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Cynthia is a newly hired software developer at MainFrame, which uses Scrum to manage projects. But she agrees with her coworkers that the company's methodical and deliberate pace is inferior to the quicker, more loosely structured approach of her previous employer, which used Flow. So when a colleague approaches her and asks her to use her impressive background and credentials to advocate for Flow, Cynthia agrees. But after her pilot project produces mixed results, she wonders whether she should proceed with a presentation to the process-improvement board. Two experts weigh in: Sonali Raut, a senior data scientist at Munich RE Automation Solutions, and Alex Estevam, a technical program manager at Mastercard.

Cynthia is a newly hired software developer at MainFrame, which uses Scrum to manage projects. But she agrees with her coworkers that the company's methodical and deliberate pace is inferior to the quicker, more loosely structured approach of her previous employer, which used Flow. So when a colleague approaches her and asks her to use her impressive background and credentials to advocate for Flow, Cynthia agrees. But after her pilot project produces mixed results, she wonders whether she should proceed with a presentation to the process-improvement board. Two experts weigh in: Sonali Raut, a senior data scientist at Munich RE Automation Solutions, and Alex Estevam, a technical program manager at Mastercard.

David Den Herder and Jamal Aqel, equal partners of Marceco Ltd., a national U.S. prepaid wireless distributor of Boost Mobile and a Sprint (now T-Mobile) retailer, headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan needed to make a divestiture decision. From a 'kitchen-table' business started in 1995, Marceco experienced exponential growth through organic, inorganic, and hybrid strategies to become a firm with US$710 million in revenues, over 1,800 business-to-business (B2B) Boost Mobile retail locations, and over 100 owned and operated T-Mobile retail locations in 2020. T-Mobile required Marceco to choose between its two divisions and had a strong exclusivity clause to impose this requirement. Den Herder and Aqel needed to decide which of Marceco's divisions to divest: the business-to-consumer (B2C) division, representing T-Mobile, or the business-to-business (B2B) division, representing Boost Mobile, acquired by DISH Network after the merger. Both divisions were operating well internally and had growth opportunities, but each one was with carriers that became direct competitors after the T-Mobile-Sprint merger's approval. Since selling both divisions was not a consideration, in order to decide what division to divest, which carrier is potentially better to partner with, and which division is more strategic to Marceco's bottom line?

Executive Director Nicole Fuhsel faced a difficult decision: Was she going to take a more resource-light approach and do the bare minimum to simply meet legal requirements for health and safety at the company, or take a more resource-heavy approach to develop a program that truly supported the health and safety of staff and satisfied her personal drive to 'go above and beyond'. With limited resources available (time, people, money) and negative implications inherent in both options, the decision will be difficult to make. The case provides an outline of LINX business operations - a not for profit disability service organization that is heavily reliant on government grants, Nicole Fuhsel's background, and the current state of the safety program and staff-focused safety issues. There is no direct timeline or due date pressing upon Fuhsel. The Government of Alberta has already suggested that LINX' program is minimally sufficient and therefore there is not a legal compliance rationale to further develop the program. The question is whether Fuhsel decides to invest scarce resources to making improvements to the program to better support the safety of her staff and satisfy her personal drive for program excellence, or leaves the program as it is.

ENGINO Toys is a decision-oriented case which is set in Cyprus (EU) at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. The main protagonist is Costas Sisamos, the owner and Managing Director of ENGINO, Cyprus-based producer of STEM-oriented construction toys. In April 2020, the owner was overwhelmed by the disruptive shock caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and was wondering how he should react to this business challenge, and whether the orders from international distributors were delayed simply due to the pandemic or was this a sign of a coming collapse of his business model. Using distributors was a well-established practice in the toys business, but for over a year now Costas Sisamos had worried if that was the right business model for the future. His thoughts leapt to the idea of a STEM subscription box which had been in the back of his mind for some time. With rapid changes happening in the toy industry, the owner felt that he needed to consider new directions and new strategies. Coincidentally, there came an opportunity to bid for a local research grant. The owner was looking to answer three questions: "Will the STEM Box be profitable, and will the subscription project breakeven in year 2, as ideally expected? How do the financial projections fit into the overall strategic assessment? Based on the analysis, shall ENGINO proceed with subscriptions or not?"

In November 2022 the program coordinator for digital innovation projects at Europe's largest port, in Rotterdam (Port), wanted to invest in new systems that could synchronize several modes of container transportation (e.g., river, rail, road) in real time. Governance bodies at all levels (Port, City, State, European Union) had expressed interest in digital platforms for this purpose, but a key obstacle was that many of the Port partners refused to share real-time data that were essential for refining algorithms that would control synchromodal capabilities on a transport platform. This was one of several obstacles to synchronizing transport modes (which could greatly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Port's logistics operations). In a meeting of logistics consortium representatives, this program's coordinator and other leaders discussed the opportunities and challenges involved in synchromodal transport. The case protagonist - Beatrix Linssen - soon after this meeting end, would need to present a report to her superiors and colleagues, discussing why it was necessary and desirable to invest in an IT - enabled synchromodal transport capability, and recommend how to go about doing this (despite that partners will never share the required data).

