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Case can be taught at the undergraduate or postgraduate level, including executive Master of Business Administration programs.

This case is intended for courses in strategic management, entrepreneurship and innovation at the undergraduate or postgraduate level.

The case is about challenges faced by Linda Portnoff, the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Riteband, a Sweden-based fintech startup. In March 2020, Portnoff was conducting beta testing of Riteband’s app, which experts considered the world’s first stock exchange for music trading. After completing a PhD, Portnoff who was working as a Research Analyst, left her job to pursue entrepreneurship. Through Riteband, Portnoff helped to resolve pain points of artists who were forced to give the copyright of their music tracks or albums to distributors, in lieu of funds or promotional campaigns that distributors arranged for them. Portnoff invested in developing a patent-pending machine learning-based algorithm that based on several parameters could predict the likelihood of a music track or an album to become a success. Based on this prediction and royalty that artists were interested in sharing with fans, shares were issued to investors, who were also fans of the artists. As Portnoff identified an innovative business opportunity to trade music on a stock exchange based on Riteband’s machine learning algorithm, competition in Riteband’s strategic group was also becoming intense. Consequently, Portnoff was facing challenges of establishing competitive advantage of Riteband. Furthermore, as women in general faced challenges in raising funds for their startups, and even though Portnoff obtained some funding for Riteband, but overall, funding was a challenge for her as well. Moreover, as machine learning was a technical aspect for artists and potential investors, Portnoff also faced challenges to monetize on its machine learning algorithm.

By the end of the case study discussion, students should be able to: understand the principles of cross-industry innovation and explain the creation of new business opportunities based on cross-industry innovation; differentiate between direct and indirect competitors through strategic group analysis and further critically analyze the competitive advantage of business over other direct competitors; determine ways of reducing gender biases in venture capital funding; describe how machine learning works and further formulate ways to monetize a business through machine learning; and demonstrate the application of the value proposition canvas and business model canvas.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship; CSS 11: Strategy.

This paper aims to present an opportunity to explore the opportunities and challenges involved in running a business with a strongly ingrained social vision in the complex, multi-dimensional environment of an emerging economy. Key learning areas are as follows: How the concept of inclusive innovation applies to the real-world difficulties faced by businesses operating in informal economies. By exploring the tensions between growth and inclusivity in Silulo’s development, students will grasp the challenges entrepreneurs face as a business starts to gain momentum and change, and gain appreciation for the trade-offs that occur when choosing between franchising and organic growth. The challenges of a rapidly evolving technological environment, the need to adapt service offerings at pace, and the importance of balancing financial considerations with deeper social values will find application far beyond the informal economy context of the Silulo story.

This teaching case looks at Silulo Ulutho Technologies via CEO Luvuyo Rani and the challenges he faces in balancing expansion and profitability with its mission of empowering disenfranchised communities – challenges exacerbated by a changing telecommunications environment, with more widespread internet availability, mobile phones and online training courses encroaching on Silulo’s traditional service offering.

This case focusses primarily on the processes of inclusive innovation and is suitable for graduate courses in social entrepreneurship, business model innovation, sustainability, business and society, strategic management, emerging markets, business in Africa and organisational studies in general. The case is suitable for Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and Executive MBA academic programmes and delegates on Executive Education programmes.

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 3: Entrepreneurship

Young professors Baxter, Jim, and Robert are eager to start a new graduate certificate in educational leadership with a focus on technology. The department supports their initiative. The department is even supportive of offering this certificate fully online. Support waned when, in an effort to boost student enrollment, it is suggested that additional graduate courses and programs within the department also move fully online. In department meetings, faculty members argue about the rigor of online courses and if it is possible to convert existing courses and programs to an online delivery format. Tammy and Larry are veteran faculty members who do not want to teach online and have made it clear to the rest of the faculty they are not eager to change. When there are not enough students to offer their programs in the traditional format, all faculty members are forced to begin teach online.

This is a disguised field-researched case.

This case may be used in a variety of graduate business or education courses, such as introduction to business, business ethics, educational leadership, technology leadership, or higher education.

