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7 Favorite Business Case Studies to Teach—and Why

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FEATURED CASE STUDIES

The Army Crew Team . Emily Michelle David of CEIBS

ATH Technologies . Devin Shanthikumar of Paul Merage School of Business

Fabritek 1992 . Rob Austin of Ivey Business School

Lincoln Electric Co . Karin Schnarr of Wilfrid Laurier University

Pal’s Sudden Service—Scaling an Organizational Model to Drive Growth . Gary Pisano of Harvard Business School

The United States Air Force: ‘Chaos’ in the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron . Francesca Gino of Harvard Business School

Warren E. Buffett, 2015 . Robert F. Bruner of Darden School of Business

To dig into what makes a compelling case study, we asked seven experienced educators who teach with—and many who write—business case studies: “What is your favorite case to teach and why?”

The resulting list of case study favorites ranges in topics from operations management and organizational structure to rebel leaders and whodunnit dramas.

1. The Army Crew Team

Emily Michelle David, Assistant Professor of Management, China Europe International Business School (CEIBS)

“I love teaching  The Army Crew Team  case because it beautifully demonstrates how a team can be so much less than the sum of its parts.

I deliver the case to executives in a nearby state-of-the-art rowing facility that features rowing machines, professional coaches, and shiny red eight-person shells.

After going through the case, they hear testimonies from former members of Chinese national crew teams before carrying their own boat to the river for a test race.

The rich learning environment helps to vividly underscore one of the case’s core messages: competition can be a double-edged sword if not properly managed.

Executives in Emily Michelle David’s organizational behavior class participate in rowing activities at a nearby facility as part of her case delivery.

Despite working for an elite headhunting firm, the executives in my most recent class were surprised to realize how much they’ve allowed their own team-building responsibilities to lapse. In the MBA pre-course, this case often leads to a rich discussion about common traps that newcomers fall into (for example, trying to do too much, too soon), which helps to poise them to both stand out in the MBA as well as prepare them for the lateral team building they will soon engage in.

Finally, I love that the post-script always gets a good laugh and serves as an early lesson that organizational behavior courses will seldom give you foolproof solutions for specific problems but will, instead, arm you with the ability to think through issues more critically.”

2. ATH Technologies

Devin Shanthikumar, Associate Professor of Accounting, Paul Merage School of Business

“As a professor at UC Irvine’s Paul Merage School of Business, and before that at Harvard Business School, I have probably taught over 100 cases. I would like to say that my favorite case is my own,   Compass Box Whisky Company . But as fun as that case is, one case beats it:  ATH Technologies  by Robert Simons and Jennifer Packard.

ATH presents a young entrepreneurial company that is bought by a much larger company. As part of the merger, ATH gets an ‘earn-out’ deal—common among high-tech industries. The company, and the class, must decide what to do to achieve the stretch earn-out goals.

ATH captures a scenario we all want to be in at some point in our careers—being part of a young, exciting, growing organization. And a scenario we all will likely face—having stretch goals that seem almost unreachable.

It forces us, as a class, to really struggle with what to do at each stage.

After we read and discuss the A case, we find out what happens next, and discuss the B case, then the C, then D, and even E. At every stage, we can:

see how our decisions play out,

figure out how to build on our successes, and

address our failures.

The case is exciting, the class discussion is dynamic and energetic, and in the end, we all go home with a memorable ‘ah-ha!’ moment.

I have taught many great cases over my career, but none are quite as fun, memorable, and effective as ATH .”

3. Fabritek 1992

Rob Austin, Professor of Information Systems, Ivey Business School

“This might seem like an odd choice, but my favorite case to teach is an old operations case called  Fabritek 1992 .

The latest version of Fabritek 1992 is dated 2009, but it is my understanding that this is a rewrite of a case that is older (probably much older). There is a Fabritek 1969 in the HBP catalog—same basic case, older dates, and numbers. That 1969 version lists no authors, so I suspect the case goes even further back; the 1969 version is, I’m guessing, a rewrite of an even older version.

There are many things I appreciate about the case. Here are a few:

It operates as a learning opportunity at many levels. At first it looks like a not-very-glamorous production job scheduling case. By the end of the case discussion, though, we’re into (operations) strategy and more. It starts out technical, then explodes into much broader relevance. As I tell participants when I’m teaching HBP's Teaching with Cases seminars —where I often use Fabritek as an example—when people first encounter this case, they almost always underestimate it.

It has great characters—especially Arthur Moreno, who looks like a troublemaker, but who, discussion reveals, might just be the smartest guy in the factory. Alums of the Harvard MBA program have told me that they remember Arthur Moreno many years later.

Almost every word in the case is important. It’s only four and a half pages of text and three pages of exhibits. This economy of words and sparsity of style have always seemed like poetry to me. I should note that this super concise, every-word-matters approach is not the ideal we usually aspire to when we write cases. Often, we include extra or superfluous information because part of our teaching objective is to provide practice in separating what matters from what doesn’t in a case. Fabritek takes a different approach, though, which fits it well.

It has a dramatic structure. It unfolds like a detective story, a sort of whodunnit. Something is wrong. There is a quality problem, and we’re not sure who or what is responsible. One person, Arthur Moreno, looks very guilty (probably too obviously guilty), but as we dig into the situation, there are many more possibilities. We spend in-class time analyzing the data (there’s a bit of math, so it covers that base, too) to determine which hypotheses are best supported by the data. And, realistically, the data doesn’t support any of the hypotheses perfectly, just some of them more than others. Also, there’s a plot twist at the end (I won’t reveal it, but here’s a hint: Arthur Moreno isn’t nearly the biggest problem in the final analysis). I have had students tell me the surprising realization at the end of the discussion gives them ‘goosebumps.’

Finally, through the unexpected plot twist, it imparts what I call a ‘wisdom lesson’ to young managers: not to be too sure of themselves and to regard the experiences of others, especially experts out on the factory floor, with great seriousness.”

4. Lincoln Electric Co.

Karin Schnarr, Assistant Professor of Policy, Wilfrid Laurier University

“As a strategy professor, my favorite case to teach is the classic 1975 Harvard case  Lincoln Electric Co.  by Norman Berg.

I use it to demonstrate to students the theory linkage between strategy and organizational structure, management processes, and leadership behavior.

This case may be an odd choice for a favorite. It occurs decades before my students were born. It is pages longer than we are told students are now willing to read. It is about manufacturing arc welding equipment in Cleveland, Ohio—a hard sell for a Canadian business classroom.

Yet, I have never come across a case that so perfectly illustrates what I want students to learn about how a company can be designed from an organizational perspective to successfully implement its strategy.

And in a time where so much focus continues to be on how to maximize shareholder value, it is refreshing to be able to discuss a publicly-traded company that is successfully pursuing a strategy that provides a fair value to shareholders while distributing value to employees through a large bonus pool, as well as value to customers by continually lowering prices.

However, to make the case resonate with today’s students, I work to make it relevant to the contemporary business environment. I link the case to multimedia clips about Lincoln Electric’s current manufacturing practices, processes, and leadership practices. My students can then see that a model that has been in place for generations is still viable and highly successful, even in our very different competitive situation.”

5. Pal’s Sudden Service—Scaling an Organizational Model to Drive Growth

Gary Pisano, Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

“My favorite case to teach these days is  Pal’s Sudden Service—Scaling an Organizational Model to Drive Growth .

I love teaching this case for three reasons:

1. It demonstrates how a company in a super-tough, highly competitive business can do very well by focusing on creating unique operating capabilities. In theory, Pal’s should have no chance against behemoths like McDonalds or Wendy’s—but it thrives because it has built a unique operating system. It’s a great example of a strategic approach to operations in action.

2. The case shows how a strategic approach to human resource and talent development at all levels really matters. This company competes in an industry not known for engaging its front-line workers. The case shows how engaging these workers can really pay off.

