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Corporate Strategy, Vertical integration, Diversification.

Graduate.

The case discusses the evolution, decline and turnaround of Mahindra Powerol, a division inside the large Indian business group, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M). The Powerol division had its genesis from the then Farm Equipment Sector, when they used the surplus capacity in the tractor manufacturing facilities to produce and sell power generators (Gensets). Powerol capitalized on the rapid growth of the Indian telecommunications sector and the need for power backup at remote locations for the mobile communication towers. Adopting a lean asset model, it transformed the industry ecosystem and grew rapidly. As the telecom opportunity saturated, Powerol performance declined, but quickly rebound as it diversified into other products. As Powerol continues its diversification journey, there are questions about how Powerol can leverage the lean asset model that was their source of competitive advantage in the Gensets market, into other businesses.

Introduce the fundamental logic of vertical integration. The case elucidates how and when a firm vertically integrates/outsources its operations.

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The Nokia case provides an opportunity to explore financing alternatives in a situation of broad strategic change. The case emphasizes the difficulties of managing the financial resources of technology-based companies when they fall behind in product innovation. Nokia, the world's leading producer of mobile phones, had recently seen its market share and profits eroded by rival products such as Apple's iPhone and phones featuring Google's Android operating system. In February 2011, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop announced a strategic plan and partnership with Microsoft to have Windows serve as its primary OS for smartphones. Since that announcement, Nokia reported a net loss in earnings, followed by a downgrade of its credit rating in the summer of 2012.

Analysts regard the next two years as a period of great uncertainty for the company. In January 2012, the CFO of Nokia estimates that the firm might require up to EUR4.3 billion in funding over the next two years to implement the plan under a representative downside scenario. Students are asked to evaluate the tradeoffs of raising the funds by issuing long-term debt, issuing equity, cutting dividends, or reducing cash. Given the firm's recent competitive struggles, none of the options is particularly appealing, which forces careful consideration of tradeoffs.

The Nokia is appropriate for use in upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses covering topics in capital raising, capital structure, corporate finance, and the costs of financing. A spreadsheet file of case exhibits to facilitate student preparation, teaching note, and instructional spreadsheet file are available for the case.

Focuses on Apple Computer's launch of iTunes and iPod as a way to give Wintel users a relationship with Apple. Deals with issues of brand equity, corporate and brand goal setting, target selection, and matching product and service characteristics with goals and targets. Also allows for a discussion of channel partners, their interests, and their impact on the likely success or failure of a strategy.

This article is a continuation of the article entitled “A Primer on Case Reviewing” published in The CASE Journal, Volume 1, Issue 1. Used in conjunction with the article “Case Research and Writing: Three Days in the Life of Professor Moore”, this article should help both case writers and case reviewers understand the critical elements of what a reviewer should look for in the case and the teaching note.

Todd Wilson, manager of partner development at Educational Technology Corp., needed to determine the targeting, positioning, and selling strategy for its innovative Interactive Mathematics software for the college market. This required determining what types of colleges to target and which stakeholders to focus on within institutions. His task was complicated by the unclear objectives of nonprofit institutions and the differing motivations of teachers, students, and college administrators in adopting software-based learning technology. Highlights the difficulties in innovation adoption within large nonprofit institutions and the challenges in marketing to institutions with complex decision-making processes, multiple influencers, and conflicting motivations.

Dean Adams was given notice to develop an online program with the School of Business Administration as a prototype of online education for the rest of the University. A major task which faced the Dean involved working with University information technology (IT) staff and faculty to choose a learning management system (LMS) to support the online program. After talking with the Chief Information Officer at Seacoast University and appointing a committee made up of IT staff and faculty, the Dean was presented with the committee's recommendation that focussed on two major decisions: first, choosing the LMS product for the University, and second, choosing to locate the LMS product and server either on-campus or off-campus. In the course of considering whether or not to accept the committee's recommendations, Dean Adams weighed the evaluations and justifications as outlined by the committee in the context of Seacoast University's IT situation.

Strategy/entrepreneurship/international marketing.

This case is recommended for use in courses on strategy, entrepreneurship, international marketing and joint venture for PGDM and Executive programmes.

