“South Beauty Group: In Quest of a ‘Beautiful’ Growth Story,” a case study co-authored by CEIBS Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship Rama Velamuri and Research Fellow Raymond Xu, has topped the Emerging Chinese Global Competitors category of the EFMD's 2008 Case Writing Competition. The winners have been invited to accept their prize at the EFMD's Annual Conference in Brussels from June 7 to 9.
The award-winning case study, developed for CEIBS MBA, EMBA and EDP programmes, highlights the challenges of growth, as illustrated by the South Beauty Group, “an innovative upper-middle player in the Chinese Dinner segment.” Beginning with an introduction to the group’s founder, Ms Zhang Lan, the case details the launching of the group, its development and current business model; consumer trends and opinions; China’s restaurant market; and the South Beauty Group’s plans for addressing future challenges. The written case study is supplemented by a video interview with Ms Zhang.
The EFMD's 2008 Case Writing Competition awarded 
2,000 for the top case in 10 categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, Entrepreneurship, Family Business, Finance and Banking, Supply Chain Management, Emerging Chinese Global Competitors, Euro-Mediterranean Managerial Practices and Issues, Public Sector Innovations, African Business Cases, and Indian Management Issues and Opportunities.
Prof Rama Velamuri Tackles Corruption and Power Struggles
An Indian firm’s battle against corruption and its innovative approach to management provide the basis for the case “Resisting Corruption: Polyhydron Private Ltd”, co-authored by CEIBS Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship Rama Velamuri and IESE Business School Research Fellow Marc Sosna. The case was recently published in International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education.
“Resisting Corruption: Polyhydron Private Ltd” illustrates the “strategic and tactical issues in resisting corruption in environments where corruption is widespread.” It describes how Suresh Hundre, the founder and CEO of Polyhydron Private Ltd (PPL), an SME in the manufacturing sector based in the small Indian city of Belgaum, stood up against corrupt business practices. The case documents Hundre’s stance - following his story from his initial decision to resist corruption in 1983, to his numerous run-ins and victories over corrupt governmental officials. The authors note: “In addition to following a transparent policy towards all stakeholders, Hundre also introduces a number of innovative management practices in his organization such as Just in Time (JIT), Kanban, self-managed work teams, and the Nikkerin wealth-sharing system. This enlightened management takes the company to achieve high growth in revenues and profits.”
Zimbabwe is the location for Prof Velamuri’s second recent academic article, which focuses on the power struggle between the state and private firms. “States, Power, Legitimacy, and Maintaining Institutional Control: The Battle for Private Sector Telecommunication Services in Zimbabwe” focuses on the conflict between the Zimbabwean state and Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, a start-up private firm that challenged the state’s rights to monopoly control over the telecommunications sector during 1993-1998.
The authors found that, in postcolonial settings, states tend to dominate institutional sectors and maintain institutional control. Such states “attempt to reinforce the legitimacy of their use of power and coercion” through securing critical property rights and embedding these rights in the state bureaucracy; and “calling on other ‘centres of power’,” note the authors. The study also illustrates how states, and the organizations that challenge them, use their power to either maintain existing beneficial structures or disrupt activities that they regard as unfavourable.
Co-authored by Professor of Management and Decision Sciences at Washington State University Jerry Goodstein, the case has been accepted for publication in a forthcoming issue of Organization Studies.