3. Finally, Pal’s is really unusual in its approach to growth. Most companies set growth goals (usually arbitrary ones) and then try to figure out how to ‘backfill’ the human resource and talent management gaps. They trust you can always find someone to do the job. Pal’s tackles the growth problem completely the other way around. They rigorously select and train their future managers. Only when they have a manager ready to take on their own store do they open a new one. They pace their growth off their capacity to develop talent. I find this really fascinating and so do the students I teach this case to.”

6. The United States Air Force: ‘Chaos’ in the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron

Francesca Gino, Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

“My favorite case to teach is  The United States Air Force: ‘Chaos’ in the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron .

The case surprises students because it is about a leader, known in the unit by the nickname Chaos , who inspired his squadron to be innovative and to change in a culture that is all about not rocking the boat, and where there is a deep sense that rules should simply be followed.

For years, I studied ‘rebels,’ people who do not accept the status quo; rather, they approach work with curiosity and produce positive change in their organizations. Chaos is a rebel leader who got the level of cultural change right. Many of the leaders I’ve met over the years complain about the ‘corporate culture,’ or at least point to clear weaknesses of it; but then they throw their hands up in the air and forget about changing what they can.

Chaos is different—he didn’t go after the ‘Air Force’ culture. That would be like boiling the ocean.

Instead, he focused on his unit of control and command: The 99th squadron. He focused on enabling that group to do what it needed to do within the confines of the bigger Air Force culture. In the process, he inspired everyone on his team to be the best they can be at work.

The case leaves the classroom buzzing and inspired to take action.”

7. Warren E. Buffett, 2015

Robert F. Bruner, Professor of Business Administration, Darden School of Business

“I love teaching   Warren E. Buffett, 2015  because it energizes, exercises, and surprises students.

Buffett looms large in the business firmament and therefore attracts anyone who is eager to learn his secrets for successful investing. This generates the kind of energy that helps to break the ice among students and instructors early in a course and to lay the groundwork for good case discussion practices.

Studying Buffett’s approach to investing helps to introduce and exercise important themes that will resonate throughout a course. The case challenges students to define for themselves what it means to create value. The case discussion can easily be tailored for novices or for more advanced students.

Either way, this is not hero worship: The case affords a critical examination of the financial performance of Buffett’s firm, Berkshire Hathaway, and reveals both triumphs and stumbles. Most importantly, students can critique the purported benefits of Buffett’s conglomeration strategy and the sustainability of his investment record as the size of the firm grows very large.

By the end of the class session, students seem surprised with what they have discovered. They buzz over the paradoxes in Buffett’s philosophy and performance record. And they come away with sober respect for Buffett’s acumen and for the challenges of creating value for investors.

Surely, such sobriety is a meta-message for any mastery of finance.”

More Educator Favorites

Emily Michelle David is an assistant professor of management at China Europe International Business School (CEIBS). Her current research focuses on discovering how to make workplaces more welcoming for people of all backgrounds and personality profiles to maximize performance and avoid employee burnout. David’s work has been published in a number of scholarly journals, and she has worked as an in-house researcher at both NASA and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Devin Shanthikumar  is an associate professor and the accounting area coordinator at UCI Paul Merage School of Business. She teaches undergraduate, MBA, and executive-level courses in managerial accounting. Shanthikumar previously served on the faculty at Harvard Business School, where she taught both financial accounting and managerial accounting for MBAs, and wrote cases that are used in accounting courses across the country.

Robert D. Austin is a professor of information systems at Ivey Business School and an affiliated faculty member at Harvard Medical School. He has published widely, authoring nine books, more than 50 cases and notes, three Harvard online products, and two popular massive open online courses (MOOCs) running on the Coursera platform.

Karin Schnarr is an assistant professor of policy and the director of the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program at the Lazaridis School of Business & Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada where she teaches strategic management at the undergraduate, graduate, and executive levels. Schnarr has published several award-winning and best-selling cases and regularly presents at international conferences on case writing and scholarship.

Gary P. Pisano is the Harry E. Figgie, Jr. Professor of Business Administration and senior associate dean of faculty development at Harvard Business School, where he has been on the faculty since 1988. Pisano is an expert in the fields of technology and operations strategy, the management of innovation, and competitive strategy. His research and consulting experience span a range of industries including aerospace, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, health care, nutrition, computers, software, telecommunications, and semiconductors.

Francesca Gino studies how people can have more productive, creative, and fulfilling lives. She is a professor at Harvard Business School and the author, most recently, of  Rebel Talent: Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life . Gino regularly gives keynote speeches, delivers corporate training programs, and serves in advisory roles for firms and not-for-profit organizations across the globe.

Robert F. Bruner is a university professor at the University of Virginia, distinguished professor of business administration, and dean emeritus of the Darden School of Business. He has also held visiting appointments at Harvard and Columbia universities in the United States, at INSEAD in France, and at IESE in Spain. He is the author, co-author, or editor of more than 20 books on finance, management, and teaching. Currently, he teaches and writes in finance and management.

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Top 40 Most Popular Case Studies of 2021

Two cases about Hertz claimed top spots in 2021's Top 40 Most Popular Case Studies

Two cases on the uses of debt and equity at Hertz claimed top spots in the CRDT’s (Case Research and Development Team) 2021 top 40 review of cases.

Hertz (A) took the top spot. The case details the financial structure of the rental car company through the end of 2019. Hertz (B), which ranked third in CRDT’s list, describes the company’s struggles during the early part of the COVID pandemic and its eventual need to enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy. 

The success of the Hertz cases was unprecedented for the top 40 list. Usually, cases take a number of years to gain popularity, but the Hertz cases claimed top spots in their first year of release. Hertz (A) also became the first ‘cooked’ case to top the annual review, as all of the other winners had been web-based ‘raw’ cases.

Besides introducing students to the complicated financing required to maintain an enormous fleet of cars, the Hertz cases also expanded the diversity of case protagonists. Kathyrn Marinello was the CEO of Hertz during this period and the CFO, Jamere Jackson is black.

Sandwiched between the two Hertz cases, Coffee 2016, a perennial best seller, finished second. “Glory, Glory, Man United!” a case about an English football team’s IPO made a surprise move to number four.  Cases on search fund boards, the future of malls,  Norway’s Sovereign Wealth fund, Prodigy Finance, the Mayo Clinic, and Cadbury rounded out the top ten.

Other year-end data for 2021 showed:

• Online “raw” case usage remained steady as compared to 2020 with over 35K users from 170 countries and all 50 U.S. states interacting with 196 cases.
• Fifty four percent of raw case users came from outside the U.S..
• The Yale School of Management (SOM) case study directory pages received over 160K page views from 177 countries with approximately a third originating in India followed by the U.S. and the Philippines.
• Twenty-six of the cases in the list are raw cases.
• A third of the cases feature a woman protagonist.
• Orders for Yale SOM case studies increased by almost 50% compared to 2020.
• The top 40 cases were supervised by 19 different Yale SOM faculty members, several supervising multiple cases.

CRDT compiled the Top 40 list by combining data from its case store, Google Analytics, and other measures of interest and adoption.

All of this year’s Top 40 cases are available for purchase from the Yale Management Media store .

