Azim Premji Foundation - Bringing Professional Excellence to Philanthropy Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

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Set in April 2014, this case explores some of the important issues confronting Anurag Behar, CEOs of the Azim Premji Foundation, which had entered the second decade of its existence with renewed vigor and innovative strategies and Dileep Ranjekar.

Ranjekar and Behar had evolved an organizational strategy, after carefully reflecting on the Foundation's previous work, that was defined by the thought of working in an "institutional" mode instead of only in a "programmatic" style. This meant establishing a long-term presence in the places where the Foundation worked (i.e., disadvantaged districts in the state), and engaging on a continuous and long-term basis with the public schooling system to ease change. Given the trajectory that the management team had placed for the Foundation, it was always confronted with issues related to locating the right people with the required skill sets and mindset, finding field staff to conquer the challenges of working in difficult, far-flung places, and scaling up at the correct speed to achieve the desired reach and consequences.

Documenting growth and the development of the Foundation, the case brings to light a number of the key challenges it faced in scaling up. The case emphasizes some of the challenges of building a large, professionally managed not for profit and the tactical decisions that must be done to grow it into a sustainable organization.

PUBLICATION DATE: March 31, 2016 PRODUCT #: ISB060-PDF-ENG

This is just an excerpt. This case is about STRATEGY & EXECUTION