Bernard GARRETTE

The Librinova case features a start-up company operating as a self-publishing platform in France. The two young women who created Librinova have a strong experience in the publishing industry, which made them able to create a unique value proposition for client-writers. The company started to operate in March 2014. The case takes place in the first quarter of 2017, just before Librinova goes for a third round of funding. The main question is whether the company has a real chance to raise the money it needs. This question points to the more fundamental issue of Librinova’s competitive advantage and growth potential. More specifically, the discussion should examine whether Librinova’s “digital platform” business model makes sense in the emerging multi-sided market for digital publishing , 2017 , Two-sided markets - Digital platform - Business model - Start-up - Innovation - Disruption - Book - E-book - Self-publishing (https://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-librinova-a-start-up-for-digital-innovation-in-publishing)

The Cosyloo – Summit Water Alliance case describes a partnership between Cosyloo, a “social business” start-up producing an innovative sanitation equipment, and Summit Water, a public utility corporation operating in South East Asia. The two companies are discussing an alliance to address sanitation needs at the “Base of the Pyramid” (BoP) in an economically viable way. The combination of Cosyloo’s technology and Summit Water’s market access creates the conditions for a disruptive innovation, both in terms of product and business model. However the road to success is likely to be bumpy. The discussion of the case focuses on whether and how to kick-off and grow the project, which requires assessing its business potential, refining the business model and crafting the governance and organization of the joint-venture. , 2016 , Base of the Pyramid, Alliance, Innovation, Inclusive business, Partnership, Sanitation, Water, Start-up (https://www.ccmp.fr/index.php?tg=addon/ccmp/main&idx=catalogItem.displayList)

The cases examine how Danone, the leading French food company, and Grameen, Mohammed Yunus' organization, built Grameen Danone Food Limited (GDFL), the first "Social Business" ever co-developed according to the 2006 Nobel Prize winner principles During an informal lunch with Mohammed Yunus, Danone CEO's Franck Riboud agreed to form a Social Business (SB) in order to fight children's malnutrition in Bangladesh. This hand-shake resulted in the construction of a small plant in Bogra, designed to produce "shokti-doi", yoghurt specifically developed for Bangladesh. The development of such a new organizational form is far from being smooth, however, raising legitimate questions about its true potential as a way to alleviate poverty. Although no definitive answer can be provided at this stage, the case series provide instructors with enough details to illustrate the pros and cons of social businesses. More fundamentally, the series examine the use of market-based solutions to fight poverty and illustrate how firms exercise their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Case A is positioned in December 2008, at a time when GDFL's model is clearly not performing. It gives an historical perspective on the joint-venture, and underlines the tension between the business' social and the economic aspects. Cases B and C are short follow-up cases designed to be distributed in class. , 2012 , Food company, poverty, nutritious food, social business, ethics, corporate social responsibility, marketing, corporate alliance, Bangladesh. , SnO (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-grameen-danone-food-limited-a-creating-a-social-business-in-bangladesh)

The cases examine how Danone, the leading French food company, and Grameen, Mohammed Yunus' organization, built Grameen Danone Food Limited (GDFL), the first "Social Business" ever co-developed according to the 2006 Nobel Prize winner principles. During an informal lunch with Mohammed Yunus, Danone CEO's Franck Riboud agreed to form a Social Business (SB) in order to fight children's malnutrition in Bangladesh. This hand-shake resulted in the construction of a small plant in Bogra, designed to produce "shokti-doi", yoghurt specifically developed for Bangladesh. The development of such a new organizational form is far from being smooth, however, raising legitimate questions about its true potential as a way to alleviate poverty. Although no definitive answer can be provided at this stage, the case series provide instructors with enough details to illustrate the pros and cons of social businesses. More fundamentally, the series examine the use of market-based solutions to fight poverty and illustrate how firms exercise their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Case A is positioned in December 2008, at a time when GDFL's model is clearly not performing. It gives an historical perspective on the joint-venture, and underlines the tension between the business' social and the economic aspects. Cases B and C are short follow-up cases designed to be distributed in class. , 2012 , Food company, poverty, nutritious food, social business, ethics, corporate social responsibility, marketing, corporate alliance, Bangladesh. , SnO (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-grameen-danone-food-limited-b-new-directions)

