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Tom McKillop, CEO of AstraZeneca, faced the classic quandary of large pharmaceutical firms. The firm's patent for Prilosec (active ingredient omeprazole) was expiring. Severe cost-based competition from generic drug manufacturers was inevitable. Patent expirations were nothing new for the US$15.8 billion in revenues drug firm, but Prilosec was the firm's most successful drug franchise, with global sales of US$6.2 billion. How could the company innovate its way around the generic cost-based competition and avoid the drop in revenues associated with generic drug market entry? AstraZeneca had other follow-on drugs in the pipeline—namely Nexium, an improvement on the original Prilosec molecule. Additionally, the company had the opportunity to introduce its own version of generic omeprazole, hence becoming the first mover in the generic segment, and/or introduce an OTC version of omeprazole that might tap into other markets. Ideally, AstraZeneca would like to move brand-loyal Prilosec customers to Nexium. In this market, direct-to-consumer advertising has remarkable efficacy. Classical marketing challenges of pricing and promotion need to be resolved for the Nexium launch as well as possible product and place challenges for the generic or OTC opportunity. Which combination of marketing options will allow the firm to best sustain the value of the original omeprazole innovation?

The central objective of the case is to teach students how marketing variables can be used by first movers with diverse product portfolios to fend off severe price competition. These variables include pricing, promotion, product, and place (distribution) options as considered in the context of branded, generic, and OTC pharmaceutical market segments.

In mid-1992, Christine Olsen, the chief financial officer (CFO) of this large CAD/CAM equipment manufacturer, must decide on the magnitude of the firm's dividend payout. A subsidiary question is whether the firm should embark on a campaign of corporate-image advertising and change its corporate name to reflect its new outlook. The case serves as an omnibus review of the many practical aspects of the dividend decision, including (1) signaling effects, (2) clientele effects, and (3) finance and investment implications of increasing dividend payout.

Marketing, brand management, promotion management and corporate social responsibility.

Undergraduate and postgraduate.

How does the “country-of-origin” issue affect brands, and what do brands need to do? The case of unique and small corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs and their impact on creating brand awareness.

Aamer Khan, Managing Director Hafet Electrical LLC, the sole distributor for of Haier in United Arab Emirates (UAE) was reviewing their half yearly results. Among the more unconventional strategies they had adopted was one where they used community engagement to get an insight into the local market and develop brand awareness as a caring top quality brand. The CEO of Haier, Zhang Ruimin stressed that “quality is and will remain the essence of business sustainable, whether in the past, present or future”. Aamer was evaluating the effectiveness of the strategy and considering its impact. Should he use a similar strategy next year?

This case deals with the “country-of-origin” issue, an important aspect in branding a key strategy of marketing. The Haier brand and its country-of-origin were investigated among the Emirati (UAE nationals) consumers. This was done as part of a capstone research project by Meerah, Sara and Azza at Zayed University, Dubai. Further, the group created a unique CSR program for the Haier, whereby they invited people to join them in a Walkathon to raise money for a charitable cause. Haier donated various products like refrigerators, air coolers and air conditioners towards this charity. By creating this event, the group raised awareness of the Haier brand among the local population.

What is:

• “Country of origin” (coo) in marketing and its effect on brands?

• The role of CSR in corporate marketing communication?

• The role of small events in building brands?

“Country of origin” (coo) in marketing and its effect on brands?

The role of CSR in corporate marketing communication?

The role of small events in building brands?

Teaching notes.

Marketing Management.

BBA Students of Marketing Management.

The brand ⇓Dentonic” by Ala Chemicals was originally launched as a tooth powder meant for the middle and lower socioeconomic classes. The tooth powder was a hugely successful product. Dentonic tooth powder held the highest market share in the category at 80 per cent in the 1990s. However, the tooth powder market in the urban areas is declining and consumer preference is slowly moving to toothpastes. Although tooth powder is still used in the rural areas, some toothpaste manufacturers have extended their reach at the lower end of the market offering consumers “value propositions” in the shape of toothpaste at the comparable price of tooth powder. The market for dental cleaning products has seen a shift in terms of young consumers switching from powder to the lower-priced toothpaste brands. The company Ala Chemicals did not want to sit back and face a declining tooth powder market. Therefore, they launched a premium quality toothpaste by the same brand name, Dentonic, and made efforts to penetrate the premium segment of toothpaste. However, the marketing strategies did not have the desired effect and the company was unable to get consumers to accept Dentonic as a premium toothpaste. Although Ala Chemicals indulged in promotional spending, using social media, offering a high-quality product and making it accessible with competitive prices, somehow they were unable to create the required pull.

