HomeResearch & Knowledgeback to HomeOperationsback to Research & KnowledgeChemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditionsback to Operations

Case Study

Chemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditions

By Carlos Cordon, Petri Lehtivaara and Jussi Heikkilä

5 pages

October 2002

Order this case study

Reference: IMD-6-0224

This is the continuation of the story of ChemUnity.com. The A-case (POM 220) described the situation in April 2000. Now two years have passed and the founders of ChemUnity.com, Herman Rijks and Mark-Jan Terwindt, had adapted to the changing market environment through implementation of a new business model. This is not based on electronic marketplace but on being a provider of an online sourcing portal. The case describes the development over the past two years, ChemUnity’s new approach and its challenges. Rijks and Terwindt had to decide on the where to focus in the current situation to turn the sales leads into customers and how to develop the company and the product further

Keywords

Supply Chain, Sourcing, Purchasing, eMarketplace, Collaboration, Start-up, Chemicals, Production Management, Operations Management

Settings

Europe
June 2002

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English

IMD case studies are distributed through case clearing houses. In order to browse the collection and purchase copies please visit the links below.

The Case Centre

Cranfield University

Wharley End Beds MK43 0JR, UK
Tel +44 (0)1234 750903
Email [email protected]

Harvard Business School Publishing

60 Harvard Way, Boston MA 02163, USA
Tel (800) 545-7685 Tel (617)-783-7600
Fax (617) 783-7666
Email [email protected]

Asia Pacific Case Center

NUCB Business School

1-3-1 Nishiki Naka
Nagoya Aichi, Japan 460-0003
Tel +81 52 20 38 111
Email [email protected]

IMD retains all proprietary interests in its case studies and notes. Without prior written permission, IMD cases and notes may not be reproduced, used, translated, included in books or other publications, distributed in any form or by any means, stored in a database or in other retrieval systems. For additional copyright information related to case studies, please contact Case Services.

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

This case study is part of a series

Chemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditions
Chemunity.com (Abridged)

This case study is part of a series

Chemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditions
Chemunity.com (Abridged)

Chemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditions

By Carlos Cordon Petri Lehtivaara and Jussi Heikkilä
Case reference: IMD-6-0224 ©2002

Summary

This is the continuation of the story of ChemUnity.com. The A-case (POM 220) described the situation in April 2000. Now two years have passed and t...

Reference IMD-6-0224

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Operations

Browse all topics

Related content

Case Study

Chemunity.com (Abridged)

This is the abridged version of ChemUnity.com, a case that focuses on the possible success of a start-up in the electronic marketplace. ChemUnity.c...

Operations

By Carlos Cordon, Thomas E. Vollmann and Petri Lehtivaara

Chemunity.com (Abridged)

By Carlos Cordon Thomas E. Vollmann and Petri Lehtivaara
Case reference: IMD-6-0235 ©2001

Summary

This is the abridged version of ChemUnity.com, a case that focuses on the possible success of a start-up in the electronic marketplace. ChemUnity.com presents a rather special example of B2B--one that allows an appreciation of the subtle differences that need to be considered in understanding the world of business through the Internet. The original unabridged version of the case was developed in the internet format which facilitates understanding of the key issues and combines the content of e-business with the experience/feeling of e-business. The issues of B2B e-commerce are dealt with from the perspective both of the industry and of a new e-business venture. ChemUnity.com has to overcome many challenges including ramp-up, scaleable software and market penetration.

Reference IMD-6-0235

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Operations

Browse all topics

Related content

Case Study

Chemunity (B): Adapting to changing conditions

This is the continuation of the story of ChemUnity.com. The A-case (POM 220) described the situation in April 2000. Now two years have passed and t...

Operations

By Carlos Cordon, Petri Lehtivaara and Jussi Heikkilä

Keep reading

Case Study

UrbanLuxe Cosmetics: Embracing S&OP/IBP

The case is seen through the eyes of the newly appointed supply chain director at a cosmetics company based in Berlin. The general manager has tasked the new supply chain director to provide bold process recommendations to improve the poor service...

