Case

Musa’s Predicament and the MBA Asian Journal of Management Cases

1–15
Capstone Project Team © 2020 Lahore University of
Management Sciences
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DOI: 10.1177/0972820120948698
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Ghufran Ahmad1 and Nehan Hussain1

Abstract
The case is focused on the difficult challenges faced by a second-year MBA Capstone Project Team at
the Suleman Dawood School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences in Pakistan. The
project deadline is closing in; however, the team is facing serious work-related and interpersonal issues
with detrimental consequences for the team dynamics and ultimate success of the project. As one of
the founding members of the team, Musa is perplexed and confused about how to resolve the conflicts
in the team, which has divided into two factions due to the mishandling of the situation by another team
member, Elias. The faculty advisor to the team has called an emergency meeting, and Musa wants to find
a way out of the current crisis to complete the project successfully. The case also illustrates gender-
based biases that may surface in specific cultural contexts.

Keywords
Teamwork, conflict resolution, team dysfunction, gender bias

Discussion Questions
1. Identify the issues that the team is facing. Classify the challenges into tasks and people-related
issues. In your opinion, why is the team facing issues? What are the root causes of the issues?
2. Debate the roles and functions performed by different team members. Evaluate the efficacy of
their roles. Do the roles and responsibilities assigned to different team members suit their motiva-
tions and skillsets?
3. Analyze how the team has worked so far. What types of decision making, task assignment, con-
flict resolution, interpersonal interactions, and performance monitoring processes has the team
employed? Which processes are working, and which are not? Why, in the overall assessment,
team processes are ineffective, as reflected in the seriousness of the issues the team is facing?
4. How can the team address its current dysfunctions and work productively to complete the project
successfully in the given limited time available for project completion?

1
School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.

Corresponding author:
Ghufran Ahmad, School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore, Punjab 54792, Pakistan.
E-mail: [email protected]
2 Asian Journal of Management Cases

5. Do you think that Musa has effectively performed his role as an important team member, given
that he first created the team? What suggestions would you offer Musa (and to other team
members) to assume a more proactive role in helping the team become effective? As Musa, what
action plan would you offer to the project advisor, how would you resolve the conflict, and what
role would you exercise to make your team deliver the project successfully?
6. How may the gender-based differences in roles and expectations between male and female
members of the team be managed more effectively?

Musa,1 a second-year MBA student, started to pace the floor outside his final year capstone project
advisor’s office, waiting for him to summon the team inside. His team had been called for an emergency
meeting by the advisor via email. ‘It was a startling confrontation for the team because the advisor never
arranged meetings before,’ Musa remarked. With 3 weeks remaining to the project’s deadline, the team
speculated about the meeting’s agenda. Musa’s team member, Elias, just minutes before, confirmed
what Musa suspected. Elias had gone to the advisor earlier and given an ultimatum—either let Elias
work alone on the project or dissolve the project altogether because the team was just not working out.
The entire team was apprehensive about what would unfold in the coming hour. They knew that it was
too late for any change in the team or scope; if the team was dissolved, then the entire team would most
likely not graduate that year, or would barely get a passing grade if they were lucky (See Exhibit 1 for
the MBA Capstone Project requirements for degree completion).
Musa, as the founding member of the team, believed that he carried a greater responsibility to help the
team—a task at which he had failed so far. Having been trained as an MBA, he knew that the project
advisor would be least interested in listening to the issues and expected the team to handle its issues
independently, practice their problem-solving skills learned during the MBA programme, and present
workable solutions. He wondered whether or not he should promise a turnaround to the advisor, given
that whatever he had tried doing so far had not worked out. He wanted to have a clear idea before the
advisor called them in the office.

