Kash Rangan is the Malcolm P. McNair Professor of Marketing at the Harvard Business School. Formerly the chairman of the Marketing Department (1998-2002), he is now the co-chairman of the school's Social Enterprise Initiative. He has taught in a wide variety of MBA courses, including the core First-Year Marketing course (was its head across multiple sections from 1993-1996), and the second-year electives, Business Marketing and Channels-to-Market. He has also taught marketing in the Advanced Management Program for senior managers. Currently Rangan teaches the elective course, Business at the Base of the Pyramid. In addition, he teaches in a number of focused executive education programs: Business-to-Business Marketing Strategy, Strategic Perspectives on Nonprofit Management, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
Professor Rangan's business marketing and channels research has appeared in management journals such as Journal of Marketing, Harvard Business Review, California Management Review, Sloan Management Review, Journal of Retailing, Management Science, Marketing Science and Organization Science. Rangan has authored or co-authored several books, which include: 1) Going to Market, which deals with distribution systems for industrial products, and 2) Business Marketing Strategy, which presents approaches for managing industrial products and markets over their life cycle. Rangan's latest book, Transforming Your Go-to-Market Strategy, presents a unique framework on how to evolve a firm's go-to-market strategy with the changing market needs. In the book Rangan develops the concept of Channel Stewardship and three disciplines of how to implement it in practice.
In addition to his interest in business marketing, Professor Rangan is actively involved in studying the role of marketing in nonprofit organizations, and specifically how it influences the adoption of social products and ideas. He has written a number of case studies and articles on the topic. He served as one of the founding co-chairs of the Social Enterprise Initiative at Harvard, whose faculty study and teach the challenges of nonprofit management. He founded the executive program, Strategic Perspectives on Nonprofit Management, which he continues to teach in. His current research is focused on understanding business models that address the needs and wants of 4.2 billion people living on less than $5/day. The aim of the research is to develop models of success that bring value to the base-of-the pyramid and yet are profitable and sustainable in the long run.
Rangan has a Bachelor of Technology from I.I.T. (Madras), 1971; an MBA from I.I.M. (Ahmedabad), 1973; and a Ph.D. in marketing from Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois), 1983. From 1973 to 1979, Rangan held several sales and marketing positions for a large multinational company in India. Rangan has engaged in a variety of executive education programs, consultancies, and advisory activities for numerous commercial and nonprofit enterprises.
Rangan has been on the faculty of the Harvard Business School since 1983.
Rangan, V. K., B. P. Shapiro, and R. T. Moriarty Jr. Business Marketing Strategy: Cases, Concepts, and Applications, Instructor's Manual. Burr Ridge, IL: Irwin, 1995.
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Pay-for-success contracts also known as social impact bonds, have been widely touted as a clever way to fill the funding gap plaguing social programs by attracting a tranche of the trillions of dollars in private return-seeking capital. This article takes an in-depth look at the evidence from the first seven contracts in the U.S., to conclude that although that scenario is not likely, the pay-for-success model will have a positive impact, just not in the way that many proponents think.
The article discusses corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. In the authors' view many of these programs consist of disparate, uncoordinated initiatives that fail to maximize their impact. They recommend a more coherent strategy that divides CSR efforts into three categories including those related to philanthropy, operational effectiveness, and shaping the firm's business model to better create shared value. Consideration is also given to developing metrics for assessing CSR performance.
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Rangan, Kasturi, Lisa Chase, and Sohel Karim. "The Truth about CSR."Harvard Business Review 93, nos. 1/2 (January–February 2015): 40–49.
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Organizations with social missions, such as nonprofits and social enterprises, are under growing pressure to demonstrate their impacts on pressing societal problems such as global poverty. This article draws on several cases to build a performance assessment framework premised on an organization's operational mission, scale, and scope. Not all organizations should measure their long-term impact, defined as lasting changes in the lives of people and their societies. Rather, some organizations would be better off measuring shorter-term outputs or individual outcomes. Funders such as foundations and impact investors are better positioned to measure systemic impacts.
The bottom of the economic pyramid is a risky place for business, but decent profits can be made there if companies link their financial success with their constituencies' well-being. To do that effectively, you must understand the nuances of people's daily lives, say Rangan and Chu of Harvard Business School and Petkoski of the World Bank. Start by dividing the base of the pyramid into three segments according to people's earnings and related personal needs: 1) Low income: 1.4 billion people, $3 to $5 a day; 2) Subsistence: 1.6 billion people, $1 to $3 a day; and 3) Extreme poverty: 1 billion people, less than $1 a day. Next, consider the roles of various groups in the value-creation relationship: consumers, coproducers, and clients. Specific strategies work best with people in certain roles and at particular income levels. Success requires appreciating the diversity at the base of the pyramid and the importance of scale in undertaking ventures there. Witness Manila Water's success in the Philippines and Hindustan Unilever's in South Asia. Failure to appreciate those elements can foil base-of-the-pyramid ventures, as Microsoft and Procter & Gamble each discovered.
Ebrahim, A., and V. K. Rangan. "Putting the Brakes on Impact: A Contingency Framework for Measuring Social Performance."Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings (2010). (Included in the 2010 Best Paper Proceedings of the Academy of Management, and also runner-up for the 2010 Carlo Masini Award for Innovative Scholarship from the Public and Nonprofit Division of the Academy of Management.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Brooke Barton. "Breaking New Ground: The Emerging Frontier of CSR in the Extractive Sector." Chap. 9 in Global Challenges in Responsible Business, edited by N. Craig Smith, C.B. Bhattacharya, David Vogel, and David I. Levine, 241–267. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, Dalip Sehgal, and Rohithari Rajan. "The Complete Business of Serving the Poor: Insights from Unilever's Project Shakti in India." Chap. 13 in Business Solutions for the Global Poor: Creating Social and Economic Value, edited by V. Kasturi Rangan, John A. Quelch, Gustavo Herrero, and Brooke Barton, 144–154. John Wiley & Sons, 2007.
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Rangan, V. K., and Arthur McCaffrey. "A 'Customer-Centric' View of Global Economic Development." Chap. 9 in Multinational Corporations and Global Poverty Reduction, edited by Subhash C. Jain and Sushil Vachani, 177–203. United Kingdom: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Strategy and Style: Len Roberts at Radio Shack." In What Managers Say, What Employees Hear, edited by Regina Fazio Maruca. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2006.
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Rangan, V. K., and Arthur McCaffrey. "Globalization and the Poor." In The Global Market: Developing a Strategy to Manage Across Borders, edited by John A. Quelch and Rohit Deshpandé. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2004.
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Rangan, V. K., and Patrick J Kaufmann. "Model of Franchiser Market Penetration in an Area of Dominant Influence." In Retail and Marketing Channels: Economic and Marketing Perspectives on Producer-Distributor Relationships, edited by Luca Pellegrini. London: Routledge, 1989.
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Rangan, V. K. "Relationship Management of Distributors: A Proposed Framework." In Marketing Channels: Relationships and Performance, edited by Luca Pellegrini and Srinivas K. Reddy. Lexington: Lexington Books, 1986.
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The authors argue for a strategic and pragmatic, rather than ideological, approach to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) that contrasts sharply with the prevailing Shared Value framework offered by Porter and Kramer (HBR; Jan.-Feb. 2011). We assert that, despite criticisms of and debate about the value of CSR initiatives to society and to corporate profitability, every company needs a CSR strategy that reflects both its desire to address social, humanitarian and environmental needs, and its core competencies and institutional capacity. Using a "three theatre" CSR framework, the paper demonstrates why the question for corporations is not whether to engage in CSR, but why they need to develop CSR strategies that both enhance CSR practice within each theatre and coordinate the independent efforts from across the three theatres. Our perspective is a marked departure from the Shared Value framework, in that we embrace the inherent value of corporate philanthropy (theatre 1) on one end, as well as transformational business models with potentially limited short-term financial returns at the other (theatre 3). Furthermore, the paper seeks a moratorium on the fruitless debate about CSR definition and societal value, instead providing pragmatic guidance for corporations to significantly improve the social and environmental impact of their CSR initiatives through a holistic and strategic process of continuous CSR auditing, editing and development.
Leaders of organizations in the social sector are under growing pressure to demonstrate their impacts on pressing societal problems such as global poverty. We review the debates around performance and impact, drawing on three literatures: strategic philanthropy, nonprofit management, and international development. We then develop a contingency framework for measuring results, suggesting that some organizations should measure long-term impacts, while others should focus on shorter-term outputs and outcomes. In closing, we discuss the implications of our analysis for future research on performance management.
