution across rural landscapes, or should he focus on pioneering farm-scale organics to supply high-priced spirulina (and the tech to produce it) to a rapidly growing European market?

This case describes the first investment decision of Tyson Ventures, the venture capital arm of Tyson Foods-the largest protein producer in the United States and one of the largest in the world. Throughout its history, Tyson shifted from producing raw protein to processing protein products and grew significantly, both organically as well as through acquisitions. Tyson Ventures aimed to invest in promising food startups related to sustainability and the case explores four possible investment strategies: plant-based proteins, lab-grown proteins, edible insect proteins, and traditional agriculture investments. Each option has implications for Tyson's operations and profitability, stakeholder perceptions, and sustainability goals. Students will analyze how established corporations in traditional industries, like food, are being disrupted by technology and innovations.

Stella Artois, an AB InBev brand, is the world's best-selling Belgian beer. In early 2017, Ricardo Tadeu, AB InBev Zone President for Africa, is planning the brand's entry into its next export market: South Africa. The case explores Stella's introduction strategies into three of its export markets---the UK (1976), the US (2000), and Mexico (2016)---examining the drivers of the brand's success as well as its failures. Students will analyze the brand's previous launches to determine what made it successful in some markets and not in others. They will apply these learnings to develop a strategy for the brand's introduction to the South African market. Beyond the central discussion of growth through international expansion, the case addresses issues of brand positioning for premium products, changing consumer perceptions, the use of cause marketing, category development and maturity, and competitive strategy.

In mid-2018 Sri Sri Tattva (SST), an Indian fast-moving consumer goods company (FMCG) company was planning to launch 1,000 exclusive stores across the country. Some 600 of these stores were expected to be operational by March 2019. The company had also announced its intention to enter 30 new countries, with a particular focus on Latin America, including Brazil and Argentina. The company leveraged, to a certain extent, the popularity and mass influence of its founder Sri Sri. With its wide range of ayurvedic and organic product categories, SST was poised to challenge established players such as Patanjali, Dabur, Hindustan Unilever, Emami and Himalaya in the FMCG market.

Mahindra Trucks and Bus Division (MTBD) of Mahindra & Mahindra is at an interesting stage of its evolution. Having gone through a bad patch with a product that was not quite up to the mark, it appears to have got the product right by early 2018 and truck sales had been going up in the country for the previous four years. While Mahindra & Mahindra as a company is a large firm with revenues of more than USD 15 billion, MTBD itself is a small player (INR 2400 crore , USD 350 million) within the firm and in an Indian truck industry that is dominated by goliaths, Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland that between them had more than 81% market share and a customer mindset that was loath to leave the comfort of a known brand. The case provides data on product specifications, prices, marketing communication, channels, positioning, the context and competition. The intention is to use the case to go through the steps involved in evaluating and developing and creating a marketing plan for MTBD to increase its market share from the 4% in 2018 to an intended 8% in 2022.

OpenSky.tv was founded in 2016 with the objective of getting people back to watching video content on television. The founder wanted all video content to be accessible through an Internet connection on the viewer's television. His company's platform located and brought together programs and videos that were of interest to each viewer, so viewers could have their own personalized video channel. One full year after its launch, OpenSky.tv wanted to focus on the Cantonese market, and then concentrate on Mandarin and English audiences. The founder was wondering what his platform's business model should be. How could he achieve his initial objective of creating a business-to-consumer (B2C) recommendation platform?

In June 2018, an intern at an investment firm was given the task of assessing the financial condition of Bon-Ton Holdings, Inc. (Bon-Ton), a leading US department store chain. In January 2018, it had entered into forbearance agreements with some of its lenders and announced store closures at 42 locations as part of its rationalization program. On February 4, 2018, it filed a voluntary petition for protection against bankruptcy and for reorganization. With the US retail industry already having witnessed more than 15 bankruptcies in 2017-the most in the last six years-would Bon-Ton survive? What measures could the company take to fight bankruptcy? What actions might put the company back on track?

In 2018, California-based Tesla Inc. (Tesla) seemed to be gaining momentum after a series of setbacks in the production of its mass-market Model 3 car. Tesla's partnership strategy, guided by founder and chief executive officer Elon Musk, had been key to its success, yet Tesla did not appear to be succeeding as a stand-alone firm. It continued to command a small portion of overall vehicle sales, it had not mastered mass-production techniques, and it had not solved its sales dilemma by receiving permission to bypass the car dealership network in the United States. Tesla would continue to need partners for growth even as the nature of its partnerships changed. The challenge was to determine Tesla's partnership strategy in the short to medium term.