Andrés Perez had one month leading up to March 30, 2022, to present the available alternatives and his recommendation to the family council, which would determine the future of Arqustik Vitruvio S.A.S. The company in Palmira, Colombia, specializes in producing PVC doors and windows and has been grappling with a severe financial crisis over the past four years. This crisis was primarily attributed to inadequate management under the previous administration, further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the social unrest experienced in Colombia in April 2021. Andrés found himself at a crossroads, faced with the crucial decision of recommending the most favorable course of action to his family. The available options were to either retain ownership of the company by restructuring the debt and introducing new product lines, sell it to a construction company that had presented a concrete offer, or consider the proposition of an external partner specialized in door and window manufacturing, who had expressed interest in buying 40% of shares. His recommendation needed to balance the economic and non-economic interests of his family.

Despite ten years of building out the impact investing ecosystem-which included supporting and investing in for-profit, positive impact businesses in private markets; developing an extensive network of impact entrepreneurs, investors, and experts; contributing to the exchange of knowledge and best practices in the industry; and providing increasing opportunities for impact-focused investors-the team at Chicago-based Impact Engine was just getting started. Constantly raising the bar for themselves and the industry as a whole was ingrained in the firm's ethos. Indeed, the women-founded, women-led, and women-governed impact investment firm, which was founded as one of the first impact-oriented accelerators in the U.S., had grown to include early stage and private equity investments-all optimizing financial and social returns. The range of investment stages, however, presented new challenges to impact measurement, which the team viewed as an opportunity to reexamine its existing approach and incorporate best practices across the industry.

APA Technologies, a startup in the trucking industry, faced a significant challenge with its innovative product, the Tyro - an automatic tire inflation device. Founders Brad Miller and Jeffrey Howell, Stanford mechanical engineering students, developed Tyro to enhance safety and reduce maintenance costs in commercial trucking. However, they encountered a critical ethical and strategic decision when a potential design flaw was identified, presenting a safety risk. This dilemma tested their commitment to product integrity and customer safety. The case study details APA Technologies' journey from inception to facing this pivotal decision. Highlighting their user-centric design approach and rigorous testing procedures, it reflects on the company's ethos of prioritizing product quality and safety. The founders' philosophy of continuous improvement through customer feedback and iterative development is underscored. The narrative explores the implications of the recall decision, not just financially, but also in terms of customer trust and company reputation. It presents the founders' analysis of the risks and benefits, reflecting the complexities of ethical decision-making in a competitive business landscape. Additionally, the case study delves into strategic challenges such as managing financial strains, navigating market penetration, and considering partnerships. It illustrates the balance between innovation, ethics, and strategic growth in the tech startup ecosystem.

Rebel Foods started as a quick service restaurant and eventually morphed into a cloud kitchen provider. The company launched multi-brand cloud kitchens, leveraging the same food preparation space and delivery infrastructure to serve a variety of food missions. Its technology stack included software for inventory management, kitchen management and delivery, as well as kitchen automation and robotics. They partnered with third-party food brands to leverage Rebel Foods' kitchen infrastructure, supply chain and logistics, and software platforms. The case study examines various business model innovations and strategic shifts the company has undergone over the years and raises questions about their future strategy.

Set in 2021, the case presents the challenges faced by the Bureau of Indian Standards (henceforth BIS) in its journey of hallmarking gold in India - from voluntary hallmarking in 2000 to mandatory hallmarking in 2021. As a government organisation, BIS was tasked with the responsibility of protecting consumer interest and increasing export competitiveness of gold. BIS took multiple initiatives to ensure purity of gold for Indian consumers. However, at every stage there was a pushback from all stakeholders jewellers, manufacturers, consumers, Assaying and Hallmarking centres (AHCs), industry experts, all of whom had their own apprehensions. The case unpacks various execution challenges that a government institution faces for an initiative designed for the good of all the stakeholders. The main tension in the case is if BIS will be able to execute their plan completely and achieve 100% hallmarking by 2025.