The Future of Social Enterprise considers the confluence of forces that is shaping the field of social enterprise, changing the way that funders, practitioners, scholars, and organizations measure performance. We trace a growing pool of potential funding sources to solve social problems, much of it stemming from an intergenerational transfer of wealth and new wealth from financial and high-tech entrepreneurs. We examine how these organizations can best access the untapped resources by demonstrating mission performance and then propose three potential scenarios for how this sector might evolve:
Consolidation: In this scenario, funding will keep growing in a gradual, linear fashion and organizations will compete for resources by demonstrating performance. The sector will consolidate, with some efficient organizations gaining scale, some merging and then growing, and some failing to achieve either scale or efficiency and eventually shutting down.
Entrepreneurial: In a more optimistic future, existing and new enterprises will apply strategies to achieve and demonstrate performance, improving efficiency and effectiveness and attracting new funding sources. More organizations will enter a reformed, competitive field of social change with new entrepreneurial models, established traditional organizations, and innovative funding strategies fueling widespread success.
Expressive: Rather than focusing exclusively on performance, funders and organizations may view their investment as an expressive civic activity. As much value is placed on participating in a cause as on employing concrete measures of impact or efficiency. In this scenario, funding will flow as social entrepreneurs experiment with new models based on a range of individual priorities and relationships.
The case discusses the measurement of social and environmental impact at Ambuja Cements, one of India’s leading cement companies. Ambuja is a leader in CSR activities and is attempting to quantify its impact, both positive and negative, using the “True Value” framework developed by the global accounting firm KPMG. True Value is an innovation in this area and tries to measure the financial cost and benefits of social and environmental impact and provide a standardized comparison across different kinds of social and environmental activities and their impact. The case allows students to discuss the challenges in measuring social and environmental impact and the pros and cons of quantifying the same in financial terms. The case elicits discussion surrounding the following questions: How do we develop a framework to measure the financial cost and benefits of social and environmental externalities? What are the challenges of doing so? What do we need to do to improve our ability to measure social and environmental impact in financial terms? How will such measurement be useful? Who will it be useful to? The case concludes with the CEO of Ambuja deciding whether or not to publicly release the “True Value” of the company.
Using data from U.S. Census and OECD, the note defines poverty as those populations who fall below 50% of that country’s median per capita income. It then provides a brief statistical tour of six key challenges facing such populations: Income and Jobs, Healthcare, Education, Affordable Housing, Financial Inclusion, and Incarceration. The note then provides a brief overview of the social safety net programs in the U.S. that are meant to address the identified challenges. It then concludes with a brief statistical tour of the rest of the OECD countries with respect to similar deprivations.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Tricia Gregg. "The Scope of Business at the Base of the Pyramid: Poverty in the U.S. and Other OECD Countries." Harvard Business School Technical Note 518-037, January 2018. (Revised February 2018.)
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Using World Bank data, the note defines the Base of the Pyramid population as the 4.76 billion people living on less than $10/day. It briefly reviews the perspectives of key business articles that address this market, notably C.K Prahalad’s work on Bottom of the Pyramid, and Porter and Kramer’s article on Creating Shared Value. The note then provides a somewhat more extensive (yet brief) review of the literature from Development Economics literature, before turning to the perspective offered by the HBS, MBA, course on Business at the Base of the Pyramid (BBOP). The note concludes with a brief statistical tour of the key needs that characterize this market segment, namely: Nutrition, Healthcare, Education, Sanitation, Clean Water & Energy, Financial Inclusion, and Affordable Housing.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Tricia Gregg. "The Scope of Business at the Base of the Pyramid: Middle and Lower Income Countries." Harvard Business School Technical Note 518-032, January 2018.
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Unlike financial success, there is no clear consensus regarding how best to define and measure social impact. This HBS note written for students of the HBS, MBA, class – Business at the Base of the Pyramid, offers readers pragmatic perspectives on how the framework of the Logic Model (Theory-of-Change) may be used by businesses, nonprofits, and impact investors to assess the social value they create for their customers/beneficiaries and society. The note concludes with a brief tour of a few impact evaluation methodologies and their applications in areas such as hunger, healthcare, education, and microfinance.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Tricia Gregg. "Business at the Base of the Pyramid: Understanding Impact and Impact Evaluations." Harvard Business School Technical Note 518-057, January 2018.
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The case briefly describes the 112-year history of the organization and focuses particularly on the changes wrought by its new leader David Yarnold who was brought in by the board in 2010. Under Yarnold's leadership the organization went through two strategic plans (2012–2016 and 2016–2020) and brought about many changes. At the start of 2017, Yarnold declared his goal of making Audubon the most effective conservation network in America. What actions should Audubon take to get to that goal?
The note provides an overview of the size and structure of India’s philanthropic sector. It describes the evolution of the sector and its size in numbers and money. It also provides brief descriptions of selected NGOs/Nonprofits in India in different categories to give the reader a flavor for the nature of the work they do.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Shashank Shah. "An Overview of the NGO and Philanthropy Sectors in India." Harvard Business School Background Note 518-017, July 2017.
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Founded in 1999 by Matthew Spacie to give poor children an opportunity to play, Magic Bus had evolved to a leading social enterprise engaged in sports for development, holistic childhood development, and livelihood training for youth between the ages of 6 to 18. By 2017, there were 400,000 children in its various programs. The organization had been through three phases of growth. The case poses the following question: What should the fourth phase should look like?
Dasra, a pioneer in the Indian Strategic Philanthropy space founded by a husband and wife team, had grown and evolved with the fast changing philanthropy scene in India. By 2017 it had managed to raise nearly $100 million of new capital for NGOs and Nonprofits in India. At the same time, the rapid growth demanded internal changes that stretched the organization and raised questions regarding structures, systems and capabilities.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Tanya Bijlani. "Dasra: Growing Venture Philanthropy in India." Harvard Business School Case 518-016, July 2017. (Revised August 2017.)
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Founders Vineet and Anupama Nayar had rapidly scaled their foundation to reach 3 million primary school children (grades 1 to 3) in two states with math and English programs. Their goal was to reach 10 million children by 2025 and completely spend down the $100 million foundation corpus. A new opportunity presented itself in a third state with a potential to add another 4 million children. In grappling with this new opportunity they had to make certain strategic decisions on whether to go deeper (expand to grades 4 and 5) or go broader to more grade 1 to 3 children. They were wrestling with the question of which option would lead to more impact and leave their social innovation in a sustainable position after their exit.
Akshaya Patra, an Indian NGO, had set an ambitious goal of serving 5 million free meals daily to India's schoolchildren. Founded in 2000, Akshaya Patra had thus far opened 25 high-capacity kitchens in 10 different States to provide a midday meal to nearly 1.65 million school children every day. With 110 million children in 1 million schools eligible for a mandatory midday meal, there was room to grow. Shridhar Venkat, its CEO, had to devise a plan to get it there.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sarah Appleby. "Akshaya Patra: Impact at Scale." Harvard Business School Case 517-028, February 2017. (Revised September 2017.)
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In 2016, BASF's chief executive officer and chief technology officer reflected on the co-creation innovation program started almost 18 months ago as part of BASF's 150th anniversary celebration. Five hundred project ideas had been created, of which 100 had already moved to the company's conventional R&D funnel. Thirty-four had been short-listed for further consideration. At least 10, if not more of these projects, would receive "landmark" funding running at an average of 1 million Euro each. Beyond selecting the right projects, how could the CEO and CTO ensure that a complex organization such as BASF would encourage such fresh ideas to be developed and nurtured in the future? Was this experiment something that BASF should do again in the future?
A nonprofit in the healthcare arena explores strategies to achieve system-level impact. Founded in 1996 with a volunteer-staffed help desk at Boston Medical Center connecting low-income patients with basic resources like heating assistance, job training, and childcare programs, by 2013 the nonprofit had grown to 6 cities and 1,000 volunteers serving over 11,000 patients annually. At the end of a successful “proof plan” period, Health Leads Co-Founder and CEO Rebecca Onie and her team faced the question of how to make meeting patients’ social needs a standard part of health care in the U.S.: replicate Health Leads’ proven model or instigate a social care movement?
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sarah Appleby. "Health Leads: Reaching for Impact (Abridged)." Harvard Business School Case 517-024, September 2016.
