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- September 2020 (Revised November 2020)
- Case
d.light
By: Michael Chu, Krishna G. Palepu and Dilyana Karadzhova Botha
Kenyan off-grid-solar pioneer d.light can power entire homes in rural Africa but must now decide how to fund the growth of its asset-heavy business model. Ned Tozun and Sam Goldman founded d.light in 2006 to transform lives through solar solutions enabling access to...
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- July 2019 (Revised January 2021)
- Case
Acelerex
By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock
In early 2019, Randell Johnson, Founder and Chief Executive of Acelerex, was reflecting on the company’s first year of rapid growth and the challenges of scaling the business that lay ahead. Acelerex was riding the waves of change taking place in electrical power grids...
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- May 2019
- Case
State of Charge: The Massachusetts Energy Storage Initiative
By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock
In early 2017, Judith Judson (Harvard Business School MBA, 2000), Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER), was reflecting on the results of the initiative she had led to identify the contribution advanced electricity storage could make...
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- January 2019 (Revised December 2019)
- Case
CrossBoundary Energy
By: John Macomber
Almost 500 million people are without electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. Governments and public utilities are challenged to bring generation and distribution to most of them. Considerable promise exists in “off-grid” or “mini-grid” technologies, notably using renewable...
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Keywords:
Energy Investing;
Economic Development;
Renewable Energy;
Business Growth and Maturation;
Developing Countries and Economies;
Project Finance;
Emerging Markets;
Industry Structures;
Infrastructure;
Segmentation;
Private Equity;
Decision Choices and Conditions;
Energy Industry;
Utilities Industry;
Africa;
Tanzania;
Ghana
- December 2018 (Revised January 2021)
- Supplement
Bulb 2018: Rapid Growth
By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock
This is the third case in a three-case series on Bulb Energy Ltd. It follows “Bulb 2015: Foundation” (719-440) and “Bulb 2017: Launch” (719-441). After a wild and volatile year, Bulb, a new entrant in the UK residential energy market, ended March 2018 with 329,127...
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Keywords:
Rapid Growth Stage;
Green Energy;
Start-up;
Customer Acquisition;
Customer Churn;
Customer Engagement;
Electricity;
Resources;
Growth Strategy;
B-corp;
Renewable Energy;
Business Startups;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Business Model;
Working Capital;
Customers;
Growth Management;
Finance;
Decision Making;
United Kingdom
- December 2018
- Background Note
Making UK Energy Smarter
By: John R. Wells and Benjamin Weinstock
This case describes the history of the United Kingdom's domestic energy industry and the country's efforts to create a more competitive, greener, and distributed power sector. On July 24, 2017, the United Kingdom government and the industry regulator, the Office of Gas...
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Keywords:
Energy Policy;
Regulation;
Energy Markets;
Subsidies;
Oligopolistic Competition;
Barriers To Entry;
Wholesale;
Electric Vehicle;
Batteries;
Energy Storage;
Competition Policy;
Energy;
Policy;
Renewable Energy;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Vertical Integration;
Competition;
Market Entry and Exit;
Disruption;
Energy Industry;
United Kingdom
- August 2017 (Revised August 2018)
- Case
Enel: The Future of Energy
By: Mark R. Kramer and Bhanuteja Nadella
Enel has transformed from the Italian state-owned energy monopoly into a global leader in renewable energy and shared value creation. Through its open innovation model, the company has catapulted to the cutting edge of electric mobility and distributed power...
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- August 2016
- Case
Building Smart Neighborhoods at Bouygues
By: Amy C. Edmondson, Bertrand Moingeon, Guo Bai and Jean-François Harvey
Can a consortium of 16 organizations, including multinational corporations, local government agencies, and startups, turn a rundown Paris suburb into a “smart” (ecologically viable, high-tech, livable) neighborhood? This case explores how Bouygues Immobilier led such a...
