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This case study is based on an MBA team's experience in analyzing a scrap metal recycling business and developing recommendations to improve the performance of the business. The company, Steel City Salvage, has three locations which are managed as separate business entities. The case focuses on the business repercussions of the poor integration across the three locations, and the team's choice of options to improve the integration. These options include changes in organizational structure, processes or culture/leadership style. The case allows students to see how their own experience and education may bias their selection of a preferred option.

• After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:• Identify the difference between core competencies and dynamic capabilities and how they make a difference in a crisis towards building an agile organisation.• Evaluate the support through a collaborative, temporary, trans-organisational system to local manufacturers to achieve agility and sustainability.• Realise the importance of clear expectations exchange and communication between partners to enhance collaboration, even in temporary structures in increasing agility and sustainability.

The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns created a crisis for South Africa and the President, Cyril Ramaphosa called for urgent collaboration between business, labour and government to meet the demand for locally produced Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and medical devices. The case illustrates this response and collaboration between government, labour and business through a temporary newly formed structure, called Business for South Africa (B4SA). Ross Boyd, Head of the innovation work stream of B4SA which housed the local manufacturing partnership (LMP) was considering his dilemma of how to be agile in sustaining their support to the South African manufacturers even though the LMP was a temporary structure. The local manufacturers had to repurpose their production lines to produce local PPE and medical devices. How could the LMP support the South African manufacturers to sustain their agility in building capabilities during COVID-19? At the same time, Ahmed Dhai, the Group Executive of Operations of Kingsgate Clothing, which was benefiting from the support of the LMP, was reflecting on his leadership in taking decisions to repurpose production and increase capacity during COVID-19. Dhai was considering his dilemma of being agile during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The case features several decisions taken by Kingsgate and offers students the opportunity to evaluate these decisions given the fluctuations in supply and demand of PPE and the leadership that Dhai demonstrated in how he communicated and dealt with his staff during the pandemic. Students could also give recommendations to Ross Boyd and Ahmed Dhai on how they could lead their organisations to be more agile during and beyond COVID-19.

The case study is suitable for MBA or MPhil level on Strategy courses. The case would also find good application in Organisational Behaviour and Leadership courses on Masters level and Executive Education programmes.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 7: Management Science.

After analysing this case study, students will be able to understand the relationship between compensation, reward management and gig workers’ behaviour; apply the theory of organizational behaviour related to compensation management to address the motivational issues; analyse the challenges in managing the gig workers’ expectations related to compensation; and design innovative ways of retaining gig workers, especially delivery partners among the gig workers.

In April 2022, Riya, who worked as a business development manager at a newly established food delivery app company named “Our Kitchen” (located in Hyderabad, India), attended a meeting where the chief executive officer expressed concern about the difficulty in retaining their delivery partners. The company provided food delivery services to the customers by procuring ordered food from partner restaurants in select Indian cities. The delivery partners of the company worked part-time and received a commission for the hours they worked. With the rising fuel cost, minimal career growth and negligible social security benefits, it was hard for them to continue in their jobs. As a result, there were high attrition rates in the food delivery company. This case study is about the attrition issue being faced by the company and explores various strategies through which Riya could think of retaining the delivery partners so that there was a win-win situation for both parties. The dilemma given in the case study would help in understanding the motivational theories and factors that encouraged delivery partners to work for these jobs.

The case study is ideally suited for discussing human resources concepts, especially problems related to the retention of delivery partners without reducing the profit of the organization. It will help in understanding the motivational factors leading to job satisfaction and how that will help in the retention of delivery partners. The case study can also be used to teach the executives in a management development programme. This will help them to understand the gig workers’ motivational factors and the causes of their attrition.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 6: Human resource management.

Discusses the challenges that internal departments face as organizations grow and expand. The Field Museum in Chicago, Illinois, grew significantly over a short period of time, creating considerable problems in the finance department, as staff and systems failed to keep pace with the evolving demands placed by the museum departments. These problems resulted in outdated policies and procedures, unhappy users, and frustrated employees. The finance department needed big changes but had to make them while maintaining vital functions, improving morale, and instituting new policies and procedures. Discusses several key nonprofit management issues, including change management, the role of leadership in a crisis, the challenge of informal personnel networks and knowledge management, and key financial issues facing nonprofit organizations.

Marketing

The case is suitable for MBA/MS students.

The famous Taj Mahal Palace and Towers became the centre of one of the most deadly terrorist attacks in the Indian sub continent on the night of 26 November 2008, which became famous as “26/11”. Terrorists created havoc shooting guests on sight and throwing grenades. The attacks lasted for three days but all of the four terrorists who entered Taj were killed. The terrorists had killed 160 people across Mumbai. Of these, 36 died at the Taj Mahal Palace and Towers, Mumbai. The dead included 14 guests, most of whom were foreign nationals. However, due to the selfless and extraordinary behavior of the employees and the staff of Taj, many guests were saved. They put forth an extraordinary example justifying the Indian code of conduct towards guests, “Atithi Devo Bhav” meaning “Guest is God”. In spite of knowing back exits and hiding spots, the employees did not flee, instead helping guests. The employees' behavior during the crisis saved the lives of nearly300 guests. This gesture of Taj employees was much talked about, but it was amusing even for the management to explain why they behaved in that manner. The condition of Taj after the attacks was so disastrous that it would have been profitable to leave the hotel as it was rather than reopening it. This, however, would have dented the Taj brand as a whole, as well as the spirit of all employees and staff who had behaved bravely. Taj started its restoration and reopened a part of the Taj Mahal Palace and Towers on 21 December 2008. It became operational by August 2010. The case provides an opportunity to closely examine employee behavior in an extreme crisis situation, and the possible reasons and motivation behind such exceptional behavior which ultimately helped to sustain the Taj brand. However, the scope of the case can also be extended to illustrate recovery efforts typical to service industries.

The case is designed to enable students to understand: the employees role in service delivery; the service profit chain; the relationship between profitability, customer loyalty, employee satisfaction and loyalty, and productivity; service failure; service recovery; and the service recovery paradox.

Teaching notes are available. Please consult your librarian for access.

In 1999 TiVo was preparing to launch its digital video recorder (DVR) in the United States. The company's goal was ambitious: it hoped to revolutionize how Americans watched television and to become a central player in the emerging interactive TV industry.

Although it had a technological advantage, TiVo faced one competitor (ReplayTV) and potential entrants such as Microsoft, so its success was far from guaranteed. Evidence suggested a bright future for the company, however; the concept had attracted $240 million in venture capital, and market research indicated a uniquely high level of consumer interest.

TiVo needed to capture the first-mover advantage and build its sales and brand as quickly as possible to support the company's IPO, which was planned to take place within eighteen to twenty-four months. TiVo's positioning at launch would play a key role in determining its success.

After analyzing and discussing the case, students should be able to:

• Use analogies appropriately to forecast demand

• Use various marketing research techniques to make appropriate inferences about the challenges to consumer adoption of an innovative product

• Develop multiple frames of reference and discuss the merits of each

• Develop multiple points of difference and discuss the merits of each

• Develop multiple positioning statements and discuss the merits of each

Use analogies appropriately to forecast demand

Use various marketing research techniques to make appropriate inferences about the challenges to consumer adoption of an innovative product

Develop multiple frames of reference and discuss the merits of each

Develop multiple points of difference and discuss the merits of each

Develop multiple positioning statements and discuss the merits of each