Search results

The learning objectives have been prepared following Bloom’s taxonomy (Bloom et al., 1956). After completing the case study, the students will be able to identify and recall the prerequisites necessary for establishing a pathology laboratory. (knowledge); analyze the micro- and macroenvironmental factors considered by Mr Sabihul Haque in the development of the strategic plan for Healthcare Laboratories (HCL) (knowledge and application); explain the key components of the Porter’s value chain and their significance in the operation of HCL (comprehension and evaluation); use the TOWS analysis to map the internal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of HCL (application and synthesis); and analyze the challenges faced by protagonist in managing HCL and generate suggestions for addressing the challenges (analysis and synthesis).

HCL, an enterprise established in 2018 in Sahdeo Khap, Gaya, Bihar, India, aims to provide high-quality pathological diagnostic services in semi-urban and rural areas. This health-care initiative is pioneering, offering pathology services to make high-quality, low-cost diagnostic services accessible in rural India. In rural settings, numerous health-care hurdles make it challenging for individuals to access the care they need. Since its inception, HCL has expanded its reach to connect more areas, facilitating diagnostic services for people in remote regions. The establishment of laboratories in semi-urban areas aims to reduce patient travel time, costs and health risks by bringing services directly to their doorstep. Haque, the chief executive officer of the lab, grappled with multiple challenges, including selecting an appropriate location for the lab, recruiting and retaining skilled workforce, managing logistics supply, collaborating with local health-care providers, dispelling the stigma among the population that superior services are only available in cities and enhancing health literacy in rural communities. Following numerous meetings with Ms Ummati Naiyyer, head of operations, they worked collaboratively to address these challenges, developing a blueprint and future plan to operate services in rural areas. This case study provides insights into the obstacles faced by HCL striving for success in rural areas. It elucidates the beneficial application of the Porter’s value chain, along with an analysis of macro- and microenvironmental factors. Unique challenges such as societal stigma and mistrust are specifically emphasized. Students engaging with this case study will enhance their problem-solving skills through brainstorming and providing recommendations, contributing to potential solutions for HCL’s difficulties.

The teaching notes for the HCL case is designed to enhance the learning experience of undergraduate and graduate students within the context of the course. This case study serves as a valuable teaching tool, allowing students to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios in the health-care industry. The notes provide a framework for instructors to facilitate discussions, encourage critical thinking and promote a deeper understanding of key concepts related to establishing diagnostic laboratories in rural areas.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS3: Entrepreneurship.

This case study would help students in understanding the dynamics of logistics and logistics vendor roles and contributions to overall business operations. The case study covers real-time information for applying the theoretical knowledge students gain related to the selection of logistics vendor. It would help students to understand and evaluate the dynamics of a new start-up related to cost, profits and dependency; understand and analyze the importance of third-party logistics (3PL) service providers in the supply chain; become aware of the key performance indicators (KPIs) important in the selection of logistics vendor; and develop and create measures for selecting logistics vendors on the basis of KPIs.

This case study was about an innovative start-up operating in the field of organic edible oils. The company catered to end consumers with its indigenous technology and processes. The innovative and healthy products were appreciated by the consumers, as was reflected in the surging demand figures. With the increasing popularity of organic products, the orders were surging. At the same time, issues such as damaged product delivery, increased cost per delivery of small packages and failure to deliver because of unserved pin codes by their logistics partners were being faced by the company. The case discusses the dilemma faced by the protagonist regarding the selection of the right 3PL partner. The case study is suitable for teaching courses in operations and logistics, supply chain management and entrepreneurship-related courses.

This case study is appropriate for postgraduate courses in entrepreneurship, operations management, logistics and supply chain management and general management.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS9: Operations and logistics.

The data for the case study were collected as part of a consulting project. In an interview (orientation meeting), the management of the company outlined the key data on the company and the problem, which were used to describe the case study. The account balances of the revolving credit facility were provided as an Excel file and analyzed and processed in the follow-up. The names of the company and individuals in the case were changed to protect the identities and privacy of the involved parties.

