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At the end of this study, students should analyze the re-orientation of innovation music business model strategy to create a new market using the Blue Ocean Strategy of Sun-Eater Records Company. Furthermore, they should be able to implement the business model transformation in the music industry in this digital media era based on data and technological capability. Students should analyze the digital content strategy that is relatable and relevant to music customers/users through content creation. Finally, they need to create the content strategy applicable to promotion and marketing innovatively in the music business.

This study analyzes how a Jakarta-based independent music company, Sun Eater Records, changed its strategy in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The adverse effect of the pandemic on this company included a massive drop in sales of products and revenues from tours, festivals and outdoor music performances. Music industry stakeholders were confused and frustrated because of the restriction and the implementation of the social distancing policy, as most of their business models depended on live music showcases and selling records. The protagonist of this study, Kukuh Rizal Arfianto, is the director and co-founder of Sun Eater Records. Kukuh’s experience during the pandemic is used to capture the dilemma faced by the music industry players in Indonesia. This agile businessman transformed this music company by embracing digitalization. Inspired by the business models of Disney and 88 Rising (Music Management), Sun Eater Records developed various derivatives digital products. The company did not only sell music through digital content, it also developed several complementary products with music as their main theme. These innovative creations include mini-documentary, virtual concerts, compilation albums serial, digital comics, and Covid-19 Campaigns. The company is quite active in leveraging digitalization to survive in this business compared to other industry players. This study provides communication and design students opportunities to analyze how to draft an effective content strategy in the industry, in this case, the music industry.

This case is designed mainly for Management, Innovation, and Digital Communication course at the Bachelor's level program.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 11: Strategy.

Few cases allow the student to understand the relationship between brand strategy, marketing strategy, implementation, and analysis. While some conceive of the process as being sequential, this case demonstrates that in fact, this process is more fluid, and that implementation and analysis impact subsequent strategy.

This field-based case provides a rare glimpse into the turnaround of a brand that was all but dead. After Buick suffered more than five decades of declining business results and an inferior brand image versus all rivals, few thought that the brand could be resuscitated. This case provides a valuable under-the-hood look at how the Buick team, over time, progresses through a series of marketing improvements all anchored on an evolved strategy. Specifically, Buick introduced a shift in brand strategy behind an evolved brand essence statement (i.e., brand positioning), improved product lineup, new-to-the-world innovation, enhanced dealership service, and more compelling advertising. The results led to a record number of product awards, significantly improved advertising measures, improved service ratings, and better business results.

Despite significant improvement across multiple dimensions of the business, Buick still trailed key competitors on one of the most important measures Buick tracked—the brand momentum rating—suggesting that there was still more work needed to complete the brand turnaround. The case introduces Molly Peck, the new marketing director on Buick, who is wondering what more, if anything, Buick should do. The material allows for instruction around marketing strategy and the process of converting it into implementation through the use of a creative brief.

In 1992 Joe Jackson, former manager of DuPont Motorsports for twelve years, was angling to get the paint business at Rick Hendrick's sixty-five automotive dealerships across the United States. In order to win the Hendrick car dealership paint contract, Jackson and Hendrick met to discuss the possibility of sponsoring Hendrick's new team and rookie NASCAR driver—Jeff Gordon. As a result of that meeting, DuPont signed on to be the primary sponsor. By 2006 Gordon was a NASCAR superstar, and the DuPont logo—viewed by millions—was a household brand. While this level of exposure was exciting for the company, executives at DuPont could not help but wonder if they were fully leveraging this tremendous marketing opportunity. Gordon was on fire—but was DuPont maximizing the heat? The DuPont-NASCAR case tasks students and executives with designing a creative marketing campaign to activate the NASCAR sponsorship opportunity and maximize value beyond conventional sponsorship marketing. This open-ended challenge encourages students and executives to think outside of the traditional marketing tactics typically employed by business-to-consumer (B2C) NASCAR sponsors. Additionally, the nature of DuPont creates the need to develop a multi-dimensional plan that caters to a breadth of brands. Beyond designing a new marketing campaign, a key objective of the case is to focus students and executives on designing metrics for measurement of the return on investment (ROI) into a campaign plan. As a first step, it is important to clearly articulate the campaign, business strategy, and key business objectives mapped to the strategy.

Students and executives learn how to design a marketing campaign for measurement. Specifically, they are tasked with designing a new marketing campaign for DuPont to activate the DuPont/NASCAR relationship. Students and executives must define metrics for measurement and learn to use a balanced score card approach. Since the DuPont sponsorship of Hendrick Motorsports is a brand campaign built to reach the DuPont business-to-business (B2B) customer, both non-financial and financial metrics are used. The key to success is to have a clearly defined sponsorship marketing strategy and business objectives. The case teaches students and executives how to define key metrics and articulate a methodology for campaign measurement pre and post to quantify the return on investment (ROI).

