Case studies

After completion of the case study, students will be able to recall the fundamental concepts of group arrival and the check-in process within the hotel industry; explain the various operational procedures used to enhance a smooth group check-in in hotels; use the steps defined in group check-in procedure to improve service efficiency in hotel operations; and examine and evaluate the optimal solution for a smooth group check-in for hotels.

“The Big Fat Indian Wedding” delves into the challenges faced by Hotel Plaza Blu, a business hotel in Pune, Maharashtra, in 2023. A big wedding group was arriving at the hotel, which comprised almost 350 adults and 120 children. Mr Parag Patil, the front office manager, had done all the preparations for group arrival but just one hour before the arrival Mr Suresh Menon, the group coordinator, came and informed that 150 additional guests would be arriving, as the other hotel, where arrangements for these guests were made, had a major electricity generator breakdown and the hotel was in complete blackout. Patil had the challenge of formulating an action plan to achieve a smooth group check-in with the last-minute changes.

Executive development programmes and graduate-level courses in non-profit hospitality and tourism management might benefit from this case study. The operational management courses in the BBA, UG management programmes might all benefit from using this case study.

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CSS 9: Operations and Logistics.

The learning outcomes are as follows: determine the conditions founders encounter when their company is not on the right track; examine the importance of ethics in entrepreneurship; draw up a broad framework to understand the degree of trouble an organization is in and how far it has gone since the early warning signs of trouble; and formulate a comprehensive solution for entrepreneurial founders to extricate their ventures from a crisis.

India-based Edtech company Byju’s was facing a slew of challenges as of mid-2023. Its founder and CEO Byju Raveendran needed to steer the company out of trouble.

Post Graduate/Executive Education.

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CSS3: Entrepreneurship.

After completion of the case study, the students will be able to make strategic decisions for social entrepreneurship and carry out a sustainability and social impact analysis, assess the benefits of a circular economy-based retail model and investigate ways to preserve these benefits and recognize the ethical and sustainable issues facing the fast fashion sector and how social enterprises are addressing them.

The culture of fast fashion had proven to be dangerous for the environment as it had promoted a culture of consumerism and materialism. It had also increased the landfills in different countries. The need of the hour was to upcycle used and unwanted clothes into new innovative items. This idea had been practically implemented by Mrs Sujata Chatterjee of the Twirl Store, the protagonist of this case study. Chatterjee was a social entrepreneur who recognized the environmental and social problems caused by rapid fashion and abandoned apparel in landfills. She launched the Twirl Store, a social enterprise with the mission of advancing circular economy and sustainability practices in the textile sector. Rural women were economically and culturally empowered by the enterprise’s upcycling of used clothing using their abilities, and a sustainable source of income was created. Finding abandoned clothing, sorting and processing it effectively and locating clients who share her commitment to sustainability were difficult tasks for Chatterjee. Despite the difficulties, the Twirl Store served as an example of how circular economy concepts, cultural sustainability and women’s empowerment might be combined, highlighting the importance of social entrepreneurship in addressing global concerns and fostering positive social effects and economic impact.

This case study is applicable for undergraduate as well as post graduate students of management studies.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

After completion of the case study, students will be able to analyse the path of the entrepreneurship from idea generation to market development to scaling up business, examine the impact of start-ups like Ergos on India’s agriculture value chain, discuss the challenges faced by tech entrepreneurs in growing a business, identify problems solved by Grain Bank Model and evaluate digitisation of farming’s custodial services such as warehousing, market linkages and loans.

The case study discusses how founders of Ergos, India-based leading digital AgriTech start-up, Kishor Kumar Jha and Praveen Kumar, started one of the unique models in the AgriTech landscape in India. After noticing the grim condition of small and marginal farmers in Bihar, India. Kishor and Praveen decided to put their banking and corporate experience to use in the farming sector. Ergos aimed to empower farmers by providing them with a choice on when, how much quantity, and at what price they should sell their farm produce, thus maximising their income. As a result, Ergos launched the grain bank model, which provided farmers with doorstep access of end-to-end post-harvest supply chain solutions by leveraging a robust technology platform to ensure seamless service delivery. Ergos faced many challenges in its journey related to financing, marketing and distribution. Amidst these developments, it remained to be seen how Kishor and Praveen would be able to realise their goal to serve over two million farmers across India by 2025 and create a sustainable income for them through its GrainBank Platform.

