This case is the follow up to Value Selling at SKF (A) and updates the students on important decisions and events. The President of the Service division has decided not to participate in Steelcorp’s reverse auction. But the company’s distributor has managed to arrange a meeting between Steelcorp and an SKF sales executive. This could be a last chance for SKF to win Steelcorp’s tough procurement manager over to its total cost pricing. But there is also a significant chance that value selling may backfire. The student is to devise a negotiation strategy for the upcoming meeting. At least $4 million rides on the success or failure of the negotiation. The video supplement informs the student what actually happened in the meeting and how the sales executive succeeded in closing a deal and having the reverse auction cancelled.
2014 THE CASE CENTRE AWARD WINNER (Overall Winner)
Value selling at SKF Service (A): Tough buyer confronts strategy
Summary
Faced with growing competition and commoditization of its core aftermarket business for industrial bearings, SKF develops a sales tool to document,...
2014 THE CASE CENTRE AWARD WINNER (Overall Winner)
Best-selling
Case Study
Reference
IMD-5-0751
Copyright
©2009
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Value selling at SKF Service (B): Facing a tough buyer
Summary
This case is the follow up to Value Selling at SKF (A) and updates the students on important decisions and events. The President of the Service div...
2014 THE CASE CENTRE AWARD WINNER (Overall Winner)
Reference
IMD-5-0752
Copyright
©2009
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Value selling at SKF Service (C): Meeting John Elliot
Summary
The case is the final instalment in the SKF series describing the meeting between Steelcorp and SKF representatives and the ensuing price negotiati...
2014 THE CASE CENTRE AWARD WINNER (Overall Winner)
Reference
IMD-5-0756
Copyright
©2010
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Why Chinese companies are betting big on the Euro 24 tournament
Leading Chinese companies are preparing to take advantage of exposure and opportunities as top sponsors and suppliers to the UEFA EURO 2024 Men’s S...
By
Mark J. Greeven and
Howard H. Yu
5 June 2024
A marketing playbook for sustainable products
Marketing campaigns for sustainable offerings often fail, leaving businesses with products that do not sell. How can companies reach customers more...
By
Goutam Challagalla and
Frédéric Dalsace
7 May 2024
How AI gives Taobao's one billion customers the personal touch [Video]
Chris Tung is President of Strategic Development at Chinese e-commerce multinational Alibaba Group. He tells Amit Joshi how the company is integrat...
By
Amit M. Joshi
16 April 2024
Metalshub: A steely approach to launching a B2B metal trading platform
Summary
Few Business to Business (B2B) marketplaces have succeeded. Metalshub has successfully combined a software platform as a service, with a marketplace matching supply and demand for raw materials used in the Metals and Mining industries. Through innovative pricing and business models, the company has managed to scale its operations in a short timeframe.
Reference
IMD-7-2457
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Metalshub
Industry
Materials, Metals and Mining
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Contabilizei: Freeing entrepreneurs from Brazil’s tax complexity
Summary
The case focuses on Contabilizei, a Brazilian startup providing online accounting services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The case study delves into the challenges faced by the company’s founder and CEO, Vitor Torres, as he navigated Brazil’s complex social and economic landscape. Issues such as Brazil’s byzantine tax system, disparate educational quality and accessibility, and the high cost of doing business in the country are explored. Despite these barriers, Contabilizei demonstrated impressive growth, transforming digital innovation into standardized services. However, the rise of competitors and persistent profitability concerns prompt Torres to thoroughly explore future strategies to maintain market leadership and improve financial performance. The case provides an in-depth analysis of Brazil’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, examining its business, educational, legal and infrastructural realities and their implications for startups as well as the difficult step for startups to become established companies.
Reference
IMD-7-2546
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Contabilizei
Industry
Finance and Insurance, Financial Services
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Why Chinese companies are betting big on the Euro 24 tournament
Summary
Leading Chinese companies are preparing to take advantage of exposure and opportunities as top sponsors and suppliers to the UEFA EURO 2024 Men’s S...
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
A marketing playbook for sustainable products
Summary
Marketing campaigns for sustainable offerings often fail, leaving businesses with products that do not sell. How can companies reach customers more...
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Nespresso: Strategy reset for growth: The youth market (Abridged)
Summary
Nespresso, the global leading brand in portioned coffee, is facing an existential threat. The company’s current market base, which consists primari...
Reference
IMD-7-2574
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Nespresso
Industry
Consumer Goods, Coffee
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
How AI gives Taobao's one billion customers the personal touch [Video]
Summary
Chris Tung is President of Strategic Development at Chinese e-commerce multinational Alibaba Group. He tells Amit Joshi how the company is integrat...