This case represents a real practical problem, in which James was asked to take over a mandate as interim manager for a family business in a severe crisis. The crisis situation also manifested itself in the company’s severely strained liquidity situation. One of the first important measures was to enable smooth solvency or to expand the liquidity scope. An analysis of the bank balances over a longer period of time showed that the liquidity situation had already been tight for several months, but the previous management had done nothing to remedy this situation. James asked himself how he should proceed to solve this problem.

This case study is suitable for lectures that focus on corporate finance or financial restructuring. It should build on basic knowledge related to financing instruments and working capital. The case study can, therefore, be used for undergraduate students (Bachelor level) in a higher semester or as an introduction for Master’s students.

An instructor can use this case in courses related to finance or financial restructuring. Target groups are undergraduate students (Bachelor level) in a higher semester or as an introduction for Master’s students. Students should have prior knowledge of financing instruments and working capital management. The case shows a frequently occurring and therefore important standard case, which can be solved on the basis of the outlined procedure. After completion of the case studies, students should have a deeper understanding of basic financial principles and be able to propose how financial restructuring could be conducted in case of lack of liquidity and limits in headroom.

After reading and analyzing the case study, the students would be able to identify the main stakeholders and decision-makers and their importance and influence on the environment for a product, evaluate the value chain of the product and critical decision-makers, evaluate the various ways to avoid falling into the trap of greenwashing and examine the marketing strategy to market an environmentally friendly product.

LIKO-S is a Czech manufacturing and construction company. The company has been designing and creating intelligent solutions, such as green facades or vertical greenery systems, to save energy in building heating and cooling systems. The company launched green facades in the Czech market. However, the main obstacle was the need for supporting data to showcase the positive environmental impact of green facades. Under these circumstances, Libor Musil’s main objective was to overcome prevalent misconceptions about green facades and find a suitable market segment. The situation worried the company, as LIKO-S had heavily invested in developing and marketing the green walls. The management had to tackle this challenge as soon as possible to recover the substantial research and development and marketing investments. Furthermore, owing to lack of information, even genuinely sustainable products were seen as greenwashing. In addition, bad or wrong customer perceptions of these walls might spill over to other products, tarnishing the company’s image and threatening its survival in the domestic market. Under these circumstances, competitors might enter the Czech market, jeopardizing the company’s overall profits. Consequently, Libor was in a great dilemma about managing the financial and reputational risk of the company. Should Libor close the green walls unit, explore different markets/uses or help increase awareness among the general population about green walls by finding a suitable marketing strategy?

The case study was designed for graduate-level students in the strategic management (CSR and innovation module) courses. However, the case could also be an excellent addition to marketing courses dealing with customers’ perceptions of innovative products and strategies to improve the adoption of the product.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship

Dialogue in Darkness (DID) is a global social enterprise, which provides products and services such as workshops, exhibitions and activities in the dark in China. The corporate workshops are designed for companies, institutions and government agencies to provide unique leadership training and some other training in teamwork, communication, innovation and change management. And education workshops are aimed at providing young people with unique leadership training and training in teamwork, innovation and empathy and so on for the educational institutions. Over the past five years, DID, headquartered in Shanghai, has expanded to Beijing, Chengdu and Shenzhen, realizing strategic coverage of East, West, North and South of China. DID achieved break-even within less than one year since its inception. Its sound and healthy development offers an innovative way for the sustainable development of social enterprises.

The widespread family businesses play an important role in the national economy of developed countries in Europe and North America, or of developing countries in East Asia. However, family business succession is a worldwide difficult problem. The innovative family business succession practices of Robert Bosch GmbH, the German family company which has a history of 130 years (1886-2016), basically follow the trend of evolving from family businesses to social enterprises after further socialization. However, it has its own innovation and uniqueness which is worthy of reference by Chinese family businesses.

