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Upon completion of the case discussion, students will be able to: identify the enablers of a mental skills coaching process and the broad outcomes as a result of a coaching intervention; understand the contributing factors towards creating greater psychological safety in a team and the impact this has on team performance; and identify positive leadership strategies to create an environment in which meaningful work and goal achievement increase engagement.

Leanne Redding was the mental skills coach for Maccabi, a professional league soccer club in Johannesburg, South Africa. Redding had worked with the club’s players using mental techniques, the ultimate aim being to improve performance. Redding’s work was based on the premise of trust, lived values, self-respect and reflection. She believed that a strengths-based approach grounded in sports psychology and aligned with mental contrasting enabled resilience. Her process of holding individual and team sessions helped with sustaining motivation, overcoming limiting fears and encouraging focus on the greater good of the team. The result was Maccabi’s promotion to the professional league of soccer. However, not all of her broad stakeholder group had bought into the value of sports psychology coaching. The case explores Redding’s process and her belief of the importance and buy-in from all players of the team values which should inform behaviour. The case concludes with Redding contemplating what she should do to gain greater acceptance from the rest of the coaching staff for her work.

This case can be used in graduate and postgraduate level courses such as an MBA, in management development programmes or in short executive education courses focusing on organisational behaviour, leadership and human capital development and sports management.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 7: Management Science.

The sub field of academia that the case is designed to teach is small business development, entrepreneurship or women in business.

This case is appropriate for graduate and post-graduate, MBA and executive education students focusing on entrepreneurship, small business development or women in business.

This real-life case is based on interviews that took place with Kate Rogan, the co-founder of Love Books, and other stakeholders associated with the small bookselling business that is based in the suburb of Melville in Johannesburg. It describes how Rogan’s past influenced how she saw and was open to the opportunity; and how, through passion, commitment, dedication and stakeholder management, she created a business that brought meaning to her and others’ lives. Rogan’s vast experience in editing, publishing and radio influenced how she evaluated the bookstore opportunity. For the past 11 years, she focused on building a loyal customer base through knowing her customers, staying on top of current industry and market trends and constantly thinking about how she could add value through minimal financial outlay. COVID-19 further complicated her thinking about how to traditionally market and sell books to her client base. As the case concludes, Rogan wonders how to build upon the foundations of her successful bookshop and grow profitability while remaining true to her and the business’s values.

The case allows students to consider the key enablers for assessing entrepreneurial opportunities and drivers of small business growth. Following discussion and analysis of the case, students should be able to: explore how cognitive dynamics affect an entrepreneur’s evaluation of opportunities; analyze the case against the 4Cs (continuity, community, connection and command) of competitive business advantage; evaluate building blocks for sustainable business profitability; and assess and recommend different learnings for entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 7: Management Science.

International business

Undergraduate/graduate/executive education.

China has become the world's largest producer of automobiles, surpassing the USA and Japan. The Chinese auto industry differs quite significantly from those countries though. While the industry exhibits a substantial degree of concentration in the USA and Japan in early 2011, it remained highly fragmented in China. The Chinese Central Government had announced a desire for consolidation, yet it remained unclear whether a significant shakeout would occur in the near term.

Like many Chinese automakers, Chang'an partnered with well-known global auto makers to develop, produce, and distribute its products. In the coming years, Chang'an hoped to develop more independence from its foreign partners, including the production and distribution of self-branded cars. However, the company grappled with how it could strive for independence while managing its existing joint ventures. Executives worried too about how to compete with foreign automakers who had achieved global economies of scale.

The case provides a rich description of the evolution of the Chinese auto industry, and it documents how the Chinese industry differs from other global markets. Readers can analyze the extent to which they believe scale economies provide foreign firms an advantage over smaller Chinese rivals, and they can evaluate the conventional wisdom regarding the industry's minimum efficient scale. The case also provides a detailed account of Chang'an's rise to prominence. The case concludes by offering an in-depth description of the firm's key rivals, and it presents the key questions being considered by Chang'an executives in 2011.

Enables students to examine how and why an industry's structure can differ substantially across geographic markets.

Enables students to examine whether the need to achieve economies of scale may cause substantial consolidation in the Chinese auto industry.

Provides an opportunity to evaluate the pros and cons of the joint venture strategies employed in China.

Provides an opportunity to examine how a relatively small firm can position itself against large multinationals in a high-growth emerging market.

Teaching notes.

Steven Rogers had always thought that someday he would like to own a business with one or both of his daughters. As his eldest daughter, Akilah, finished her final semester at Harvard Business School, she told Rogers that she would like to create with him a Chicago-based real estate venture that included buying, rehabbing and renting homes in the Englewood and South Shore neighborhoods of Chicago. Rogers quickly realized that his biggest challenge was how to equitably structure the ownership of the business. He gathered advice from family business experts and slowly began to build a plan that would benefit each member of his family. Meanwhile, Akilah assumed responsibilities associated with the business as she finished her final semester at HBS. The case ends with Rogers Family Enterprises owning its first three houses.

1. Students learn how to construct an equitable business ownership plan for a family business. 2. Students learn the agreements that family businesses should have in place. 3. Students learn why successful entrepreneurs tend to be those who control the growth of their company while envisioning an empire.