Default Category
-
Restructuring a Utility: RWE's Carve-out of innogy
Reichelstein, S; Comello, S; Bebb, DCase SGSB-SM278-EStrategyIn 2016, the German utility RWE undertook a carve-out in which substantial parts of the company’s assets and liabilities were offered to the general public as part of an IPO. The case describes the developments in the German energy landscape that led RWE to this unusual move. The case also examines how investors responded to this carve-out in terms of the valuations attached to RWE and the new subsidiary.Starting at €8.20
-
Quilts of Denmark: Managing Open Innovation
Wim VanhaverbekeCase IVEY-9B16M213-EEntrepreneurship, StrategyQuilts of Denmark was a Danish start-up company founded in 2000 with the goal of producing high-quality, functional quilts and pillows that contributed to healthy sleep. The company’s open innovation with a space agency and technology company resulted in an “intelligent” quilt that regulated body heat, providing users with an elusive but much-desired experience: a good night’s sleep. Selling a premium product in a commodity market was a challenge...Starting at €8.20
-
Host Europe: Advancing CSR and Sustainability in a Medium-sized IT Company
Rüdiger HahnCase IVEY-9B10M042-EInformation Technologies, Leadership and People Management, StrategyThe case deals with issues of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability in the specific setting of a medium-sized enterprise (Host Europe) in the IT industry. Host Europe is the third largest webhosting company in German-speaking Europe. In recent years, the company has put substantial efforts into living up to its CSR and improving sustainability. The case presents the IT sector in Europe and Germany and highlights several industr...Starting at €8.20
-
Dow's Acquisition Program
Koen H. Heimeriks; Stephen GatesCase IVEY-9B10M058-EInformation Technologies, Leadership and People Management, StrategyThis case illustrates how Dow Chemical acquired and integrated Wolff Walsrode, a German specialty chemicals firm that was part of the Bayer Group. This acquisition, combined with Dow's existing cellulosics unit, helped it create a new specialty business with a forecasted $1.1 billion in annual sales and strengthen its footprint in Central and Eastern Europe. The main challenge in this case concerns the complexities of acquisition integration, whi...Starting at €8.20
-
The Awethu Project: Values-Driven Decisions for Profit and Social Impact
Charlene C. LewCase IVEY-9B17C018-EEntrepreneurship, Leadership and People Management, StrategyThe Awethu Project (Awethu) was a South African-based social enterprise that operated as a venture capital and investment firm for small, medium, and micro-sized enterprises. The company was widely acknowledged for its social mission of creating jobs and benefiting society while maximizing profit. In March 2016, Awethu’s leaders signed an agreement with a prominent South African corporation, which could allow Awethu to operate within a higher seg...Starting at €8.20
-
Adcock Ingram: Decisions and Motives That Steer Acquisitions
Charlene C. LewCase IVEY-9B10C008-ELeadership and People Management, StrategyThe case sketches the story of a charismatic and ambitious young business leader who, through value-adding commercial transactions, has helped set a South African pharmaceutical company, Adcock Ingram, on a trajectory of growth. In May 2009, he faces lack of closure and an ambiguous outcome to an offer to acquire a smaller pharmaceutical company. The case demonstrates the power of relationships, where the ambitions of different parties around the...Starting at €8.20
-
Marimekko
Alison Konrad; Jordan MitchellCase IVEY-9B06C014-ELeadership and People Management, StrategyKirsti Paakkanen has achieved a celebrity status in Finland for her enigmatic leadership of the Finnish design company Marimekko. Purchasing the company in a state of near bankruptcy in 1991, Paakkanen took several actions to restore profitability and realize growth. As of 2006, the company has sales of $64 million (of which 80 per cent are from Finland) and net profits of $8.4 million. Over the last few years, Paakkanen and her team have focused...Starting at €8.20
-
Merging Esso Iceland and Bilanaust (A)
Gerard Seijts; Ken MarkCase IVEY-9B10C015-ELeadership and People Management, StrategyIn 2006, Hermann Gudmundsson (the chief executive officer [CEO] of Bilanaust, an Icelandic automotive spare parts retailer) was part of a group of partners that had purchased Esso Iceland. He had subsequently been appointed to the CEO position at Esso Iceland. The two companies were quite different: Bilanaust dealt with real-time customer needs, carried a wide range of products, and enjoyed a rising market share and profits. Esso Iceland was 12 t...Starting at €8.20
-
Sibanye: Changing Mindsets in Mining through Contextual Leadership
Caren Scheepers; Ken MathuCase IVEY-9B16C026-ELeadership and People Management, StrategyIn 2016, the executive vice-president of commercial services for Sibanye Gold, Westonaria (Sibanye), the largest gold producer in South Africa, faced a challenge. The company’s latest acquisition had been particularly difficult, with much resistance from the acquired management team. Although the executive vice-president tried to empathize with the management team who had done things a certain way for decades, he was frustrated with their lack of...Starting at €8.20
-
Buses for Democracy: Improving Public Transport in South Africa
Anthony Wilson-Prangley; Gretchen Wilson-PrangleyCase IVEY-9B14C028-EEntrepreneurship, Leadership and People Management, StrategyWith the 2010 FIFA World Cup fast approaching, Johannesburg, South Africa, needs a much-improved public transport system. A bus rapid transit (BRT) system is proposed and the key challenge involves getting buy-in from the minibus-taxi industry, which serves current commuters with 22,000 minibus-taxis, but which sometimes threatens violence to ensure there is little change in its way of operating. The leader of the main Johannesburg taxi associati...Starting at €8.20