Upon completion of the case study, the students will be able to apply business upscaling strategies to an upcycling social enterprise that is embracing a circular economy approach by using the Ansoff growth matrix; to analyze strategies for transition to circularity using the butterfly diagram tool for both business and personal use; to indulge in upcycling exercises for a used product of their choice, not only unleashing their creative potential but also contributing to an idea that might get them to win a contest; to analyze different operational problems and efficiency opportunities that arise when a company takes on social and environmental causes as a business opportunity; and to strategize how a social enterprise can be sustained and made for-profit by applying business strategies.

This case study covers the concepts of upcycling under the gamut of circular economy, a concept that has become more of a strategy to sustain and survive in today’s world. This case is about Rimagined, an upcycling company that could be a model for circular ideas and upcycling of stuff. This case study narrates the growth and the challenges faced in upcycling and encourages students to ideate a new design for any upcycling item of their choice. This case will also make students strategize the expansion plan for Rimagined. Shailaja Rangarajan is the protagonist of this case study who started this social enterprise to make a difference and do her bit. Sustaining a social enterprise requires business acumen and risk-bearing capacities like any other business. Rangarajan was facing the dilemma of expansion and was trying out several feasible options. Rimagined had been unable to attract investors because their expectations of quick returns could not be immediately fulfilled. Investors focused more on waste management as an industry and not on upcycling as a separate area of work.

This case study is suitable for students of MBA or executive MBA level. Specifically, this case study can be used in business strategies and circular economy courses.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 4: Environmental management.

In 2001 Accenture took the bold step of separating from its parent, Arthur Andersen. The new firm that emerged had a bright future ahead, but it also faced the challenge of building a new IT infrastructure that could support a global organization that consults on leading-edge technology. Accenture's CIO at the time, Ed Schreck, knew that becoming a master of your own trade was not an easy task. Frank Modruson, Schreck's successor and the person responsible for carrying forward the IT transformation challenge from 2002 on, had ambitious plans for the new technology infrastructure that was to replace Arthur Andersen's legacy systems. Difficult decisions had to be made. Should the firm continue with a decentralized approach to managing technology platforms, in which each country chooses its own IT platforms and has autonomy to run them? Or should the firm take a mixed approach, in which the same standard applications would run throughout the enterprise but would be managed independently by individual offices? Or should Accenture espouse a “one-firm” approach and boldly shoot for a centralized implementation of its most critical systems, with all its offices interconnected on the same “instance” of a software platform? Furthermore, should the firm retain its traditional conception of IT as cost center, or should it migrate to a scheme that recognizes IT as a service provision center that generates measurable value for the organization? These questions and many others drove Accenture's CIO team to undertake one of the most remarkable IT transformations in a global organization in recent years.

To understand best practices for transforming an IT infrastructure. To offer a step-by-step approach to rationalizing a billion-dollar-plus IT technology infrastructure. To understand the connection between strategy and architecture in delivering high performance for an organization. To understand organizational change strategies and approaches in dealing with complexity in very large companies.

Steve Meyer, the chief marketing officer at Trilogy, was evaluating the best way to move forward with an innovative, customer value-based pricing approach for its enterprise software solutions. Trilogy had radically transformed its business from a product-centric organization to a customer-centric one, and value-based pricing was a pillar of this transformation. Meyer had to evaluate three pricing approaches: traditional license based, subscription based, and gain sharing. He had to assess which pricing approach Trilogy and Trilogy's clients would prefer and the conditions under which gain-sharing pricing would work. Meyer also had to address several adoption barriers that prevented customers from embracing the gain-sharing pricing approach.

Entrepreneurship, management and emerging markets.

Undergraduate and Graduate courses in Entrepreneurship, Managing in Developing Countries/Emerging Markets, Small Business Management, Social Entrepreneurship, International Business

IntEnt is a business incubator that provides training and other support services to nascent entrepreneurs, helping turn their investment ideas into successful business ventures. But IntEnt focuses on a unique clientele: diasporas, or migrants and their descendants, who dream of establishing a new venture back in their country of origin.The incubator is well known and respected by policymakers and migrants alike. Despite these successes, Mr Molenaar has struggled to grow and diversify IntEnt's funding base. He also is under increasing pressure from the foundation's stakeholders to define and measure the foundation's performance. But Molenaar is committed to expanding IntEnt's operations and continue to bridge the divide between diaspora investment interest and action.

To understand and describe the financial-, human-, and social-capital challenges faced by transnational diaspora business ventures during the business development and launch phase.To explain how business incubators can provide solutions to the specific, unique problems that transnational diaspora entrepreneurs face, particularly in emerging markets. To discuss the governance challenges associated with operating a transnational business venture as well as those of an incubator aimed to support transnational entrepreneurship.