This study provides an example of how “over positioning” of a brand can be an impediment in the case of a brand extension, especially when a lower end brand is positioned as a premium brand. It is also meant to show that the product concept alone cannot lead to marketing success and consumer acceptance. It also exposes students to the requirement of creating a Unique Value Proposition in a brand and the difficulties of pursuing a segment invasion, without considering the entry barriers, and the marketing strategies/positions of competitors.

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

This public-sourced case was named the best finance case of 2013 in the 24th annual awards and competition sponsored by The Case Centre. It was designed for and works well in the latter portion of a GEMBA Financial Management and Policies course and in the early stage of a second-year MBA elective Financial Institutions and Markets course. The case is set in mid-2012 as the new co-CEOs of Deutsche Bank are about to speak in an analyst call. Students are the decision makers and have the opportunity to evaluate the various factors affecting a bank's situation in a changing global industry, such as leverage and credit quality, as well as to discuss the implications on Deutsche Bank and the banking sector more broadly of Basel III, the global regulatory reform. The students also have the opportunity to conduct a valuation of the bank. Investors were anxious to know whether the new co-CEOs would discuss the strategy of how Deutsche Bank planned to meet the new regulatory requirements, what effect Basel III would have on the company's profitability, and what lines of business it would focus on going forward in a new banking environment. They also wanted to know more about the benefits of the 2010 majority stake investment in Postbank, a German commercial bank. In class, this discussion also allows for a broader examination of the universal bank model and the role of banks within society.

The case illustrates an entrepreneurial voyage and venture creation and through it helps in identifying the reasons and causes for that venture's failure. It also enables discussion on the importance of planning a venture, more importantly; financing, managing, growing, and ending a venture and on how to avoid the pitfalls that befall such enterprises. This case can be used in Entrepreneurship courses as well as MBA, PGP and Executive Education programmes on Entrepreneurship.

The case deals with the Bullwhip phenomena that can be observed in a supply chain.

This case is suitable for all levels of students, undergraduate MBA to Executive MBA classes and practitioners. Assignment questions are designed from the perspective of teaching this case to a business student audience. The case is ideally suited for a supply chain management course and can be introduced to demonstrate the bullwhip effect in an operations management course.

Set in May 2011, the case presents the discussions in the meeting summoned by Mr Srinivas, the director (technical) of Health Pharma (not the name of a real organization) in response to the huge losses faced by the organization in the last financial year. The discussions point to the inability of the organization to appropriately forecast demand across the different echelons and also absence of information transparency, leading to the loss. The catastrophe indicated the need to adopt an ERP solution, which was earlier overlooked by Health Pharma management.

These are an introduction to the concepts of the bullwhip effect and the case presents a managerial solution to the supply chain problem demonstrated.

Teaching notes are available for facilitating the instructor to present and discuss the case in a classroom setting.

The case has been designed specifically for a Brand Management course. However, it can be used for a basic course in marketing management.

The case has been developed for the students of MBA or Executive MBA. The case needs to be taught after the students have understood the concepts of the marketing mix, segmentation, targeting and the basics of marketing strategy to ensure effective learning.

The case discusses the entrepreneurial journey of Parminder Sandhu. Sandhu initiated an entrepreneurial venture by launching a brand of perfume in India. Parminder, with his business partner Arun, got the idea of using the brand name “Next” from Next Plc store while travelling around in the UK. Subsequently, “Next Care” successfully launched two product lines “Next” and “English Leather” and offered 51 SKUs. “Next Care” became the third highest selling perfume brand firm in India. “Next Care” suffered a setback when one of their factories was raided by “Lacoste” and had to stop production of one brand extension “Nextcare Crocodile” due to the deceptively similar logo. Parminder learned that “Next Plc” was planning to open its stores and may launch the NXT brand of perfumes in India. Sandhu, Mahajan and Wadhawan have been debating whether they should continue with the “Next” brand name.