Students should have some understanding of systems change, ethical decision making, and human resources development.

This case provides an account of an informal round table organized by the dean of a Regional Management Institute to identify issues relating to the management of Regional Management Institutes. It raises questions relating to pedagogy, placement, roles of leaders, local innovations, programme portfolio and sustenance of these institutes. The participants are required to review the outcome of the first round table and take the discussion forward.

The learning outcomes are as follows:

1. enable students to appreciate how a platform company can navigate through diminishing network effects;

2. enable students to foresee the downside of scaling up a platform business;

3. enable students to appreciate the trade-off between an efficiency-centric and a novelty-centric business model for platform businesses; and

4. enable students to create a platform business model canvas for a company.

The teaching case discusses the dilemma of Akshay Chaturvedi, the founder of Leverage Edu, an artificial intelligence-enabled platform for students seeking admission to foreign universities. It had received nearly US$9.6m in funding until December 2021.

Chaturvedi wanted to make the best use of his funds, but was torn between turning Leverage Edu into an “efficient platform” and transforming it into a “novelty-centric platform”. The teaching note attempts to resolve Chaturvedi’s dilemma by analyzing competitors using the platform canvas model and determining how Chaturvedi could create and use network effects to Leverage Edu’s advantage. The case is based on secondary data that is freely available in the public domain.

This case is intended for MBA Entrepreneurship students taking a platform business elective. It can also be used in faculty and management development programs under the banner “Technology and Platform Businesses”.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

After completion of this case study, students will be able to help participants appreciate how the personal experiences of the founder(s) shape the inception of a social venture and impact its ongoing evolution; elucidate the intricacies and challenges inherent in managing a mission-driven organization dedicated to serving the underserved segments of society; emphasize the difficulties associated with exploring opportunities for scaling up a social venture; and facilitate comprehension of the various options and strategies available for achieving scalability.

The Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), founded in 1992–1993 by Prof. Achyuta Samanta in Bhubaneswar, was a pioneering institution with a distinctive focus on providing high-quality education at all levels, exclusively to tribal students. From its inception, KISS remained unwavering in its commitment to the holistic development of marginalized tribal communities. It offered not just free education but also comprehensive support, including accommodation, food and health care, to thousands of students spanning from kindergarten to post-graduation levels. Remarkably, KISS held the unique distinction of being the world’s only university dedicated to tribal education. Over the years, KISS witnessed remarkable growth, evolving from a modest 125 students in 1992–1993 to a thriving community of 30,000 students. Its success garnered attention from federal and state governments, public institutions, philanthropists and corporations, all intrigued by the prospect of replicating its transformative model in diverse regions of the country. KISS even received invitations to establish similar campuses in neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. What set KISS apart was its self-sustaining approach. While it did receive support from like-minded organizations and government schemes, it operated without charging any fees to its students. This ethos posed a unique challenge for Samanta: determining the nature and extent of support and resources required should KISS choose to expand its impact beyond its current boundaries.

This case study is suited for inclusion in courses pertaining to social innovation and non-profit management, particularly in modules around the theme of scaling social innovation. It provides an illustration of the growth trajectory of social innovation-oriented ventures and the key factors underlining their success and sustainability. Furthermore, this case study delves into the inherent tensions that often emerge during the process of scaling up such initiatives.

In addition to the MBA-level courses, this case study can also be used as a resource for executive education programs with a specific focus on social purpose organizations and those dedicated to fostering partnerships in pursuit of social goals. It offers insights into the dynamics of these organizations and their collaborative efforts towards achieving social impact.

To effectively explore and analyse the case material, instructors should allocate approximately 70–90 min of class discussion time.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS11: Strategy.

This case was developed from the author’s personal experience as a participant in one of the health taskforce subcommittees. The author also sought the inputs of the Vice President of Health and Medical Education, the Dean of the Health Sciences College, the Student Affairs Assistant Dean of the Pharmacy College and the previous Vice President of Health and Medical Education. Moreover, secondary data were obtained from the office of the Vice President of Health and Medical Education at Qatar University (QU).