This case study was written for use in teaching graduate and postgraduate management courses in entrepreneurship and business strategy.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship

This case is written to help students understand the concept of segmentation, targeting and positioning in the context of the biscuit industry. The primary learning objectives can be identified as follows: understand the different categorisation in the biscuit market; analyse the basis of consumer segmentation in the biscuit market; analyse the marketing mix strategy of a firm; and highlight the importance of positioning.

Rao, the Director (Marketing) of Mayora India Private Limited, was in dilemma as to how to position Coffee Joy biscuits in the Indian market. The Indian market was intensely competitive with major players like Britannia, Parle and ITC capturing a major share of the market. Should he consider the only the south Indian market based on geography?” Or “Should he target the modern aspirational youth of the country who frequent “Starbucks”?

This case is appropriate for the use in postgraduate course on Marketing particularly on “Segmenting-Targeting-Positioning” (STP) module. The science of STP lies in the collection and analysis of market knowledge and research to understand consumer’s mind, whereas its art lies in generating various implementable alternatives so that the brand can find a place in the hearts and minds of consumers.

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CSS8: Marketing.

After completion of the case study, students will be able to discuss the characteristics of sustainable enterprises driving the innovation; analyze the concept of waste to wealth, along with its associated benefits and challenges; provide an example of a sustainable start-up that operates conventionally and is attempting to increase production capacity through automation; and describe the strategies for scaling up the business.

Mr Manigandan Kumarappan’s goal was to provide the world with alternatives to plastic and other nonbiodegradable articles used in homes, offices, hotels and other places which compelled him to leave his corporate life behind and become an entrepreneur. His knowledge, expertise and creativity made him work toward providing a sustainable solution to the plastic-free world which made him create leafy straws for the world. His start-up Evalogia made 10,000 straws a day, mostly with manual production and machine-assisted in part of the processes. Evalogia got orders from all over the world after the ban on plastic from many countries. However, Evalogia was unable to meet the demand, as the manufacturing process mostly depended on manual production at present. Hence, the company planned to scale up its production capacity from 10,000 straws per day to 100,000 straws to meet the demand through automation or by increasing the production units to meet the growing demand from domestic and international markets. Kumarappan wondered if increasing the number of manufacturing facilities would make it harder to hire new staff, manage existing ones, train them and provide overall supervision; if these tasks were not completed well, the product’s quality and, subsequently, its demand, might suffer. The automation process required huge investment, time and a great deal of skepticism for its success. Kumarappan was stuck over whether to add more production units or automate the process to increase production.

This case study is suitable for graduate students.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

After completion of the case study, students will be able to understand the service offerings within the nascent electric vehicle (EV) sector and end-consumer needs of EV charging services, understand the reasoning behind Sunfuel Electrics (SFEs) prioritisation of destination charging for their first go-to-market (GTM) strategy and appreciate SFE’s use of community marketing and alliance partners to execute its various strategies. Connect game-theory with the proposed strategies.

SFE was an early start-up in EV charging space. The co-founders believed that any success would hinge on their ability to play a differentiated game and carve a distinct yet profitable niche in the EV charging arena. SFE deliberately focussed on “destination charging” and identified a segment that they were confident of making a difference: the discerning high-end consumer. Soon, SFE’s success caught the eye of its deep-pocketed competitors who also entered the same space. As a single service company, the co-founders set in motion a back-up plan and identified three new strategic thrust areas to maintain SFE’s competitive edge. The first involved entering the city charging segment, and the second was a pioneering concept branded “E-Trails” targeted at a community of EV owners who were motor enthusiasts. Thirdly, SFE conceptualised an EV-Roadhouse concept, promising a full-bouquet of select premium services at a pit-stops along the highway. The co-founders needed to test which and to what extent would these initiatives would translate into real gains and if returns were commensurate with investments and SFE’s ability to deliver a scalable consistent experience. Specifically, if these proposed asset-light avenues added the required heft to their GTM strategy.

This case study is suitable for post-graduate students in marketing, strategy, entrepreneurship and sustainability courses.

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CSS 8: Marketing.

