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Manufacturers and remanufacturers strive to maximize supply chain effectiveness by eliminating wastes in all their forms. This line of research extends the effectiveness during the products' working lives. Fraud in the warranty service chain (WSC) is one such source of waste that leads to revenue losses in the short term but when left unchecked leads to far worse results in the long term. Warranty frauds in the new product industry have received significant attention in recent literature. Addressing fraud issues in the remanufacturing industry have not been a high priority. Previous studies considered the primary parties in the WSC as possible sources of fraud. However, several unique opportunities exist for the secondary parties when it comes to fraud. This chapter considers fraud originating from one of the secondary parties of the WSC, namely the warranty administrator. The chapter models this fraud scenario using discrete event simulation and explores a possible fraud mitigation scenario.

The case dwells with the following theoretical concepts: Appreciate the different need dimensions required to motivate different employee types based on need theory (Alderfer, 1969). Identify the functional needs as per Maslow’s need hierarchy (Hall & Naougaim, 1968) for the permanent and contractual workers. Outline why only hygiene factors are insufficient to arrest worker absenteeism during a pandemic like COVID-19. Apply need theory and “Herzberg’s two-factor theory” (Herzberg, 1966; Herzberg et al., 1957) to enumerate the measures that need to be implemented to build supply chain resilience by reducing absenteeism by motivating employees.

The case is based on primary research carried out by the authors at Alkem Laboratories Ltd., Sikkim unit in India, during the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the company leading to high absenteeism of contractual workers.

Alkem Laboratories Ltd. is a leading pharma major from India with a global footprint. At the break of COVID-19 pandemic, the manufacturing unit of the company at Sikkim is facing the scare of mass absenteeism, especially among the contractual workers who account for 60% of the workforce of the unit. Ashok Priyadarshi (Vice President, Human Resources) and his team along with the think tank of the unit have to find a solution to the problem at hand. What shall be the measures that the think tank will propose? The team sets out to find an answer to these questions so that Alkem could seize the business opportunity at the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The case is suitable for undergraduate- and graduate-level courses in organizational behavior, organizational change and development and supply chain risk management. The case can also be positioned for executive education and training modules in companies on employee motivation and commitment.

The study directs attention to the psychological conditions experienced and knowledge management practices leveraged by faculty in higher education institutes (HEIs) to cope with the shift to emergency remote teaching caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. By focusing attention on faculty experiences during this transition, this study aims to examine an under-investigated effect of the pandemic in the Indian context.

Interpretative phenomenological analysis is used to analyze the data gathered in two waves through 40 in-depth interviews with 20 faculty members based in India over a year. The data were analyzed deductively using Kahn’s framework of engagement and robust coding protocols.

Eight subthemes across three psychological conditions (meaningfulness, availability and safety) were developed to discourse faculty experiences and challenges with emergency remote teaching related to their learning, identity, leveraged resources and support received from their employing educational institutes. The findings also present the coping strategies and knowledge management-related practices that the faculty used to adjust to each discussed challenge.

The study uses a longitudinal design and phenomenology as the analytical method, which offers a significant methodological contribution to the extant literature. Further, the study’s use of Kahn’s model to examine the faculty members’ transitions to emergency remote teaching in India offers novel insights into the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on educational institutes in an under-investigated context.

This study aims to explore and compare the approach and avoidance factors in motivating students to study using three different learning methods: face-to-face learning, online learning and hybrid learning.

This research uses in-depth online interviews to gain insights from students. Purposive sampling was applied to recruit 33 informants from two private universities in Indonesia. The verbatim data were analyzed using a thematic content analysis to identify motivational factors.

This study revealed four motivational factors regarding the approach to face-to-face learning/avoidance of online learning and five motivational factors regarding the approach to online learning/avoidance of face-to-face learning. Most of the motivational factors (i.e. learning effectiveness, social interaction, campus life experiences, physical wellness, flexibility and technological learning) are also found in the approach to hybrid learning.

The existing qualitative research suffers from generalizability, as does this study. Future research can investigate other contexts or use quantitative research to validate the findings.

By identifying the approach and avoidance motivational factors, higher education institutions can enhance the approach (positive) factors and minimize or eliminate the avoidance (negative) factors that motivate their students to study using different learning methods.

This research complements the existing literature using new perspectives, namely, the approach and avoidance factors that motivate students to study through face-to-face learning, online learning and hybrid learning post-COVID-19.

Discussion of the case will enable students to identify the cornerstones of industry development using simple frameworks like PESTLE and five forces that shape strategy. They will be able to identify critical success factors and evaluate how a firm gets competitive advantage. They will also be able to assess whether the advantage is sustainable for the firms and along which dimensions they have only competitive parity. The issues of contemporary firms growing through the use of network strategies is also highlighted and students will learn to appreciate the role of platforms and connectivity for gaining sustainable advantage.

This case describes the growth strategy of NoPaperForms, a start-up in the domain of enrolment automation for higher education in India. Naveen Goyal, the founder CEO sensed an opportunity in this growing industry segment and acquired it from the founder, Vishal Shah in 2017. The ultimate objective of an educational institute was to attract talent, Goyal evolved a comprehensive enrolment solution starting with the time a prospective student made an inquiry for enrolment till the time he/she paid for enrolment. It was a complete panel, bundled and packaged in a single system taking care of lead management, lead nurturing, application management, fee payment, post-application management and enrolment. He developed it into a unique blend of a customer relationship management (CRM), which was unique in the country. At this juncture, Goyal was exploring growth avenues. On the client side, he had the alternatives of focusing on the B2C segment or diversifying from B2B to B2C. Geographically, he had the options of expanding to tier II and tier III cities, which were the next growth hubs. The option of growing internationally was also on the cards. The purpose of the case is to analyse the opportunities in the education technology sector, specific to student enrolment and leverage the competencies of the firm to detail the future strategy of the firm.

The case can be used in a MBA program for a course in Strategic Management in the module of strategy formulation after fundamental concepts and theories of Strategic Management have been discussed.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 11: Strategy.