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The B case documents the development of a strategy to achieve system-level impact in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape for a nonprofit focused on addressing patients' basic social needs through healthcare institutions. Founded in 1996 with a volunteer-staffed help desk at Boston Medical Center connecting low-income patients with basic resources like heating assistance, job training, and childcare programs, by 2013 the nonprofit had grown to 6 cities and 1,000 volunteers serving over 11,000 patients annually. At the end of a successful “proof plan” period, Health Leads Co-Founder and CEO Rebecca Onie and her team faced the question of how to make meeting patients’ social needs a standard part of health care in the U.S.: replicate Health Leads’ proven model or instigate a social care movement?
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sarah Appleby. "Health Leads: Reaching for Impact (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 517-023, September 2016.
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Explores strategies to achieve system-level impact for a nonprofit focused on addressing patients' basic social needs through healthcare institutions. Founded in 1996 with a volunteer-staffed help desk at Boston Medical Center connecting low-income patients with basic resources like heating assistance, job training, and childcare programs, by 2013 the nonprofit had grown to 6 cities and 1,000 volunteers serving over 11,000 patients annually. At the end of a successful “proof plan” period, Health Leads Co-Founder and CEO Rebecca Onie and her team faced the question of how to make meeting patients’ social needs a standard part of health care in the U.S.: replicate Health Leads’ proven model or instigate a social care movement?
A case on scaling social impact for nonprofits. Founded in 1995, KaBOOM! quickly became a nationally recognized nonprofit in building playgrounds with strong corporate partnerships and volunteer-organizing capabilities. Over the years, KaBOOM! developed new programs, including a new web platform to enable individuals and communities to do build-it-yourself playgrounds, which increased KaBOOM!’s total annual number of playgrounds built by as much as a factor of 10. The case explores how KaBOOM! evaluated its goals and determined a strategy to achieve the scale required to meet its social mission and vision of every child having a place to play.
A case on scaling social impact for nonprofits. Founded in 1995, KaBOOM! quickly became a nationally recognized nonprofit in building playgrounds with strong corporate partnerships and volunteer-organizing capabilities. Over the years, KaBOOM! developed new programs, including a new web platform to enable individuals and communities to do build-it-yourself playgrounds which increased KaBOOM!'s total annual number of playgrounds built by as much as a factor of 10. The case explores how KaBOOM! evaluated its goals and determined a strategy to achieve the scale required to meet its social mission and vision of every child having a place to play.
With $1.8 billion in 2015 revenues, Boys & Girls Club of America had evolved over its 155 year old history to occupy the lead position in the Youth Development space in the U.S. Its new CEO Jim Clark had initiated yet another change process in 2015 to ensure a significant jump in the quality of interactions that its nearly 2 million club members experience, and take it to revenues of $2.8 billion in 2025. All this was part of the Great Futures Plan developed by its system of 1,144 independent clubs under the umbrella of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the national organization. The case explores the challenges of how the new plan should be implemented.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Lisa C. Cox. "Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Driving Impact." Harvard Business School Case 516-078, June 2016. (Revised April 2018.)
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Describes Olam's development of a sustainable cotton supply chain in Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa. Key dilemma for its managers: feasibility of introducing tractor technology for improving yield.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Shashank Shah. "An Overview of Corporate Social Responsibility in India (B)." Harvard Business School Background Note 516-010, July 2015.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Shashank Shah. "An Overview of Corporate Social Responsibility in India (A)." Harvard Business School Background Note 516-009, July 2015.
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While the "Gilead: Hepatitis-C Access Strategy (A)" case (HBS No. 515-025) poses questions on what the company should do with respect to hard-hit countries like Egypt and India, the (B) case provides the answer. In both cases, the company chose to pursue a proactive strategy to enable access at affordable prices.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sarah Appleby. "Massachusetts Pay-for-Success Contracts: Reducing Juvenile and Young Adult Recidivism." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 515-064, December 2014.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sarah Appleby. "CFW Clinics in Kenya: To Profit or Not for Profit." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 515-058, November 2014. (Revised January 2016.)
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Gilead had come up with an innovative drug for Hepatitis C, which affected 180 million people worldwide. The drug was priced at $1,000 a pill for the US market. Gilead had to decide how to price and market the pill in developing countries that bore the brunt of the disease. The company had earned accolades for its work in HIV/AIDS, where its innovative medicines now accounted for 60% of all patients on Anti-Retroviral (ARV) medicines. Much of this was accomplished through generic licensing, which brought a $10,000/year treatment regimen down to $100! Should the company replicate that strategy for Hepatitis C? If so, how would its US Healthcare customers, who were paying $84,000 per patient, react? On the other hand, Gilead had to balance the interests of its shareholders, who paid $11 billion for an acquisition that led to the new Hepatitis C drug.
V. Kasturi Rangan, Michael W. Toffel, Vincent Dessain and Jerome Lenhardt
By 2014, IKEA Group was the largest home furnishing company, with EUR28.5 billion of sales, and planned to reach EUR50 billion by 2020, mainly from emerging markets. At the same time, IKEA Group had adopted in 2012 a new sustainability strategy that focused the company's efforts on its entire value chain from its raw materials sourcing to the lifestyle of its end consumers. The plan especially centered on wood, which represented 60% of IKEA Group's total procurement in volume and constituted a key lever for the company to increase its positive impact on sustainability. IKEA Group Management therefore had to decide how to manage its portfolio of wood sustainability initiatives, especially in the context of the company's aggressive growth plan.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Michael W. Toffel, Vincent Dessain, and Jerome Lenhardt. "Sustainability at IKEA Group." Harvard Business School Case 515-033, September 2014. (Revised November 2017.)
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V. Kasturi Rangan, David E. Bloom, Vincent Dessain and Emilie Billaud
In 2012, Sanofi Pasteur was racing to develop a vaccine against dengue, a mosquito-borne disease, and was evaluating this product in a Phase IIb trial conducted with school children in Thailand. But while the candidate vaccine met the high safety expectations and a good balanced immune answer, it had a proof of efficacy of only 30%, far below the 70% mark the company had targeted. Guillaume Leroy, vice president of the Dengue Company at Sanofi Pasteur, reflected on the Phase IIb trial's surprising outcome and the way forward. He had to decide whether to go ahead with the vaccine trials and production, and if so, needed to develop a strategic plan on how to price and deliver the vaccine for a rapid roll-out.
The case describes the nature of juvenile recidivism in Massachusetts and explores the potential structure of a privately funded, publicly guaranteed pay-for-success contract.
Bridges Ventures, a UK-based impact investor with double-digit returns on its investments, is reflecting on its social impact and pondering its future course.
V. Kasturi Rangan, Amy C. Edmondson, Daniela Beyersdorfer and Emer Moloney
Describes sustainability efforts at Siemens since arrival of Chief Sustainability Officer, Barbara Kux, in 2008. Asks students to evaluate success of those efforts and outline what the company should do going forward.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Amy C. Edmondson, Daniela Beyersdorfer, and Emer Moloney. "Sustainability at Siemens." Harvard Business School Case 514-026, August 2013. (Revised January 2016.)
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The case describes a five-year effort (2006-2011) of distribution rationalization and consolidation at Ford. The financial crisis in the second-half of 2008 forced GM and Chrysler into bankruptcy. Having completed the distribution overhaul work by 2011, its senior managers wondered how the transformed distribution channel would meet the needs of its new product strategy developed in response to the financial crisis.
In 2003, PNC Financial focused its corporate citizenship and philanthropic resources on a ten-year, $100 million investment in early childhood education called PNC Grow Up Great. The case tracks the origination of Grow Up Great, how it was developed and implemented within PNC, and some of the key challenges and successes of the program during its first 5 years of operation. Key elements of the case are the process by which PNC decided to focus on Grow Up Great as its signature program, and how the program was designed to provide extensive volunteering opportunities for employees. The case also explores how PNC leadership has engaged in extensive advocacy on the issue of early childhood education. The branding and marketing issues associated with Grow Up Great and how it fits in PNC's organizational structure are also highlighted in the case.
Marquis, Christopher, V. Kasturi Rangan, and Bobbi Thomason. "PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (TN) (A) and (B)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 410-120, March 2010. (Revised March 2012.)
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This note outlines the segments of a potential $500 billion social investment market; sectors such as housing, microfinance, health and education. The note sketches the roles of the various players and summarizes their investment perspectives.
The case asks students to formulate a strategy to respond to various competitive threats to its Pureit Water purifier, launched in 2008, targeted at millions of low-income Indian consumers who did not have access to safe drinking water. The case describes in detail the product development and launch process that required HUL, the $3.5 billion Indian subsidiary, to innovate on many different fronts. It details competitive actions since the launch to set the stage for what the company should do next.
