BotGo was founded in 2007 by Ravi Panchal, an engineer after losing motivation to continue a leadership role in his work. Panchal, a skilled technician, was inspired to create an underwater tank cleaning robot. He started BotGo with his savings and recruiting his friends for key positions in the company. He also started university robotics …
The case is scheduled for January 2012 and begins with Kenneth Yap, the founder of Quantine Pte Ltd, developing a strategy for an effective growth plan for his company. Quantine is a pre-screening service provider that specializes in asynchronous video interviews. In the three years since the company was founded, market forces and internal factors …
The technology strategy for a diversified company must be developed in a manner consistent with the general strategies of the individual business areas and the group as a whole. Topics covered in this note include the level of R&D spending, the allocation of resources to technology programs, trade-offs between long- and short-term projects, the balance …
This note looks at Herbert Simon’s concept of finite rationality: how managers sometimes make suboptimal decisions due to their limited ability to access or process information.
This is a fictional case where Universal Studios, a large US theme park and resort company, has to negotiate with China’s central government to build its first theme park in the country. Students are divided into groups and each student is assigned a role as one of the negotiators or as an observer. Negotiation topics …
In November 2013, GoldieBlox was charged with copyright infringement. He used the Beastie Boys song “Girls” in one of his ads promoting new toys for girls without permission. The company’s response to the filing of a lawsuit against the band was not well received and was perhaps a bit premature.
Jim Sharpe, 11 years after receiving his MBA from Harvard and working for others, is finally his own boss and 100% owner of a manufacturer of aluminum extrusion profiles. After 10 months of unfunded search, he acquires the company in an LBO and prepares to face his employees on the first day.
This case series follows the career decision of a Darden student and follows his search process for an acquisition candidate in the retail industry. Case (A) deals with the student’s career choice. In case (B), however, the student has decided to acquire her own company and in case (C) he has to create a schedule. …
A large German manufacturer of ball bearings and precision machinery has run into serious financial difficulties due to poor management practices, a hasty takeover of a former East German ball bearing company and a downturn in the industry. The company is hiring a German professional restructuring manager who has been involved in “American-style” liquidation practices …
A Dutch partner of a Big 5 professional services company is fighting to get his Mexican partner to work with a multinational client from the UK. Since seamless global service is part of the company’s competitive position, the customer is getting more angry. After a particularly hostile exchange with the client, Johannes van den Bosch …