And the Top 40 cases studies of 2021 are:

1.   Hertz Global Holdings (A): Uses of Debt and Equity

2.   Coffee 2016

3.   Hertz Global Holdings (B): Uses of Debt and Equity 2020

4.   Glory, Glory Man United!

5.   Search Fund Company Boards: How CEOs Can Build Boards to Help Them Thrive

6.   The Future of Malls: Was Decline Inevitable?

7.   Strategy for Norway's Pension Fund Global

8.   Prodigy Finance

9.   Design at Mayo

10. Cadbury

11. City Hospital Emergency Room

13. Volkswagen

14. Marina Bay Sands

15. Shake Shack IPO

16. Mastercard

17. Netflix

18. Ant Financial

19. AXA: Creating the New CR Metrics

20. IBM Corporate Service Corps

21. Business Leadership in South Africa's 1994 Reforms

22. Alternative Meat Industry

23. Children's Premier

24. Khalil Tawil and Umi (A)

25. Palm Oil 2016

26. Teach For All: Designing a Global Network

27. What's Next? Search Fund Entrepreneurs Reflect on Life After Exit

28. Searching for a Search Fund Structure: A Student Takes a Tour of Various Options

30. Project Sammaan

31. Commonfund ESG

32. Polaroid

33. Connecticut Green Bank 2018: After the Raid

34. FieldFresh Foods

35. The Alibaba Group

36. 360 State Street: Real Options

37. Herman Miller

38. AgBiome

39. Nathan Cummings Foundation

40. Toyota 2010

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The Comprehensive Business Case for Sustainability

• Tensie Whelan

A walk through recent research.

Today’s executives are dealing with a complex and unprecedented brew of social, environmental, market, and technological trends. These require sophisticated, sustainability-based management. Yet executives are often reluctant to place sustainability core to their company’s business strategy in the mistaken belief that the costs outweigh the benefits. On the contrary, academic research and business experience point to quite the opposite.

• TW Tensie Whelan is a clinical professor of business and society and the director of the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business, and she sits on the advisory boards of Arabesque and Inherent Group.
• CF Carly Fink was a special projects assistant at Rainforest Alliance, a research scholar at Stern CSB, and is now working for Edelman PR Worldwide.

Partner Center

1.2 Understanding the Business Environment

• What are the sectors of the business environment, and how do changes in them influence business decisions?

Businesses do not operate in a vacuum but rather in a dynamic environment that has a direct influence on how they operate and whether they will achieve their objectives. This external business environment is composed of numerous outside organizations and forces that we can group into seven key subenvironments, as Exhibit 1.4 illustrates: economic, political and legal, demographic, social, competitive, global, and technological. Each of these sectors creates a unique set of challenges and opportunities for businesses.

Business owners and managers have a great deal of control over the internal environment of business, which covers day-to-day decisions. They choose the supplies they purchase, which employees they hire, the products they sell, and where they sell those products. They use their skills and resources to create goods and services that will satisfy existing and prospective customers. However, the external environmental conditions that affect a business are generally beyond the control of management and change constantly. To compete successfully, business owners and managers must continuously study the environment and adapt their businesses accordingly.

Other forces, such as natural disasters, can also have a major impact on businesses. While still in the rebuilding stage after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, the U.S. Gulf Coast suffered another disaster in April 2010 as a result of an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil-rig, which killed 11 workers and sent more than 3 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This event, which played out for more than 87 days, severely affected the environment, businesses, tourism, and people’s livelihoods. Global oil conglomerate BP, which was responsible for the oil spill, has spent more than $60 billion in response to the disaster and cleanup. Seven years after the explosion, tourism and other businesses are slowly recovering, although scientists are not certain about the long-term environmental consequences of the oil spill. 7

No one business is large or powerful enough to create major changes in the external environment. Thus, managers are primarily adapters to, rather than agents of, change. Global competition is basically an uncontrollable element in the external environment. In some situations, however, a firm can influence external events through its strategies. For example, major U.S. pharmaceutical companies have been successful in getting the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to speed up the approval process for new drugs. 8 In recent years, the five largest companies in the S&P Index— Google , Facebook , Amazon , Microsoft , and Apple —have spent close to $50 million on lobbying activities in the nation’s capital in an effort to help policy makers understand the tech industry and the importance of innovation and an “open” internet. 9 Let’s now take a brief look at these varied environmental influences.

Economic Influences

This category is one of the most important external influences on businesses. Fluctuations in the level of economic activity create business cycles that affect businesses and individuals in many ways. When the economy is growing, for example, unemployment rates are low, and income levels rise. Inflation and interest rates are other areas that change according to economic activity. Through the policies it sets, such as taxes and interest rate levels, a government attempts to stimulate or curtail the level of economic activity. In addition, the forces of supply and demand determine how prices and quantities of goods and services behave in a free market.

Political and Legal Influences

The political climate of a country is another critical factor for managers to consider in day-to-day business operations. The amount of government activity, the types of laws it passes, and the general political stability of a government are three components of political climate. For example, a multinational company such as General Electric will evaluate the political climate of a country before deciding to locate a plant there. Is the government stable, or might a coup disrupt the country? How restrictive are the regulations for foreign businesses, including foreign ownership of business property and taxation? Import tariffs, quotas, and export restrictions also must be taken into account.

In the United States, laws passed by Congress and the many regulatory agencies cover such areas as competition, minimum wages, environmental protection, worker safety, and copyrights and patents. For example, Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to deregulate the telecommunications industry. As a result, competition increased and new opportunities arose as traditional boundaries between service providers blurred. Today the dramatic growth in mobile technology has changed the focus of telecommunications, which now faces challenges related to broadband access and speed, content streaming, and much-needed improvements in network infrastructure to address ever-increasing data transmissions. 10

Federal agencies play a significant role in business operations. When Pfizer wants to bring a new medication for heart disease to market, it must follow the procedures set by the Food and Drug Administration for testing and clinical trials and secure FDA approval. Before issuing stock, Pfizer must register the securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission . The Federal Trade Commission will penalize Pfizer if its advertisements promoting the drug’s benefits are misleading. These are just a few ways the political and legal environment affect business decisions.

States and local governments also exert control over businesses—imposing taxes, issuing corporate charters and business licenses, setting zoning ordinances, and similar regulations. We discuss the legal environment in greater detail in a separate appendix.

Demographic Factors

Demographic factors are an uncontrollable factor in the business environment and extremely important to managers. Demography is the study of people’s vital statistics, such as their age, gender, race and ethnicity, and location. Demographics help companies define the markets for their products and also determine the size and composition of the workforce. You’ll encounter demographics as you continue your study of business.

Demographics are at the heart of many business decisions. Businesses today must deal with the unique shopping preferences of different generations, which each require marketing approaches and goods and services targeted to their needs. For example, the more than 75 million members of the millennial generation were born between 1981 and 1997. In 2017 they surpassed baby boomers as America’s largest generation. 11 The marketing impact of millennials continues to be immense. These are technologically savvy and prosperous young people, with hundreds of billions of dollars to spend. And spend they do—freely, even though they haven’t yet reached their peak income and spending years. 12 Other age groups, such as Generation X—people born between 1965 and 1980—and the baby boomers—born between 1946 and 1964—have their own spending patterns. Many boomers nearing retirement have money and are willing to spend it on their health, their comforts, leisure pursuits, and cars. As the population ages, businesses are offering more products that appeal to middle-aged and senior markets. 13

In addition, minorities represent more than 38 percent of the total population, with immigration bringing millions of new residents to the country over the past several decades. By 2060 the U.S. Census Bureau projects the minority population to increase to 56 percent of the total U.S. population. 14 Companies recognize the value of hiring a diverse workforce that reflects our society. Minorities’ buying power has increased significantly as well, and companies are developing products and marketing campaigns that target different ethnic groups.

Social Factors

Social factors—our attitudes, values, ethics, and lifestyles—influence what, how, where, and when people purchase products or services. They are difficult to predict, define, and measure because they can be very subjective. They also change as people move through different life stages. People of all ages have a broader range of interests, defying traditional consumer profiles. They also experience a “poverty of time” and seek ways to gain more control over their time. Changing roles have brought more women into the workforce. This development is increasing family incomes, heightening demand for time-saving goods and services, changing family shopping patterns, and impacting individuals’ ability to achieve a work-life balance. In addition, a renewed emphasis on ethical behavior within organizations at all levels of the company has managers and employees alike searching for the right approach when it comes to gender inequality, sexual harassment, and other social behaviors that impact the potential for a business’s continued success.

Managing Change

Balancing comes easy at h&r block.

