The case traces the development of the early gramophone industry through the eyes of the American talent scout and producer Fred Gaisberg. It explores the emergence of the sound recording industry in the US since 1877, including the challenges of defining the application of this new technology, building a market and responding to critics. It then shows the difficulties of gramophone entrepreneurs expanding globally and, in particular, focuses on the .....more

Online reviews are transforming the way consumers choose products and services of all sorts. We turn to TripAdvisor to plan a vacation, Zocdoc to find a doctor, and Yelp to choose a new restaurant. Reviews can create value for buyers and sellers alike, but only if they attain a critical level of quantity and quality. The authors describe principles for setting the incentives, design choices, and rules that help review platforms thrive. To address .....more

For many employees, the key motivator is a sense of purpose--and yet more than half of those surveyed say they''re not even "somewhat" passionate about their jobs. If organizations want to inspire their workers, they must clearly communicate why they''re in business and what value they provide. When employees understand and embrace those things, their companies thrive: Survey results show that more than 90% of companies with .....more

The case discusses the strategy of Pantheon, a UK-based fund of funds investing in private equity. Client demands and preferences had changed in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis and Pantheon had to adapt its business model to accommodate requests for new asset classes and customized portfolios. The challenge was to keep an eye on the fee structure, as clients also put pressure on the costs. Pantheon had extended its offer into infrastructure, .....more

This case explores the life and career of rapper and music producer Swizz Beatz. Set in 2019, it covers the evolution of Swizz''s musical career and his new venture into the commercial art market.

Set in 2018, this case follows married couple and music industry titans Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys as they consider how best to use their platforms to achieve their goals. Since achieving professional success in the music industry early in their lives, Swizz and Keys had explored many different personal and professional pursuits. Swizz was particularly interested in the arts and had launched an initiative aimed at supporting emerging visual artists .....more

This note describes the most common financial ratios and how they provide insight into firm performance. The emphasis is on how ratios summarize operating behaviors and results in ways that facilitate interpretation and highlight decisions. There are three broad categories of ratios covered in the note: profitability, operating efficiency, and leverage (the use of debt financing). The note defines the ratios, explains how they provide insight, and .....more

In late 2017, the co-owners of Rocky Mountain Soap Company in Canmore, Alberta, faced an important challenge. Their company produced and retailed toxin-free, 100 per cent natural bath and body products, and they wanted the product packaging to reflect their company''s commitment to sustainability. To meet the challenge of identifying and implementing sustainable packaging solutions, the co-owners needed to address intensifying competition, .....more

In 2018, Changsheng Bio-technology Co., Ltd. (Changsheng), a leading biopharmaceutical company and one of the market leaders in vaccines, was found to have falsified its production and inspection data and to have sold substandard vaccines in the Chinese market. The unethical conduct triggered widespread public anger and immediate government intervention. What actions could Changsheng take to mitigate the effect of this scandal? Thompson S.H. Teo .....more

In 2012, Sina Weibo stood out from competing microblogging products and developed into the largest social media platform in China. However, in 2013, competition from WeChat, a lack of high-quality content, and the exposure of an excessive number of fake accounts led to difficulties for Sina Weibo. By addressing three aspects of user activity-content producers, content consumers, and the platform operator-Sina Weibo was able to get back on the right .....more