As the operational entity of China Yiwu Commodity Market, Yiwugou is designed to integrate online and offline business to upgrade the physical market by relying on and serving the physical market. It aims to highlight Yiwu Market where every physical shop is related to an online shop, thus protecting honest trade. The strong support from more than 70,000 physical shops owned by Yiwugou ensures the first-hand supply that poses a problem for most e-commerce merchants, and equips Yiwugou with competitive advantage. In terms of marketing, Yiwugou is now aiming at commodity markets across the country through the “Center Plan”, and advertising in public space such as airports. Relying on physical market, Yiwugou Hall distributes commodities with Yiwu's features and superior sources of goods to other places, and connects local market players to Yiwu market, establishing an unobstructed supply channel.

At the end of the session, learners are expected to be able to evaluate the detrimental impact of stress on blue-collar workers’ well-being in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; develop effective strategies to improve stressful conditions experienced by blue-collar workers in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; analyse and select appropriate approaches that can help maintain the motivation levels of blue-collar workers in Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; analyse the impact of Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd’s extensive investment in training new blue-collar workers, alongside the subsequent high turnover rate, on the decline in sales and profit; identify the critical changes that the managing director should have implemented to prioritize employee retention among blue-collar workers at Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd; discuss the strategic implementation of mechanization, specifically in the context of automating repetitive processes, as an innovative solution to address the challenges faced by the ship repair and maintenance service industry heavily reliant on blue-collar workers in emerging markets; cultivate thoughtful debates on ways to keep blue-collar workers in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, as well as active learner participation and group interaction; develop learners’ analytical and critical thinking skills by guiding them through the analysis of a real-world case study in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, concentrating on the difficulties and potential solutions for blue-collar worker retention; and equip learners with practical knowledge and insights on implementing effective human resources strategies for retaining blue-collar workers in the shipping repair and maintenance industry, emphasizing the conversion of theoretical concepts into workable solutions.

This teaching case study centres on Attainer Engineering Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian conglomerate that bestows ship repair and maintenance services. Regrettably, the corporation has been subjected to a decrease in profitability and productivity owing to its high turnover rate of blue-collar workers. The ship repair and maintenance service industry is accountable for delivering comprehensive repair and maintenance services to ships, including their engines, hulls, machinery and other related components. The fundamental aim of this case study is to ascertain the rudimentary factors that contribute to this issue and foster effective strategies to enhance the motivation and retention rate of blue-collar workers in the ship repair and maintenance service corporation, using appropriate management theories, models and concepts. The case study brings to light the importance of discovering the most suitable approaches to retain blue-collar workers in the corporation to improve its profitability and productivity in a highly competitive market. This teaching case study will be beneficial for students and practitioners who want to grasp the disputes associated with retaining blue-collar workers in the ship repair and maintenance service industry and learn how to apply management theories, models and concepts to address these disputes effectively.

This case discussion would be highly suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate university students who are pursuing their studies in management or related fields and are eager to delve into the nuances of the ship repair and maintenance service industry. Furthermore, trainers from both private and public agencies who are keen on gaining a deeper understanding of the issues pertaining to retaining blue-collar workers in this particular industry and devising result-oriented strategies to tackle these concerns would also find this case discussion immensely helpful.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 6: Human resource management.

This case study has been developed based on the primary data obtained through a series of interviews held with the senior management of Cargills, and the secondary data obtained from the company’s corporate website www.cargillsceylon.com/,annual reports and publicly available sources of information such as newspaper articles.

This case study focuses on the strategic responses employed by Cargills (Ceylon) PLC – a leading business conglomerate in Sri Lanka – in response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The duration of this case study is from January 2020 to September 2021. The case study particularly examines the key business sectors of Cargills (Ceylon) PLC – retail, food manufacturing and quick service restaurants – which elaborate on the change management practices and strategies deployed by the company in each of these sectors during this challenging period. This study is based on the primary data gathered from the interviews held with the Cargills (Ceylon) PLC team, and the secondary data obtained from the corporate website of Cargills (Ceylon) PLC. This case study is most suitable to be taught in academic courses related to strategic change management.