Grameen Danone is a joint venture between the Grameen Group (a sister company of Grameen Bank) and Groupe Danone, a $2 billion (revenues) French food company. The company's goal was to provide nutritional yogurt (brand name Shoktidoi) for the nearly 50 million Bangladeshi children using an innovative social business model. The case describes the progress as of 2008 and poses questions regarding how the company might achieve sustainability.
The case describes in detail the workings of two mobile banking operators in Africa—WIZZIT in South Africa and M-PESA in Kenya. It explores the dimensions of strategy that make for success in the market for the unbanked. It raises questions regarding the portability of the model to other countries and settings.
Ten years after having launched a chain of non-profit health clinics, its founder is now debating the merits of scaling the operation by converting to a for-profit enterprise.
Jeff Immelt, the CEO of GE, introduced a new innovation strategy named "healthymagination" in 2009. With cost, quality, and access as its three pillars, healthymagination ensures a strong focus for new product introduction efforts all around GE. But will this focus enable GE to achieve and maintain market leadership across a healthcare market that is being buffeted by strong currents, including cost pressures, changes in chronic disease patterns, and rationalization of buyer behavior? Moreover, healthcare spending is also increasing in emerging economies, which could provide a strong growth engine for the future. Tom Gentile, the CEO of GE Healthcare Systems (GEHS), a key player in the Medical Imaging market, wonders how the innovation strategy might respond to these changes. GE has historically been a technology leader, selling the most advanced equipment to a variety of medical establishments. Will a complete shift to healthymagination allow GE to demonstrate strong organic growth through innovation, as Immelt had charged executives at GE?
Describes the mission, vision, and strategy of a team of entrepreneurs headed by a charismatic heart surgeon who founded a heart hospital in Bangalore, India. The purpose of the hospital was to offer health care for the masses. This tertiary care hospital performed over 4,000 surgeries a year (approximately half on pediatric patients), which is more than that performed by The Cleveland Clinic and the Mayo Clinic (ranked #1 and #2 in the United States) combined. The interesting aspect of its business formula was its ability to offer such complex surgeries as CABG (popularly known as bypass surgery) for about $2,000, which was substantially less than other similarly equipped hospitals in India. Its founder has already entered into other complementary activities, such as a statewide insurance scheme for rural farmers--Yeshaswini. The founder has ambitious plans for a comprehensive "Walmartization" of health care in India.
Founded in 1999, Root Capital had loaned $150 million to nearly 250 small and growing businesses, mainly in Latin America. In 2009, as the organization launched a five-year, $55 million capital campaign, it had to determine a strategic path going forward in keeping with its goal of achieving financial sustainability by 2013.
Bridge International was founded in 2007 as a for-profit social enterprise to address the educational needs of poor children in Africa. Ten schools were operational in Kenya by 2010. The plan was to franchise nearly 3,000 schools all over Africa. The case is meant to discuss the challenges of scaling.
Gilead Sciences, the U.S. leader in HIV/AIDS medicines, with global sales of $5.4 billion in 2009, had undertaken several innovative actions to make its anti-viral products available to over 100 low- and middle-income countries. Having reached nearly 680,000 patients by the middle of 2009, the company's senior managers contemplated how to reach 2 million patients by 2012.
Acumen Fund is a global venture capital firm with a dual purpose: it looks for a return on its investments, and it also seeks entrepreneurial solutions to global poverty. This case examines Acumen's new projects in Kenya. The organization's investment committee and its chief investment officer, Brian Trelstad, must decide whether or not to fund two for-profit ventures. The first provides clean and accessible shower and toilet facilities in urban areas, serving a critical need for low-income populations—its financial sustainability, however, is less clear. The second investment is a network of successful private health clinics that primarily serve middle-income populations but which have the potential to reach low-income markets. On what basis should Acumen decide whether or not to invest? What performance metrics should it use? As the investment committee nears a decision, political and social unrest breaks out in Kenya following a highly contested presidential election. Acumen Fund must now also consider the political risks of investing.
As Acumen Fund, a global venture philanthropy firm, moves forward with an investment portfolio exceeding $22 million, it runs into two critical measurement problems. First, how should it track the performance of each investment when its interest is not just the bottom line, but also social impact? What should its performance tracking system look like to enable ease of comparison and to identify problems before they become too significant to fix? The second challenge involves attracting investors. Acumen wants to build the field of "social investing" by creating a new asset class for investors who care about social impact. Doing so will require working with competitors in the field in order to establish benchmarks and standards of measurement. How can Acumen build industry-wide benchmarks when peer organizations are concerned about confidentiality of data? Without such comparisons, how will Acumen attract investors to the field?
Founded as a for-profit microfinance company, Equitas had acquired nearly a million clients in the short two years since it was founded. The founder, Vasu, and his management team wished to accelerate the already impressive spurt to three million clients in the next two years. The case describes the company's business model, which attempts to integrate microfinance with social development, and provides students with the opportunity to discuss the scaling options and challenges facing the founder.
Describes the conception, development, and implementation of Goldman Sachs' five-year, $100 million philanthropic initiative to provide practical business and management education to 10,000 women around the globe. The initiative recently celebrated its first anniversary, and over 1,200 women were either enrolled in, or graduated from, sponsored certificate programs. The case addressees some key strategic decisions facing the firm as they rollout the program over the coming years. These include how to organize the network of schools that deliver the educational services, how to determine the best outside partners to provide additional services for the women entrepreneurs, how to best assess the impact of the program, and finally the extent to which the initiative provides contributions to the long-term strategy of the firm.
In 2006, the country manager for Alpen Bank in Romania, Gregory Carle, considers whether to recommend the launch of a credit card business. The firm rejected the idea several years earlier because of poor economic conditions in Romania. However, Romania is experiencing a period of economic growth after joining the European Union and Carle believes it is time to reconsider the opportunity despite continued skepticism within the company. Carle faces several important decisions before he can present his plan to the head of International Consumer Businesses. He must decide whether to launch a credit card business in Romania, how to position the credit card, and how to acquire new customers most effectively. This case is appropriate for use in the product policy module of a general marketing course, in a new product course, or in a services management course. Students are required to complete a quantitative assignment as part of case analysis.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "Alpen Bank: Launching the Credit Card in Romania (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 104-563, May 2010.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "Alpen Bank: Launching the Credit Card in Romania, Spreadsheet Supplement for Instructors (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 104-560, May 2010.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "Alpen Bank: Launching the Credit Card in Romania, Student Spreadsheet Supplement (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 104-561, May 2010.
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A U.S. government agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), provides aid to developing countries, focusing on poverty reduction through economic growth. It measures results through an economic rate of return based on increases in farmer incomes anticipated over twenty years. As MCC and Ghana finalize a $547 million grant for agriculture and transportation infrastructure, they come up against an accountability and measurement problem: how to address an urgent request from Ghana to fund community services—such as schools and drinking water—for which the results will be more difficult to measure.
Khanna, Tarun, and V. Kasturi Rangan. "Narayana Hrudayalaya Heart Hospital: Cardiac Care for the Poor (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 510-107, March 2010.
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Marquis, Christopher, V. Kasturi Rangan, and Bobbi Thomason. "Goldman Sachs: The 10,000 Women Initiative (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 410-119, March 2010. (Revised March 2013.)
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Topics covered include: consumer marketing, market research, new product introduction, and quantitative analysis. TruEarth Healthy Foods, a maker of gourmet pastas, sauces, and meals, wants to build on its successful introduction of fresh whole grain pasta by introducing a similar product concept for pizza. In an increasingly competitive market, TruEarth is focused on beating its competition and wants to act quickly and decisively. The company conducts extensive market research, first using focus groups to test the concept and then following up with take-home trials. Acting as brand managers, students must complete a quantitative analysis of the available data to project the sales volume for pizza and then decide whether to bring the new product to market.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "TruEarth Healthy Foods: Market Research for a New Product Introduction (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 094-066, December 2009.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "TruEarth Healthy Foods: Market Research for a New Product Introduction, Student Spreadsheet (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 094-067, December 2009.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Sunru Yong. "TruEarth Healthy Foods: Market Research for a New Product Introduction, Instructor's Spreadsheet (Brief Case)." Harvard Business School Spreadsheet Supplement 094-068, December 2009.
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The case describes the effort of Merck, a global leader in pharmaceuticals, in making available its medicines to the poor. The challenge for the company (or for that matter, any pharmaceutical company) is how to integrate its business strategy with its corporate social responsibility, especially when operating in "lower income" countries.
