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In January 2013, small biotechnology firm Orexigen was in the final stages of testing Contrave, a promising new pharmaceutical product for the treatment of obesity. At the time, Orexigen had no products in the market, so all its hopes of financial success rested on this new treatment. Contrave had proven to be highly effective in clinical trials, and Orexigen executives were confident it would receive FDA approval.

At the same time, a much larger pharmaceutical company was considering acquiring Orexigen. Because the decision to acquire would ultimately be a financial one, the project team from the large company had to complete a valuation for Orexigen's only significant product in its pipeline, Contrave. What was the new product actually worth?

Teaching Note and Exhibits.

The learning outcomes are as follows. The case offers a rare opportunity to understand the unique market dynamics of feminine health and hygiene products in an emerging market. The discussion would enable learners to comprehend different stages of “new product development process”; understand “diffusion of innovation” and consumer adoption process; conduct a comprehensive situation analysis to assess segment attractiveness; and plan market-driven “product commercialization” strategies to increase adoption and sales for long-term performance.

Peebuddy – “India’s first portable female urination device” that gave women the freedom to stand and pee in unfriendly toilets was launched in 2015. Over two million units were sold by December 2019. Riding on this success, Deep Bajaj – the creator of Peebuddy built a 20-product company from a small bootstrapped start-up, over a four-year period. After receiving two rounds of funding, Bajaj knew that for the next phase of expansion, he needed to showcase Peebuddy as the star product. Facing the challenge of getting over the chasm of limited adoption of an unconventional product in the intimate feminine hygiene and almost taboo space in an emerging market such as India, Bajaj was determined to retain the first mover advantage and emerge as the leader in the category. For this, he had to define his lead user distinctly and design appropriate strategies to increase consumer reach and sales that could overcome the challenges of cultural stereotypes.

MBA-level courses in marketing management (core), consumer behavior and product management.

CSS 8: Marketing.

The learning outcomes are as follows: to understand the cultural and ethical dimensions revolving around the issue of female feticide; to apply the lens of institutional theory with respective change management measures; and to analyze and evaluate the impact of such intervention programs such as Beti Bachao Beti Padhao in the context of emerging economies such as India.

This case attempts to highlight the innovative and effective governance approach by the Government of Rajasthan (India) and, in particular, the State Health Assurance Agency to curb the menace of female feticide and the rising cases of abortion and sex determination in an attempt to favor a male child. The case concentrates on mainly three dimensions of Indian societal ecosystem, namely, the grave concern of preference of male child over female child leading to widespread cases of female feticide in different states in India with specific focus on the state of Rajasthan; the role of cultural dimension which primarily drives such preferential treatment in rural and urban areas in India; and the importance of using effective policy measures in monitoring various activities, introduction of incentive schemes to patients for preventing sex determination and promoting the birth of female child.

This case can be used as a teaching material in the Public Policy course – Social Welfare and Health Policy, Policy interventions, organization theory and change management at the Graduate/MBA level.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 10: Public Sector Management.

This case study aims to understand the role of women entrepreneurship that reconcile the interests of not only business but also the economy as a whole; to map the most common avenues and levers as well as challenges and impediments in entrepreneurship; and to study how women have proved themselves and created value (for company as well as consumer) and driven leadership in business.

This case study predominantly is an entrepreneurial journey of the protagonist who left her cushy job to follow her dreams and started her own venture in hospitality industry. The case is designed on the basis of rounds of interviews conducted with the owner, hence it is based on primary data. Jayanti Kathale, a technology expert, working with a reputed organization, started Purna Bramha in 2013. The unique selling proposition of her food business was the home-like taste of the Marathi cuisine that she was serving. There were challenges like funding, logistics and pricing just like any other start-up. But Jayanti was determined to excel and her perseverance helped her get through all the challenges. Besides being a successful entrepreneur herself, she played a role in empowering other women also, by offering them franchisees of her restaurant. The food service industry is fast-paced, competitive and constantly evolving. This is taken well into consideration and proper training is organized for the staff. The protagonist's main quandary at this time is her pricing strategy.

The case is designed to be taught to the undergraduate and postgraduate management students and any other equivalent course. It can be taught in 2-h class and is expected to require some outside preparation by students. The students should be acquainted with the basic concepts of entrepreneurship and organizational culture in India. The instructor should focus on two aspects in the case. The broader aspect is Entrepreneurship in India and the narrower and more focused ones like Women Leadership.

CCS 3: Entrepreneurship

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

It is January 2017, and Nikki Tyler, market access advisor at the U.S. Agency for International Development's Center for Accelerating Innovation and Impact, must recommend an actionable strategy for how to use the $10 million contributed by global donors and foundations to scale up the use of chlorhexidine in Nigeria. It was clear that chlorhexidine, a substance applied to newborns' umbilical cord stumps to prevent infection, could reduce infant mortality significantly. However, changing behavior would be an enormous challenge. This case gives students an appreciation for the importance and complexity of global health issues, along with an understanding of key analytic techniques for approaching a complex market situation. Students quickly learn that there are no easy answers to encouraging chlorhexidine's greater use. To develop a plan, it is essential to complete detailed analyses, study insights and motivations, and ultimately compare different possible solutions, considering efficiency and efficacy.

Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP); social innovation and business modeling.

Undergraduate and graduate level management/business school students. It can be taught in marketing management and entrepreneurship/innovation courses.