The Beginning
Musa contemplated on how he had gotten into this situation ever since he had received the advisor’s
email notification on his smartphone less than 2 hours ago. He remembered the day this whole project
process began as clearly as it was yesterday.
It was almost the end of the second semester. His MBA batch had three things on their minds: final
exams, finding internship placements, and final year projects. The final year capstone project coordina-
tor had notified them that they needed to submit their group members’ names, select their project advisor,
and decide on the project that they will be working on. It was up to the students to choose from the roster
of pre-approved projects the coordinator had compiled or get approval for a project of a client of their
own choice.

The Team2
Musa decided to approach two people to be part of his team, Parizad and Elias. He was good friends with
both of them individually and had worked with Parizad on other projects before. Parizad agreed to be
part of the group, but with a condition—her friends Samar and Tamara would also be in the group. Musa
suspected that this condition was imposed because the rest of their batch had already made groups, and
Ahmad and Hussain 3

Samar and Tamara had nowhere else to go. Parizad was interacting with Elias for the first time, while
Samar and Tamara had never spoken to either Elias or Musa before.
Elias was the eldest in the group. He was quite popular amongst the batch mates for being helpful and
conducting extra classes before exams and quizzes.
According to Musa,

Elias acted beyond his years. He was a self-professed introvert; he found it easier to socialize with people over a
game of cards. He believed in quality, but he was a procrastinator, whether it involved a team or any individual
work. He was often heard quoting that ‘In this country, men are more professional than women’.

Elias confessed,

I perform better when I am working alone because I prefer to be in control and work out things in a certain way.

Tamara said,

Parizad was a strong extrovert, often getting her energy from socializing with others. She always put her friends
first and herself second. She was tolerant and extremely patient, but sometimes got stressed in high-tension situ-
ations. She also took her time to start her work but never compromised on quality. She worked better in teams
and liked to give direction to her team.

Parizad had a great interest in music, stemming from her great singing voice. She was a third culture
child, born and raised in the Middle East with multi-culture influences, and strongly believed in gender
equality.
Musa was an enthusiastic reader and had read books on various subjects from wars in the Middle East
to Italian mafia novels. He took football very seriously and was an avid Real Madrid fan for over 10
years. He liked hanging out with a small group of friends.
Elias said,

Musa was an old soul; he had the maturity which many lacked in his age. This was reflected in his taste of music;
he listened to opera and classical music. Also, in his taste of cinema, he liked classics and foreign films. He had a
commendable work ethic, but he lacked motivation; he needed a push to work. He remains calm in all situations,
almost indifferent, even when the circumstances are dire.

According to Parizad,

Samar was an extrovert, and she got along with everyone, not only in her own batch but also her seniors and
juniors. She was very respectful, and many vouched for her kind-heartedness. A highly motivated individual, she
was also very responsible.

Samar said,

I enjoy music, movies, and mobile games. I am also a great cook and find joy, even in the little things in life. I
believe in hard-work and am always willing to put in the required hours to get the work done. However, report
writing isn’t my strong suit, and sometimes I need help.

According to Samar,
4 Asian Journal of Management Cases

Tamara was an introvert, keeping a small group of very close friends. She had a big heart, especially for her
friends and family. She had a free spirit and loved to travel. She was a shopaholic and had a penchant for the finer
things in life. She was a very reliable person and committed to her word.

Tamara said,

I love making exotic dishes influenced by my travels. I am extremely organized and like to get my work done
well in advance. I am competitive and extremely dedicated to my work; however, I do not like to take initiatives.
I prefer to work independently, as collaboration and flexibility are areas where I need to work on.

See Exhibit 2 for career profiles and educational backgrounds of all team members.

Choosing the Project

In between classes, Musa and Elias would go on cigarette breaks in the designated smoking area on
campus. Since they had become project teammates, the final year project would be discussed as well
as a plethora of other topics. It was during such a break, near the end of the deadline communicated
by the final year project coordinator, when Elias3 suggested to Musa that they could choose a project
with his company, which wanted to work on in the field of agriculture markets. The project envisaged
revolutionizing the entire agri-commodities value chain by modernizing the whole system through the
introduction of a commodity exchange. This would bring tremendous efficiencies within the whole agri-
ecosystem. As Musa’s family already had an agriculture business, he became very interested in the
proposition.
Parizad said,

The boys pitched the idea to us, girls. We were not very enthusiastic about the plan because it was a subject that
we had little knowledge of. The project was dry compared to other interesting projects on offer (See Exhibit 3 for
a list of other projects); however, Musa and Elias were able to convince us.