The case is most suited to be discussed with undergraduates (3rd year and 4th year) following business and management studies related disciplines. While the pivotal area around which the case has been developed is strategic change management, covering environmental analysis, strategic analysis and process of change management, the case could also be used in strategic management classes, to discuss environmental analysis, strategic planning approaches and business and corporate level strategies.

CSS 11: Strategy.

The case is designed to be used with the digital business model framework developed by Peter Weill and Stephanie Woerner of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (Weill and Woerner, 2015) and is referred to as the W & W framework. This approach provides a useful structure for thinking through the strategic options facing environments ripe for digital transformation.

Research for this case was conducted through face-to-face interviews with the protagonist, as well as through a review of their business planning documents and other data and documentation provided by the founder. Some of the market and industry data were obtained using secondary research and industry reports. Interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed to ensure accuracy.

The case follows the story of Kurt Waltenbaugh, a Minnesota entrepreneur who shared the dream of using data analytics to reduce costs within the US health-care system. In early 2014, Waltenbaugh and a physician colleague founded Carrot Health to bring together their personal experience and expertise in both consumer data analytics and health care. From the beginning, they focused on how to use data analytics to help identify high-risk/high-cost patients who had not yet sought medical treatment. They believed that they could use these insights to encourage early medical interventions and, as a result, lower the long-term cost of care.

Carrot’s initial success found them in a consultative role, working on behalf of insurance companies. Through this work, they honed their capabilities by helping their clients combine existing claims data with external consumer behavioral data to identify new potential customers. These initial consulting contracts gave Carrot the opportunity to develop its analytic tools, business model and, importantly, to earn some much-needed cash flow during the start-up phase. However, they also learned that, while insurance companies were willing to purchase data insights for one-off market expansion projects, it was much more difficult to motivate them to use data proactively to eliminate costs on an ongoing basis. Waltenbaugh believed that Carrot’s greatest potential lay in their ability to develop predictive models of health outcomes, and this case explores Carrot’s journey through strategic decisions and company transformation.

This case is intended for either an undergraduate or graduate course on entrepreneurial strategy. It provides an effective introduction to the unique structure and constraints which apply to an innovative start-up within the health-care industry. The case also serves as a platform to explore the critical criteria to be considered when developing a digital transformation strategy and exposing students to the digital business model developed by Weill and Woerner (2015) at MIT (referred to in this instructor’s manual as the W&W framework). The case was written to be used in an advanced strategy Master of Business Administration (MBA) class, an undergraduate specialty health-care course or as part of a health-care concentration in a regular MBA, Master of Health Care Administration (MHA) or Master of Public Health (MPH). It may be taught toward the end of a course on business strategy when students are building on generic strategy frameworks and adapting their strategic thinking to the characteristics of specific industries or sectors. However, the case can also be taught as part of a course on health-care innovation in which case it also serves well as an introduction to the health-care payments and insurance system in the USA. Finally, the case can be used in a specialized course on digital transformation strategy in which case it serves as an introduction to the MIT W&W framework.

The case is particularly well-suited to students who are familiar with traditional frameworks for business strategy and business models. The analysis builds on this knowledge and introduces students interested in learning about the opportunities and challenges of digital strategy. Equally, the case works well for students with clinical backgrounds, who are interested in how business strategy can influence changes within the health-care sphere. Finally, an important aspect of the case design was to develop students’ analytical confidence by encouraging them to “get their hands dirty” and to carry out some basic exploratory data analytics themselves. As such, the case requires students to combine and correlate data and to experience the potentially powerful combination of clinical and consumer data. Instructors should find that the insights from these activities give students unique insights into the potential for of data analytics to move health care from a reactive/treatment ethos to a proactive/intervention ethos. This experience can be particularly revealing for students with clinical backgrounds who may initially be resistant to the use of clinical data by commercial organizations.