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Keywords:
Collaboration;
Teaming;
Cross-industry Collaboration;
Interorganizatonal Relationships;
Innovation;
Nascent Industries;
Smart Cities;
Governance;
Collaborative Innovation and Invention;
Innovation and Management;
Innovation Strategy;
Technological Innovation;
Information Technology Industry;
Construction Industry;
Paris;
France
- Article
Hurry or Wait: The Pros and Cons of Going Fast or Slow on Climate Change
By: Eleanor Denny and Jurgen Weiss
Climate change risk will likely force the de-carbonization of our electricity sector and thus involve massive investments in long-lived assets using many new and emerging technologies. Since technological progress (independent or dependent on deployment) will likely...
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- June 2015 (Revised August 2018)
- Case
American Electric Power: Facing the Challenges of Distributed Generation
By: Richard H.K. Vietor and Hilary White
American Electric Power, like most utilities in the USA, is currently exposed to distributed generation and the problem of net-metering. Solar installations in particular have been heavily subsidized, by the state and by regulation, which does not allow grid operators...
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Keywords:
Electricity;
Utilities;
Electric Power Generation;
Net Metering;
Distributed Generation;
Disruptive Innovation;
Energy Markets;
Solar Power;
Wind Power;
Solar;
Wind;
Subsidies;
Legislation;
Regulation;
Disruption;
Energy;
Energy Generation;
Renewable Energy;
Problems and Challenges;
Risk and Uncertainty;
Technology;
Business Strategy;
Corporate Strategy;
Energy Industry;
Green Technology Industry;
Utilities Industry;
United States
- August 2014
- Case
Four Products: Predicting Diffusion (2014)
By: John Gourville
An updated "Four Products" case. This 2014 version includes: raw lobster meat, electric-powered Formula One race cars, a 3D printer for cosmetics, and a "smart" tennis racket.
These four products form the basis to assess the drivers of new product adoption. In...
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- June 2010 (Revised February 2011)
- Case
The Fox Islands Wind Project (A)
By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, James Thomas Corcoran, Max Gazor, Dylan Hogarty and Alexander H. Somers, Jr.
The market for electricity on the Fox Islands of North Haven and Vinalhaven, Maine is unique and costly for residents. Historically, electricity prices on the islands had been three times the national average because of the high cost of importing electricity via an...
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- April 2010
- Case
Jones Electrical Distribution
By: Thomas R. Piper and Jeffrey DeVolder
Jones Electrical Distribution is faced with a need for increased bank financing due to its rapid sales growth. Students must determine the reasons for the rising bank borrowing, estimate the amount of borrowing needed and assess the attractiveness of the loan to the...
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- April 2010
- Teaching Note
Jones Electrical Distribution (Brief Case)
By: Thomas R. Piper and Jeffrey DeVolder
Teaching Note for 4179.
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- April 2010
- Supplement
Jones Electrical Distribution, Student Spreadsheet Supplement (Brief Case)
By: Thomas R. Piper and Jeffrey DeVolder
- April 2010
- Supplement
Jones Electrical Distribution, Faculty Spreadsheet (Brief Case)
By: Thomas R. Piper and Jeffrey DeVolder
- October 2003 (Revised January 2004)
- Exercise
Electric Maze Exercise, The
By: Amy C. Edmondson and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar
This team-based exercise uses an educational tool called "The Electric Maze," developed by Interel Corp., to teach insights about the social and psychological challenges facing employees who must engage in collaborative learning. The tool is a grid-patterned rug with...
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- October 2002 (Revised July 2009)
- Case
Dr. John's Products, Ltd.
Describes an entrepreneur's attempts to invent, manufacture, and distribute an inexpensive electric toothbrush.
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- February 2002
- Case
Strategy of the Firm Under Regulatory Review: The Case of Chilectra
By: Rafael M. Di Tella and Alexander Dyck
Discusses the largest electric distribution company in Chile and one of the five largest private Chilean companies. Introduces the exercise of operating control in order to improve the profitability of the investments, privatization, and international expansions.
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- January 1997 (Revised June 1997)
- Case
Southwire: Beyond 2000
By: F. Warren McFarlan and Melissa Dailey
Southwire, based in Carrollton, GA, was the leading producer of aluminum and copper rod, wire, and cable for the transmission and distribution of electricity. In one decade, CEO Roy Richards, Jr. grew annual sales from $500 million in 1985 to $1.9 billion in 1995, an...
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