Musa and Elias used the following points to convince the girls:

• Elias will play a dual role; not only will he be a team member but also be part of the client. This
could be of advantage to the team because he had worked with the company on the preliminary
research of the project and can transfer the knowledge to the team. Also, Musa had a fair idea
about agriculture markets, and together they could collaborate and help teach each other.
• Elias was one of the representatives of the client, which also meant that the client expectations
could be flexible and managed well.
• Finally, the project had deep implications for the agri-economy of the country, which meant that
their project would have a wider impact than all the projects that were being offered.

Musa admitted,

The girls agreed, albeit, half-heartedly because they couldn’t come up with any project idea that could stand up
to the line of reasoning which had been put forward. Hence Elias emailed the proposal to the project coordinator,
and we got the approval in the next two days.
Ahmad and Hussain 5

Choosing the Project Advisor

Elias recollected.

The project dealt with a new area of agriculture markets, which made it difficult for us to choose a project advi-
sor. There weren’t many professors in the business school who had experience in the field of agriculture. What
made matters worse was the fact that many professors were booked (some even double-booked) as project advi-
sors by other final year project teams.

Musa tracked down a professor who had some experience in the field; however, he had never been a final
year project advisor before. The team approached the professor and set up an appointment. Elias and
Musa pitched the project to him while the rest of the team was mere bystanders.
Parizad admitted,

Samar and Tamara were more than happy that the Elias and Musa had become the spokespersons for the team,
as they weren’t confident about our knowledge about the project. I wasn’t too happy with this arrangement and
wanted to be more involved in the project.

The professor agreed to be their project advisor but expressed his concerns. He wanted the team to
be fully aware that he had a very tight semester schedule, so he would be more than happy to provide
direction and guidance, but he did not want the team to expect any extensive handholding. Furthermore,
he said that this would be a learning experience for him as well because the project dealt with an area in
agriculture which he himself had just recently ventured into.
With all the details locked down on the project with the team members and the advisor, Musa went to
the MBA Students’ Lounge and emailed the final year project coordinator the details of their project.
When he opened his email account, he saw an email in his inbox informing him that he had gotten a
summer internship offer with one of the premier FMCG firms in the country.
Musa explained,

To my horror, when I checked my email, I discovered that the first final exam of the semester was in the next two
days. This made the schedule even tighter, and the workload increased by multiple folds.

Work on the Project

After the summer break, the students had to settle into the new routine at the business school. The second
year was significantly different from the first; a sizeable portion of the batch was not present as they
had gone on a semester exchange in various countries, and the second year comprised only of optional
courses, which meant everyone had different class schedules.
Within the first few days, the project coordinator communicated the project phases and their deadlines
(see Exhibit 4). The first phase had to be completed by the first month of the third semester, and the
second phase had to be done by the first 2 weeks of the fourth semester. The final phase’s cut-off date
would be by the end of the fourth and final semester.
6 Asian Journal of Management Cases

Terms of Reference
Musa said,

We had a hectic routine. Managing the classes and the workload of all the courses with the final project was
becoming increasingly difficult. Due to the time constrain, many groups, including ours, had to delay work on
the project.

Almost a week before the deadline for submitting the Terms of Reference4 (TOR), Elias asked Musa and
Parizad to get together at night and start working on the document. After the three had had dinner, they
met in the student lounge to get on with the task.
Elias noticed,

Surprisingly, neither of us felt the need to invite Samar for the meeting. But it was more surprising for me to
discover that neither Musa nor Samar had ever prepared a TOR document before. After sharing with them a few
of my TORs from some earlier projects, we began to work on the first draft of the TOR.

Parizad observed,

The team dynamics soon became clear to Musa and me. Elias, because of his age and experience, instinctively
took control of the group and began dictating us. He instructed us to work on the TOR document while he pre-
pared the presentation due next week. Again, respecting Elias’s age and experience and our willingness to avoid
any conflict, Musa and I simply complied with his demands and got to work.

For the next 7 days, the three worked on completing their respective tasks; Musa and Parizad were given
the joint task to chalk out the deliverables, while Elias worked on the vision, objectives, and scope of
the project.
Parizad realized,

Even though Samar was involved in all subsequent meetings but her input was neither forthcoming nor invited.

During these meetings, Elias and Musa routinely explained the intricacies of the project to Parizad and
Samar. Still, the main impetus of the team was on getting the immediate tasks done.
According to Samar,

During this whole time, Tamar was not kept in the loop by the team members, and no one felt the need to update
her either. She was completely aloof of all proceedings while enjoying her time in Europe.

Moreover, not once did the team think about consulting the advisor over how and what to include in the
TOR. The advisor bumped into Elias in the elevator a couple of days before the TOR presentation, and
Elias briefly explained what they had planned to include in the TOR. The advisor asked him to email the
TOR presentation to him a day in advance so that he could have a look at it and know what to expect on
the presentation day.
On the day of the presentation, the team came up with what they thought was a good TOR and pre-
sentation. The project coordinator, the project advisor, and the client were all invited for the presentation,
which Elias had decided to present alone. At the same time, the other team members stood by to step in
during the question–answer session. However, what was to follow was not what the team had foreseen.
Ahmad and Hussain 7

Musa said,

None of us were impressed by the fact that Elias presented alone as it gave the impression that the rest of us were
not involved at all. Furthermore, it was only during the presentation that the project coordinator found out that
Elias was not only a student but also a working employee of the client. Where the team saw it as an advantage,
he saw a conflict of interest.

Hence the project advisor suggested to treat Elias as more of a guide rather than a team member and
work on the project. He also recommended some changes in the TOR. Later, the team incorporated the
changes which were suggested and submitted an updated TOR.

Interim Report
Feeling that the worst was behind them and knowing that the interim report was not due for another 2
months, the team members fell back into their usual delaying habits.
Elias commented,

From time to time, I would ask everyone to set up a meeting to discuss how to proceed with the interim report,
but owing to the hectic schedules and a general lack of motivation, the team never got together until about three
weeks before the report was due.

By this time, Tamara had come back from her exchange semester, and the meeting that took place was
the first where all members were present.
Elias continued,

Musa and I had to explain the whole project from scratch to the girls. Many issues were discussed, many appre-
hensions cleared, and the girls’ understanding of the project improved. However, we did decide that the girls
would do secondary research. At the same time, the boys will conduct field trips to nearby villages to gather
primary research, as had been stipulated in the TOR.

Elias set a meeting with the project advisor to update him on the progress and discuss the research and
interview questions. The advisor thought that the team was on the right track and did not have much to
add to their plan.
In subsequent group meetings, which were not always attended by all the group members, the girls
were given out specific secondary research tasks to be completed before the deadline; however, there
was a major communication gap amongst the team members.
Musa commented,

Elias took on a mere ceremonial leader’s role, always offering himself for guidance and help but never actually
delivering any textual input into the research. In fact, whenever the girls did ask for his help, which wasn’t too
often, to begin with, they weren’t impressed with his style of teaching and guidance.

Elias complained,

Even after explaining the project in detail numerous times, the girls still did not have a clear-cut understanding
of the project because of a lack of understanding and interest in the subject of agriculture. Up till now, both Musa
8 Asian Journal of Management Cases

and I had failed to infuse the passion in the girls, which was required to work on such a complicated project. It
was this lack of passion and motivation which infuriated me. As a result, the meetings were always bitter and
ended with absolutely no transfer of knowledge to the girls.