Operations Strategy

By Ralf W. Seifert and Richard Markoff

Case Study

Metalshub: A steely approach to launching a B2B metal trading platform

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 inn...

Business to Business Digital Disruption Economics Operations Strategy

By Didier Bonnet, Geoffrey G. Parker and Lisa Simone Duke

Case Study

Galeneo Health: Scaling the hospital@home platform

Digital Transformation Disruption Entrepreneurship Operations Sustainability

By Benoit F. Leleux

Case Study

Pandora: Mastering the success factors of circular supply chains (Mini case)

Sustainability Global Business Operations

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik

Case Study

Patagonia: Can circularity and sustainability win together? (Mini case)

Sustainability Operations Strategy

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik

Case Study

Trendy fashion company: Sustainability in supply chain operations

The newly appointed Senior Vice President of Trendy needs to put its supply chain on a more sustainable footing for the future. Trendy is an imaginary fast fashion company with a market base in Europe and a global supply chain. Core themes and act...

Sustainability Operations

By Ralf W. Seifert and Yara Kayyali El Alem

Article

Unpacking errors in organizations as processes: Integrating organizational research and operations management literature

Error research in organizational science (OS) and operations management (OM) has increased in volume, scope, and theoretical and methodological sophistication. Missing from these knowledge advancements are an explicit focus and an integrative fram...

Organizational Behavior Operations

By Zhike Lei and Eitan Naveh

in Academy of Management Annals

July 2023, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 798-844, https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2021.0066

Case Study

Apple’s supply chain transformation

In 2022, Apple lost US$1.5 billion in Black Friday sales due to iPhone supply constraints. One in three retail stores across the US and Europe experienced stockouts of the new iPhone 14 Pro. China sales were down more than 30% year on year. Apple’...

Operations Strategy

By Carlos Cordon and Nick Georgiev

Case Study

Pioneering customer experience transformation in Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development

The Human Resources and Social Development Ministry (HRSD) was one of the largest and most important ministries in Saudi Arabia, with 22,000 employees serving more than 30 million customers and beneficiaries. The ministry consisted of four sectors...

General Management Human Resources Leadership Marketing Operations

Best-selling Case Study

By Goutam Challagalla, Mahwesh Khan and Pallivathukkal Cherian Abraham

UrbanLuxe Cosmetics: Embracing S&OP/IBP

By Ralf W. Seifert and Richard Markoff
Case reference: IMD-7-2572 ©2024

Summary

Reference IMD-7-2572

Organization UrbanLuxe Cosmetics (Invented name)

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Operations

Strategy

Browse all topics

Metalshub: A steely approach to launching a B2B metal trading platform

By Didier Bonnet Geoffrey G. Parker and Lisa Simone Duke
Case reference: IMD-7-2457 ©2024

Summary

Reference IMD-7-2457

Organization Metalshub

Industry Materials, Metals and Mining

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Business to Business

Digital

Disruption

Economics

Operations

Strategy

Browse all topics

Galeneo Health: Scaling the hospital@home platform

By Benoit F. Leleux
Case reference: IMD-7-2496 ©2023

Summary

MADRID (SPAIN), MARCH 2023. Jaime Garcia-Prieto, founder and CEO of Galeneo, was polishing the deck for the fundraising for his healthcare start-up. The seed round of €1 million would take him to the institutional A round scheduled for Q3-2024, a comfortable 18-month+ runway. His proposal to decentralize healthcare through a tech-enabled hospital@home platform offered the solution people were looking for not only in Spain but also in most advanced economies. According to a recent Economist article, the NHS, like many healthcare systems, had become a sickness service, not a health service. To live up to the promise of its name would require a shift in focus, away from hospitals to the community, from centralized treatment to community-based prevention and bedside medicine. In other words, health systems needed to be investing in smoke alarms, not fire extinguishers. In 2020, as the Covid pandemic began, Jaime envisioned the future of in-home care for patients with chronic treatment needs. In 2021, he embarked on developing a platform to coordinate bedside medical care anywhere, anytime, in minutes. Galeneo was born. By 2023, it had integrated 200+ healthcare providers (HCPs) and 11+ institutional partners in the Madrid region, enabling the provision of general high-value services outside hospital. Revenues of €1.6 million in 2023 were expected, with a growth rate of about 8% every month and net profit breakeven reached in February. Things looked positive, but there were issues around scaling fast – although Jaime had found solutions. To counter the limited availability of qualified healthcare workers, he developed the Galeneo Academy to train future in-home bedside specialists. Tech-enabled standardization reduced operational complexity through an easy-to-use app and included real-time monitoring and quality control. Finally, the whole concept of community-based bedside medicine was still nascent, which meant market participants needed to adopt original approaches. But it was a large market with great potential.

