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Case study
Publication date: 11 April 2017

Russell Walker

Read any news report on the housing market, and inevitably it will include facts or figures from the real estate data giant Zillow.com. The company initially set out to solve two…

Abstract

Read any news report on the housing market, and inevitably it will include facts or figures from the real estate data giant Zillow.com. The company initially set out to solve two key economic frictions in the real estate industry information asymmetry and the principal-agent problem by empowering users to access real-time housing data and eliminating the need for realtors. The company soon realized, however, that American homeowners and buyers were not willing to give up the traditional real estate agent model and changed course. In the end, Zillow decided to join rather than replace the middlemen in the real estate industry.

Case study
Publication date: 20 January 2017

Mohanbir Sawhney

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…

Abstract

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.

Case study
Publication date: 20 June 2023

Shyamal Datta and Sonu Goyal

The case is aimed at providing students with an opportunity to understand various aspects of corporate governance and the consequences of poor corporate governance. The case…

Abstract

Learning outcomes

The case is aimed at providing students with an opportunity to understand various aspects of corporate governance and the consequences of poor corporate governance. The case addresses the following objectives: The students need to assess the role of the board in implementing corporate governance. The students should be able to explain the conflicts experienced by various stakeholders in an organization. The students need to evaluate the balancing act of growth and governance in a startup. The students should be able to determine the current state of business sustainability of the high-growth startups in India.

Case overview/synopsis

The case presents the challenges faced by the CEO of BharatPe, Suhail Sameer. Beginning in 2022, Bharatpe was in deep trouble as there were allegations of financial mismanagement, toxic work culture and widening losses. Co-founder Ashneer Grover and his wife Madhuri had to leave the company following charges against them. As Grover was the face of the company, Sameer would have to quickly act on filling the void and reassuring investors. Because of the uncertainty, scores of employees had already quit or were looking for other jobs. Questions were also raised about the board’s inaction and lack of proactive measures. After a meteoric rise for three years, BharatPe was struggling to survive the whole episode and put its focus back on business.

Complexity academic level

The case is intended for MBA students in corporate governance, organizational behaviour, business ethics and strategic management areas. As the case reveals the impact of poor corporate governance, it can also be used for executive training purposes on corporate sustainability, governance and leadership with a special focus on Indian startups.

Supplementary materials

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

Subject code

CSS 11: Strategy.

Details

Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, vol. 13 no. 1
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2045-0621

Keywords

Case study
Publication date: 20 January 2017

David P. Stowell and Stephen Carlson

Hedge fund Magnetar Capital had returned 25 percent in 2007 with a strategy that posed significantly lower risk to investors than the S&P 500. Magnetar had made more than $1…

Abstract

Hedge fund Magnetar Capital had returned 25 percent in 2007 with a strategy that posed significantly lower risk to investors than the S&P 500. Magnetar had made more than $1 billion in profit by noticing that the equity tranche of CDOs and CDO-derivative instruments were relatively mispriced. It took advantage of this anomaly by purchasing CDO equity and buying credit default swap (CDS) protection on tranches that were considered less risky. Now it was the job of Alec Litowitz, chairman and chief investment officer, to provide guidance to his team as they planned next year's strategy, evaluate and prioritize their ideas, and generate new ideas of his own. An ocean away, Ron Beller was contemplating some very different issues. Beller's firm, Peloton Partners LLP, had been one of the top-performing hedge funds in 2007, returning in excess of 80 percent. In late January 2008 Beller accepted two prestigious awards at a black-tie EuroHedge ceremony. A month later, his firm was bankrupt. Beller shorted the U.S. housing market before the subprime crisis hit, and was paid handsomely for his bet. After the crisis began, however, he believed that prices for highly rated mortgage securities were being unfairly punished, so he decided to go long AAA-rated securities backed by Alt-A mortgage loans (between prime and subprime), levered 9x. The trade moved against Peloton in a big way on February 14, 2008, causing $17 billion in losses and closure of the firm.

This case analyzes the strategies of the two hedge funds, focusing on how money can be made and lost during a financial crisis. The role of investment banks as lenders to hedge funds such as Peloton is explored, as well as characteristics of the CDO market and an array of both mortgage-related and credit protection-related instruments that were actively used (for better or worse) by hedge funds during the credit crisis of 2007 and 2008.

Details

Kellogg School of Management Cases, vol. no.
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2474-6568
Published by: Kellogg School of Management

Keywords

Case study
Publication date: 3 January 2020

Nestor U. Salcedo, Miguel Garcia-Cestona and Katherina Kuschel

A student can evaluate the variables related to the corporate governance decision for the future of the companies while simultaneously facing other internal factors, such as…

Abstract

Learning outcomes

A student can evaluate the variables related to the corporate governance decision for the future of the companies while simultaneously facing other internal factors, such as understanding the owner's address style. In addition, the student will be able to balance and weigh current resources, understanding that the conceptual frameworks of agency theory, resource dependence theory, agency and transaction costs, as well as the types of leadership and power are useful to understand this type of companies, common in emerging markets.

Case overview/synopsis

This case describes the actions of Nestor Salcedo Guevara, founding partner of Industrial Andina S.A. and owner of NSG Service Stations, companies focused on industrial manufacturing and retail fuel sales, respectively. The case covers a period of 40 years, from the founding of Industrial Andina S.A. in 1978, its restructuring into a family business in 1982, the strategic decisions concerning the political and economic situations from the eighties to the new millennium, and the creation of NSG Service Stations in the year 2000, until August 2018, when Nestor faced the decision to expand NSG Service Stations and reactivate Industrial Andina SA with new projects. Therefore, Nestor must decide the next steps for the future of both companies. This case study highlights several challenges of business economics and administrative strategy facing entrepreneurs or experienced managers and allows to discuss in class concepts of corporate governance such as ownership structure, incomplete contracts, management styles and defensive strategies associated with the power of the CEO - Owner.