Musa explained,

Elias had a good working relationship with me because of our strong friendship, but with the girls, he always
adopted a sterner tone and didn’t take them too seriously. He would always degrade their efforts because, accord-
ing to Elias, their quality of work was never up to his standards.

To defuse the situation and get the work done, I took de facto control of the team and asked the girls to submit
their research findings to me. I was completely shocked when I saw the work the girls had done. As expected, the
girls had shown little enthusiasm, and the quality of their work fell way short of my expectations.

Musa quickly realized he had to conduct the secondary research all over again and work on the report all
on his own, which meant there would be no time to conduct the field trips. He communicated his fears
to Elias over a private lunch between the two, and they decided to push the primary research part into
the final report, going against the requirements that they had set in the TOR. Throughout all this time, no
team member made any effort to communicate with the project advisor or get any input from him before
submitting the work. The advisor, himself, did not make any effort to communicate with the team, either.
Inevitably, it all came down to the wire. Musa put in a lot of effort to gather as much information and
data, and completed the secondary research only a couple of days before the deadline and then started
working on the report. Short on time and support, Musa asked the girls to help him out with the task at
hand, but only Parizad showed up to work on the report with him.
Musa complained,

Samar excused herself because she had a fever, and since Tamara had not been told in advance, she already had
her own social plans, which she didn’t want to cancel. Their lack of interest and irresponsible behaviour, at this
crucial time, was very disturbing for me. Parizad and I compiled the report in an extremely haphazard manner,
leaving out very crucial details and submitted the report literally a minute before the deadline. As expected, the
Interim Report fell way short of the expectations and goals set in the TOR.

The advisor was highly disappointed in the quality of the report, an opinion which he expressed in a
meeting set by Parizad. He said that he would give the interim report a passing grade and identified the
key areas which needed to be improved.

Final Report
Due to the bitter experience of the interim report, the boys became even more distant from the girls. The
communication amongst the team members had become a Chinese whisper. Elias and Musa would make
decisions on when to meet or what tasks needed to be divided, and Musa would tell Parizad the decisions
that they took. Parizad, in turn, would let Samar and Tamara know what she learnt from Musa.
Parizad stated,

I took matters into my own hands and decided to do something about the communication barriers within the
team. I wanted the team to communicate openly and for everyone to be on the same page. So, I decided to create
Ahmad and Hussain 9

a WhatsApp group. I also set up an online private forum where the entire team could share their work and make
comments.

This made the communication impersonal yet effective. This was a much-welcomed initiative; Elias
uploaded his own research and used this platform to disseminate knowledge to the rest of the team.
Midway through the semester, a little over a month before the deadline, Elias and Musa decided to go
on their field trips for primary research. Elias asked Tamara (on the WhatsApp group) to formulate inter-
view questions and asked Tamara and Samar to transcribe the interview audio. The girls delivered the
required task well before time and uploaded their work to the online portal. Elias and Musa were pleased
with the effort, and it seemed that the team dynamics were improving. All ensuing work, including the
interview recordings of the primary research, was shared on the portal, and most of the communication
was done on the WhatsApp group. However, the team’s good relations did not last long.
Musa said,

It seemed like Elias’ opinion on girls, especially the ones in the team, had a Golem Effect5; as the project pro-
gressed and the divided tasks became more complex, the girls could not deliver to his expectations, even though
they gave it their best shot.

The girls were given the task to add substantially more detail in the secondary work and start developing
the business plan. Elias worked on the financial feasibility of the project. Musa had asked for a break
from the project work for a while as he had pulled more than his weight during the interim report writing
and compilation and had also done substantial work for the primary research.
Elias stated,

I had no choice but to resort to micromanaging the group. I did not want any member to work remotely and
insisted that all work be done when the members sit together. This gave me the opportunity to keep an eye on
everyone but also gave me the chance to help when anyone hit a difficult spot.