In an industry driven by deadlines and details, it’s hard to imagine striking a balance between work and everyday life for full-time employees and seasonal staff. Fortunately, the management team at H&R Block not only believes in maintaining a strong culture, it also tries to offer flexibility to its more than 70,000 employees and seasonal workers in 12,000 retail offices worldwide.

Based in Kansas City, Missouri, and built on a culture of providing exceptional customer service, H&R Block was recently named the top U.S. business with the best work-life balance by online job search site Indeed. Analyzing more than 10 million company reviews by employees, Indeed researchers identified the top 20 firms with the best work-life balance. H&R Block headed the 2017 list, followed by mortgage lender Network Capital Funding Corporation , fast food chain In-N-Out Burger , Texas food retailer H-E-B , and health services company Kaiser Permanente , among others.

According to Paul Wolfe, Indeed’s senior vice president of human resources, empathy on the part of organizations is a key factor in helping employees achieve balance. Wolfe says companies that demonstrate empathy and work diligently to provide personal time for all employees tend to take the top spots on the work-life balance list. “Comments we have seen from employee reviews for these companies indicate ‘fair’ and ‘flexible work environments,’” he says. Surprisingly, none of the tech companies known for their generous work perks made the top 20 list in 2017.

In this 24/7 world, when no one is far from a text or tweet, finding time for both family and work can be difficult, especially in the tax services industry, which is so schedule driven for a good part of the year. Making a commitment to help workers achieve a healthy work-life balance not only helps its employees, but it also helps H&R Block retain workers in a tight labor market where individuals continue to have choices when it comes to where and for whom they want to work.

• How does management’s support of employee work-life balance help the company’s bottom line?
• What can other organizations learn from H&R Block when it comes to offering employee perks that encourage personal time for workers even during the busy tax season?

Sources: “Career Opportunities,” https://www.hrblock.com, accessed May 25, 2017; “About Us,” http://newsroom.hrblock.com, accessed May 25, 2017; Abigail Hess, “The 20 Best Companies for Work-Life Balance,” CNBC, http://www.cnbc.com, May 4, 2017; Kristen Bahler, “The 20 Best Companies for Work-Life Balance,” Money, http://time.com, April 20, 2017; Rachel Ritlop, “3 Benefits Companies Can Provide to Boost Work-Life Balance,” Forbes, http://www.forbes.com, January 30, 2017.

The application of technology can stimulate growth under capitalism or any other economic system. Technology is the application of science and engineering skills and knowledge to solve production and organizational problems. New equipment and software that improve productivity and reduce costs can be among a company’s most valuable assets. Productivity is the amount of goods and services one worker can produce. Our ability as a nation to maintain and build wealth depends in large part on the speed and effectiveness with which we use technology—to invent and adapt more efficient equipment to improve manufacturing productivity, to develop new products, and to process information and make it instantly available across the organization and to suppliers and customers.

Many U.S. businesses, large and small, use technology to create change, improve efficiencies, and streamline operations. For example, advances in cloud computing provide businesses with the ability to access and store data without running applications or programs housed on a physical computer or server in their offices. Such applications and programs can now be accessed through the internet. Mobile technology allows businesses to communicate with employees, customers, suppliers, and others at the swipe of a tablet or smartphone screen. Robots help businesses automate repetitive tasks that free up workers to focus on more knowledge-based tasks critical to business operations. 15

Concept Check

• Define the components of the internal and the external business environments.
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The microenvironment of the business is characterised by explosive industrial growth in some segments and at the same time, rapid technological development is rendering existing solutions to customer problems obsolete. On the macro-economic front, governments are increasingly facing the dilemma of choosing between economic progress and welfare - affecting government expenditure, and in turn the economic growth of the country. On the other hand, recessionary conditions in other countries have forced many companies out of business. Added to these, are the regulatory frameworks of the country and socio-cultural factors. The scenarios become even more complex when companies expand to new geographical regions. They have to deal with multiple � yet distinct � business environments. Organisations have no control over the changes happening in its external environment; but these factors cannot be ignored as they have a profound impact on the business operations and its profitability.

With the ongoing rapid change in business environment, the conventional bases of competitive strategy are continuously eroding. In such a scenario, any company that is not continually developing, acquiring, and adapting to new technological advances and to the changing business environment is preparing itself to be out of the business within a few years. So, an extensive study of the business environment has become an essential prerequisite for success.

The case studies featured in this book provide an in-depth and rigorous perspective on various business environment issues across the globe. Starting with a short theoretical framework, the book, Case Studies on Business Environment - Vol. I , provides insights into some of the companies that have been successful in managing their ever-changing and demanding business environments. This book would definitely be an essential reading for all those executives managing or desirous of managing different business environments.

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Team-Building Strategies: Building a Winning Team for Your Organization

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Top 10 International Business Negotiation Case Studies

International business negotiation case studies offer insights to business negotiators who face challenges in the realm of cross-cultural business negotiation..

By PON Staff — on March 26th, 2024 / International Negotiation

If you engage in international negotiation , you can improve your odds of success by learning from these 10 well-known international business negotiation case studies:

Claim your FREE copy: International Negotiations

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• Apple’s Apology in China

When Apple CEO Timothy D. Cook apologized to Apple customers in China for problems arising from Apple’s warranty policy, he promised to rectify the issue. In a negotiation research study, Professor William W. Maddux of INSEAD and his colleagues compared reactions to apologies in the United States and in Japan. They discovered that in “collectivist cultures” such as China and Japan, apologies can be particularly effective in repairing broken trust, regardless of whether the person apologizing is to blame. This may be especially true in a cross-cultural business negotiation such as this one.

• Bangladesh Factory-Safety Agreements

In this negotiation case study, an eight-story factory collapsed in Bangladesh, killing an estimated 1,129 people, most of whom were low-wage garment workers manufacturing goods for foreign retailers. Following the tragedy, companies that outsourced their garment production faced public pressure to improve conditions for foreign workers. Labor unions focused their efforts on persuading Swedish “cheap chic” giant H&M to take the lead on safety improvements. This negotiation case study highlights the pros and cons of all-inclusive, diffuse agreements versus targeted, specific agreements.

• The Microsoft-Nokia Deal

Microsoft made the surprising announcement that it was purchasing Finnish mobile handset maker Nokia for $7.2 billion, a merger aimed at building Microsoft’s mobile and smartphone offerings. The merger faced even more complexity after the ink dried on the contract—namely, the challenges of integrating employees from different cultures. International business negotiation case studies such as this one underscore the difficulties that companies face when attempting to negotiate two different identities.

• The Cyprus Crisis

With the economy of the tiny Mediterranean island nation Cyprus near collapse, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Central Bank (ECB), and the European Commission teamed up to offer a 10-billion-euro bailout package contingent on Cyprus provisioning a substantial amount of the money through a one-time tax on ordinary Cypriot bank depositors. The move proved extremely unpopular in Cyprus and protests resulted. The nation’s president was left scrambling for a backup plan. The lesson from international business negotiation case studies such as this? Sometimes the best deal you can get may be better than no deal at all.

• Dissent in the European Union

The European Union (EU) held a summit to address the coordination of economic activities and policies among EU member states. German resistance to such a global deal was strong, and pessimism about a unified EU banking system ran high as a result of the EU financial crisis. The conflict reflects the difficulty of forging  multiparty agreements  during times of stress and crisis.

• North and South Korea Talks Collapse

Negotiations between North Korea and South Korea were supposed to begin in Seoul aimed at lessening tensions between the divided nations. It would have been the highest government dialogue between the two nations in years. Just before negotiations were due to start, however, North Korea complained that it was insulted that the lead negotiator from the South wasn’t higher in status. The conflict escalated, and North Korea ultimately withdrew from the talks. The case highlights the importance of pride and power perceptions in international negotiations.