International Football Academy (IFA), a leading football development firm, is gearing up to expand its operations to a new geographic market, India. The purpose is to further its international growth plans by establishing a lasting presence in developing markets. Their previous stints in China and Indonesia met with huge success. However, there was a stark difference between those geographies and the Indian market, in terms of political system, economic infrastructure, social framework, cultural practices, technological advancements, legal regulations, etc. In a country where 47 per cent of the 1.2 billion population considered themselves football fans (Nielson survey, 2010), it was ironical that the Indian football market remained one of the most untapped and fragmented of its kind. The question for IFA was: “Would India be another feather in our hat?”

The case highlights the key factors facing firms, when expanding into emerging markets. The students are expected to think through the various dimensions to decision-making, which includes Why (expand), Where (which market), When (right time), What (thrust of strategy) and Who (partners). It also compels the students to appreciate the various challenges involved in exporting a product, which is as unique as “football training”.

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CSS 11: Strategy

Recognize the interest groups of the business as stakeholders and shareholders. Understand the role of strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR) in attaining competitive advantage for the firm. Apply the techniques of financial statement analysis such as common-sized financial statements and ratio analysis. Analyze the overall financial position of the company such as its liquidity, solvency and profitability position. Evaluate the appropriateness of various CSR activities given the size of the company, its business model and financial position. Create a suitable CSR policy draft incorporating the critical elements of a CSR policy that enables the firm to operationalize it and fulfill the disclosure norms.

The management of Ball Industry Limited (BIL) had overlooked the mandatory requirement of CSR policy formulation. The company had not yet spent anything on CSR since the regulation had come into force. The company’s financial position was not healthy. Still, it fell under the regulatory clause as a borderline case and must spend 2% of its average three years’ profit on CSR activities. The company had previously ignored the requirement of formally drafting a CSR policy and deciding about the actions it might want to carry out. Now that the regulator had started sending show-cause notices to several companies who had not yet begun CSR, BIL was under immense time pressure to draft its CSR policy and initiate the relevant CSR activities. Emily, the chief operating officer of BIL, was assigned the task of preparing the blueprint of the CSR policy of the company and made it available for discussion in the upcoming meeting. The task at hand was to formulate a sound CSR policy under the constrained financial state considering its strategic planning, including the SWOT analysis, competitive environment and the overall general market and economic conditions. She submitted that rather than a vanilla CSR activity, strategic CSR would support the firm to differentiate itself from competitors. She was struggling to formulate a CSR strategy that could achieve both economic and social goals.

The case will be most suitable for use in undergraduate and graduate courses.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 1: Accounting and finance.

This paper uses financial report information to analyze the accounting results of the COVID-19 vaccine development for Johnson & Johnson (J&J). This paper also uses stock price information to analyze the market reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine development and the state of clinical trials for J&J.

This instructional case investigates the interaction between J&J and the COVID-19 vaccine. This paper uses information from financial reports to analyze the accounting results of the COVID-19 vaccine development for J&J. This paper also uses stock price information to analyze the market’s reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine development and the state of clinical trials for J&J.

This case has been used in both undergraduate and graduate levels to highlight the application of accounting theories to practice and improve the understanding of financial statements, especially when Covid-19 has affected the global economy. Under this new context, students could explore new ideas from accounting aspect.

The case aims to investigate the interaction between J&J as a pharmaceutical company and COVID-19. It provides a context in which to discuss the consequences of COVID-19 vaccines from several financial perspectives, such as stock prices, accounting policies, earnings and cash flows:

LO1: Understand the responses of stakeholders to J&J’s COVID-19 vaccines.

LO2: Understand the accounting policies that J&J and its competitors follow regarding COVID-19 vaccines related to revenues, R&D expenditures and government funds.

LO3: Apply Ball and Brown’s theory to the impact of COVID-19 vaccine development on earnings quality of J&J and its competitors.

LO4: Assess the importance of COVID-19 vaccines in management decision-making through dividend policy and management compensation structure.

TASER International, Inc. is one of the world's leading less-lethal weapons manufacturers and distributors. The case begins with a dramatic moment as the President and CEO of TASER International become aware of a highly critical article in Barron's. The article questions the legitimacy of their high stock price and casts doubt on their continued ability to grow. The case presents the company's counterarguments to the critical Barron's article, and asks for alternatives for TASER's next move into the relatively untapped consumer market with a new consumer-oriented product, the TASER X26^C. The case resulted from lengthy in-person, email, and phone interviews with TASER's President, Tom Smith. In addition, the company and its products have been well publicized in the national business press and in the local newspapers. Further, product details and other information on TASERs and other less-lethal weapons has been published in numerous police and military sources. Finally, TASER International's website has been a rich source of supplemental information to support the writing of the case.