Nobody, not even Musa, was happy with this decision. It seemed counter-productive to work together
when everyone worked at a different pace, but most importantly, sitting together would be distracting
as the girls were good friends. The team was already far behind schedule, and this would slow down the
work even further.
Parizad complained,

Elias got his way because we did not retaliate as much as we wanted to. Because our top priority was to get
the work done and we sensed that Elias was dangerously close to the edge, hence we did not want to push him
further.

The team gathered in the MBA Students’ Lounge, with just over 3 weeks left to the deadline. Tamara
brought snacks for the night, and they sat down to work. After a long night, interjected with Samar’s
laughter, conversations about Tamara’s travels, including her exchange semester, Parizad’s singing, and
Musa’s wise words on life lessons, the group members uploaded their documents to the portal by dawn.
Musa recalled,

After we uploaded the work on the portal, Elias gave it a read. But he did not approve of the work and said that
it was subpar. After saying that, he just stormed out of the lounge, leaving the rest of us speechless.
10 Asian Journal of Management Cases

Two days after that eventful night, Elias sent out a text to the girls to meet him in the MBA Students’
Lounge after classes. The MBA Students’ Lounge was the busiest at that time, hustling and bustling with
the rest of the MBA students. The girls sat down on the sofa with Elias, who was already there, waiting
for them.
‘I only have one question for you all,’ Elias said. ‘Do you want to work in this group or not?’ The girls
were quiet. After a while, Tamara spoke ‘Yes, of course, we want to work. Why would you even think
that we don’t want to?’ This was the first time Tamara was speaking to Elias in this tone.
‘Well, because it seems that you don’t want to work! Is this how you do other courses work?! We all
stayed up all night just 2 days ago, and can you honestly tell me we made progress?’ Elias questioned.
The girls were quiet, Samar spoke this time; ‘During the night, I kept on asking you to check my work,
because I am still not sure how to go about the tasks you assigned. But you were too busy sociali-’
‘Wait!’ Elias interrupted, ‘you’re still not sure about the project? For God’s sake, we have less than a
month left! And you’re telling me you still can’t work properly! How did you manage to come so far in
the MBA? How did all of you manage to come this far into the program?’ Elias said angrily while raising
his voice.
‘Elias, let’s move to someplace more private where we can talk,’ Parizad spoke up, her face heating
up with embarrassment. ‘This isn’t the place to do it. People are staring at us. Let’s go to one of the study
group rooms’.
Elias continued, completely ignoring Parizad’s request. ‘I am in shock to see the kind of work you
have given me thus far. I have always tried to make myself available and help. I have guided you, sat
down with you, and done everything I could to help you. Don’t you think I am under pressure? I have
the same workload as you all have. My boss from work keeps asking me for progress on the project, and
I have nothing substantial to show him! I avoid any contact with the advisor because I am embarrassed
to see him in the eye! What should I tell him if he asks what have we done?’
Parizad talked back. ‘You have always dumped work on us, but what have you done except given us
direction? You just took up the finance bit of the project, that’s it. Your workload is not the same as ours!
And can we please move from here?’
Elias burst out in anger. His voice even louder than before, ‘I have done more work than all you com-
bined! You all don’t deserve to have your name attached to this project. Heck, you don’t deserve to
graduate! And I’ll make sure you don’t!’
Samar remembered,

With all eyes in the Student Lounge on us, Parizad got up and walked out of the room. Tamara and I followed
suit. Embarrassed and infuriated, Parizad went straight to Musa and told him what had just happened. Musa had
become the convenient arbitrator, although against his will. This time it seemed even he didn’t know what to do.

