Case Studies: Services
Hulu, To Be Or Not To Be
Rama Oruganti
Length: 24 pages
Publication date: 2009
Case#: 6-0030
Los Angeles-based Hulu.com had finished 2008 with impressive growth in both viewership and market visibility. The video portal startup, established in 2007 with the backing of NBC Universal and News Corp., had 227 million video views and had become the sixth most-visited online video web site. Popular media had taken notice and prominently featured the company. Even the harshest Hulu skeptics, like Michael Arrington of the popular TechCrunch blog, acknowledged its success. But Jason Kilar, the CEO, was cautious about the future. This case examines the explosive growth of Internet TV and potential for significant change in a well established industry.
*Teaching Note Unavailable; Please Request Supplemental Readings Below via "Request Teaching Note"*
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Topics: Product Development, Services
Industry: Media
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Enhancing Service at Southwest Airlines
M. Eric Johnson
Length: 14 pages
Publication date: 2009
Case#: 6-0031
Scarcely five years at the helm of Southwest Airlines, CEO Gary Kelly was navigating the high-flying airline through the downturn of 2009. By focusing on simplicity and keeping costs low, Southwest had posted profits in every year for over three decades and had grown to be the fifth largest U.S. carrier. Kelly was faced with maintaining those low costs while readying the airline for growth when passengers returned. Looking to enhance its value proposition, he was considering a number of service refinements including satellite- based WiFi Internet, more extensive wine and coffee service, and even new international alliances with foreign carriers. In each case, the offering would be scrutinized to see if it fit within the Southwest strategy and its legendary operating model.
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"Reframing Your Business Equation," Strategy + Business, 2009
Enhancing Service at Southwest Case (in Mandarin)
Topics: Services
Industry: Transporation
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Information Risk Analysis at Jefford’s
Hans Brechbühl, Chris Dunning
Length: 8 pages
Publication date: 2008
Case#: 6-0029
Jefford's faces several information security threats and must decide which risks to mitigate and at what cost. Headquartered in the U.S., Jefford's, a fictitious Fortune 500 company, is growing rapidly with much of the expansion coming in emerging markets. They face numerous risk management decisions, including how to mitigate problems with stolen/lost laptops, malware, fraudulent website transactions and protection of personally identifiable employee data. This case can serve as a good basis for a discussion on information security and risk management approaches. In Part B, the case provides detailed data on which to do a cost/benefit analysis, and with the help of the teaching note, creates a robust Monte Carlo simulation using Excel and Crystal Ball or similar software.
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Topics: Information Technology, Product Development, Services
Industry: Electronic Controls
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Aligning the Supply Chain
Laura R. Kopczak, M. Eric Johnson
Length: 17 pages
Publication date: 2006
Case#: 6-0024
Align Technology, makers of the highly successful orthodontic treatment Invisalign, was in the midst of a transition from a start-up venture to an established firm. With customer orders stepping up, Align outlined a multi-million dollar IT investment for a new execution system that would address the growing complexity of managing its multi-country operations. This case study examines the challenges of manufacturing a mass customization product and the business case behind Align's investment in a new enterprise information system to automate its supply chain.
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Topics: Manufacturing, Services, Supply Chain
Industry: Medical Devices
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The Day McDonald’s Blinked
M. Eric Johnson, David F. Pyke, Anita Warren
Length: 16 pages
Publication date: 2006
Case#: 1-0049
The 50-year battle between fast food giants McDonald's and Burger King had been waged around two competing concepts. McDonald's aimed to be the world's best quick service restaurant experience, providing quality, service, and value. Meanwhile, Burger King based its strategy around customer satisfaction through flexibility. When McDonald's launched the "Made for You" campaign, it was a direct challenge to Burger King's long-standing strategy.
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Topics: Services
Industry: Fast Food
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PERI
Hans Brechbühl, (with Yiorgos Bakamitsos)
Length: 10 pages (plus appendices)
Publication date: 2003
Case#: 6-0019
he international market leader in an increasingly important product and service segment of the construction industry, PERI faced key decisions on updating and automating key processes. This case offers the opportunity for in-depth discussion on where a bricks-and-mortar company should place its IT bets for the future.
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Topics: Information Technology, Manufacturing, Marketing, Services, Supply Chain
Industry: Construction
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McGraw Hill: GradeSummit
Yiorgos Bakamitsos, Evelyn Hsia T'02 , Hans Brechbühl
Length: 30 pages
Publication date: 2003
Case#: 6-0018
This case outlines the interesting challenges McGraw Hill faced in launching an online testing and assessment product for higher education. It offers the opportunity for in-depth discussion on new product development, product/service bundling, channel management, and value networks.
