Consumer products companies were beset by changes on all sides during the 2010s. Customers were increasingly turning to ecommerce platforms rather than shopping in-store. Meanwhile, nimble, digitally-savvy competitors were gaining market share by capitalizing on the troves of newly available data on consumer preferences. Alibaba was the largest ecommerce platform company globally and operated in China, which was seen by many as an image of the future .....more

The digital revolution has allowed companies to amass considerable amounts of data on their customers. Using this information to generate actionable insights is fast becoming a critical skill that firms must master if they wish to effectively compete and win in today''s data-driven marketplace. This note explains the value of examining customer metrics, such as retention rate, revenues, and social influence (k-factor), on an ongoing basis .....more

Examples of successful middle-market private equity investments in emerging markets remain very limited. Among the primary constraints are lack of availability of reasonably priced debt capital, limited exit options for private equity capital, and absence of stable and diversified sources of capital for private equity firms. This case follows the founders of EFM Capital, a private equity firm operating in the Mexican middle market, as they navigate .....more

The case follows the design and creation of a software innovation lab at Volkswagen. Particular issues explored include the role and structure of internal innovation groups, establishing culture and defining business models for innovation, and developing strategy for innovation in an established enterprise environment.

This note provides general information about climate change and its implications for business. Included is an overview of climate change science and a number of its impacts, including rising sea levels, changing weather patterns and extreme weather, pressure on water and food, political and security risks, human health risks, and impact on wildlife and ecosystems. Next, responses to climate change are outlined, including improvements in energy efficiency, .....more

Ads tell us about attractive new offerings we might want to try. But it could be they also make us feel discontent with what we currently have--and diminish our sense of well-being in the process. When researchers looked at survey data on the life satisfaction of nearly a million people in 27 European countries and compared it with the annual ad spending in those nations, they found an inverse relationship between the two. When ad spending went up, .....more

Anurag Bhatt (AB), Managing Director (MD) of Coats Indonesia, was on a flight from Bangalore to Singapore on his way to Jakarta after a vacation. On the flight, he was reflecting on an issue that he had encountered just before the vacation but not yet addressed. It would definitely be one of the first issues he would have to handle on his return. An effort to fill a senior position, Head of Procurement, currently occupied by an expatriate, had not .....more

This case is part of the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) curriculum. To see other material in the GVV curriculum, please visit http://store.darden.virginia.edu/giving-voice-to-values. In 2009, Ricardo Martinez, management assistant at Premium Capital Investment Advisors (PCIA), was asked to fabricate some of the information to be included in the monthly account balance statements addressed to five shareholders in Premium Capital Funds (Premium), a piece .....more

Supplement to case UV7926 This case is part of the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) curriculum. To see other material in the GVV curriculum, please visit http://store.darden.virginia.edu/giving-voice-to-values. This B case contains a video and a transcript of an interview the case authors conducted with Ricardo Martinez on July 15, 2019, concerning his reflections on the ethical conflict described in the case and what he actually did about it.

In the year 2000, only 2% of women in India used menstrual hygiene products. Almost a quarter-billion relied on cloth rags and many rural women were banished to a hut during their monthly cycle. In these unsanitary conditions, 62.4% had experienced at least one reproductive tract infection, with the result that teenage hysterectomies were not uncommon. The lack of menstrual products was linked to a high drop-out rate from school, forced teenage marriage, .....more