The Meeting
A day had passed since this incident. Musa avoided the designated smoking area on campus, getting
his nicotine fix by going elsewhere on university grounds. It was when he was coming back to his
building that he got the email notification from the advisor on his smartphone. Two hours later, the team
assembled outside the advisor’s office.
As Musa wondered what to do, few options surfaced. Barring team dissolution, he could (a) request
the advisor to meet each team member individually to listen to their concerns and then suggest an overall
course of action for the team, (b) suggest the project advisor let Elias play the role of a silent member of
Ahmad and Hussain 11

the team, given that Elias represented the client, (c) volunteer himself or nominate someone to lead the
team by requesting the advisor to grant some time for the development of a strategy and action plan for
effective project completion. The advisor finally opened the door and ushered them in. What should
Musa do?

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of
this article.

Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Appendix

Exhibit 1. MBA Final Year Capstone Project Requirement Specification

The MBA Capstone Project is a mandatory requirement of the MBA curriculum at this particular school.
The MBA is structured as such that in the first half of the second year, students have the option to go on
an exchange programme outside the country to various business schools around the world. It is a privileged
opportunity, which is why it is competitive; around 35% of the students end up going. By the end of the first
year, the students are required to team up with a group of five to six students and make sure that they have
at least one exchange student in the group.
The projects are based on an actual managerial issue of a real client. The students work on this issue over
the course of a year, under the supervision of a business school faculty member. With the faculty’s guidance,
the students prepare and present a comprehensive solution to the client at the end, while at the same time
graded accordingly.
Source: LUMS Documents.

Exhibit 2. Career Profiles and Educational Backgrounds of the Team Members

Elias Khoury
He worked as Head of Corporate Finance at the local stock exchange. He was also part of the core team
responsible for strategic initiatives and financial affairs of the exchange. He joined the exchange in 2007,
and since then, he worked in various departments, including Market Operations, HR, Communication, and
Research.
He became a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) in 2009 and juggled the job with his MBA Programme. This
29-year-old was expected to graduate in 2014.
He has assisted and advised various Board Committees of the exchange as a management representative on
strategy and planning. He has been involved with regulation and governance matters of the corporate sector
as well. Besides that, he has also been involved as a consultant for the public sector and other developmental
projects.
Elias has also engaged with academia as well, as he has delivered guest lectures on financial systems, capital
markets, and investments covering topics ranging from basics to advanced contemporary developments.
(Exhibit 2 continued)
12 Asian Journal of Management Cases

(Exhibit 2 continued)

Parizad Mustafa
A full-time MBA student, Parizad completed her undergraduate in Economics and Finance in 2010. She
became a financial analyst at one of the country’s leading banks. She found a niche for herself in the finance
department and consulted the consumer banking department in product and service development. She also
advised on the impact of monetary policy in the banking industry. Her highest achievement is that she helped
the bank achieve an international award for Best Bank of the Country.
However, she could not see herself pursuing a career in finance and went back to school to do her MBA in
2012. Given the wide array of courses taught at the business school, she later wanted to pursue a career in
either marketing or human resource development. The 25-year-old will graduate in 2014.
Musa Nusayr
Musa, a 25-year-old full-time MBA student, did his undergraduate in Mathematics in 2010 from the same
institution where he is currently pursuing his MBA. As he was a quick learner, he started his career as an
internal auditor at a factory of a multinational food packaging company. He implemented and maintained an
integrated management system for quality, environment, occupational health and safety, as well as hygiene.
This enabled the factory to achieve various ISO quality certifications.
Due to his background in numbers, he developed an interest in finance and switched career paths. He
became a research associate in a consulting company in 2011, conducting research on foreign financial
markets, preparing trading pattern reports, analyzing financial figures, news and data in order to pre-empt
their market impact. This knowledge also helped him in advising his company in investments, particularly in
commodity, currency, and equity markets.
He enrolled in the MBA in 2012 to equip himself with the required knowledge to become an investment
manager. He is expected to graduate in 2014 and pursue other finance-related certifications such as the
Chartered Financial Analyst.
Samar Haddad
The 26-year-old completed her undergraduate in Business Administration back in 2009. Since then, she has
extensive experience as a volunteer in the not-for-profit industry in various roles. She did programme planning
and evaluation as well as awareness and promotion for an international non-governmental organization
that promotes children’s rights provides relief, and helps support children in developing countries. She
also did volunteer management for a local non-governmental society that dealt with the dissemination of
knowledge within the communities of common infections and their prevention. Moreover, she has helped
in crowdfunding and donor management through relationship building for various disaster and humanitarian
relief funds. To help aid her in the social work, she became a certified trainer for young trainers from the
School of Leadership. She is an active human rights activist and has participated in various drives throughout
the country.
She has also done various internships in the field of marketing and sales at reputable companies, which led
her to enrol in the MBA programme in 2012. She is expected to graduate in 2014.
Tamara Badour
She completed her ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) certification 2010 on her first
attempt, earning a gold medal for her academic performance in the exams. She was also studying for her
undergraduate degree in Applied Accountancy and Finance, which she also obtained in 2010. She became
a finance trainee officer at one of the country’s top banks, where she handled financial reporting for the
bank. This included preparing and posting journal entries, preparing the cash position and cash reports, and
preparing the financial statements for internal and external uses.
(Exhibit 2 continued)
Ahmad and Hussain 13