The government of Qatar has consistently provided generous funding for QU over the years. However, recent economic challenges, such as drops in oil prices, have had a negative impact on the country’s GDP and export revenue. In response, QU began to implement a new organizational structure. Specifically, the university proposed merging the three health-related colleges (health sciences, medicine and pharmacy) into a single cluster called the health education cluster. This decision was supported by a broad benchmark of approximately 40 universities worldwide, as well as input from various stakeholders within the university. Forming a cluster was expected to benefit the organization as a whole. However, the decision faced resistance and challenges that required investigation by top management. Would the new organizational structure be accepted by all? Was it feasible to have a single cluster that encompassed three distinct departments within the organization? These are examples of the questions that this case study addresses.

This compact case is suitable for a case study in basic undergraduate, postgraduate and advanced courses in Strategic Management at a business school. The case highlights the need to restructure an organization and the use of strategy formulation and implementation in the framework of management.

Alice Monroe, a 30-year-old married mother of two, was an admissions officer at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She was just completing her first year of service at Northwestern and qualified for the university's 403(b) retirement plan. It was early October 2017, and she had until the end of the month to decide if and to what extent she would participate in Northwestern's retirement plan–that is, how much of her salary should she put into the retirement plan, and into which mutual fund or funds should she allocate her savings?

The case includes background on defined contribution and benefit plans as well as mutual funds. It goes into detail about Northwestern's retirement plan, including data on the performance of 15 of the plan's core mutual funds. The case also provides each fund's strategy, Morningstar Rating and Morningstar Category, expense ratio, assets under management, turnover rate, and historical performance for the last 10 years.

Using modern portfolio theory (diversification and risk-return trade-off) and with an understanding of mutual fund fees and the tax advantages of retirement savings, students will decide how much Alice should invest and in which mutual funds.

When do you throw it all away? The first senior female in a male-dominated business school decides it all comes down to a question of principle – and maybe a few others. What is the best balance between her responsibilities to students, family, and the next generation of female leaders? Can she both be true to herself and compromise? What factors should influence this decision? This case brings together questions about power and influence, rational decision-making, leadership, and the intra and inter-personal responsibilities of organizational “firsts.” Further, issues related to a university's effort to better compete within the global higher education marketplace, provide a valuable opportunity to explore institutional approaches to promoting diversity, inclusion, and cultural competency.

This case, which was developed from primary sources, highlights the array of competing objectives and personal and political tensions involved in university administration.

This case was designed for graduate students in Masters of Public Administration, Masters of Business Administration, Masters of Education in Organizational Leadership, or similar graduate degrees that include significant management and leadership content. Students working with this case should have already completed foundational courses in topics such as organizational management, public policy, leadership, strategic human resources management, or their equivalents within their respective programs of study. Virtually all of the issues raised by this case address core themes, concepts, theses, and theories associated with an accredited graduate program in educational management, business or public administration.

Learning outcomes are as follows: understand venture philanthropy in India; discuss in what ways venture philanthropy is different from charity; identify the aims of venture philanthropy and the strategy adopted to achieve those objectives; analyze the role of the unique structuring of a venture philanthropy working in tandem with the government to achieve its objectives; identify the nature and source of dilemmas of disengagement from a project by the venture philanthropist; and understand the role of antecedents and outcomes on how a firm views its social impact initiative (in the Indian context).

The Faizal and Shabana Foundation (F&SF) made one of the largest philanthropic investments in Kerala, India for the redevelopment of Government Vocational Higher Secondary School for Girls, Nadakkavu. The foundation applied a strategic approach to their philanthropic investment making it a unique case of venture philanthropy. The uniqueness of this case lies in the fact that, this is one among those rare cases where venture philanthropy has been successfully implemented within a government educational context. This case highlights how a private philanthropic organization went about executing a project and faced several challenges of scaling up the redevelopment model to other government schools. The other salient aspect is that this case delves into the dilemma faced by a philanthropist of either using the existing model for scaling up or adopting a totally different model.

Undergraduate and postgraduate business management courses.

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: 11: Strategy.