Having bought Shaklee Corporation from Yamanouchi, Roger Barnett, its owner and CEO, wrestled with the question of how to grow the company and its reputation for environmental sustainability. In addition to preserving the "network marketing" nature of its sales channel (because it creates jobs and entrepreneurs), Barnett wished to take the business model to sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
Marquis, Christopher, and V. Kasturi Rangan. "Shaklee Corporation: Corporate Social Responsibility (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 509-061, April 2009. (Revised September 2009.)
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Aurolab is the in-house producer of IOLs (required in cataract surgery) for the Aravind Eye Care System, a group of charity hospitals with the largest volume of eye surgery in the world. Aurolab's manufacturing capability and capacity had long exceeded the requirements of Aravind. With its impending move to a new, world-class facility, fundamental questions of strategic direction and mission fulfillment gained renewed attention among the organization's senior leaders.
CARE USA, a large ($600 million) international nonprofit/NGO, had recently revamped its external branding and positioning in support of its international development work. The case lays out the challenges facing its new CEO, Helene Gayle, as she manages through the organization's transition.
The (B) case updates the readers on the outcome of the situation described in the (A) case. It provides data on the growth of microfinance in the region. It introduces the possibility of tighter regulation on the industry through the passage of a "microfinance" bill.
Starting as a modest 20-bed hospital, Aravind had grown into a 1,400-bed hospital complex by 1992. It had by then screened 3.65 million patients and performed 335,000 cataract surgeries, nearly 70% of them free of cost for the poorest of India's blind population. Aravind's founder, Dr. Venkataswamy, now 74 years old, had a goal to spread the Aravind model to every nook and corner of India, Asia, and Africa. The case sets the stage for developing such a plan of action.
Describes the dilemma facing Advanced Energy (AE), a $6 million nonprofit engaged in energy conservation in North Carolina. Most of the money for its programs comes from a Public Benefits Fund (PBF) enacted by the state legislature. With renewed effort by activists in 2006 to expand AE's role, there was a possibility of the PBF swelling to $50 to $80 million. Naturally, this put AE at conflict with electric utilities wanting to engage in efficiency programs as part of their overall business offering.
In April 2007, Bill Gates announced Microsoft Unlimited Potential. Its mission was to enable social and economic opportunity for the next five billion people. To deliver against this mission, Microsoft sought to focus its citizenship efforts and its product development efforts in developing markets. This case traces the development of Unlimited Potential on the citizenship side and the business operations side, raising the questions of whether Unlimited Potential is a robust strategy for the company and if so, how the company should organize and execute to achieve its mission.
Grassroots Business Initiative was set up to financially assist small enterprises engaged in creating social value. Three years later, Harold Rosen, its creator, wished to explore an alternative funding model to provide it with scale and sustainability.
Bimbo, headquartered in Mexico with 2008 sales of $7 billion, was one of the largest bakery companies in the world. Even as it had grown spectacularly in the last several decades, the company had earned a stellar reputation for its corporate social responsibility (CSR). As the company set its sights on international expansion, its third generation CFO, Daniel Servitje, wondered how to keep its growth and CSR objectives neatly aligned.
New York City is a pioneer in the emerging field of municipal marketing. The city's first chief marketing officer must develop a marketing organization with a self-funded business model that creates value for the city by leveraging the city's assets, including physical property and media opportunities. Although an independent corporation, the marketing organization must work with city government agencies to create value. Traces the appointment of the chief marketing officer and the objectives of marketing New York City. Summarizes the city's corporate partnerships (with Snapple and The History Channel, among others), media, and licensing activities to date. Challenges students to evaluate the marketing model and recommend strategies going forward, defining what activities create the most value for the city. Additionally, exposes students to the challenges of an entrepreneurial organization operating within the confines of a government structure. Includes color exhibits.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Anita Elberse, and Marie Bell. "Marketing New York City." Harvard Business School Case 506-022, April 2006. (Revised October 2008.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Madelene Bell. "Go Red for Women: Raising Heart Health Awareness (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 509-017, August 2008.
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Located in the highlands of Peru, the Tintaya copper mine has long been a source of intense conflict between local community members and mine operators. The mine, which was owned and managed first by the Peruvian state and later by BHP Billiton, stands on 2,300 hectares of land expropriated from local subsistence farmers. In 2000, to contest this loss of land, mining-related environmental degradation, and allegations of human rights abuses, a coalition of five indigenous communities forged an alliance with a group of domestic and international NGOs to build their case against the BHP Billiton and pursue it directly with the company's Australian headquarters. The outcome of these efforts was the inception of a unique corporate-community negotiation process known as the Tintaya Dialogue Table. In December 2004, after three years of negotiation, BHP Billiton and the five communities signed an agreement compensating families for lost land and livelihoods and establishing a local environmental monitoring team and community development fund. However, just as the company resolves one conflict, another group of local stakeholders emerges with new demands-ones that the company may not be able to meet. The conflict with this new group culminates in a violent takeover of the mine in May 2005, whereupon BHP Billiton staff are forced to shut down operations, abandon the mine site, and devise a new strategy for winning back local support.
Engaging local stakeholders and building strong relations has become a strategic imperative for multinational firms in the often politically charged mining, oil, and gas sectors. For BHP Billiton, the world's second largest mining company, its Tintaya copper mine in Peru has long been a source of intense conflict. The mine--which was owned and managed first by the Peruvian state, and later by BHP Billiton--stands on land expropriated from local subsistence farmers. In 2000, to contest this loss of land, mining-related environmental degradation, and allegations of human rights abuses, a coalition of five indigenous communities forged an alliance with a group of domestic and international NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) to build their case against BHP Billiton and pursue it directly with the company's Australian headquarters. The outcome of these efforts was the inception of a unique corporate-community negotiation process known as the Tintaya Dialogue Table. In December 2004, after three years of negotiation, BHP Billiton and the five communities signed an agreement compensating families for lost land and livelihoods, and establishing a local environmental monitoring team and community development fund. However, just as the company resolves one conflict, another group of local stakeholders emerges with new demands--demands that this time the company may not be able to meet. The conflict with this new group culminates in a violent takeover of the mine in May 2005, whereupon BHP Billiton staff are forced to shut down operations, abandon the mine site, and devise a new strategy for winning back local support.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Anita Elberse, and Marie Bell. "Marketing New York City." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 508-035, August 2007. (Revised April 2008.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "PSI: Social Marketing Clean Water (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 507-086, June 2007. (Revised February 2008.)
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Merrill Lynch, a full-service brokerage firm with $1.5 trillion in client assets, is under attack from both discount and electronic brokerage firms. It responds with Integrated Choice, a suite of products designed to capture clients from the do-it-yourself investor who doesn't want to use a broker to clients who want to rely completely on a broker. The strategy is high risk and requires a sea change from the company.
Senior management at PSI, arguably the world's largest and most successful social marketer with impressive achievements in the field of family planning, HIV/AIDS, and malaria prevention must determine what to do about their slow-to-take-off clean water initiative. PSI's point-of-use products offered effective protection against water-borne diseases, especially diarrhea, yet the organization found it hard to attract donor funds to sustain the initiative. Its managers must determine how to alter their strategy going forward.
Despite revenues in excess of $93 million in 1998, world-renowned Dana-Farber Cancer Institute constantly faces an operating shortfall and looks to its highly successful development office to help cover the deficit. The development office raises money annually (with a $42 million goal for 1999) through its two major fund-raising arms: the Development Fund and the Jimmy Fund. In addition, it conducts a major capital campaign about every five years. A new chief development officer, Susan Paresky, needs to establish the development strategy going forward. The case reviews the major fund-raising programs in the development office and presents additional growth options. Students examine the existing programs, assess the value of the new options, and devise a development strategy consistent with the mission and philosophy of the institute.
In 2003, the $654 million American Heart Association (AHA) approached Cone, Inc. (a brand and communications agency) to develop a corporate sponsorship strategy that would raise $75 million over three years. Within 12 months, the AHA launched the highly successful Go Red For Women campaign to help women understand their risk for heart disease. But Go Red became more than a fundraising vehicle. It energized the AHA and its 22 million volunteers, and potentially sparked a long-term movement focused on women and their prevention of heart disease. Traces the development of the relationship between Cone and the AHA and the development of the Go Red For Women campaign. Challenges students to assess the success of Go Red and its impact on the AHA and its goals. Concludes by summarizing three of the AHA's other health initiatives and questions the appropriate role for the AHA and cause marketing.
In 1997, the Philippines government privatized its water utility in the metropolitan Manila area. The East Zone concession was won by Manila Water Company and the West Zone concession by Maynilad Water Services. Over the next decade, Manila Water turned in an impressive and profitable performance, while Maynilad failed. Describes the management actions of Manila Water and poses the question of whether, and how much, they should bid for the vacated West Zone concession.