The cases examine how Danone, the leading French food company, and Grameen, Mohammed Yunus' organization, built Grameen Danone Food Limited (GDFL), the first "Social Business" ever co-developed according to the 2006 Nobel Prize winner principles. During an informal lunch with Mohammed Yunus, Danone CEO's Franck Riboud agreed to form a Social Business (SB) in order to fight children's malnutrition in Bangladesh. This hand-shake resulted in the construction of a small plant in Bogra, designed to produce "shokti-doi", yoghurt specifically developed for Bangladesh. The development of such a new organizational form is far from being smooth, however, raising legitimate questions about its true potential as a way to alleviate poverty. Although no definitive answer can be provided at this stage, the case series provide instructors with enough details to illustrate the pros and cons of social businesses. More fundamentally, the series examine the use of market-based solutions to fight poverty and illustrate how firms exercise their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Case A is positioned in December 2008, at a time when GDFL's model is clearly not performing. It gives an historical perspective on the joint-venture, and underlines the tension between the business' social and the economic aspects. Cases B and C are short follow-up cases designed to be distributed in class. , 2012 , Food company, poverty, nutritious food, social business, ethics, corporate social responsibility, marketing, corporate alliance, Bangladesh. , SnO (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-grameen-danone-food-limited-c-update)

La fusion entre GDF et Suez a été une des méga-fusions les plus marquantes en Europe ces dernières années. Alors que sa logique stratégique et industrielle ne faisait guère de doute, il a fallu quatre ans (2004-2008) pour la réaliser, à cause d'une série impressionnante d'obstacles politiques et sociaux. Les dirigeants de GDF et Suez, Gérard Mestrallet en tête, ont dû faire preuve d'une motivation sans faille pour mener à bien cette fusion, ce qui suggère que les gains à en tirer devaient être très substantiels pour les deux entreprises. Cette fusion a en effet créé de fortes synergies et elle a été évaluée favorablement par la Bourse. Elle s'est accompagnée d'un spin-off de Suez Environnement, dont GDF SUEZ ne détient plus que 35%.Toute la question est maintenant de formuler une stratégie et une organisation cohérentes pour piloter le premier groupe énergétique mondial. , 2010 , Fusion/Acquisition , Création de valeur , Corporate strategy , Synergie , Cours de Bourse (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-gdf-suez-2010-mise-en-oeuvre-dune-megafusion-en-europe-2)

The GDF SUEZ "megamerger" has been one of the largest deals in Europe. While this merger made sense in strategic terms, it took four years (2004-2008) to complete it, for a series of political and social issues. GDF and Suez top executives, and Suez CEO Gérard Mestrallet in particular, had to have a very strong motivation to pull the project through, which suggests that this merger created substantial gains for both companies. The merger indeed created significant synergies and it was well received by the financial markets. It entailed a spin-off of Suez Environment, in the equity of which GDF SUEZ retained only 35%. The issue at hand now is to design a consistent strategy and organizational structure to manage the first utility company in the world. , 2010 , Merger , Acquisition , Energy , Value creation , Corporate strategy , Synergy , Stock market , Stock price (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-gdf-suez-2010-implementing-a-megamerger-in-europe)

In 2008, ESSILOR, the world leader in ophthalmic lenses with €3bn sales, has been implementing in India. ESSILOR mobile optical shops visit poor villages in rural India, in order to prescribe and sell corrective spectacles at very low prices (around 175 rupees or €3) to people suffering from visual disorders. ESSILOR does not view this project as a charity but as a potentially profitable business. Prices, as low as they are, must cover both production and distribution costs. In the longer term, ESSILOR also aims at capturing a strong position in a potentially huge market which, up to now, has been deemed insolvent... , 2008 , Synthese case , Corporate social responsibility , Base/Bottom of the Pyramid , Sustainable development , Emerging markets , Ethics , Stakeholders. (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-essilors-base-of-the-pyramid-strategy-in-india)

In 2008, ESSILOR, the world leader in ophthalmic lenses with €3bn sales, has been implementing in India. ESSILOR mobile optical shops visit poor villages in rural India, in order to prescribe and sell corrective spectacles at very low prices (around 175 rupees or €3) to people suffering from visual disorders. ESSILOR does not view this project as a charity but as a potentially profitable business. Prices, as low as they are, must cover both production and distribution costs. In the longer term, ESSILOR also aims at capturing a strong position in a potentially huge market which, up to now, has been deemed insolvent... , 2008 , Cas de synthèse , Responsabilité sociale , Bas/Base de la Pyramide , Développement durable , Marchés émergents , Ethique , Stakeholders , Stratégie Base de Pyramide (BdP) , Triple bottom line , Triple P , Rentabilité. (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-la-strategie-base-de-la-pyramide-dessilor-en-inde-2)

The VIVENDI case focuses on Vivendi's corporate strategy from 2002 to 2008. Starting with the dramatic crisis in 2002, it describes the turnaround of the company by Jean-René FOURTOU in 2002-2003, and its progress as a company refocused on media and telecom from 2003 to 2008. Most of the discussion will deal with FOURTOU's decision-making during the crisis and the turnaround phase, and the question of corporate value creation in the more recent period , 2008 , Briefing case , Corporate strategy , Value creation , Synergies , Turnaround , Strategic change , Governance , Leadership , Mergers. (http://www.ccmp.fr/collection-hec-paris/cas-vivendi-from-survival-to-strategy)