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• Case | HBS Case Collection | October 2019 (Revised June 2020)

  The Predictive Index

  Lynda M. Applegate and James Weber

  Mike Zani and Daniel Muzquiz needed to decide next steps to create a new category in the human resources consulting industry and scale their company.
  Zani and Muzquiz, serial entrepreneurs, acquired Predictive Index in 2014. Previously, as clients of the 65-year-old Predictive Index, they had used its behavioral assessment tool to help them hire staff and build teams and they strongly believed in its value. They also believed, however, that Predictive Index had the potential to be something more. After acquiring the company, they invested in technology and people to modernize the business, and Predictive Index earned recognition as a “best place to work.” In 2018, they developed a Talent Optimization platform, an offering that had the potential to transform the industry by helping companies align their business strategies with their human capital and leadership development strategies. In late 2019, as they prepared a broad rollout of Talent Optimization, and planned to scale their business by an order of magnitude, the pair wondered what hurdles they might face along the way and what other steps they should take to reach their goals.

  Keywords: Human Resources; Selection and Staffing; Talent and Talent Management; Recruitment; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Venture Capital; Change Management; Disruptive Innovation; Market Platforms; Growth and Development Strategy; Consulting Industry; Service Industry; United States;

  Citation:

  Applegate, Lynda M., and James Weber. "The Predictive Index." Harvard Business School Case 820-034, October 2019. (Revised June 2020.)  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | November 2019 (Revised May 2020)

  Collibra

  Lynda M. Applegate, Jeffrey F. Rayport and Julia Kelley

  Founded in 2008 at Vrije Universiteit Brussels, Collibra was a data intelligence company that found product-market fit in the years after the global financial crisis when many companies were under pressure from consumers and governments to improve their data management efforts. Over the years, Collibra expanded its product offering from a Semantic Data Integration tool to a Data Governance Platform with a range of data management and governance tools and also expanded geographically from Belgium to the U.S. and other countries. In 2019, with more than 350 clients, Collibra became a unicorn with a valuation of more than $1 billion. Now, co-founders Felix Van de Maele, Stijn Christiaens, and Pieter De Leenheer needed to decide how to move from “data governance” to “data intelligence.”

  Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Governance; Innovation and Invention; Technological Innovation; Markets; Technology; Information Technology; Software; Technology Adoption; Technology Platform; Semantic Web; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Expansion; Information Technology Industry; Technology Industry; Europe; Belgium; Brussels; North and Central America; United States; New York (city, NY); New York (state, US);

  Citation:

  Applegate, Lynda M., Jeffrey F. Rayport, and Julia Kelley. "Collibra." Harvard Business School Case 820-013, November 2019. (Revised May 2020.)  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | March 2020

  Cafe Kenya

  Lynda M. Applegate and James T. Kindley

  This case describes Café Kenya (CK), a Kenyan-based chain of casual quick-food restaurants. The chain was started in 2011 in Nairobi by Nekesa Kuria. Kuria started Café Kenya and grew it by reinvesting profits into company stores and through franchising. She also concentrated on getting the details right, and she helped this effort by hiring the best people possible. Further, she feels a responsibility to help other African women succeed as business owners. The company is very successful. By early 2019, CK had 28 stores, 21 of which are franchised. All the stores are in major cities in Kenya, including Nairobi, Mombasa, and Kisumu. Kuria is considering several options to grow CK, including organic growth, equity investment from an outside partner, and a buyout offer. Each involves tradeoffs that Kuria must decide among. The case can be used to discuss issues such as entrepreneurial ventures, managing a service business, human resource management, and options for growth. It is recommended for upper-level undergraduate students or MBA students in entrepreneurship courses.

  Keywords: restaurants; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Growth and Development Strategy; Kenya;

  Citation:

  Applegate, Lynda M., and James T. Kindley. "Cafe Kenya." Harvard Business School Brief Case 920-551, March 2020.  View Details

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