Population Services International (PSI) was a not-for-profit agency founded to disseminate family planning information and to market birth control products, primarily in less developed countries seeking to curb their population explosions. In 1976, PSI concluded an agreement with the government of Bangladesh to conduct a social marketing program, with the objective of using modern marketing techniques to sell subsidized contraceptives through commercial outlets. Seven years later, three PSI managers were meeting at PSI's Washington, D.C. headquarters to discuss 1984-86 marketing strategy for two products: Raja condoms and Maya birth control pills. Of particular concern was the fact that the marketing approach that had proven extremely successful for Raja was yielding poor sales results for Maya. The PSI managers needed to devise an action plan for improving Maya Sales.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Comergent Technologies Inc.: Enterprise E-Commerce (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 507-087, June 2007.
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With liberalization of India's economy and the opening up of markets to foreign multinationals such as Procter & Gamble, the Indian subsidiary of Unilever--Hindustan Lever Ltd. (HLL)--was under pressure to grow revenues and profits. HLL had a long and stellar record of market leadership in India (with market shares of nearly 60%) in categories such as soap, detergent, and shampoos. Documents HLL's innovative approach to penetrate rural markets (with populations less than 1,000), where two-thirds of India's population lives, with a scheme named "Shakti" (meaning empowerment). The central question is: How should the company scale Shakti and make it profitable?
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Unilever in India: Hindustan Lever's Project Shakti--Marketing FMCG to the Rural Consumer (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 507-022, September 2006. (Revised June 2007.)
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Coming out of the 2001 high-tech industry recession, this venture capital start-up has to come up with a marketing plan to break even and grow. Its innovative e-commerce software provides unique customer relationship management solutions, but it has to convince customers to adopt its solution. Includes color exhibits.
By June 2004, ACHAP, a three-way partnership of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Merck, and the Botswana government, had committed nearly $60 million of the $100 million toward various AIDS education, prevention, and treatment programs. It was time to evaluate the success of the program and make strategic shifts, if necessary, looking forward to the future. Includes color exhibits.
One of Boston's main cultural attractions, the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), has experienced a steady decline of its core audience over the last decade. The museum's executive director attempted to bridge the shortfall by staging new, innovative, special exhibitions, which have not been without their share of criticism. The museum's top management had to resolve the audience issue against the background of a major $500 million capital campaign to fund a new wing of the museum in 2010.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Museum of Fine Arts Boston (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 506-074, May 2006. (Revised September 2006.)
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With the collapse of the dot-com market and related shrinkage in the high-tech industry, Cisco took a dip in its sales and profits in 2001. Coming back from the recession, Cisco had to manage and evolve its go-to-market strategy and design in keeping with its new business strategy. Describes those changes and poses new channel management challenges in light of Cisco's entry into new markets and technologies.
ApproTEC markets a range of technologies to improve the income of subsistence farmers and other small-scale entrepreneurs in East Africa. Having achieved considerable success in its first eight years, the two founders/entrepreneurs are seeking ways to scale the impact of its operations across Eastern and Southern Africa. The question is, what should they do to accomplish this? Includes color exhibits.
Discusses the resolution of the canceled power project in Maharashtra. The contract between the American gas giant and Indian state government is renegotiated.
Chronicles the development of Freeport's nearly 30 years of mining operations in Indonesia. Building on a mining concession awarded by the country's government, headed by General Suharto, in 1973, Freeport steadily built its mining output to nearly 200,000 cubic feet/day of ore, rich in copper. In spite of the company's attempts to address environmental issues and the stakes of indigenous people, critics were unimpressed by the company's efforts to improve. With the toppling of the Suharto regime in 1998, the company has to survive under a new government.
Raises the issue of customer definition in economic development. Because of the multiple stakeholders and their varying interests, understanding where and how value is created is critical to understanding the customer.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "ApproTEC Kenya: Technologies to Fight Poverty and Create Wealth (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 504-010, March 2004.
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H-E-B is a $9 billion grocery chain located in Southwest Texas. This case focuses on H-E-B's private label strategy, a product category that accounts for 19% of H-E-B's sales and one that earns gross margins 50% higher than national brands. A leader in its markets, H-E-B is faced with increasing competition, especially from Wal-Mart, which has aggressively entered the Texas markets with a series of "supercenters." Although the case specifically focuses on H-E-B's Own Brands (private label), it more broadly raises important strategic questions regarding H-E-B's ability to compete effectively in this new market environment. Includes color exhibits.
Describes the evolution of Zucamor and its business strategy, particularly after the opening of the Argentine economy in 1992 and 1993. Traces the action that led to its association with U.S. paper giant Union Camp. Poses some of the critical challenges faced by the company's new management.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Zucamor S.A.: Global Competition in Argentina (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 502-049, April 2002. (Revised April 2003.)
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Founded in 1984, Dell Corp. has achieved phenomenal growth, and by 2000 had topped $25 billion in sales and over $2 billion in net income. In the 4th quarter of 2000, however, the PC industry's average 30-year growth rate crashed to a negative 10%. Dell must make difficult decisions on how to sustain its profitability in light of its broad product portfolio--PCs, workstations, and servers on storage products for a broad cross section of customers in the United States and worldwide. Should it stay the course or fundamentally change strategy?
Book-In-Time, developed at Xerox, can dramatically reduce the cost of printing "one" book. Combined with the possibilities of digital content storage and transmittal, the new technology has vast opportunities. Xerox needs a commercial plan. The case describes the state of the book publishing industry and the potential for a new technology.
Consumer Bank pondered the possibilities of launching a credit card in the Asia Pacific region. The bank's New York headquarters, and several of its country managers in the region, were not enthusiastic. But others were supportive because of the opportunity to expand the bank's customer base from the limited branch expansion allowed by local law. Students make a decision, and if a "go" decision is made, they work out a comprehensive launch plan.
Outlines the dynamic shifts in the external environment surrounding Planned Parenthood's operations in 1994. Health care reform was threatening some of its core customer base. The organization had to come up with a strategy and a process for adapting to the new environment.
Over the course of 12 months in 1997 and 1998, Egghead senior management decided to shut down its 180 brick-and-mortar retail stores and move to an electronic store. The case describes the evolution of that process, and the role of its CEO George Orban, and poses questions on the company's future viability.
The management of Neiman Marcus, a highly successful luxury goods retailer, is considering ways to grow the business and continue to return in excess of 15% on capital. Among the options on the table is a jewelry store concept called The Galleries.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Egghead to Egghead.com (A) and (B) TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 500-100, May 2000. (Revised August 2000.)
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Becton Dickinson, a phenomenally successful company with an 80% market share in the blood collection needles and syringes market faces a change in the customer buying environment (cost containment pressures at hospitals). This forces a reevaluation of the company's highly successful product policy and channel strategy. One of the company's largest customers threatens to leave them for refusing their "low-price" request. It is obvious to students that giving in to this customer's threat would compromise the company's "value-added" thrust, yet the potential business at stake makes it difficult to be inflexible.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Youngme E. Moon, and Marie Bell. "RadioShack." Harvard Business School Case 500-081, February 2000. (Revised April 2000.)
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This case traces why the $1 billion women's clothing retailer decided to attract younger customers, what went wrong, and the actions taken to recover. By the end of 1999, the company has reestablished itself and faces several growth opportunities and must decide on the best course of action.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Dana-Farber Cancer Institute: Development Strategy, The (TN)." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 500-017, August 1999.
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Documents the evolution of Best Buy, an electronics retailer, from its founding in 1966 to its very successful "Concept 2" strategy in 1996, boosting its sales ($7.2 billion) past industry #1 Circuit City. Its CEO Richard Schulze offers a new vision (Concept 3) to address the company's changed competitive and consumer environment. Reduced profitability in 1996, however, calls for creative adaptation of Concept 3.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "SOS-Kinderdorf International: Caring for Orphaned Children TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 599-131, June 1999.
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Dell started online commerce for its PCs in 1996, and by 1997 had achieved a sales rate of $3 million a day. The case describes the internal process that led to these dramatic results and poses the question of how the firm should leverage this activity to meet Michael Dell's goal of achieving 50% of the company's anticipated $20 billion in sales by the year 2000 via Internet channels.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Howard Reitz. "Sunbeam Television (C)." Harvard Business School Case 599-012, February 1999. (Revised March 1999.)
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Describes the marketing strategy of an entrepreneurial start-up engaged in electronic purchasing for large manufacturers. By creating an electronic bidding platform, the company has been able to cut down procurement costs by about 15%. The case question concerns how this company should now go to scale.