• Canceled Talks for the U.S. and Russia

Then-U.S. president Barack Obama canceled a scheduled summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, citing a lack of progress on a variety of negotiations. The announcement came on the heels of Russia’s decision to grant temporary asylum to former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who made confidential data on American surveillance programs public. From international business negotiation case studies such as this, we can learn strategic reasons for  breaking off ties , if only temporarily, with a counterpart.

• The East China Sea Dispute

In recent years, several nations, including China and Japan, have laid claim to a chain of islands in the East China Sea. China’s creation of an “air defense” zone over the islands led to an international dispute with Japan. International negotiators seeking to resolve complex disputes may gain valuable advice from this negotiation case study, which involves issues of international law as well as perceptions of relative strength or weakness in negotiations.

• An International Deal with Syria

When then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, announced a deal to prevent the United States from entering the Syrian War, it was contingent on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s promise to dismantle his nation’s chemical weapons. Like other real-life negotiation case studies, this one highlights the value of expanding our focus in negotiation.

• A Nuclear Deal with Iran

When the United States and five other world powers announced an interim agreement to temporarily freeze Iran’s nuclear program, the six-month accord, which eventually led to a full-scale agreement in 2015, was designed to give international negotiators time to negotiate a more comprehensive pact that would remove the threat of Iran producing nuclear weapons. As Iranian President Hassan Rouhani insisted that Iran had a sovereign right to enrich uranium, the United States rejected Iran’s claim to having a “right to enrich” but agreed to allow Iran to continue to enrich at a low level, a concession that allowed a deal to emerge.

What international business negotiation case studies in the news have you learned from in recent years?

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Case Studies

Case studies demonstrate how the complexities of real life influence decisions. these original and curated cases are valuable additions to our interdisciplinary curriculum at the nexus of business and the environment., case studies view, connecticut green bank: in pursuit of inclusive prosperity.

Yale Farm: Engaging New Haven Children

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Top 10 Sustainability Case Studies & Success Stories in 2024

Cem is the principal analyst at AIMultiple since 2017. AIMultiple informs hundreds of thousands of businesses (as per Similarweb) including 60% of Fortune 500 every month.

Cem's work focuses on how enterprises can leverage new technologies in AI, automation, cybersecurity(including network security, application security), data collection including web data collection and process intelligence.

Environmental and social practices have a significant impact on the long-term success of businesses. Some businesses outperform others in this area, giving them a competitive advantage. We will present ten sustainability success stories to executives searching for methods to close the sustainability gap between themselves and outperformers. 

We take a holistic approach to sustainability when presenting these case studies, seeing environmental and social challenges as a part of maintaining a sustainable business (see Figure 1). We also recognize that, while technology can aid in the improvement of corporate sustainability, changing business processes can be just as successful. As a result, we will provide a variety of scenarios that fully demonstrate the ESG framework .

1. UPS ORION: Improve transportation efficiency

Transportation activities accounted for almost 30% of US greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. (See Figure 2). For a company like UPS, which distributes goods across regions, transportation activities make up the bulk of GHG emissions. As a result, enhancing transportation efficiency is crucial for organizations like UPS to remain sustainable.

As a solution, UPS adopted an AI system called ORION which is a route optimizer that aims to minimize the number of turns during the delivery. Initiation began in 2012 and up today UPS has been working on developing it.

ORION saves UPS 10 million gallons of fuel per year, which means that in addition to the financial benefits, it decreases UPS’s carbon footprint by 100,000 metric tonnes per year, or the equivalent to removing more than 20,000 cars from the roads.

There are public cloud route optimizer systems which businesses can deploy without building hardware. These tools help firms to use their software as a service by paying a subscription cost.

To learn more about ensuring supply chain sustainability with technology you can read our Top 5 Technologies Improving Supply Chain Sustainability article.

Figure 2: US GHG emissions.

2. IKEA IWAY: Make business with ESG oriented corporations

Supplier code of conducts are established guidelines that require other businesses to demonstrate their operations’ social and environmental impacts. The objective is to reward companies that meet strong ESG standards. It is also one of the positive governance indications for organizations, as we highlighted in our ESG metrics article .

IWAY is the supplier code of conduct of IKEA forcing suppliers to meet certain environmental and humanitarian qualities to work with. The initiative has been in place for over 20 years, and over that time, IKEA has refined it based on their prior experiences. IWAY six is the most recent version of IKEA’s supplier code of conduct, which evaluates:

• Core worker rights.
• Safety of the working place.
• Life-work balance of employees.
• Water and waste management of potential suppliers.
• Prevention of child labour. 

3. General Electric digital wind farm: Produce green energy efficiently

Wind turbine productivity varies greatly depending on the design, weather conditions, and geography of the location it is deployed. Using IoT and digital twins to collect data on each wind turbine and simulate possible modifications such as adjusting the direction of the wind turbine can assist corporations in locating their wind turbines in a wind farm more effectively (see Figure 3).

Furthermore, the performance of wind turbines declines with time and may require maintenance; employing sensors and digital twins can assist in determining the appropriate time for repair.

Figure 3: How digital twins can optimize wind turbine productivity.

The General Electric’s (GE) digital wind farms are based on these two elements. GE optimized over 15,000 turbines using sensors and digital twins technologies. Each wind farm can create up to 10% more green energy as a result of the digital wind farm initiative, which helps to enhance our worldwide green energy mix.

4. Swire Properties green building: Minimize GHG emissions

Swire Properties is a construction company that operates in China and especially in the Hong Kong area. In 2018, the company built One Taikoo Place which is a green building that aims to reduce GHG emissions of Swire Properties in order to align with sustainability goals of the company’s stakeholders.

Swire properties use 3D modeling techniques to optimize the building’s energy efficiency. Reduce electricity consumption by using smart lighting systems with sunshine and motion sensors. A biodiesel generation system has been installed in the building, which converts waste food oil into biodiesel. Swire Properties additionally uses low carbon embedded materials and a lot of recycled materials in their construction.

Swire Properties was able to cut GHG emissions intensity throughout their portfolio by nearly 20% because of the usage of digital technologies and low carbon integrated materials.

5. H&M Let’s Close the Gap: Deposit scheme for gathering raw material

In 2021, we consumed 1.7 times more resources than Earth generates annually because our economic outlook is based on production, use and disposal. Such an economy is not sustainable and that is the reason why the concept of circular economy (CE) is trending nowadays.

The most basic principles of CE is to use trash as a raw material for production through innovation, recycling, or repairing and reusing existing products.

H&M’s “Let’s Close the Gap” project began in 2013 as a CE best practice that collects and categorizes discarded clothing from customers. If the garment is in decent condition, they will restore it and find a new owner for it. If a garment reaches the end of its useful life, H&M will recycle it and reuse the material in new goods.

Customers who bring in their old clothes are rewarded with tokens that can be used to get a discount at H&M shops. Incentivizing customers creates a complete CE loop.

In 2019, 57% of H&M’s raw materials were sustainable, according to Forbes. By 2030, the company hopes to improve it 100 percent.

6. Gusto: Hiring female engineers to close gender inequality gap

Gender inequality remains a major social issue despite all the improvements. There are two common types of gender disparity in the workplace. The first is gender pay disparity, which occurs when companies pay male employees more and provide better working conditions than female employees in the same position. 

The second is occupational segregation, in which women are hired for non-technical jobs while men hold the majority of leadership roles. This was the situation at software firm Gusto, where female engineers made up slightly more than 5% of the engineering team at the beginning of 2015. 

Julia Lee , one of Gusto’s first female engineers, claimed that other engineers did not accept her ideas because she was a “female engineer.” Gusto initiated an HR drive to reduce gender inequality by prioritizing the recruitment of female engineers, prohibiting female workers from scrolling, and deleting masculine job ads like “ninja rockstar coder.”

Gusto was able to improve its female engineer ratio to roughly 20% by the end of 2015 thanks to the campaign. The average ratio among software businesses’ engineering teams was 12% in 2013, therefore this was a significant improvement in a short period of time.  