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
How Fuchs built a future ready China strategy
Summary
The case describes the strategic evolution of FUCHS China under the leadership of Zhu Qingping as the company transformed into a vital contributor to the global FUCHS2025 strategy. With 30 years’ experience in the automotive industry, Zhu leveraged his expertise to navigate FUCHS China through the complexities of a rapidly evolving market, amidst geopolitical fragmentation and the challenges posed by Covid-19. FUCHS China, representing a significant portion of the FUCHS Group’s revenue and profits, was at the forefront of adopting innovative product strategies. The case focuses on the development and implementation of the “5S” and “360-degree” solutions. These strategic initiatives enabled FUCHS China to offer specialized, high-tech products (5S) while comprehensively meeting customer needs (360). The case further highlights the company’s market approach, emphasizing the importance of segmentation and the “3L” Localization strategy. This approach not only tailored FUCHS China’s offerings to specific market segments but also enhanced its operational efficiency and responsiveness to local market dynamics. A key element of FUCHS China’s strategy was the development of its team, particularly through the innovative “Huangpu Class” initiative, which focused on nurturing segment leaders and building a robust leadership pipeline. Finally, the case also features FUCHS China’s unique culture, a blend of proactive, performance-driven ethos balanced with German precision and Chinese flexibility. This cultural synthesis was instrumental in fostering a self-driven and adaptable workforce, capable of navigating the challenges and opportunities in China’s lubricant market. Concluding with a forward-looking perspective, the case provides insights into how FUCHS China, under Zhu's visionary leadership, positioned itself as a future-ready player, ready to tackle the upcoming challenges and seize new opportunities in the global lubricant industry.
Reference
IMD-7-2543
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Fuchs Group
Industry
Manufacturing, Chemicals
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
How Fuchs drives autonomy at scale to win in a fragmented world
Summary
In a world where agility and global foresight are crucial for business survival and growth, the FUCHS case presents a compelling narrative of transformation. This case study follows FUCHS, a leading global lubricant company, on its journey to navigate the complexities of a rapidly changing business environment while staying true to its decentralized roots. The story unfolds from the company’s humble beginnings, detailing how FUCHS has grown into a global player under the stewardship of CEO Stefan Fuchs. It emphasizes the challenges of operating in a fragmented market and the need to embrace new global forces, such as digitalization, sustainability and evolving customer expectations. The case highlights the strategic pivot FUCHS makes when it created its first ever corporate strategy, “FUCHS2025,” marking a significant shift in the company’s approach to global market dynamics. A central theme of the case is how FUCHS rethinks its matrix organization and implements agile networks. This strategic move illustrates how FUCHS balances its traditionally decentralized structure with a growing need for global integration and efficiency. The case details the intricacies of these networks, particularly focusing on HR, to show how FUCHS harnesses the power of cross-functional collaboration and shared leadership. Readers of the case will gain a comprehensive understanding of how a traditional, family-led business can successfully adapt to global trends and internal challenges. It’s a tale of strategic evolution, highlighting the delicate balance between maintaining core values and innovating to stay competitive in a fragmented world. The FUCHS case is not just a story of a company, but a blueprint for businesses facing similar global challenges, demonstrating how to win in a decentralized yet interconnected market landscape.
Reference
IMD-7-2539
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Fuchs Group
Industry
Manufacturing, Chemicals
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
How to market sustainable products: Three paths to success
Summary
Many companies overestimate customers’ appetite for sustainable products, flooding the market with offerings that don’t sell. The reality is, socia...
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Thales: Digital sales enablement with ContentFlix
Summary
The case explores the efforts of Hamilton Mann, Group VP, Global Digital Marketing & Digital Transformation at Thales, to build a sales enablement platform as part of Thales’ larger digital transformation. “ContentFlix” aimed to be a one-stop sales enablement platform bringing together content for presentations and sales pitches and integrating solutions from across the business. Thales’ key account teams were used to operating in silos and via face-to-face interactions. Similarly, marketing and sales were distant and did not work together as effectively and seamlessly as they could. ContentFlix was intended to break down those silos and encourage collaboration between the company’s different businesses and marketing and sales teams. Mann’s team had launched ContentFlix quietly, tackling each implementation challenge as it came, and adoption had been steady. The Covid pandemic changed everything. Enforced lockdowns meant that remote cooperation between units became the only way to do business. The platform’s adoption accelerated beyond Mann’s expectations and continued to grow post-pandemic. The case explores how the team planned the platform, supported its rollout across Thales and continued to build it throughout the pandemic and beyond. The case explores in rich detail the obstacles and challenges as well as the successes Mann and his team face. The case closes with the rise of generative AI (GenAI). The team starts to consider where GenAI could enhance ContentFlix. What possibilities were there to take the platform to its next stage of development?
Reference
IMD-7-2460
Copyright
©2024
Copyright owner
IMD Copyright
Organization
Thales
Industry
Manufacturing;Information Technology, Information Services;Manufacturing, Aerospace and Defense
Available Languages
English
Contact
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications