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Mobile marketing.

MBA, marketing level consultants.

This is the first documented study on the development of a mobile marketing eco-system in Pakistan. The focus of the case is Telenor Pakistan - the first local operator to implement a comprehensive mobile marketing strategy via opt-in based consumer profiling. By positioning itself as a “media company” in the mobile marketing value chain, Telenor Pakistan aims to both enable and drive the mobile marketing eco-system at a time when operators are suffering from a decline in average revenue per user and are endeavouring to put into place strategies that will open up revenue streams based on services other than voice.

To develop a comprehensive understanding of the drivers and restrainers that affect the mobile marketing eco-system in emerging markets; and to examine to what extent operator-driven mobile marketing can create synergies within the mobile marketing value chain.

Teaching notes.

Drawing from individual experiences and shared passion, Amena and Ramez first founded Helm as a student club at the American University in Cairo in 2012. As a club, Helm worked extensively to identify the main challenges facing persons with disabilities (PwDs) in Egypt. During meetings with various stakeholders, Helm found that employment was a recurring theme. The employment rate for PwDs in Egypt was only 21.3% compared to 40.2% among the non-disabled. During its first year alone, Helm found jobs for 300 individuals with some sort of disability. Despite this initial success, Helm strived to increase its social impact by increasing the integration of PwDs in Egypt through changing employers’ mindset and building inclusive work atmospheres where PwDs could work and thrive. There were, however, major cultural barriers in Egypt standing in the way of this vision. Despite these challenges, Helm managed to play a pivotal role in creating social transformation around disability in Egypt. Helm became a key player in reshaping Egypt’s legislation on PwDs through participating in several policymaking discussions, parliamentary committee meetings and programs with governmental entities. In the hope of increasing Helm’s potential social impact, Amena and Ramez aimed to maintain their growth in Egypt and to expand to other markets in the region. Accordingly, they were faced with a set of compelling questions. Amena and Ramez further wanted to make sure that their current business model and contribution to social transformation for PwDs could help them to grow and serve other markets. Should they adapt their business model and services offerings to scale up their social impact accordingly? If so, how?

This case allows students to consider the nature of social enterprises in developing countries and how they create social transformation in supporting PwDs in local communities. This case also introduces students to social enterprises’ business models, scalability and the sustainability issues which such enterprises face in the context of developing countries. By the end of studying the case, students should be able to understand the following: Objective 1: Identify the characteristics of social entrepreneurship and apply it to a social enterprise using Robinson’s (2006) definition of social entrepreneurship; Objective 2: Analyze the business model of a social enterprise using the nine building blocks of the business model canvas of Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010); Objective 3: Evaluate the social enterprise revenue model for sustainability using Yunus et al.’s (2010) building a social business model; and Objective 4: Suggest business model modification to improve a social enterprise’s scalability and service offerings in a new market.

This case study is aimed at students who are enrolled in entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, non-profit management, corporate social investment and sustainability courses. This case is written at an honor of graduate level so it can be used for master’s level, short graduate programs, MBA. The case is directed to students who have a business background and want to understand and explore social entrepreneurship.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

The theoretical basis for this case is a focus on vertical integration, first-mover advantage and competitive dynamics. Vertical integration is based on Williamson’s (1979) theory of transaction-cost economics as it relates to vertical integration; the discussion on first-mover advantage is built off of Suarez and Lanzolla’s (2005) dynamics of first-mover advantage; and the analyzes on competitive dynamics derives from the MacMillan et al. (1985) early empirical tests of interfirm rivalry dynamics.

The authors conducted extensive research using the following sources: IBISWorld, MergentOnline and academic journals, trade magazines and websites. Additionally, the authors successfully piloted the case on more than 350 undergraduate students enrolled in a business and corporate strategy course.

Peloton used vertical integration to control the creation of its own software, bikes, exercise classes and retail outlets. In doing so, Peloton was one of the first companies in the industry to have near full control of the production process (Gross and Caisman, 2019). Due to this integration, Peloton was one of the fitness equipment industry leaders. However, Peloton’s high level of vertical integration coupled with rapid growth led to lackluster profitability. Given the rise in popularity of in-home exercise equipment, Peloton had room to continue its growth, but the question remained whether it was strategically positioned to do so.

This case is best taught in undergraduate and graduate strategy courses. For undergraduate courses, it could be incorporated into lessons on competitive dynamics, internal analysis and first-mover advantage and strategic positioning. For graduate courses, it could be incorporated into lessons on vertical integration and delving more in-depth into the long-term sustainability of having a first-mover advantage.