Teaching note.

Rob Griffin, senior vice president and U.S. director of search for Media Contacts, a communications consulting firm, is faced with the task of optimizing search engine marketing (SEM) for Air France. At the time of the case, SEM had become an advertising phenomenon, with North American advertisers spending $9.4 billion in the SEM channel, up 62% from 2005. Moving forward, Griffin wants to ensure that the team keeps its leading edge and delivers the results Air France requires for optimal Internet sales growth. The case centers upon Air France's and Media Contacts' efforts to find the ideal SEM campaign to provide an optimal amount of ticket sales in response to advertising dollars spent. This optimal search marketing campaign is based on choosing effective allocation of ad dollars across the various search engines, as well as selecting appropriate keywords and bid strategies for placement on the search result page for Internet users.

In determining the optimal strategy, the case presents background information on the airline industry as well as the Internet search options available at the time, including Google, Microsoft MSN, Yahoo!, and Kayak. Additionally, background information is provided on SEM and its associated costs and means of measuring the successfulness of each marketing effort. The case illustrates how one must first determine the key performance indicators for the project to guide analysis and enable comparison of various SEM campaigns. Cost per click and probability to produce a sale differ among publishers. Therefore, using a portfolio application model's quadrant positions can be used to determine optimal publisher strategies. Additionally, pivot tables help illustrate campaigns and strategies that have historically been most successful in meeting Air France's target Internet sales. Multiple recommendations on how Media Contacts can assist Air France in improving its SEM strategy can be derived from the data provided.

Students learn how to optimally leverage the Internet in generating customer sales in a cost-effective manner. Students will analyze and manipulate a variety of data using pivot tables to determine optimal strategies for obtaining maximum total online bookings through the various online channels available. Using a portfolio application model, students can determine an optimal publisher strategy and complete copy improvement analysis.

The case deals with project management principles that are required for implementing a social project in India.

The study has been carried out at primary schools in an underdeveloped state, namely, Odisha, in India.

The case illustrates a project management approach for improving primary education in a government set up. The bureaucracy set up in education in a state like Odisha, India, needs to undergo radical changes. To be effective, an education system requires an optimal integration of the three main components, namely, people, infrastructure (this includes technology) and pedagogical processes. Using a public–private partnership model, American India Foundation (AIF) through its Digital Equalizer (DE) Program has been able to make a positive impact in an underdeveloped tribal dominated district like Keonjhar. The case study also illustrates the detailed execution plan predicated on total system planning, required to achieve this amount of success. The case study also explains how to measure success through different metrics where intervention has to be at multiple levels. The learning from the case study can also be adopted for designing an implementation strategy in other states.

Expected learning outcomes are as follows: how to approach implementation of technology-based intervention with involvement of all stakeholders; learn project management techniques related to digital learning model implementation; understand the DE methodology; and understand the challenges faced while implementing the DE Program.

Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

CSS 7: Management Science.

The learning outcomes of this paper is as follows: to strategically evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, threats and resulting opportunities that face an entrepreneurial startup. To apply the academic principle of competitiveness and evaluate the competitive advantage of the business and its competitors through the application of the Porter’s five forces model. To evaluate the contextual tensions that entrepreneurial ventures face, and how these affect the growth of a sustainable business. To develop the skills to create a target market analysis by using segmentation, targeting and positioning principles. To evaluate the best strategic actions to grow a business through the lens of sustainable entrepreneurship, by using principles such as the triple bottom line and people, opportunity, context and deal and framework.

The case look at business challenges faced by an entrepreneur, Renshia Manuel, the CEO of GrowBox, as she attempts to balance the profitability and social impact of her venture in Cape Town, South Africa. GrowBox sells customisable self-contained wooden boxes equipped with all materials to grow a variety of vegetables and herbs for consumers. Large volumes of boxes are often purchased by corporate clients who donated these to lower-income communities as part of their social responsibility projects. Additional landscaping and food-scaping services make up another revenue stream of the business. The case study documents the conception of GrowBox in 2016 and the growth of the business in the first four years of operation. The theft of equipment, and difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff due to the volatile social climate of where the business was situated, have put the business under great financial pressure and reduced the efficiency of business processes. The case highlights a number of the harsh realities of sustainable entrepreneurship where both profitability and social impact are vitally important to ensure business sustainability. The case dilemma involves the choices faced by Renshia at the beginning of 2020 regarding the future, sustainable growth of the business.

The target audience for this teaching case is primarily business students at a postgraduate level, particularly those studying in the fields of sustainable entrepreneurship and social development, as well as marketing in emerging markets. This teaching case is intended to be used as a case study in postgraduate business programmes such as postgraduate diplomas in management, specialist Masters programmes such as those focussed on entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship or social development, as well as those studying a Master of Business Administration or related executive education programme.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.