Complexity academic level

Undergraduate students in Business Administration or Economics and post-graduate MBA. Business Economics courses, Strategic Management, Corporate Governance courses.

Supplementary materials

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

Subject code

CSS 11: Strategy.

Case study
Publication date: 24 May 2018

Shubham, Shashank Mittal and Atri Sengupta

Organizational behavior, Organizational leadership, Organizational transformation.

Abstract

Subject area

Organizational behavior, Organizational leadership, Organizational transformation.

Study level/applicability

First year management students in the course Organizational Behavior (OB). Final year management students in the elective course on leadership and change management. Middle level managers who are working in industry, in the management development program related to change leadership and change management.

Case overview

This case deals with the transformation of the public distribution system (PDS) under the leadership of Dr Raman Singh. The PDS system was an inefficient system and the food grain supply intended for the poor was diverted by intermediaries before reaching the intended beneficiaries. Having experiences in central government ministries as a cabinet minister, Dr Raman Singh decided to transform the PDS. The challenges faced were primarily from that of the reticent bureaucracy and dealing with them requires patience and the skills of a transformational and motivational leader which Dr Raman Singh possessed.

Expected learning outcomes

This case intends to develop understanding of various dimensions related to transformational and motivational styles of leadership. Further, it intends to develop understanding of crucial institutional and organizational changes and how leaders bring about these changes in sync with technological and process changes.

Supplementary materials

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

Subject code

CSS: 6: Human Resource Management.

Details

Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2045-0621

Keywords

Case study
Publication date: 1 May 2010

LeAnn Beaty

For 28 years Alaska, like the vast majority of the nation, has struggled with growing prison populations and shrinking budgets. In 1995, the Alaska Department of Corrections…

Abstract

For 28 years Alaska, like the vast majority of the nation, has struggled with growing prison populations and shrinking budgets. In 1995, the Alaska Department of Corrections, faced with sanctions unless they ameliorated their crowded prison conditions, looked to the popular practice of contracting out its correctional operations by sending 650 prisoners to a private out-of-state prison. But, as the costs of prisoner litigation and transportation mounted, the state began to consider building its own private prison, a decision which many state lawmakers and business entrepreneurs argued would allow the state to stretch scarce dollars by providing cheaper and better quality prisons, return millions of dollars to the state economy, and create permanent jobs. In this decision case, students are required to put themselves in the role of the Alaska Legislature to determine whether they should permit the building and operation of a private prison in one of Alaska's remote communities. The students must analyze and juggle the complex and often competing set of objectives, values, and political tensions intrinsic to all privatization decisions.

Details

The CASE Journal, vol. 6 no. 2
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 1544-9106

Abstract

Subject area

International business

Study level/applicability

Undergraduate/graduate/executive education.

Case overview

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.

Expected learning outcomes

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.

Supplementary materials

Teaching notes.

Details

Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, vol. 1 no. 4
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2045-0621

Keywords

Case study
Publication date: 3 June 2017

Beat Hans Wafler and Rian Beise-Zee

The case authentically illustrates a common problem encountered within the business scope of an agent who is representing a European food ingredients manufacturer in an emerging…

Abstract

Subject area

The case authentically illustrates a common problem encountered within the business scope of an agent who is representing a European food ingredients manufacturer in an emerging market. The case describes the kind of legal set-up and contracts that are necessary to safeguard the long-term prospective of the business for both parties, the agent and overseas supplier. It explains what each party has to observe in case of a termination of the agency agreement.

Study level/applicability

This is a longitudinal case study of a market entry by a European food ingredients manufacturer through a foreign-owned third agent. The authors studied how sales developed over the first few years and then concentrated the investigation on the fact that after the sales volume was reached, the overseas manufacturer wants to cancel the agency agreement and do the business directly without getting the agent involved.

Case overview

This case describes and explains a common problem encountered frequently by overseas manufacturers who want to enter an emerging market through a third-party agent representation. The overseas supplier uses the agent’s service and solid reputation to enter an emerging market with limited exposure to costs and risk. The agent works towards guarding the relationship with the overseas supplier for as long as possible. The development of the relationship illustrates what kind of conditions have to be stipulated in advance to provide an acceptable solution to both parties concerned once they part ways.

Expected learning outcomes

This research is based on a European food ingredients manufacturer, who was expanding its business in different Asian emerging markets, namely, Vietnam and Cambodia. The agent was a long-time established trading house who acted frequently as agent for overseas companies that wanted to get a foothold in these promising Asian emerging markets.

Supplementary materials

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

Subject code

CSS 5: International Business

Details

Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2045-0621

Keywords

Case study
Publication date: 2 December 2019

Akhileshwar Pathak

Contracts term of commercial sale of goods have a ‘title retention clause’, preventing the transfer of ownership till the seller is fully paid. The unpaid seller gets the right to…

Abstract

Contracts term of commercial sale of goods have a ‘title retention clause’, preventing the transfer of ownership till the seller is fully paid. The unpaid seller gets the right to repossess the goods from the buyer. Exigencies of businesses have led to introduction of further clauses allowing the buyer to use or sub-sell the goods even before the transfer of ownership. The United Kingdom Court of Appeal judgment in the Caterpillar Case brings out the effects of the contradictions of a title retention clause qualified by the right of the buyer to use or sub-sell.

Details

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, vol. no.
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 2633-3260
Published by: Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad

Keywords

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