7. HSBC: ESG concerned green finance

Finance companies can help speed up the transition to sustainable business practices by supporting initiatives run by responsible businesses. By the end of 2025, HSBC has committed to investing $100 billion in sustainability projects. HSBC already has funded sustainability projects that require more than $50 billion in investment as of 2019, indicating that the corporation is on track to meet its objective.

HSBC created an ESG risk evaluation framework to assure funding for green projects in 2019. Since then, the framework has been improved. In 2021, HSBC’s ESG practices were rewarded with an AA rating by MSCI.

HSBC is also working toward a goal of using 100% renewable energy as their source of electricity by 2030. Company reduces its consumption of paper, and single used plastics for coffee and beverages.

For more information about best ESG practices you can read our Top 6 ESG Reporting Best Practices article.

8. Signify light-as-a-Service: Enhance production stewardship

The product-service system ( PSS ) is a business model in which producers acquire a product over its lifetime and rent or lease it to the users. PSS ensures product stewardship since the product always becomes the asset of the company. It encourages producers to provide high-quality, repairable items in order to extend the product’s useful life. As a result, it helps to close the circularity gap by ensuring better use of natural resources.

Signify, a luminaire producer, adopts such a business strategy where it demands a subscription fee according to usage period of their lightning systems. PSS allows Signify claims that PSS allows them to produce 0 luminaire waste and drops maintenance costs around 60%.

9. Airbus additive manufacturing: Manufacture lighter planes with 3D printing

AIMultiple expects that additive manufacturing will disruptive for the airplane manufacturing since:

• It speeds up the manufacturing of parts compared to traditional molding techniques.
• It is cheaper due to effective use of raw materials and time reduction of production.
• It enables the manufacturing of lighter parts by up to 45% , resulting in lighter planes that burn less fuel. According to Airbus, additive manufacturing technology can reduce an A320 plane’s annual GHG emissions by around 465,000 metric tons, which is roughly the same as eliminating 100,000 automobiles from the road for a year. (An average car emits 4.6 tonnes of GHG per year). 

To effectively use 3D printers Airbus partnered with Materialise , a Belgium-based technology company  that specialize in additive manufacturing.

For more information regarding improving corporate sustainability by digital transformation you can read our Top 4 Digital Technologies that Improve Corporate Sustainability article.

10. Tata Power: Solar plants on the roofs

Rooftops offer a lot of empty space that can be used to install solar panels. Such initiatives have been taken in various parts of the world. Tata Power does it in India and generates green electricity by using idle places of buildings.

In 2021, Tata Power was able to spread their program throughout 90 Indian cities, producing 421 million watts of electricity, which is equivalent to nearly 40 thousand homes’ yearly electricity use in the US. (The average annual power usage for a residential utility customer in the US was 10,715 kWh in 2020, according to the EIA .).

We expect that in the near future the cooperation between energy and construction companies will enhance the use of idle places in buildings in a more effective way. Such an industrial symbiosis reduces both sectors’ ESG risk.

For more information on the top carbon footprint calculators, check our article, Top 7 Carbon Footprint Calculator Software/Tools for Businesses .

To learn more about corporate sustainability you can contact with us:

This article was drafted by former AIMultiple industry analyst Görkem Gençer.

Cem's work has been cited by leading global publications including Business Insider, Forbes, Washington Post, global firms like Deloitte, HPE, NGOs like World Economic Forum and supranational organizations like European Commission. You can see more reputable companies and media that referenced AIMultiple.

Cem's hands-on enterprise software experience contributes to the insights that he generates. He oversees AIMultiple benchmarks in dynamic application security testing (DAST), data loss prevention (DLP), email marketing and web data collection. Other AIMultiple industry analysts and tech team support Cem in designing, running and evaluating benchmarks.

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Case Study – Business Environment

Welcome to study research . This time all-important case studies inform of questions and answers.

CASE STUDY – BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

For class 12 cbse students of business studies..

Q1:  Anil a marketing manager of a car manufacturing company is of the view that in case of construction companies and automobiles manufacturers , low longer term rates are beneficial because they results in increased spending by consumers for buying homes and cars on borrowed money. Identify and explain the component of business environment that Anil is referring in the above case.

Q2:  In an interview , an interviewer asked the interviewee regarding the need of considering the changes of environment . In reply one of the interviewee replied,” Every business should consider the changes going on in inflation rates before taking any financial decisions because inflation rates result in constraints on business enterprises as they increase the various costs of business such as the purchase of raw materials or machinery and payment of wages and salaries to employees.” Interviewer liked the answer . Interviewee has put emphasis on the understanding of only one of the element of business environment. Identify that Element of Business environment.

Q3:’  Atul has got tremendous feedback from public for his newly started Gym plus gym related goods store which is a one stop solution for health conscious people. When asked about his success story then Atul said that the health and fitness trend has become popular among large number of urban dwellers. This has created a demand for products like organic food, diet soft drinks, gyms, bottled water and food supplements. that is why I thought of starting this business. Identify the dimension of business environment whose understanding has helped Atul in garnering the success,

Q4: Asia who is working as a advertisement advisor with one of the consumer goods manufacturing company is of the view that nowadays in order to inform and persuade the potential buyers to buy the product new and modified ways should be adopted by the companies to advertise their products. That is like CD-ROM’s , computerised information kiosks and internet/ world wide web multimedia pages highlighting the virtues of products. Marketing team really appreciated her idea. Identify the element of business environment on which Ashia has put the emphasis.

Q5: Ananya ‘s grand father while telling her about the past of Indian economy told her that even after opening up of our economy in 1991, foreign companies found it very difficult to cut through the bureaucratic red tape to get permits for doing business in India. Sometimes it took months to process even their application in process. As a result these companies were discouraged from investing in India but the situation has improved overtime. Identify the Element of business environment which was the cause for discouragement to foreign companies based on above case.

Q6: While doing labelling of the products companies have to write down certain statutory warnings over it. Understanding of which environment helped them taking above action Identify.

Q7:Identify the importance of Understanding business environment in the following cases:

(a) Maruti Udyog became the leader in the small car market because it was the first to recognise the need for small cars in an environment of rising petrol prices and a large middle class population of India.

Answer: It enables the firm to identify opportunities and getting first mover advantage.

(b) If  an Indian firm  finds that a foreign multinational is is entering  the Indian market with new varieties. On the basis of above information the Indian firms can prepare themselves to meet the threat by adopting such measures as improving quality of the products , reducing cost of the production , engaging in aggressive advertising and so on.

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Case Study Chapter 3 Business Environment

Please refer to Chapter 3 Business Environment Case Study Questions with answers provided below. We have provided Case Study Questions for Class 12 Business Studies for all chapters as per CBSE, NCERT and KVS examination guidelines. These case based questions are expected to come in your exams this year. Please practise these case study based Class 12 Business Studies Questions and answers to get more marks in examinations.

Case Study Questions Chapter 3 Business Environment

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Unique Ltd. is an electronic goods manufacturing company situated in Uttar Pradesh. It is earning low revenue in comparison to another electronic company ‘Pace Ltd.’ situated in Delhi. Both the enterprises are affected by the investors , customers, competitors and suppliers in their respective locations. At the same time both are also affected by economic condition, change in technology, etc.

Questions :

Question. Economic condition, changes in technology are related to (a) General forces (b) Specific forces (c) Both (a) and (b) (d) None of the above

Question. Business Environment includes : (a) All internal forces (b) All external forces (c) Both Internal (d) None of the above

Question. There is variation in the revenue of company operating in Uttar Pradesh and operating in Delhi. This is related to which feature of Business Environment ? (a) Uncertainty (b) Relativity (c) General and specific (d) None of the above

Question. Customers and suppliers represent : (a) General forces (b) Specific forces (c) Both (a) and (b) (d) None of the above

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Two big banner movies were scheduled to be released on the same date. On the last moment release of one of the movies had to be postponed due to opposition of a group of people due to some unethical contents related to their religion was shown in the that movie. The other movie released on time and made huge profit as there was no competition and movie which was postponed suffered loss. “It may be difficult to know the extent of the relative impact of the social economic, political, technological or legal factors on change in demand of a product in the market.”

