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Founded in 2003 in Uruguay, by 2008 Pay True Solutions had managed to become a relevant player in the Latin American industry of electronic payment solutions. The company offered two suites: PayStudio CPS, providing technological support across the entire electronic payment processing value chain, and PayStudio Risk Center, a fraud detection and prevention solution largely for credit and debit cards. Both suites had been installed at renowned regional companies and boasted excellent reviews in the low-sophistication client segment. The segment encompassing larger clients was characterized by more sophisticated fraud attacks and, as a result, required solutions featuring neuronal models, which PayTrue did not offer. In addition, the software development projects sold by PayTrue had grown increasingly complex dedicating an important part of the internal resources; interestingly, the company generally managed to deliver on time and within budget, unlike some of their competitors. Would the company be able to manage the expected growth in both, products and projects? Was their mixed business model sustainable? And, considering their products, should they go for the bigger and more sophisticated clients? Were the risks of a higher level of investment in innovation worthwhile?

3D printing was a bottom-up process by which materials were laid down in thin successive layers until an object was fully constructed. As an innovation in technique, 3D printing made production conducted at or near the points of purchase or consumption possible. This had a huge impact on traditional manufacturing industry and supply chain management. A variety of key 3D-printing patents expired in 2014, stimulating mass production and adoption of 3D-printing devices. 3D printing was likely to provide a solution to supply chain management challenges by printing low-volume and tailor-made products on-site, a solution that would also reduce materials-supply risks, supply chain network complexity and inventory costs. Imitative innovation, well-established manufacturing infrastructure and relatively low labor and material costs made rapid growth of 3D-printer manufacturing in China possible. In recent years, China rapidly embraced the 3D-printing trend and explored the new, greatly expanded 3D-printing manufacturing and export market space. What role could 3D printing play in changing supply-chain management? What could the short-term and long-term impact of 3D printing on the Chinese manufacturing industry be? Could China leverage the coming 3D-printing trend to reinforce the power of its manufacturing industry?

DSM, a global life sciences, business-to-business company, is in the midst of a massive multi-year corporate rebranding exercise to incorporate the concept of creating sustainable shared value. With few precedents in this industry, the company must develop its own processes and implementation. Students are challenged to define the next steps in the rebranding, including the promotion of DSM's sustainability positioning as its key differentiator.

The first of this two-part case, "Principled Capitalism", analyses the unique values-based leadership practised for 186 years by the Cadbury owners, particularly how its strongly Quaker-inspired leaders developed a unique socially-engaged form of capitalism. Through the history of the Cadbury family, it describes the global development of the chocolate industry. Driven by a handful of dedicated entrepreneurs, and dominated in the UK by Quakers, it was an industry where an innovation could change the market overnight.

In spite of the world's move to digital photography, in 2013 Lomography continues to design and offer analog (film) cameras to a loyal following of artistic photographers. Now it must decide whether to stick to its traditional offerings, expand into artistic lenses for both digital and analog cameras, and/or to expand into film and film developing. In the process, it has to decide what kind of company it wants to be.

This case presents a multi-party negotiation among Yelp, current partner OpenTable, and two startups in the online restaurant reservation industry.

This case describes a hypothetical situation faced by a fictitious international conglomerate, ICL, that intends to enter the retail grocery market in Hong Kong. The conglomerate's interest in the Hong Kong supermarket industry was initially kindled by the plan of Hutchison Whampoa, Ltd. (HWL) to sell its leading supermarket chain PARKnSHOP in August 2013. However, in October 2013, HWL reversed course and decided not to sell PARKnSHOP, saying that the sale would not deliver maximum value to its shareholders. Before embarking into new territory, ICL wanted an in-depth understanding of the Hong Kong grocery market environment, competitors, and potential barriers to entry. The conglomerate was aware that the new Competition Law, which was expected to take effect in 2015, might have profound implications on the grocery market landscape in Hong Kong.

Flatpebble is an innovative start-up e-business that acts as an online marketplace where customers can connect with professional wedding photographers. Flatpebble has reached a stage wherein it already has a good revenue stream and a recognized brand name across India. It is poised for rapid expansion, and the management team must evaluate the various strategic alternatives available. The Flatpebble team must design a comprehensive, consistent and coherent business strategy that will allow the company to scale up quickly, beat its competitors and stay relevant in the dynamic and rapidly evolving e-business industry.

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) had always focused on new and innovative ways to connect with rural customers in India. However, like many players in the market, the company found it challenging to reach certain areas. Popular media channels like television and radio were limited in rural India, and power cuts further reduced the reach of electronic media. Yet mobile penetration was relatively high and growing. Inspired by the success of its mobile "missed call" marketing campaign for Wheel detergent, HUL was considering extending the campaign to all of its brands. Should it introduce a dedicated mobile marketing channel, whereby customers could receive both entertainment and advertising by making missed calls? Were customers likely to choose a mobile phone-based entertainment channel? Would it be a sustainable media for creating long-term brand awareness among target customers?