(Exhibit 2 continued)

However, her goal was to combine her accounting skills with advanced business skills. She wanted to set
herself apart from other accountants, and the business acumen she would acquire in business school would
enable her to rise up the corporate ladder. The 24-year-old enrolled in the 2-year MBA programme in 2010.
She secured an exchange semester position in France during her MBA.

Source: Author’s Notes.

Exhibit 3. List of Projects

1. Develop a launch plan for a new brand of paint.

2. Devise a plan to curb the high turnover rate of blue-collared workers of a local hotel chain.
3. Formulate market share enhancement strategy for a joint venture which manufactures and markets
some of the models of Honda motorcycles and cars.
4. Plan the marketing mix for a local fashion apparel brand.
5. Advise local hotel management on the types of restaurants it should plan for its new hotel in the city.
6. Design a module for leadership and management training for the national paramilitary force.
7. Develop a business plan to initiate a casual wear brand for a company that manufactures and exports
denim.
8. Prepare a strategy for a local sporting goods company to re-launch itself in the international market.
9. Formulate a financial plan (3 years) for a management and development consultancy, which entails a
balanced scorecard to establish a causal link between actions and strategies.
10. Feasibility study for launching tablets in the local market by a company that manufactures and
markets home appliances and power equipment.
11. Develop a business plan to introduce a spot commodity exchange for agriculture products.
Source: LUMS Documents.
14 Asian Journal of Management Cases

Exhibit 4. Project Timeline

Source: LUMS Documents.
Phase 1 had to be completed by 30 September 2013.
Phase 2 had to be completed by 17 January 2014.
Phase 3 had to be completed by 30 May 2014.
Ahmad and Hussain 15

Notes
1. Identities of the team members are concealed. The case describes events from the perspective of one member.
However, the data were collected from all team members and the opinions expressed are of individual members.
2. The team members individually provided personal information about themselves and about other team members.
3. Elias also worked for a company while doing MBA.
4. Terms of Reference is a document which describes the purpose and structure of a project. It provides a docu-
mented basis for making future decisions and for confirming or developing a common understanding of the
scope among stakeholders.
5. The effect is named after the golem, a clay creature that was given life by Rabbi Loew of Prague in Jewish
mythology. According to the legend, the golem was originally created to protect the Jews of Prague; however,
over time, the golem grew more and more corrupt to the point of spiralling violently out of control and had to
be destroyed. The effect was named after the golem legend in 1982 by Babad, Inbar, and Rosenthal because it
‘represent[s] the concerns of social scientists and educators, which are focused on the negative effects of self-
fulfilling prophecies’.