In early April 2017, the newly-appointed business account manager at the Confederation Bank of Canada's branch in London, Ontario, was reviewing a long-term loan request for CA$1,500,000. The president of Yates Control Systems (YCS), an engineering company focused on providing automation solutions for manufacturing companies, had requested the loan to fund the purchase of a new facility for her company as part of a strategic expansion plan. YCS's president was a long-time client of the bank and was expecting a decision to be made about the loan within the next few days; otherwise, YCS's expansion could be delayed. However, the bank manager would have to ensure that granting the loan request would be financially feasible for the bank and that YCS's $50,000 line of credit, not used in several years, would still be sufficient.

Nintendo languished in last place during the console wars of the early 2000s, with game industry analysts suggesting that the Kyoto-based firm exit the gaming console market altogether. Instead, Nintendo used Blue Ocean Strategy to redefine market boundaries, creating the best-selling video-game console ever, the Nintendo Wii. Targeting noncustomers, the Wii outsold Sony's PlayStation and Microsoft's Xbox combined, until the market was disrupted by smartphones and tablets. Mobile technology targeted the same noncustomers, offering easy-to-understand games and controls, and Wii sales suffered. Nintendo initially responded by introducing a tablet-like console, the Wii U, a poor copy of the tablet experience that was a dismal failure. Stepping back, Nintendo again used Blue Ocean Strategy to "value innovate" with the Nintendo Switch, the only console to outpace the Wii in sales, and by moving into adjacent markets, working with businesses in which it held a minority stake to release the wildly popular Pokémon Go and other mobile games.

The case covers events leading to the hostile bid for AkzoNobel by PPG in 2017, the market response that it prompted, and Akzo's takeover defenses including the divestment of a division and large cash payout. Various scenarios (as a standalone; after an asset sale) are considered for the valuation of AkzoNobel, as is the rationale behind the various takeover bids by PPG. The role of activists in triggering the takeover process is highlighted. Alternative payout mechanisms (capital repayment, dividend payment, share buyback) are discussed.

WeWork has seen a decade of growth with a disruptive new service business model in a rapidly transforming industry: shared office space for start-ups (and increasingly for big companies) thanks to its understanding of workplace trends such as the 'gig' economy, the rise of millennials and Generation Z in the workforce, more collaborative office work and tech-enabled mobility of employees. It caters to freelancers and multinationals alike, all members of the 'co-working' community, as well as an ecosystem of likeminded entrepreneurs. The case allows discussion of customer-centricity in a B2B service context, and of how companies optimize - digitalize - the customer experiences by leveraging data. WeWork relies on analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to mine data from its global customer base for insights and deep learning that feed into next-gen office design and usage. Customers perform a job-to-be-done analysis using a means-end ladder to understand how WeWork creates an outstanding customer experience in a competitive, commoditized market. The case offers learning about service blueprinting and customer journey mapping when designing new services and/or improving existing ones. To deliver on its customer promise WeWork integrates the key building blocks of a superior business model, for example, alliances with strategic partners secure unique resources and distinctive competences, achieving cost-effective service excellence. Discussion culminates in future growth avenues following a corporate rebranding and reorganization into three business units under the umbrella "We" brand.

At the BMW Group, Gregor Gimmy, a serial entrepreneur and former consultant, introduces the Venture Client (VCL) model to engage with start-ups and boost corporate innovation. The case discusses its initial success at BMW and the rationale that drove Gimmy to establish a new model of external corporate venturing (ECV). It also provides background information on the key forces shaping the auto industry today, the challenges faced by legacy automakers as technological developments accelerate, and the emergence of new rules and new players.

In August 2018, Felicia Wong, Chief Investment Officer at 88 Capital, the investment arm of a Hong Kong family office, was considering investing in a bike-sharing company. The bike-sharing business was booming in China, with the two dominant players Mobike and ofo rapidly expanding. Mobike had been acquired for US$3.4 billion by Meituan Dianping, a food delivery company. ofo also had unicorn status with a roughly US$3 billion valuation. The bike-sharing industry could potentially disrupt the transportation industry. Bikes had the advantage of being able to bypass gridlocked streets and were more environmentally sustainable than private cars. In addition, the use of bikes promoted a healthier lifestyle and offered a prospective solution to the last mile problem for commuters who used public transport. But despite the many advantages of using dockless bikes, the practice brought about problems as these bikes were parked indiscriminately on pedestrian walkways and pedalled on busy roads. The industry also had too many players in China. In addition, bike-sharing companies were not yet profitable. Companies had prioritised gaining market share over making profits to increase the value of their respective platforms. It was expected that the industry would become more valuable should city planners approve plans to redesign transport networks to accommodate bikes. As at August 2018, the low rental fees and high capital expenditures were proving to be unsustainable. Mobike was the largest player in China and were likely to survive the industry's consolidation phase. The firm had strategic partnerships to help it reach critical mass and improve its service offerings. Wong wondered if it was worth investing in Mobike at this stage.