Describes in detail the fund development and distribution system of United Way Community Services. A key question is how to measure the outcome/impact of the work done by the agencies that receive United Way funding. A follow-on question is how to reinvent the organization to deliver the new management system.
V. Kasturi Rangan, Krishna G. Palepu, Ahu Bhasin, Mihir A. Desai and Sarayu Srinivasan
A large, lucrative power plant is negotiated for construction/operation by an American power company in India's evolving privatized power sector. The process of incorporating the project is captured in this case. The American company will own and operate the plant in India, which will sell power to India.
SOS-Kinderdorf, founded in 1949, has grown rapidly into one of the largest orphanages in the world with children's villages, kindergartens, schools, youth facilities, and other complementary programs in 130 countries. This case describes the evolution of the organization and poses three specific management challenges in three of its member countries: the United States, India, and Norway. An analysis of these issues serves as the backdrop for a strategy audit of the organization's mission and method of delivering it.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Krishna G. Palepu. "Enron Development Corporation: The Dabhol Power Project in Maharashtra, India (A,B,& C) TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 598-154, June 1998. (Revised July 1998.)
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Records the analyses and actions taken by Merck Pharmaceuticals in its acquisition of Medco, a channel intermediary (called "pharmacy benefit manager"). While many of its competitors seem to be faring poorly, Merck seems to have managed the Medco integration superbly.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Merck-Medco: Vertical Integration in the Pharmaceutical Industry TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 598-147, May 1998.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "RCI Master Distributor: Evolution of Supplier Relationships TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 598-149, May 1998.
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C-Car was the first automobile retailer in the United States to go public. Subsequently the owner, Mr. Gilliland, must decide how to invest the capital raised from the public ownership. This case describes in detail C-Car's highly profitable strategy of managing its stores. Concerns four potential acquisitions and their fit within C-Car's strategy.
In the mid-1990s, the U.S. automobile retailing industry is on the brink of profound change. This case traces the drivers of change, the history of the industry, and potential distribution systems of the future.
Outlines the process of strategy reinvention adopted by Planned Parenthood. It lays out the new strategic proposals, and the reactions of the various constituencies to those proposals.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Marie Bell, and Katherine K. Merseth. "Boston Renaissance Charter School." Harvard Business School Case 597-058, November 1996. (Revised September 1997.)
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Nestle Co.'s Refrigerated Foods Division has very successfully launched its Contadina brand pasta and sauces. The new product has achieved nearly $100 million in sales in three years. The division now considers an extension into the pizza line. This case provides a detailed look at the use of simulated test markets to forecast a new product's potential.
ROLM's product development manager, Bob Lundy, has to prepare a detailed plan for launching a new product, code named SIGMA. The new product, though outstanding in features, has the potential to drastically affect ROLM's fortunes because it is incompatible with its installed base. Unadvertised per Case Records.
A new administration/government takes power in a state in India and cancels a power project agreed upon/created by the previous state government and an American-based energy company. The project cancellation is based on allegations of irregularities, exorbitant costs, and political pressures.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai, India: In Service for Sight TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 595-111, April 1995. (Revised November 1996.)
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Sunbeam Television, owner of a television station in Miami (a Fox affiliate), buys Channel 7 (a CBS affiliate) in Boston. They bring to the Boston station the concepts and ideas of their Miami news product--that is, a crisp, content-based design rather than one centered around personalities. Industry changes force them out of the CBS affiliation in Boston. Having considered both FOX and NBC, Sunbeam finally settles on NBC. The implications and motivations of their decision are to be discussed.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and E. Scott Lathrop. "Sunbeam Television (A)." Harvard Business School Case 596-056, September 1995. (Revised October 1996.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, and E. Scott Lathrop. "Sunbeam Television (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 596-057, September 1995. (Revised October 1996.)
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Traces the evolution of the personal computer industry over the last 20 years and uses this as a backdrop to look at how Dell Computer Corp. grew from a small start-up to a multi-billion-dollar company in a decade. Dell is now faced with a set of decisions on the product markets it needs to serve in order to sustain its growth profitably into the future.
Compares four different approaches to case teaching: lecturing, theorizing, illustrating, and choreographing a case. Argues the advantages of the "choreography" method from the point of view of students' learning. Concludes with a description of that method and some tips on how to use it.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Advertising Council Earth Share Campaign, The: Strategy, Execution, and Final Campaign TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 596-104, February 1996.
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One third of the 24 National Hockey League (NHL) teams are unprofitable. Another third are barely profitable. This case provides the background and market research data to help the senior managers of the NHL make decisions pertaining to how they would like to grow the fan base. The two choices under consideration are network advertising and grassroots marketing.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Nestle Refrigerated Foods (A): Contadina Pasta & Pizza TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 596-009, July 1995. (Revised July 1995.)
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Traces the evolution of RCI as a master distributor from the time it was founded in 1946 until 1994. The second-generation owner of the distribution company faces several challenges unique to the 1990s environment that his father did not face. As Danny Schwartz attempts to grapple with those issues, he has to answer the long-term strategic question of the viability of his distribution business.
In the several years preceding 1992, there had been a dramatic rise in the public's concern for environmental issues. Yet the Roper Organization reported that fewer than one in ten Americans made personal efforts to help solve environmental problems on a regular basis. The Environmental Federation approached the Advertising Council in New York to develop an advertising campaign to motivate individuals and businesses to modify their actions to restore and protect the environment. The case details three phases of campaign development: research, strategy, and execution.
Millipore, a $750 million (sales) company with three divisions, had been growing at a rate of 20% in the 1970s, but this growth rate had slowed considerably in the 1980s. CEO John Gilmartin was looking for ways to reenergize the organization and redirect its strategy to achieve a 15% growth rate for the coming decade.
Addresses the common mistakes made in new product development and launch. Many times customers' and suppliers' perceptions of the degree of product/market innovation do not match. One of them may view the innovations as a "breakthrough," but the other may view it only as an incremental improvement of an existing solution. Such a mismatch will inevitably lead to faculty commercialization. But even if the match is perfect, this note argues that breakthroughs and incremental new products require quite different new product development processes to enable commercial success.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Becton Dickinson and Company - Vacutainer Systems Division (Condensed) TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 595-084, January 1995.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "GenRad, 1990 (A): At a Crossroads in Electronic Test TN." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 595-067, January 1995.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Ingersoll-Rand (A), (B), and (C), Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 589-009, July 1988. (Revised January 1995.)
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Lotus Development Corp., the number one microsoftware firm has traditionally sold to its customers through a distributor-retail dealer network. In early 1986, the company is considering the option of selling direct to large corporate customers. Students are expected to analyze the pros and cons of such a change in making their decisions.
Describes in detail the research mounted by five individuals with a $20,000 budget to combat drug abuse among Boston's school-going population. Using the focus group methodology they discover that most of the current anti-drug advertising is useless. They create their own storyboards but are not sure if they are truly better.
Discusses the key distinguishing aspects of industrial as compared to consumer marketing. These differences are highlighted for organizational as well as marketing mix aspects.
Millipore, the worldwide leader in separations technology, was in the process of launching two key new products: one a liquid chromatography/mass spectrometer and the other a virus separation membrane. The case documents the product development and commercialization activities undertaken by the company.
All markets follow a cycle of growth and maturity, then commoditization and decline. This note argues that while commoditization of an industry may seem inevitable, the better managed firms find a way to make money in the commodity cycle. These firms know how and when to differentiate their products through innovation, service, and customer partnerships; and how and when to offer a "no-frills" product, and seek cost leadership. Four such strategic options are detailed and discussed. A rewritten version of an earlier note.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and George T. Bowman. "Beating the Commodity Magnet." Harvard Business School Background Note 594-122, June 1994. (Revised September 1994.)
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MathSoft's VP of sales has doubled the size of the company's direct field sales force to support the launch of a new, high-end workstation software product priced at almost $9,000. However, sales of the new product are far below plan. At the same time, the VP of marketing is calling for increased magazine advertising to support sales of the company's $349 personal computer software product, which has been marketed through a combination of distributors, retailers, telephone sales, and direct mail. The president of this entrepreneurial company must determine the appropriate channel structure and communications programs for MathSoft's current product line and future growth. Illustrates the close linkages and trade-offs between industrial marketing channels and communications methods and traces the evolution of one company's hybrid marketing channels. Also introduces students to the use of advertising and direct marketing in selling complex, industrial products. For students who have had a quantitative modeling course, the case includes the output of a market response model developed from MathSoft's advertising and sales data.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Bruce Isaacson. "Industrial Marketing." Harvard Business School Background Note 594-069, November 1993. (Revised July 1994.)