Reference IMD-7-2496

Organization Galeneo

Industry Healthcare, Health and Medical Services

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Digital Transformation

Disruption

Entrepreneurship

Operations

Sustainability

Browse all topics

Pandora: Mastering the success factors of circular supply chains (Mini case)

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik
Case reference: IMD-7-2524 ©2023

Summary

Jewelry manufacturer and retailer Pandora is one of the largest jewelry players in the world. One of the key programs in Pandora’s circularity efforts had to do with the target of sourcing 100% recycled silver and gold by 2025. Executing on this goal became a complex journey, particularly as recycling precious metals represented a supply chain in its own right. It also came with its own set of carbon impacts and environmental protection requirements. Could Pandora overcome the many constraints in operationalizing a viable circular model for silver and gold?

Reference IMD-7-2524

Organization Pandora

Industry Consumer Goods, Luxury Goods and Jewelry

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Sustainability

Global Business

Operations

Browse all topics

Related content

Case Study

Vestiaire Collective: What lessons for luxury brands’ next business models? (Mini case)

By 2023, the global online resale marketplace Vestiaire Collective – founded in 2009 – had attracted more than 23 million members across 50 countries. Investors included global luxury group Kering. According to Vestiaire Collective’s executives, t...

Sustainability Digital Strategy

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik

Case Study

Patagonia: Can circularity and sustainability win together? (Mini case)

Sustainability Operations Strategy

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik

Case Study

ZENITH: The opportunities and challenges of eco-conception (Mini case)

The collaboration between ZENITH and Nona Source – the LVMH group’s resale platform for deadstock – resulted in a 2021 product launch that saw ZENITH unveil a series of changeable textile straps as part of its women’s watch collection named DEFY M...

Sustainability Strategy Business to Business

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik

Patagonia: Can circularity and sustainability win together? (Mini case)

By Stéphane J. G. Girod and Martin Králik
Case reference: IMD-7-2525 ©2023

Summary

Although Patagonia is not a player in the luxury segment per se, its track record in achieving circularity speaks volumes to luxury brands in terms of what a more mass-market brand is prepared to achieve in the circularity space and on its implications. Patagonia has discouraged overproduction and overconsumption, consistently working to create products that would never end up in a landfill. The main tenets of the company’s approach were called the five Rs. Reduce: Don’t buy what you don’t need. Repair: Fix items that still have life in them. Reuse: Sell or pass clothing on. When you’ve exhausted those options: Recycle. The last tenet, Reimagine, was a pledge to “take only what nature can replace.” Early on, Patagonia executives began investigating how they could encourage customers to reuse older clothing items that were not worn or no longer fit. Nevertheless, studies on textile circularity in general have pointed out that the practice has yet to establish sustainable economies. Large-scale reuse, repair and recycling have typically been hindered by high transportation, labor and processing costs as well as the decreasing quality and cost of new products. Furthermore, notwithstanding its status as the clothing industry’s beacon of sustainability – and billing itself as “in business to save our home planet” – Patagonia has never shied away from pursuing a high-growth, for-profit business model.

Reference IMD-7-2525

Organization Patagonia

Industry Consumer Goods, Apparel and Fashion

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Sustainability

Operations

Strategy

Browse all topics

Related content