Argus Farm Stop is a year-round farmers market store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The owners launched the business with a mission to improve support for local farmers and offer the community better access to locally-produced food. The Argus model is a consignment arrangement so that farmers and other local producers can sell more directly to customers and retain more of the profit. However, though growing in revenue and having opened a second store location, Argus is not profitable. How can this business be scaled while still adhering to its mission?

BotGo was started in 2007 by Ravi Panchal, an engineer, after he lost motivation to continue at a managerial role at his job. A hands-on technical person, Panchal was inspired to create an underwater tank-cleaning robot. He started BotGo by bootstrapping it with his savings and roped in his friends for key positions in the company. He also started workshops for robotics education in colleges in order to sustain the company; he called this initiative BotLearn. In 2009, BotGo was incubated and Panchal started franchises for BotLearn as part of his growth plans. This led to a crisis within the company, escalating to a point where Panchal was forced to consider options. This case highlights the importance of a product-to-market fit and examines the decision to franchise in view of the case facts. The case also points towards the mistakes in crisis management, with particular emphasis on channel management. Towards the end of the case, Panchal is faced with a dilemma on whether to continue with the franchises or close them down. The dilemma is further accentuated since Panchal's decision would ultimately affect the growth of BotGo as well as directly challenge his intention to franchise.

Vedavoo is a new venture created by Scott Hunter, a driven entrepreneur, avid outdoorsman, and environmentalist who is passionate about fly fishing and the great outdoors. The case follows the challenges Scott faces in building new products for what appears at first to be a declining market opportunity. With severely limited resources, Scott sets about designing and making a signature product, the Sling Pack, that has the unique characteristic of staying fixed on the back as the sportsperson engages in the energetic action of fly casting in sport fishing. When Scott introduces the product line at an outdoor sports trade show, interest in the product line grows rapidly. Determined to grow his product line organically over time, the founder faces challenges in design, quality manufacturing, and meeting customer demand while staying true to his values. The case follows Scott as he develops his opportunity, resources, and team to build a potentially scalable enterprise in a competitive field of outdoor adventure sports accessories (backpacks and customized bags for climbing, fly fishing, and a variety of outdoor experiences). After several frustrating attempts to find manufacturers that could make the intricately designed Vedavoo sling pack product, Scott heeds Yvon Chouinard's (founder and CEO of Patagonia) advice to learn all aspects of the business by learning how to do everything himself, including the making of the product, in order to learn all of the ins and outs of each business process of the product and venture. Ultimately, Scott undergoes many of the tests facing an entrepreneur attempting to build a new venture: building a line of products with unique characteristics that customers value, building a team and strong culture to operate effectively, and finding resources to define and grow the venture throughout the startup and early growth process.

MDSC is a 501(c)(3) organization, professionally staffed with a mission to ensure individuals with Down syndrome are valued, included, and given opportunities to pursue fulfilling lives. Though dedicated to the families of Massachusetts, MDSC is gaining recognition as an innovator and being called upon to train and support organizations in other parts of the US and world. When the case opens, MDSC's executive director, Maureen Gallagher, is departing a strategic planning retreat. She and her Board members have come up with an exciting list of strategic initiatives, including areas for potential service expansion. However, current initiatives and needs of its steadily expanding community were beginning to overwhelm the current operational model. MDSC had the know-how, the ideas, and the drive to do more, but this operational reality would constrain further service expansion. In addition to specifying three overarching directives and four specific strategic initiatives to support these directives, the board also determined that MDSC would move to a state-of-the-art approach to support its growing list of state-of-the-art services. The approach would include a revamped operational model built upon an updated digital platform. With these changes, MDSC would be able to scale its services to families, increase its donations, and win more grants to help sustain the organization's good work. Though there is consensus in the vision, there are questions regarding the steps this small, resource-constrained organization should take to make this vision.