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Describes the president's decision regarding MathSoft's marketing channels and communications methods, and the company's sales results during the next five quarters. The (A) case market response model is also updated.
Identifies six key linkages that distinguish business-to-business marketing; three with respect to the external environment (i.e., derived demand, complex buying process, and concentrated customer base) and three with respect to the internal organization (emphasis on technology, high level of customization, and order fulfillment mechanism), which distinguish business-to-business marketing. These linkages give rise to unique challenges in analysis and execution of marketing decisions. After these challenges are discussed the organization is explained. The three core sections, following this introductory section, reflect the product life cycle theme: Managing New Products, Managing Mature Products, and Managing Product Market Diversity.
Presents a framework and a method for addressing the new product channel choice decision. Offers a six-step method that involves: 1) disaggregating and prioritizing a distribution channel by customers' channel function requirements; 2) obtaining and combining customers' (and key informants) evaluations of the channel functions; 3) benchmarking existing channels (own as well as competitors'); 4) identifying and constructing effective channel alternatives; 5) quantifying the short-term and long-term benefits and costs of each alternative; and 6) selecting the appropriate channel by trading off the opportunities versus constraints posed by existing channel networks (if applicable). The method requires extensive management participation to facilitate its implementation. Provides an illustrative application to demonstrate its managerial usefulness.
Proposes models of organization that address the various product-market environments posed by the product life cycle. Frames these changes along the two dimensions of uncertainty and diversity. Offers three sets of organizational characteristics to reflect the three stages of market development: entrepreneurship and innovation for stage 1, efficiency and dedication for stage 2, and expansion and coordination for stage 3. Contrary to current wisdom, argues that form (or structure) is as important as process. Concludes with illustrative case examples.
In mature industrial markets, segmenting customers by size, industry, or product benefits alone rarely is sufficient. Customer behavior regarding trade-offs between price and service also becomes an important criterion. This note offers a framework to enable such buying-behavior-oriented microsegmentation of industrial customers. It uses the framework to segment the national accounts of a large industrial company and show how the results of the segmentation study may be used to redirect the firm's resources and customer segments.
Traditionally, distribution channels have been viewed as vertical marketing systems where responsibility was transferred from one layer to the next, like passing a baton in a relay race. Distribution channels in the future are likely to look more like horizontal alliances of suppliers and intermediaries, all with the aim of efficiently and effectively addressing customers' real needs. These transitions, driven by an underlying change in the economics of production and distribution, are leading to distinct trends in the distribution industry. This note focuses on three primary trends: hybrid channels, multiple channels, and shorter channels. After exploring the challenges managers face as they reorient their distribution, highlights the effects of such changes on supplier-intermediary relationships.
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Diana Chapman Walsh, Barbara Moeykens, and Rima E. Rudd. "Partnership for a Drug-Free America (A)." Harvard Business School Case 594-028, September 1993. (Revised December 1993.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi, Diana Chapman Walsh, Barbara Moeykens, and Rima E. Rudd. "Partnership for a Drug-Free America (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 594-029, September 1993. (Revised November 1993.)
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Describes the progress of a new product launch (HCS-100, a hospital communication system). Ring Medical has sold only five systems in six months against an annual target of 30. There is a lack of agreement internally on how the new product effort should be organized. In addition, there are differences of opinion on which distribution channels are most appropriate. These issues must be resolved before the board meeting scheduled for the following day.
Joan Macey, Rohm and Haas' market manager for Metalworking Fluid Biocides, found that sales of a new biocide, Kathon MWX, was utterly disappointing. This was all the more puzzling since sales of her other product--Kathon 886 MW, a liquid biocide used only in large-capacity tanks--was well on target and held a steady 30% market share. In May 1984, about five months after the new product was launched, Joan Macey was reviewing her entire marketing strategy with a view to bringing Kathon MWX sales closer to target. Of particular concern to her were the distribution and communication strategies used for the new product.
Atlas Copco, a Swedish company, holds the highest market share for air compressors worldwide. However, its attempts to enter U.S. markets have been unsuccessful. The case describes a series of strategic distribution maneuvers implemented by the company which enable it to improve market share from about 1% to 10% in ten years. The objective is to gain an understanding of what is involved in building distribution strength.
Describes the rapid growth of General Electric Plastics for over the last decade to a $5 billion (sales) company. The accompanying organizational transitions are described. The task is to design a marketing organization for the coming decade given the anticipated market changes.
Ad Council wished to run an educational campaign aimed at preventing the spread of AIDS. They were challenged to find acceptable ways to address this very sensitive subject matter--ways that the media and the public would approve. One of the big challenges was to make the word "condom" acceptable to the TV networks as condom use can prevent the spread of the HIV virus. The case gives a brief explanation of the disease and the reasons why Ad Council felt this campaign was necessary. Also outlines the target groups selected and basic strategy. The primary question is "How will this campaign get media approval?"
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Smoke Wars: The Case for and Against the Cigarette Industry, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-092, February 1991. (Revised December 1992.)
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Describes the arguments for and against the tobacco industry. With the per capita demand for cigarettes steadily declining by 2% to 3% every year, the tobacco companies have been using various approaches to stem the tide. Many such moves, however, have come under attack from public policy activists, whose proactive moves themselves have come under attack from cigarette companies.
The answer to the (A) case. Explains Ad Council's plan. Outlines alliance with American Advertising Federation to enlist support of local Ad clubs, media presentation, and implementation strategy.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "New York Against AIDS (A) & (B) and Ad Council's AIDS Campaign (A) & (B), Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-095, February 1991. (Revised April 1992.)
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Describes the background leading to the development of an advertising campaign to help prevention of AIDS in New York City. The three television networks, however, for various reasons reject the campaign, to the dismay of Saatchi & Saatchi executives.
Describes the results of the advertising pre-test described in the (A) case. The group must now decide how to implement its findings for maximum impact.
Norton, a once famous motorcycle manufacturer, soundly beaten by Japanese competition, turns its attention to developing rotary engines. The company is acquired by Norton Group PLC, which is headed by a dashing entrepreneur. The new management must decide what direction to give the company and what projects to concentrate on, especially since the financial resources at the company's command are limited.
Outlines the decisions taken by the company's management team in response to the challenges posed in Norton Group PLC (A). For each such decision, further data is provided for students to ponder the effectiveness of the action steps undertaken.
James Clabough, marketing vice president at Ingersoll-Rand, has to decide on the distribution policy for a new product. The decision has marketing as well as organizational ramifications.
Peter Baldwin takes over Clabough's job and is charged with the responsibility to improve sales force morale, control expenses, and improve market share.
Examines those social marketing situations that pose challenges for adoption of conventional marketing principles. In addition to discussing how they differ the note explores underlying reasons and suggests alternate ways of conceptualizing such problems.
During the period of 1987 to 1990, while Thailand had one of the fastest growing economies in the world (average growth rate of 12%), the income disparity between its rural and urban population (especially Bangkok City) was growing increasingly worse. Mechai Viravaidya, founder of Thailand's most successful family planning program, came out with an interesting idea to address this disparity. Named TBIRD, the idea involved convincing businesses to each adopt a village to transfer management skills to the village population. The case describes the implementation of the concept and raises several challenges for students to address.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Industrial Marketing, Instructor's Course Overview." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-102, March 1991. (Revised March 1991.)
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Population Services International, a not-for-profit agency founded to promote family planning information and to market birth control products, had an agreement with the government of Bangladesh to conduct a social marketing program using modern marketing techniques to sell subsidized contraceptives through commercial outlets. This videotape contains a documentary introducing the Bangladesh Social Marketing Project, some family planning commercials, and a film serial.
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Norton Group PLC: To Be or Not to Be in the Motorcycle Business (A) and (B), Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-093, February 1991.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "General Electric Plastics: Organizing the Marketing Function, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-094, February 1991.
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Hewlett-Packard (A) and (B): Organizing New Product Sales Channels, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 591-078, January 1991. (Revised February 1991.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Lotus Development Corp. Channel Choice: Direct vs. Distribution, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 588-007, July 1987. (Revised November 1989.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Atlas Copco (A): Gaining and Building Distribution Channels, (B) and (C): The Conflict Episode, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 589-076, December 1988. (Revised October 1989.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Rohm and Haas (A): New Product Marketing Strategy, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 587-129, February 1987. (Revised October 1989.)
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Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Population Services International: The Social Marketing Project in Bangladesh, Teaching Note." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 587-058, August 1986. (Revised January 1989.)
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