LifeSpring Hospitals Pvt. Ltd is an expanding chain of hospitals that provide high quality health care to lower-income women and children across Andhra Pradesh. It is a 50-50 equity partnership between Hindustan Latex Ltd and the Acumen Fund. LifeSpring has demonstrated exceptional management principles, some of them being the most innovative and attractive ones. The entire focus of LifeSpring is on one particular niche: maternal care. Some argue about its strategy of not adopting diversification, but LifeSpring has proved its point by actually turning out to be a profitable business. The strategy of focusing on one niche has led to reduction in cost in terms of specialized doctors and the range of equipment needed to serve. Adding to the strategic strength of LifeSpring, its operations (management) is perfectly aligned with the organization's vision and quality is achieved via highly standardized procedures for maternal care service.

This case will cover two important aspects of BOP and social innovation. MBA students will investigate an innovative business model and apply their analytical skills to analyse the sustainability of the model.

Teaching notes and exercise for class-based discussion.

Need for preventive health care: To comprehend the contribution of preventive health care in improving the health quotient. Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospital (SSSSH) and its initiative is an apt example of the wonder which preventive care can bring in the context of rural health. Community participation: The case can be instrumental in showing the pathway to encourage community involvement in mainstream health by promoting the holistic model of SSSSH that understands mothers and children's health profile and needs, especially in the unreached rural segments of an emerging economy like India. Importance of healthy childhood: World Health Organization (WHO) promotes the school health programme to prevent health risks among children by inculcating healthy behaviours during childhood. The successful SSSSH model proves that it is implementable by integrating comprehensive health education modules in the existing institutions for medical care.

The challenge of a healthy childhood is inadequate availability and accessibility of quality care. Non-awareness of the parents is also a significant reason for the children who miss the benefit of a happy childhood. While much is planned by the Government and some part of it being executed, this case highlights the effectiveness of the maternal and child health programme executed by the Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospital (SSSSH). This initiative fulfills the dire need of ensuring the preventive healthcare component leading to safe motherhood and safe birth of healthy children. Further, the case is also the culmination of pin-pointed innovative awareness activities such as school health screening and the Divine Mother and Child Health Program (DMCHP). It opens up the discussion on the current model of health care followed by SSSSH, Raipur, and its impact in the local areas to decide on its expansion across the country for nationwide implementation.

Bachelors in Business Administration, MBA, Executive MBA, Post Graduate Diploma in Healthcare Management

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 2: Built Environment.

LifeBank is primarily focused on tackling the challenge of maternal mortality in Nigeria and other African countries by providing women access to blood, thereby tackling the challenge of gender inequality. The company employed both men and women at its workplace providing equal opportunities for men and women.

Discuss how women entrepreneurs are solving social problems in developing countries using technology and innovation.

Analyze the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs in getting the right human capital, raising funds and managing growth for their social business.

The case discusses how social entrepreneur Temie Giwa-Tubosun (Temie) founded LifeBank, a medical distribution company, to provide access to blood, medical oxygen and vaccines to hospitals in Nigeria. The company used technology to provide information to health providers about which blood bank stored the blood type they needed and delivered it quickly and safely to help save lives.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

The following are the learning objectives of the case study: to address the problem of urban food insecurity. To facilitate the generation of more employment opportunities and women empowerment through self-help groups (SHGs). To understand the transition from the founder to new leadership provided by Ms J Jayalalithaa. To understand consumer perception and preferences for “Amma canteens”. To appreciate how the case study has added to the historical role of soup kitchens. To address the challenges faced by the government on the sustainability and viability of “Amma canteens” post the death of its founder Ms Jayalalithaa.

“Amma Unavagam” is a food subsidisation programme operated by the State Government of Tamil Nadu in India. Under the scheme, municipal corporations of the state are required to run canteens that serve subsidised food. The canteens were first launched by the then Chief Minister of the state Ms Jayalalithaa, who was widely acknowledged as “Amma”. These low-cost canteens will be announced as part of government schemes aimed to support economically disadvantaged sections of society. The scheme had been able to generate employment for thousands of women. However, the success of the scheme lies in the low prices and the cooperative management of all the outlets by the SHGs. The SHGs have been able to run the canteens based on self-governing norms, mutual reciprocity and shared responsibilities. This case study evaluates the role of state-sponsored mechanisms to ensure food security, alleviate food inflation and empower more women in the workforce. Yet, several concerns continue to remain unaddressed. Considering the huge amount of subsidy provided by the state government, the sustainability and economic viability of the scheme are uncertain.

This case study can be used for management students studying the basics of management such as teamwork, motivation, leadership and good governance. They may also study government policies and community intervention programmes for the benefit of society. The present case study will help the students to analyse the concept of women empowerment and social inclusion. The students, before discussing the case, may study and read the socio-economic theory of “community engagement and participation”, the “self-help model” and the related “theory of reasoned action/planned behaviour”.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 6: Human resource management.

The case study is apt for the undergraduate as well as the postgraduate students in courses spanning from human resource management and leadership to non-government organizations' management and organizational visioning issues.

Management courses.

The case veers around an NGO called Mukti, which was established post-Gujarat riots. The NGO seeks to empower the women and the youth by spreading awareness about the basic rights as well as works for the social inclusion of those living at the tangent or far away from the mainstream society. There are serious leadership and manpower management issues in the NGO, which need to be sorted out for the organization to realize its goals and objectives. Mukti is answerable for its performance before the trustees and the funding agency, both of whom are critical about the functioning of the NGO. Therefore, concerns are raised for tackling the issues of employee turnover and leadership structure.

The objectives of the case are fourfold: to appreciate the challenges in the face of running a NGO or a voluntary organization; to understand the manpower issues, especially among the frontline staff; to study the impact of authoritarian leadership in an organization; to underscore the need for clearly defining the organization's vision, mission, goals and objectives as well as the need for planning in the short-term and long-term for achieving the targets set by the organization.

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