Case Studies

Google's Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?

Google's Project Oxygen started with a fundamental question raised by executives in the early 2000s: do managers matter? The topic generated a multi-year research project that ultimately led to a...

Big Hit Entertainment and Blockbuster Band BTS: K-Pop Goes Global

Bang Si-Hyuk ('Hitman Bang') is the founder and co-chief executive officer of Big Hit Entertainment, the company behind BTS, a 'K-pop' band that has found unparalleled success around the globe-a...

Cirque du Soleil

Retaining talent is an issue for any company whose success relies on the creativity and excellence of its employees. This is especially true for Cirque du Soleil, the spectacularly successful "circus...

GE's Two-Decade Transformation: Jack Welch's Leadership

GE is faced with Jack Welch's impending retirement and whether anyone can sustain the blistering pace of change and growth characteristic of the Welch era. After briefly describing GE's heritage and...

Pinckney Street

Although inexperienced in real estate, Edward Alexander hopes in June 2013 that youthful enthusiasm and an $240,000 in savings and inheritance will help him enter the real estate business. His...

Army Crew Team

The coach of the varsity Army crew team at West Point assembled his top eight rowers into the first crew team and the second tier of rowers into the second team using objective data on individual...

Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). The launch of the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card...

Trader Joe's

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). Based on a variety of metrics, Trader Joe's ranked as...

Amazon.com, 2021

In February 2021, Amazon announced 2020 operating profits of $22,899 million, up from $2,233 million in 2015, on sales of $386 billion, up from $107 billion five years earlier (see Exhibit 1). The...

Leadership in Crisis: Ernest Shackleton and the Epic Voyage of the Endurance

Provides an opportunity to examine leadership and entrepreneurship in the context of Ernest Shackleton's 1914 Antarctic expedition, a compelling story of crisis, survival, and triumph. Summarizes...

The Tulsa Massacre and the Call for Reparations

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). How should historic social injustices be addressed?...

Kvadrat: Focus, Execute, and Grow

Kvadrat was a family-owned global textiles company. The company had enjoyed impressive top-line growth and was shifting gears to emphasize profitability via a shorter strategic agenda. Agenda items...

Atlantic Music Group

On October 1, 2025, Elliot Grainge, is exactly one year into his tenure as chief executive officer of Atlantic Music Group, a division of Warner Music Group. By assuming the role, Grainge has taken...

Bairong: 1,200 Human and 200,000 AI Agent Employees - Each with KPIs

Felix Zhang, founder and CEO of the Beijing-based enterprise AI company Bairong, had a workforce of more than 1,200 human employees and 200,000 AI agents. These AI agents, carried job titles, KPIs,...

Northeastern University: A New Model For Higher Education?

Alaan (B): Timing a Fundraise

By mid-2024, Alaan, a young UAE-based fintech startup, had found its footing and reached profitability relatively quickly. But while performance in the UAE was encouraging, both existing and...

Alaan: Pricing the Y Combinator Effect

In December 2022, Parthi Duraisamy, co-founder and CEO of Alaan, a young UAE-based fintech startup, faced a defining choice that could shape the company's-and his own-future. Should he join the famed...

Alexander Hamilton: Building a Nation from Debt

This case examines how Alexander Hamilton helped construct the financial and institutional foundations of the early United States during the fragile years following independence. Tracing Hamilton's...

Soraya Hlila at Ecolab: AI and the Frontline

In under two years, Soraya Hlila of Ecolab has energized the Fortune 500 firm's pest management business by incorporating AI and connected devices, resulting in improved frontline work experience,...

Garrett Moran and Year Up: Time to Move On?

Following "Garrett Moran and Scaling Year Up to Close the Opportunity Divide" (ALI014), five years into his tenure as President of Year Up, Moran reflects on his accomplishments at Year Up and...

Regina Food Bank: Client No-Shows Challenge

The Regina & District Food Bank Inc. (RFB), one of Saskatchewan's largest charitable organizations addressing food insecurity, faced a persistent operational challenge: a significant number of...

Agricultural Consortium at a Crossroads: Is Survival and Sustainability Possible?

Madhya Bharat Consortium of Farmers Producer Company Limited (MBCFPCL) was a state-level consortium of farmer organizations operating across Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, supporting around 190...

National Hockey League: Do Fans Make a Difference?

Chris Higgins wanted to know if the presence of fans had any effect on the outcome of a game. The Canadian teams in the National Hockey League (NHL) played games without fans during the COVID...

City of Regina: Water Fluoridation

On the morning of May 2, 2025, a recently elected councillor in Regina, Saskatchewan, prepared to make her way to City Hall. Having run a strong campaign that earned her a seat in the November 2024...

Brava & Kearney: Expanding Capacity to Meet Growing Demand

In 2025, Brava Roof Tile (Brava), the leading synthetic roofing brand in the United States (US), was experiencing rapid growth driven by rising demand for premium, sustainable building materials...

Zijin Mining: From Polluted Mines to Green and Global

As the leading enterprise in China's non-ferrous metal mining industry, Zijinshan Gold and Copper Mine (Zijin Mining) started to disclose corporate social responsibility reports in 2008 and had...

Vipshop: Outlet Expansion or Co-Developed Product?

Founded in 2008, Vipshop Holdings Limited (Vipshop) was a pioneering Chinese e-commerce company best known for its flash sale-based merchandise model and discount retailing of branded goods. With a...

SIDBI: Transforming MSME Refinancing Using Blockchain-Enabled Asset Securitization

In early 2024, Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) was at a pivotal point with an initiative they had spent the past two years developing. The Security Interest Information Exchange...