In the past two decades, shareholders agreements have become important instruments of corporate governance. The agreements have to be distinguished from the company, which itself is a contract. The case involved the Northern Ireland brick-making company, Tyrone Brick Limited, which had five shareholders-four individuals and a bank that financed the company. Each individual owned 10% of the allotted shares and the bank owned the remaining 60%. The shareholders and the company entered into an agreement which statedthat the authorised share capital of the company could not be increased without the written consent of all the parties. A decade later, without seeking the written consent of a shareholder, the company issued a notice for a meeting of the company to pass a resolution to increase its authorised share capital. A shareholder, who was a party to the shareholders agreement, disputed that the company could not convene the meeting in violation of the shareholders agreement.

Generative AI seemed poised to reshape the world of work, including the higher-wage, white-collar jobs typically pursued by MBA graduates. Informed by the latest research, this case explores generative AI's potential impacts on work, productivity, value creation, and the labor market.

The American Bully XL, first introduced to the United Kingdom around 2014, had been held responsible for a disproportionate share of both dog-related attacks and deaths. The case discusses the announcement, in October 2023, that the dog breed would be added to a list of banned dogs under the Dangerous Dogs Act. The case allows for a discussion of how society regulates risks, particularly related to products or activities that might result in personal harm or harm to others. The case also provides international comparisons of animal regulation, and potential issues resulting from the ban.

In August 2022, Neetu Yadav and Kirti Jangra, co-founders of Animall, reflected upon their experience of starting a business in a highly competitive and fragmented Indian livestock management market. The industry suffered from a shortage of skilled workforce, inadequate infrastructure, and needed better access to modern technology. Yadav and Jangra were tasked to consider the competition in the digital space, assess the difficulty in penetrating a geographically and digitally remote market, and to build farmers' trust to grow the business. Yadav identified four opportunities for growing the business: expansion in veterinary services, providing nutrition advice, focus on particular animal breeds, and entry into other Indian states.

In February 2023, a prominent retail investor was contemplating selling his investment in Narayana Hrudayalya Limited, one of India's leading health care companies, when the stock price reached an all-time high of ₹800. The investor had initially bought the shares in 2017, when the price was ₹350 per share. On February 6, 2023, he came across an article about the company that discussed its future prospects, which prompted him to investigate the company's financials and other key aspects more closely. As he delved deeper into the company's financial details, the investor discovered various diverse opinions in various reports. To gain some clarity on the company's financial situation, he asked for the professional advice of his nephew, who was an investment analyst at a prominent stockbroker firm. The analyst knew the importance of conducting a thorough analysis of a company before offering an informed conclusion and investment recommendation to his uncle. He also saw his analysis as an opportunity to provide valuable insight to his own current and prospective clients.

In February 2023, SZ Dà-Jiāng Innovations Science and Technology Co. Ltd. (DJI) was included in the list of the "Top 100 Global Innovators." At the same time, the 200-metre DJI Sky Pixel-the world's first asymmetrical suspension steel structure ultra-high-rise building-was achieving remarkable success in the 2023 China Architectural Awards. The building seemed to symbolize DJI's meteoric rise. In 2023, DJI was a leading company in the global drone industry. From DJI's inception in 2006 to the first University Student Robot Training Camp in 2013, and up to its current status in 2023, DJI had dedicated 17 years to the development and perfection of drones and more than a decade to the field of education. In its early days, DJI had to overcome serious technical challenges to achieve astonishing success and navigate the strong competition in the market. In 2023, the biggest hurdle DJI was facing was global trade tensions. What other issues were awaiting DJI on its path forward?

Soulpepper Theatre Company (Soulpepper) underwent a significant transformation under the leadership of its new co-leaders. The co-leaders not only navigated the aftermath of a crisis in 2018 that saw the immediate resignation of a well-known artistic director accused of sexual harassment but also steered the company towards a bright future aligned with an ambitious five-year strategic plan. The plan, endorsed by the board of directors, was a crucial step towards recovering from the tarnished reputation and elevating Soulpepper to global recognition, rooted in the excellence of its productions and celebration of Canadian creativity. However, as the theatre was laying down the building blocks for renewal, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, causing significant disruptions in the Canadian theatre scene and necessitating a re-evaluation of the co-leaders' strategic approach.

In 2020, TDC NET, a subsidiary of the Danish telecommunications company TDC Group, established the Innovation Hub, a new organizational unit, together with its partner Ericsson Denmark. With the Innovation Hub, TDC NET sought to explore the business opportunities that the rollout of 5G, the fifth-generation technology standard for broadband cellular networks, offers in areas such as Industry 4.0 or the Internet of Things. TDC NET was proud to offer Denmark's best mobile network but margins in that business were low and competition was fierce. Offering value-added services around the implementation of 5G seemed much more attractive. But that would require the Innovation Hub to succeed with pilot projects in areas and industries that the employees working at the Hub had little knowledge about. How could they achieve this goal during the next two years? And, given the complex challenges, was the current setup of the Innovation Hub the right one or should it be organized differently?