Cases in this issue
| Case title and target audience | Authors | Synopsis |
|---|---|---|
| Managing wildfire disasters in the Rocky Mountains Compact case Audience: undergraduate and graduate students in business and STEM classes | Christopher Craig | With drought conditions expected to worsen in at-risk areas thus amplifying wildfire likelihood, this case explores the organizational and natural dynamics involved with wildfire management. The case engages students to explore the interactions between wildfire, wildland firefighters and agency organizations drawing from the natural resource dependence theory within a sustainability context. When completing the discussion questions, students are challenged to explore how organizations can use discursive closures to eliminate conflict and control meaning surrounding potentially controversial and politicized topics such as wildfire management |
| The trials and tribulations of JTH Inc. Audience: Undergraduate students in Strategic Management and/or Entrepreneurship classes | Mayank Jaiswal and Robert Maxwell | This case discusses strategy in the context of a crisis situation in a small business. JTH Inc. was a computer subcontract manufacturing (SCM) firm serving the New England region of the USA. The influx of international competition (mainly from China) due to recession led to significant challenges for JTH and the SCM industry. JTH was struggling and the situation was further complicated by the founder’s (Robert Maxwell) personal and emotional situation. Robert had to decide whether to keep the business running, close it down, merge with/be acquired by a competitor, innovate the business model, or do something else |
| Startup on a budget: winning new customers without breaking the bank Audience: undergraduate or graduate entrepreneurship courses | Heidi Bertels | Lammily is a startup company in its second year of existence which produces toys that embody realism: a fashion doll with proportions based on the average 19-year old American woman, a sticker set of common body markings such as booboos and cellulite to make dolls look realistic and doll outfits. After the company’s initial success in 2014, fueled by positive publicity from online media eager to share information about the average doll project, sales were flat. Nickolay Lamm, the Founder of Lammily, started to feel the heat to acquire new customers in ways that did not rely solely on digital word-of-mouth. Lammily commissioned a direct response TV commercial in the summer of 2015, but it failed to lead to significant new customer growth This case describes how Nickolay struggles to move beyond the launch phase of his entrepreneurial venture and turn his startup into a business with a sustainable customer base. Facing stagnating growth and established competitors with deep pockets, Nickolay needs to figure out why the TV commercial did not work for Lammily and what his new plan to quickly acquire new customers will be |
| To do or not to do: Stratasys considers HP’s partnership offer Audience: undergraduate and graduate strategic management and small business management courses. Also relevant to MBA, Executive MBA or MSA students | Lumina Albert, Robert Gallagher and Rosemond Desir | Scott Crump, Founder of Stratasys, a company that developed and sold 3D printers, had always envisioned a future when it would be commonplace for a 3D printer to be on the desk of every engineer. Hewlett-Packard (HP) approached him with a proposal that had the potential to make that dream come true. Crump knew that Stratasys did not need to partner with HP for a financial reason, but he loved the idea of the technology becoming a standard method for creating parts universally. The case highlights a true-life account of a firm’s founder considering an important strategic alliance and analyzing the ramifications of taking on or refusing this partnership |
| Case title and target audience | Authors | Synopsis |
|---|---|---|
| Managing wildfire disasters in the Rocky Mountains | Christopher Craig | With drought conditions expected to worsen in at-risk areas thus amplifying wildfire likelihood, this case explores the organizational and natural dynamics involved with wildfire management. The case engages students to explore the interactions between wildfire, wildland firefighters and agency organizations drawing from the natural resource dependence theory within a sustainability context. When completing the discussion questions, students are challenged to explore how organizations can use discursive closures to eliminate conflict and control meaning surrounding potentially controversial and politicized topics such as wildfire management |
| The trials and tribulations of JTH Inc. | Mayank Jaiswal and Robert Maxwell | This case discusses strategy in the context of a crisis situation in a small business. JTH Inc. was a computer subcontract manufacturing (SCM) firm serving the New England region of the USA. The influx of international competition (mainly from China) due to recession led to significant challenges for JTH and the SCM industry. JTH was struggling and the situation was further complicated by the founder’s (Robert Maxwell) personal and emotional situation. Robert had to decide whether to keep the business running, close it down, merge with/be acquired by a competitor, innovate the business model, or do something else |
| Startup on a budget: winning new customers without breaking the bank | Heidi Bertels | Lammily is a startup company in its second year of existence which produces toys that embody realism: a fashion doll with proportions based on the average 19-year old American woman, a sticker set of common body markings such as booboos and cellulite to make dolls look realistic and doll outfits. After the company’s initial success in 2014, fueled by positive publicity from online media eager to share information about the average doll project, sales were flat. Nickolay Lamm, the Founder of Lammily, started to feel the heat to acquire new customers in ways that did not rely solely on digital word-of-mouth. Lammily commissioned a direct response TV commercial in the summer of 2015, but it failed to lead to significant new customer growth |
| To do or not to do: Stratasys considers HP’s partnership offer | Lumina Albert, Robert Gallagher and Rosemond Desir | Scott Crump, Founder of Stratasys, a company that developed and sold 3D printers, had always envisioned a future when it would be commonplace for a 3D printer to be on the desk of every engineer. Hewlett-Packard (HP) approached him with a proposal that had the potential to make that dream come true. Crump knew that Stratasys did not need to partner with HP for a financial reason, but he loved the idea of the technology becoming a standard method for creating parts universally. The case highlights a true-life account of a firm’s founder considering an important strategic alliance and analyzing the ramifications of taking on or refusing this partnership |
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