Question. When there is no competition then firms get : (a) First mover advantage (b) Warning signal (c) Resource allocation (d) None of the above

Question. Identify the dimension of Business Environment that delayed the release of movie. (a) Economic (b) Social (c) Technical (d) Legal

Question. The dimensions of Business Environment are : (a) lndependent (b) Interrelated (c) Both (a) and (b) (d) None of the above

Question. Which feature of Business Environment is highlighted here? (a) Uncertainty (b) Specific and general (c) Dynamic (d) Relativity

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Naman and Govind after finishing their graduation under vocational stream decided to start their own travel agency which will book Rail Tickets and Air Tickets on commission basis. They also thought of providing tickets within ten minutes through the use of internet. They discussed the idea with their Professor Mr. Mehta who liked the idea and suggested them to first analyse the business environment which consists of investors, competitors and other forces like social, political, etc., that may affect their business directly or indirectly. He further told them about the technological improvements and shifts in consumer preferences that were taking place and hence they should be aware of the environmental trends and changes which may hinder their business performance. He emphasised on making plans keeping in mind the threat posed by the competitors, so that they can deal with the situation effectively. This alignment of business operations with the business environment will result in better performance.

Question. “He emphasised on making plans keeping in mind threat posed by the competitors.” This is related to which importance of Business Environment ? (a) Getting first mover advantage (b) Getting warning signal (c) Help in making plans and policy formulation (d) None of the above

Question. “They should be aware of the environmental trends and changes which may hinder their business performance”. This is related to which feature of business environment ? (a) All external forces (b) Specific and general (c) Relativity (d) Dynamic

Question. “The Alignment of business operations with the business environment will result in better performance.” This is related to which importance of Business Environment ? (a) Getting first mover advantage (b) Getting warning signal (c) Help in improving performance (d) Help in making plans and policy formulation

Question. “First analyse the business environment which consists of investors, competitors and other forces like social, political, etc.” This is related to which feature of business environment ? (a) All external forces (b) Specific and general (c) Relativity (d) Uncertainty

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : The name and taste of Coca-Cola is known to almost each and every individual in India as well as throughout the world. This carbonated soft drink holds the most market share in the soft drink market and got itself a special seat in each and every gathering. The Coca-Cola Company has on occasion introduced other cola drinks under the Coke name. The most common of these are Diet Coke, along with others including Caffeine free Coca-Cola, Diet Coke Caffeine free, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Coca-Cola Cherry, Coca-Cola Vanilla and the list goes on. It has capitalized on each and every opportunity to market itself effectively and place itself in the middle of every gathering. The main reason for such an outstanding placement of product goes to the way they have established the connection between every occasion and the need for Coke to be present there, product design and creative advertising.

Question. Which of the following is not a product of COCA-COLA? (a) Diet Coke Caffeine free (b) Coca-Cola Zero Sugar (c) Coca-Cola Avocado (d) Coca-Cola Cherry

Question. In the context of the above given case, identify one valid importance of Business Environment. (a) Enables a firm to identify opportunities and getting first mover advantage (b) Uncertainty (c) Delay in action (d) Pervasive function

Question. Identify the feature of Business Environment which The Coca-Cola Company managed to get in their favour. (a) Complex (b) Specific and general forces (c) Futuristic (d) Mental Exercise

Question. Which business environment did Coca-Cola majorly tap into ? (a) Technological Environment (b) Social Environment (c) Political Environment (d) Economical Environment

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Metlapp Networks and Technologies Ltd. is a leader in technology innovation in the United States, creating products and solutions for connecting the world. It has,, a large research and development team which invented the first smart watch, named as W-7. The watch besides showing the time, also monitors few health parameters like heart beat, blood pressure etc. While in search of markets abroad, the company found that in India, the reform process was underway with the aim of accelerating the pace of economic growth. The company decided to take advantage of simplified export procedure and removal of quantitative as well as tariff restrictions in India. It set up its office in Jamnagar with a view to capture the Indian market. In a short span of time, the company emerged as a market leader. Success of the company attracted many other players to enter the market. Competition resulted in reduction in prices, thereby benefiting the customers.

Question. In the above paragraph, two major concepts related to government policy have been discussed. Identify and explain these concepts.

Liberalisation and Globalisation are the two major concepts related to government policy that have been discussed.

• Liberalisation:  These economic reforms signalled the end of the licence-pemit-quota raj and were aimed at liberalising the Indian business and industry from all unnecessary controls and restrictions.
• Globalisation:  Globalisation means the integration of the various economies of the world leading towards the emergence of a cohesive global economy.

Question. Also, explain briefly any three impacts of these concepts on Indian business and industry.

The three impacts of reforms on Indian business and industry are outlined below:

• Increasing competition:  The Indian firms are facing lot of competition due to changes in the rules of industrial licensing and entry of foreign firms. This change is more apparent in the sectors which were earlier reserved for private sector only like banking, insurance, telecommunications, etc.
• More demanding customers:  With the easy availability of wider choice in purchasing better quality of goods and services due to high competition consumers have become more aware and demanding. The growing expections of the consumers has increased the pressure on the business firms.
• Rapidly changing technological environment:  With the entry of new firms which are far more superior in terms of technology the small firms are facing a lot of challenges. Moreover, the firms are constantly involved in innovating new products and upgrading present products with the help of better technologies in order to satisfy the customers demands.

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Naman and Govind after finishing their graduation under vocational stream decided to start their own travel agency which will book Rail Tickets and Air Tickets on commission basis. They also thought of providing tickets within ten minutes through the use of internet. They discussed the idea with their Professor Mr. Mehta who liked the idea and suggested them to first analyse the business environment which consists of investors’, competitors and other forces like social, political etc. that may affect their business directly or indirectly. He further told them about the technological improvements and shifts in consumer preferences that were taking place and hence they should be aware of the environmental trends and changes which may hinder their business performance. He emphasised on making plans keeping in mind the threat posed by the competitors, so that they can deal with the situation effectively. This alignment of business operations with the business environment will result in better performance.

Question. Identify and state the component of business environment highlighted in the above Para.

Technological Environment is the component of business environment highlighted in the above Para. Technological Environment includes forces relating to scientific improvements and innovations which provide new ways of producing goods and services and new methods and techniques of operating a business.

Question. State any two features of business environment as discussed by Professor Mehta with Naman and Govind.

The two features of business environment as discussed by Professor Mehta with Naman and Govind are as follows:

• Dynamic nature:  It is dynamic in nature and keeps on changing due to technological upgradations, shifts in consumer preferences or increase in competition in the market.
• Inter-relatedness:  All the elements of business environment are closely interrelated. Therefore, any change is one element may necessitate corresponding changes in the other elements as well.

Question. Also state two points of importance of business environment as stated by Professor Mehta in the above situation.

The two points of importance of business environment as stated by Professor Mehta in the above situation are described below:

• It enables the firm to identify opportunities and getting the first mover advantage: The dynamic business environment provides numerous opportunities for a business to evolve as per the changing needs. Therefore, early identification of the forthcoming opportunities helps an enterprise to be the first to exploit them instead of losing them to the competitors.
• It helps the firm to identify threats and early warning signals: Sometimes the changes in the external environment may pose as a threat and hinder a firm’s performance. An awareness about the business environment helps the managers to identify such threats on time and take necessary decisions and action.

With changes in the consumption habits of people, Neelesh, who was running a sweet shop, shifted to the chocolate business. On the eve of Diwali, he offered chocolates in attractive packages at reasonable prices. He anticipated huge demand and created a website chocolove. com for taking orders online. He got a lot of orders online and earned huge profits by selling the chocolate. Identify and explain the dimensions of business environment discussed in the above case.