The expected learning outcomes are as follows: to appreciate the marketing and legal perspective of a brand name; to introduce the concept of deceptively similar brands and implications of the same on the business; and to understand the process of brand name registration.

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 8: Marketing.

This case was based on both primary and secondary data. In-depth semidirected interviews were conducted in 2021–2022 after receiving the institutional research board approval. The interviews took an approximate time ranging from 90 to 120 min. They were recorded and transcribed. A thematic analysis was undertaken to identify the most relevant themes for the case. The secondary sources used included various websites, scholarly and trade journals, as well as specific databases, such as Statista.

The case exposes students in multiple disciplines to the challenges created by the COVID-19 crisis at Yale School of Medicine (YSM). It describes its remarkable effects on organizational and community members as they struggled to reimagine more inclusive and supportive spaces. As one of the most severe crises humanity has ever witnessed, COVID-19 exacerbated the existing struggles of the underrepresented communities, creating a double pandemic. It has also amplified inequities among marginalized groups including black, indigenous and people of color; women; immigrants; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning; people with different abilities; working parents; single parents; religious minorities; and people with low income. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, Yale University School of Medicine (YSM), like other pioneering schools in the field of health care, doubled their efforts to face both the public health crisis and the substantial social turmoil (racial tensions after the death of George Floyd, food insecurity, vaccine resistance, social inequalities, etc.). Professor Marietta Vazquez, MD, who was the first Latina to be named Associate Dean for Medical Students Diversity at YSM, launched with Dr Latimore (Chief Diversity Officer) and her other colleagues many strategic initiatives aiming at improving the diversity, equity and inclusion of organizational and community members.

The case is an invitation to graduate students and students in executive education programs to reflect on the grand challenges leaders faced at YSM as well as in other institutions across the nation and the globe. It is also a call to reimagine ways leaders can accelerate the pace of change in their organizational ecosystems.

This case was written for use in graduate-level courses, including executive education dealing with Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, Leadership and Change, Health-Care Equity/Policy, Health Sciences, Human Resource Management, Organizational Behavior, Crisis Management, Sustainability, Business and Society, Social Issues in Management, Strategy, etc. Faculty members can easily adapt the case to fit the content of the course they teach, the students’ context as well as the specific learning outcomes to be achieved.

Understand the dynamics of the diabetes supplement market and carry out an industry analysis using Porter’s five force analysis. Understand the challenges faced by a small entrepreneur in setting up distribution channels and examine the channel powers that come into play in the given context. Discuss the merits and demerits of traditional vs online channels. Understand the factors that are important to succeed in a highly competitive diabetes supplement industry (this would include aspects such as value sought by end customer, business-to-business [B2B] buyers, expertise required to handle B2B customers and also the price and salesforce reward approaches). Enumerate the merits and demerits of individual product branding vs an umbrella brand for a company selling over-the-counter (OTC) drugs online. Understand the various considerations for export marketing for OTC drugs.

Sushruth Ayurved Industry (SAI) is a proprietorship firm owned by Girish Banvi who always dreamt of being an entrepreneur. He had set up SAI to produce diabetes supplement by the name “Sugar Knocker” to give wings to his dreams. Notwithstanding competition from corporate players and demands from health-care practitioners, he had to abandon his traditional route to selling his product and open his eyes to online marketing. He believed it could provide him the perfect medium to reach his prospects directly without any middlemen within a cost-effective budget. SAI registered revenue of INR 24m per year, completely attributable to online sales. With a firm footing in the online space, Girish was now exploring physical marketing to expand his audience reach in the B2B market and also add new products to his portfolio. He was also worried about the low capacity utilization of his manufacturing unit, which stood at 20%. With only 30% of the 40 formulations used, there was much scope for expansion. With his plant capacity underused, the time was ripe for Girish to trace his footsteps from where he had begun in the first place.

This case can be used in marketing management course under the marketing strategy module. It can also find use in the elective course on marketing channels, and in sectoral programs such as health-care management or MBA in health care. This case can also be used in the health-care products marketing course.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 8: Marketing.