The case study can be used for the course of entrepreneurship and is appropriate for postgraduate students. Discussion would be the most appropriate method for teaching this case study. Through Nutan’s words, students could gain a first-hand glimpse into the transformative journey of a rural woman entrepreneur.

In 2018, Nutan Jha embarked on a remarkable journey by establishing Nutan Creations, a micro-enterprise situated in Kharrak village, Jhanjharpur, Bihar (India). This case study aims to achieve multiple objectives: understanding the operational obstacles confronted by a rural woman entrepreneur, acknowledging the inseparable connection between business and social issues in rural contexts, moreover shedding light on the intersection of gender, entrepreneurship and cultural preservation through traditional Madhubani painting art form products. This distinctive combination brings a fresh perspective to the research, offering unique insights into the challenges and triumphs experienced by rural women entrepreneurs. The findings of this case study exemplify the intricate interplay between business and social concerns in rural areas, portraying an inspiring depiction of how determination, adaptability and robust support networks can conquer hurdles and foster transformative changes.

The case study has been designed for the students of business administration and entrepreneurship who have completed their elementary model on marketing comprehend. The students should need to understand the concept of entrepreneurship and the basics of digital marketing strategy to ensure effective learning.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

After reading and analyzing this case study, students will be able to describe the challenges of creating an electric vehicle (EV) start-up with the objective of zero-carbon emissions, identify opportunities and challenges for Satyadarshan Technologies & Services (STS) in enhancing the B2B customer base and sales volumes in the EV market, identify and assess government incentives to reinforce STS’s existing EV business and compose an understanding of and determine an ability to use various industrial marketing and promotion strategies for STS in the present environment.

STS was launched in 2020 to provide environmentally conscious urban commuting. Himanshu Purohit, the founder of STS, commenced an e-bicycle assembly unit and produced the first advanced electric drivetrain technology. The vision was to transform how people viewed mobility and make EVs the standard for a healthier globe. Nurturing a start-up with zero-carbon emissions was tedious due to limited infrastructure, high costs, low market acceptance and supply chain constraints. With the relentless pursuit of excellence, STS constantly pushed the boundaries and crossed the break-even ceiling in the year 2022. As a budding player in the souk, the company expected to gain a strong presence in the EV market with particular attention to the B2B customer segment. At the same time, the company aimed to ensure business sustainability by leveraging government incentives. The company needed to expand its corporate sales volume and craft a sustainable competitive advantage. Purohit recognized various challenges to the sustainability of STS that stood between the company's goals and their realization, particularly in achieving a sustainable move in the EV segment. Consequently, Purohit found himself at a critical juncture to pave the path toward the growth of the start-up. Eventually, analysis of the company's business challenges, industrial marketing and promotional strategies required strategic planning to appraise and evaluate the business model.

This case study is designed for new-age Master of Business Administration and executive management programs. It should be used in entrepreneurship and strategic management courses to discuss small innovative e-bike start-ups. This includes conducting a competitive analysis and self-assessing a firm's market-oriented strategies. Prima facie, undergraduate and postgraduate students are beneficiaries of this case. This case study may also be conducive to teaching how to initiate a sustainable and green vehicle business. This case study guides students entering the EV business, addressing industry-specific challenges and conducting market analysis.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to identify and think critically about common business problems and come up with possible solutions, explain how a business owner’s attributes can influence the business decisions they make, use available information to assess the viability and sustainability of a business model/strategy, determine the strengths and weaknesses of a particular marketing strategy and suggest ways to improve it and use the information provided to evaluate the risks and benefits of business growth strategies and determine their appropriateness for specified circumstances.

Mambokadzi is a small business with considerable potential in Zimbabwe’s beauty and personal care industry. The case study spans several years, highlighting Sharon Chingwaro’s journey as she navigates the difficulties of starting and growing a business with limited resources. The case study delves into various aspects of running a small business, such as production, marketing, distribution, human resources and intellectual property. It also discusses the value of resilience and endurance, as well as the need for resourcefulness when starting and growing a business under difficult circumstances. This case study is intended to teach entrepreneurship and marketing strategies to both under- and postgraduate students, with a particular emphasis on the difficulties of starting and growing a business in a limited-resource environment. It has applications in a variety of fields, including entrepreneurship, strategic management and marketing.

This case study is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.