The various dimensions of business environment being referred to in the above case are as follows:

1. Social environment:  Social Environment includes the social forces like customs and traditions, values, social trends, society’s expectations from business, etc.

2. Technological environment:  Technological Environment includes forces relating to scientific improvements and innovations which provide new ways of producing goods and services and new methods and techniques of operating a business.

A recent rate cut in the interest on loans announced by the banks encouraged Amit, a science student of Progressive School, to take a loan from State Bank of India to experiment and develop cars to be powered by fuel produced from garbage. He developed such a car and exhibited it in the Science Fair organised by the Directorate of Education. He was awarded the first prize for his invention. Identify and explain the dimensions of business environment discussed in the above case.

1. Economic Environment:  It comprises of factors that can affect management practices in a business enterprise includes interest rates, inflation rates, changes in disposable income of people, stock market indices and the value of rupee etc.

2. Technological Environment:  It includes forces relating to scientific improvements and innovations which provide new ways of producing goods and services and new methods and techniques of operating a business.

‘Accent Electronics Ltd.’ was operating its business in Malaysia. The company started exporting its products to India when the Prime Minister announced relaxation in import duties on electronic items. The company appointed retailers in India who had direct online links with the suppliers to replenish stocks when needed. Identify and explain the dimensions of business environment discussed in the above case.

1. Political Environment:  Political Environment includes political conditions such as general stability and peace in the country and specific attitudes that elected government representatives hold towards business.

2. Technological Environment:  Technological Environment includes forces relating to scientific improvements and innovations which provide new ways of producing goods and services and new methods and techniques of operating a business.

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Neel and Aakash after finishing their graduation under vocational stream decide to start their own travel agency which will book rail tickets and air tickets on commission basis. They also thought of providing tickets within 10 minutes through the use of internet.They discussed the idea with their professor Mr. Singh who liked the idea and suggested them to first analyse the business environment which consist of investors, competitors and other forces like social, political, etc., that may affect their business directly or indirectly. He further told them about the technological improvements and shifts in customer preferences that were taking place and hence, they should be aware of the environmental trends and changes which may hinder their business performance. He emphasised on making plans keeping in mind the threats posed by the competitors so that they can deal with the situation effectively. This alignment of business operations with the business environment will result in better performance.

Question. Identify the points of importance of business environment as stated by Professor Singh in the above situation. (a) It enables the firm to identify opportunities and getting the first mover advantage (b) It helps the form to identify threats and early warning signals (c) It helps in tapping useful resources (d) The it helps in assisting in planning and policy formulation.

Question. Identify the components of business environment highlighted in the above paragraph (a)economic environment (b) social environment (c) technological environment (d) political environment

Question. Neel and Aakash after finishing their graduation under vocational stream decided to start their own travel agency which will book rail tickets and air tickets on commission basis which dimension of business environment highlighted here. (a) Economical (b) Political (c) Legal (d) social

Question. Identify the features of business environment as discussed by Professor Singh with Neel and Akash. (a)specific and general forces (b)inter-relatedness (c) dynamic nature (d) uncertainty

Question. Which of the following is not an element of legal environment (a) court judgement (b) The extent and nature of government intervention in business (c) Government regulations (d) Administrative orders issued by the government authorities.

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : The government all over the world are becoming more and more cautious towards the environment.To ensure the same, recently, many state governments passed an order to ban polythene bags since these are non biodegradable. As a result, the government also decided to give a subsidy to jute industry (bags). The minister said in the statement that they believe it will be helpful as income of people are rising and people can afford jute bag. After this subsidy, Aman saw great potential in jute multi-pocket bags business which was not established yet in India but had been flourishing in UK where he studied during his graduation. He launched the product and his business started to boom. So, more companies entered into the market with other articles and improvisations.

Question. Which business dimension is highlighted in the line,” As a result, the government also decided to give a subsidy to jute industry (bags).” (a) Legal (b) Political (c) Economic (d) Social

Question. Which merit of business environment is highlighted in the lines,” He launched the product and his business started to boom. So, more companies entered into the market with other articles and improvisations.” (a) Identify opportunities (b) Identified threats (c) Assisting in planning (d) Coping with rapid changes

Question. Which dimension of business environment is highlighted in the given lines,” To ensure the same, many state government passed an order to ban polythene bags since these are non biodegradable.”? (a) Political (b) Legal (c) Technological (d) Economic

Question. Which business dimension is highlighted in the line,” The Minister said in the statement that he believes it will be helpful as income of people are rising and people can afford jute bags.”? (a) Legal (b) Political (c) Economic (d) Social

Question. Which merit of business environment is highlighted in the lines, “After the subsidy Aman saw great potential in jute multi-pocket bags business which was not established yet in India but had been flourishing in UK where he studied during his graduation.” (a) Identify opportunities (b) Tapping useful resources (c) Coping with rapid changes (d)Assisting in planning

Read the source given below and answer the following questions : Yogesh Agro limited started a new venture for distribution of harmful and chemical free fertilizers vegetables they conducted a survey to find out customer preferences for such vegetables.They found out that most of the customers were concerned about the harmful chemicals being used in growing the vegetables. They found out that 90% of the households were searching for alternatives. The company connected a group of agriculture experts to lay down the procedure for growing the vegetables by the farmers. They decided to train the farmers in new technology to grow chemical free vegetables according to new innovative methods. The experts also suggested soil management techniques through which farmers would be able to create an abundant and lasting harvest. Due to increased awareness for healthcare, demand for products of Yogesh agro limited increased and thus the business flourished

Question. “Due to increased awareness for healthcare demand for products of Yogesh Agro limited increased and thus the business flourished.”What feature/ characteristic of business environment is highlighted above? (a) Specific and general forces (b) Inter-relatedness (c) Dynamic nature (d) Relativity

Question. Which of the following is not a component of economic environment? (a) Balance of payments and changes in foreign exchange reserves (b) The nature of relationship of our country with foreign countries (c) Expansion of transportation and communication facilities (d) Volume of imports and exports of different items.

Question. “They found that most of the customers were concerned about the harmful chemicals being used in growing the vegetables. They found out that 90% of the households searching for alternative.” identify the dimension of business environment highlighted above. (a) Economic environment (b) Social environment (c) Technological environment (d) Political environment

Question. “They decided to train the farmers in new technology to grow chemical-free vegetable according to new innovative methods.” Identity the dimension of business environment highlighted above. (a) Economic environment (b) Social environment (c) Technological environment (d) Political environment

Question. “The experts also suggested soil management techniques through which farmers would be able to create an abundant and lasting harvest.” which dimension of business environment is highlighted here? (a) Technological (b) Legal (c) Political (d) Social

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Financial Technology (FinTech) is a rapidly growing industry that uses technology to improve activities in finance. It has been disrupting the traditional delivery of financial services through rapid integration of technology, algorithms, data and mobile applications.  Today, FinTech is considered to be one of the most important industries in the global economy.

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This degree program not only includes traditional finance coursework, but also provides an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the theories and evolution of FinTech, data-driven financial modeling, financial data mining and machine learning, financial data analytics, and new innovations in the financial sector, including AI, blockchain, cloud computing, machine learning, etc. The primary goal of the program is to develop students who have the necessary skills and knowledge to pursue competitive professional and academic careers.

Learning Environment Objectives To prepare students for the challenging business environment so that they may efficiently manage and work for any kind of enterprise. Intellectual Contributions Objectives To apply such innovative teaching methods and practices that may brighten both the academic and professional growth of faculty. Service Objectives To serve society, academia, and the business world through active participation and dynamic leadership.

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Lucas, a Republican on the five-member US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, said at a conference hosted by New York University School of Law that DEI programs are “check-the-box” efforts that employers implement in response to demands from investors and activists to meet regulatory requirements or enhance public image.

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