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Topics: Innovation, Marketing, Services
Industry: Publishing
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Yantra and ChemPoint: Extraprise Management in the Specialty Chemical Industry
Jesse Johnson T'02, under the supervision of Professor M. Eric Johnson
Length: 17 pages
Publication date: 2002
Case#: 6-0003
With no existing solution that could provide all their needs, ChemPoint selected vendors that offered a balance of functionality, speed, and cost, which fit their Internet focus and start-up financing. Yantra's software PureEcommerce was integral to this "best-of-breed" technology solution. With a powerful system in place, ChemPoint was rapidly executing their plan to build a farreaching network of chemical suppliers and customers.
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Topics: Services, Supply Chain
Industry: Chemicals
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EMC: Creating a Storage-Centric World
Jonathan Kwoh T'02, under the supervision of Visiting Professor Melissa M. Appleyard
Length: 7 pages
Publication date: 2002
Case#: 6-0009
While able to navigate technical and business roadblocks throughout the prior decade, by 2002, EMC Corporation faced a new set of challenges to its business model. This new set of challenges included the rise of distributed networking, whereby storage would become less centralized, in addition to the precipitous fall in demand due to the slowing global economy. Could EMC rely on its secrets for success from the past to propel its growth well into the future?
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Topics: Services
Industry: Computer
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Cisco Systems (A): Evolution to e-Business
Philip Anderson, Vijay Govindarajan, Chris Trimble, Katrina Veerman T'01
Length: 25 pages
Publication date: 2001
Case#: 1-0001
Cisco Systems prides itself as an "end-to-end networking company." The phrase describes not only their product line but the way they run their business. They created many of the e-business practices that later became cornerstones of the software packages used throughout industry to make businesses more efficient. This case reviews their accomplishments and their method.
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Topics: Information Technology, Innovation, Product Development, Services
Industry: Network Hardware
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Simon & Schuster
Richard A. D'Aveni, Fred Wainwright T'02
Length: 48 pages
Publication date: 2001
Case#: 6-0004
In July of 2000, Simon & Schuster (S&S), one of the world's preeminent publishers of consumer books, agreed to a long-term strategic alliance with Lightning Source, a digital fulfillment service owned by Ingram Book Company. This alliance would include digital file conversion, digital rights management, e-book delivery to various devices and on-demand printing.
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Topics: Innovation, Services
Industry: Publishing
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Electronic Trading Systems and Fixed Income Markets
Richard A. D'Aveni, Jonathan Joys T'02
Length: 23 pages
Publication date: 2001
Case#: 6-0006
Electronic trading systems have only recently begun to account for measurable levels of the $88 trillion in annual trading volume in the US fixed income market. The fixed income markets' adoption of the Internet represents a significant shift in power. The principal advantages are: (1) greater availability and speed of information, (2) the possibility of direct trading between investors, (3) reduced cost and errors in processing transactions, and (4) increased speed of execution. It also improves liquidity by providing the smaller investors (below the top 200) access to markets and transactions from which they were previously locked out.
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Topics: Services
Industry: Finance
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Participate.com
Publication date: 2001
Case#: 6-0002
Participate.com views itself as a leader in the provision of outsourced community management services. Their CEO, Alan Warms, believes they have gained leadership position because they are number one in market revenues, they service a set of prestigious customers, they have the most experience in the community space, and they have intellectual capital and proprietary research. He knows too, that the difference between success and failure in online communities is about management and process, not just good technology. Now they are entering a phase in which they have to prove that their business model will sustain the high growth and profitability expected by investors. Can they add enough value to existing services and create new ones to reach their all-important revenue goals?
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Topics: Innovation, Services
Industry: Consulting
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Experience.com, Inc.
Alva H. Taylor, Phil Anderson, Lloyd Baskin T'01
Length: 18 pages
Publication date: 2001
Case#: 6-0001
The cornerstone of the recruiting solutions company Experience.com, Inc. had always been its relationships with college career centers: they worked with over 500 schools and 150 of these relationships were exclusive. In 2001, with the Monster/Jobtrak merger stepping up the competition, Experience.com began looking for a partner, primarily to leverage another firms' resources, including established sales forces and connections with employers.
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Topics: Innovation, Services
Industry: Career Consulting
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