In April 2013, Ron Johnson (HBS '84) stepped down after just 18 months as CEO of J.C. Penney. In his brief tenure, Johnson, an acclaimed retailer respected for his innovation and success in shaping the retail image at Target and Apple, introduced dramatic departures from J.C. Penney's traditional retail approach and enacted changes quickly and simultaneously, with little market testing. Over Johnson's final 12 months as CEO, J.C. Penney shares dropped more than 50%. The case describes the environments at Target, Apple, and J.C. Penney during Johnson's tenure and how his experiences may have shaped the strategies that he implemented while CEO at J.C. Penney.

In April 2014, the accounts receivable exceeding 90 days were causing a cash-flow problem for Wolf Distributing, which distributes the Berserker Rage energy drink in the Chicagoland area. Christine Taylor, the company's chief operating officer, had tried a number of traditional methods to monitor and address this problem, but she had made little progress. She decided to use three basic statistical analysis tools-Pareto diagrams, scatter plots, and run charts-to help her better grasp the problem.

From 2010 through 2013, the Oregon Health Authority's Public Health Division conducted its first health impact assessment (HIA), a process in which a public health organization draws on an array of analytical techniques to gauge the likely health effects of a policy or proposal in another sector (in this instance, the HIA examined the potential effects of wind farms - which constituted a large and growing element of the state's alternative energy strategy - on residents' health). After situating the HIA in the context of the state's "health in all policies" approach (which calls for public health to deepen its connection to other sectors), the case captures the genesis of the HIA, the implementation process, and the response following its publication. The case focuses on how the public health division's relatively small staff managed the HIA's surprisingly large workload and how the public health team worked to incorporate the perspectives of a diverse-and sometimes opposed-set of stakeholders, most notably grassroots opposition groups and representatives of the renewable energy sector. Case number 2038.0

Bernard Madoff perpetrated a $60 billion fraud that lasted for more than a decade. The fallout ruined the lives of many of his investors and significantly damaged the reputation of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). How did the federal agency entrusted to protect investors fail to discover the Ponzi scheme? The question is more salient because a financial expert alerted the SEC to the likely fraud and was ignored, not just once, but many times over a multiyear period. The case provides the context to explore questions such as: What was the SEC's investigation process? Why did it fail to uncover the fraud? What was the role of organizational structure and culture in the debacle? How could the SEC reengineer its processes to prevent such schemes? Case number 1950

In July 2012, three freshly-minted Harvard Kennedy School graduates bought one-way tickets to Medellin, Colombia, to launch a nonprofit startup they called Instiglio. Their idea: to bring Social Impact Bonds, still experimental even in affluent nations, to Colombia and other low to middle income countries. This statistics case-one of two nearly identical HKS cases about Instiglio-provides background about the SIB model (a financing mechanism for experimental social programs, with private investors shouldering the financial risk of failure) and tracks the early experience of the HKS graduates in Colombia. The case includes a summary of the issues the group faced in designing a first draft SIB agreement, including several questions about evaluation design and tricky issues in structuring a payment system. The other HKS Instiglio case, HKS case number 2026.0, "Betting Private Capital on Fixing Public Ills: Instiglio Brings Social Impact Bonds to Colombia," intended for a policy analysis course, emphasizes the process of selecting a project, given limited information and political complexities. Case number 2043.0

Arun Kumar, founder and group chief executive officer of Strides Arcolab Limited - a first generation, Indian pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bengaluru - is preparing for a crucial meeting of the Board of Directors. The meeting was called to discuss the proposed dividend payout to the company's shareholders following the completion of a US$1.725 billion sale of its specialty division - Agila Specialties - to the U.S.-based pharmaceutical company Mylan Inc. Kumar proposed that Strides distribute all the free cash available from the sale - after the retirement of debt and internal payouts - in the form of dividends to its shareholders. Strides had already communicated its decision to retire debts and reduce its leverage.

The Wikimedia Foundation is responsible for supporting Wikipedia and various other projects through administration, technical and financial support. Since its founding, Wikipedia has changed the way people around the world research information by allowing individuals to document and write history in a collaborative and decentralized fashion. The case follows Lila Tretikov as she takes on her new role as the Executive Director of the Wikimedia Foundation, and how she and the organization have to balance fundraising, technology development and managing an organization through influence and strategy.

On January 9, 2015, Nelson Peltz of Trian Fund Management launched a proxy fight for four out of the twelve seats on the DuPont board. The fund had previously published a public letter addressed to shareholders outlining its proposal to break the company into three areas: agriculture and nutrition, industrial materials, and performance chemicals and criticizing the company for its poor performance. CEO and Chairman Ellen Kullman and her board were left with the difficult decision. Should they allow four of Trian's nominees onto their board, knowing that it would mean replacing four highly experienced and valuable directors or should they go face to face with Peltz in a very public proxy fight?