Goonj: From Learning to Implementation and Scale

In early 2025, the Delhi, India non-profit organization Goonj was facing a steep increase in the inflow of contributed materials and expectations from donors, which was adding pressure on its...

The Met Gala: Fashioning the First Monday in May

The Met Gala, held annually on the first Monday in May at the Metropolitan Museum of Art ("the Met") in New York, had evolved into a global fashion spectacle and cultural phenomenon. It was the...

Red Lobster: Repositioning After Bankruptcy

In 2025, Red Lobster Hospitality LLC (Red Lobster) emerged from bankruptcy. It was once a pioneer in bringing affordable seafood to mainstream America. Now, Red Lobster had a legacy brand in need of...

Dinghai Tech: Internationalizing an Industry Chain of Rubber Products

In January 2024, the founder and chief executive officer of Dinghai Technology Co. Ltd. (Dinghai) was facing a foreign investment decision: whether to commit US$5 million to establishing a warehouse...

Pacific Alpine Resorts: Data-Enabled Guest Experiences

Brandon Blarke, Guest Services Manager at Pacific Alpine Resorts (PAR) in the Canadian Rockies, confronts a service failure when a returning guest requests to recreate a guided hiking excursion from...

Bjorg's Ski Rentals: Designing Data for Growth

Ole Fjordal, owner of Bjørg's Ski Rentals (BSR) in Norway's Skardalen Ski Resort, faces a critical opportunity when resort management offers to extend BSR's exclusive contract, provided he can...

CampusCrave: Food Delivery

This exercise follows two entrepreneurial business students at Granville University who launch CampusCrave, a campus-based food delivery start-up that quickly gains popularity but soon struggles...

TrueFirms: Navigating an Existential Threat

In June 2025, Binod Kumar, founder and CEO of TrueFirms Resourcehub Pvt. Ltd. (TrueFirms), a business-to-business staff augmentation marketplace based in Indore, India, was confronted with an...

Berkshire Hathaway: Strategic Challenges for the Incoming CEO

Warren Buffett had long been a beacon of inspiration for investors worldwide. Known for his long-term investment approach, Buffett delivered an average annual return of 20 per cent since taking the...

Beyond the Surface: The Human Cost of Workplace Mistreatment at Lifestyle International

This case study examines the tragic suicide of a 35-year-old visual merchandising manager at Lifestyle International Private Limited, who faced workplace mistreatment based on both his sexual...

Simpli Namdhari's: Ripe for Reinvention?

Simpli Namdhari's, the retail arm of Namdhari's Group, emerged as a distinctive force in the grocery landscape in India. Over the previous few years, the brand established itself as a trusted name in...

Ccilu: Strategic Transformation in Circular Economy

Operating within the circular economy (CE) sector, Ccilu specialized in transforming waste materials into high-value products such as footwear. Despite earning B Corporation certification and winning...

Akaike AI & Co-Pilot: Triggering Fears of Ethical Bias in Talent Acquisition Value Chain

In January 2024, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Akaike Technologies Private Limited (Akaike) was facing an urgent issue. Akaike was a Bangalore-based artificial intelligence (AI) company that...

Red Flags Accounting Fraud Game Simulation

The case describes the Red Flags game simulation, a single-player game that is complementary to seminar teaching, and provides more flexible experiential learning opportunities for students. It is...

Roast & Reward: An AI Reinforcement Learning Simulation Game

Stepping into the role of a coffee shop owner, the player makes a simple yet critical pricing decision to maximise the shop's rewards. Each day begins with this question: What should the price of a...

Happy Lamb: Hot Pot Sales Global Markets

Originating in Inner Mongolia, Happy Lamb expanded onto the global stage by building on its artisanal broths, global supply chain, and commitment to culinary craftsmanship. After opening its first...

OG Hemp: Harnessing the Power of Hemp for a Sustainable Future

OG Hemp, a company specializing in sustainable hemp-based products, manufactures mono-cartons, packaging boxes, stationery, packaging bags, and other eco-friendly products. Despite growing demand for...

JazzCash: Successful Fintech in an Emerging Market

This case examines the transformation of JazzCash under the leadership of Aamir Ibrahim, CEO of Jazz, between 2022 and 2024. JazzCash reported a loss of US$33 million in 2022 and had consumed nearly...

Wipro: The Long Road to Building an Inclusive Culture

Wipro, initially established in 1945 as a vegetable oil company, has transformed into a leading AI-powered tech services provider with a workforce of over 230,000 and revenue nearing USD 10 billion...

Financial Inclusion at the Last Mile: India Post's Scholarship Drive in Jharkhand's Palamau Division

The case examines an initiative of the Palamau Division of India Post's Jharkhand circle which was faced with a unique challenge in the financial year (FY) 2024-25. When the state government sought...

India Post's Telangana Circle and Stree Nidhi: Partnering for Financial Inclusion

The case explores the initiative by the Telangana Circle of India Post to promote financial inclusion. In October 2024, the Telangana Circle launched a successful pilot study with Stree Nidhi, a...

Confidence in Every Curve: How Clovia Became India's Lingerie Innovator

Clovia, an online lingerie platform, was founded in 2013 by Soumya Kant, Neha Kant, Pankaj Vermani, and Suman Chowdhury to address the lack of options, comfort, and accessibility in India's lingerie...

Persistent Systems: Creating Value Through Agentic-AI-Based Talent Fulfillment

Persistent Systems (hereinafter Persistent), a leading digital engineering firm, faces critical talent fulfillment challenges in 2025 due to regulatory changes and industry disruptions. The company's...