DUPONT SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS (A) AND (B)
CASE STUDY SOLUTION
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SYNOPSIS
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Sa
In May 2019, the management team of DuPont de Nemours Inc. (DuPont) was assessing whether to retain
the business entity DuPont Sustainable Solutions (DSS) as part of the overall company, divest it to another
consultancy firm, or sell it to the internal team through a management buyout (MBO). In part A of the case,
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students are given the opportunity to assume the role of the DuPont management team and determine the
best path to pursue.
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In part B of the case, after DuPont’s management team decided to negotiate an MBO for the future of DSS,
students are given an opportunity to assume the role of Davide Vassallo, the chief executive officer (CEO)
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of the newly independent DSS. Vassallo has been tasked with reorganizing DSS as an independent
enterprise and ensuring its credibility as a stand-alone enterprise among employees, clients, vendors, and
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The Case Solution Starts From page 4
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ASSIGNMENT QUESTIONS
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Part A assignment questions
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1. If you were part of the top management team at DuPont, would you divest DSS from DuPont?
2. Should DuPont sell DSS to an independent consultancy or carve it out as an independent company via
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an MBO?
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Part B assignment questions
1. What strategic opportunities beckon for the newly independent DSS?
2. What challenges does the newly independent DSS face in relation to customer and employee
recruitment and retention?
3. How can Vassallo overcome these challenges?
The Case Solution Starts From page 4
, ANALYSIS (PART A)
1. If you were part of the top management team at DuPont, would you divest DSS from DuPont?
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Start by showing the video labelled chapter 5 and entitled “Disruption Comes to the Consulting Industry.”
This helps set the scene that disruption is forcing increasing numbers of companies to become more
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entrepreneurial to survive and grow.
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Next, solicit student responses to the question. Students will be divided over what to do. The main reasons
to divest or retain DSS within DuPont are as follows:
Sa
Divest
• DSS is deemed a non-core business unit (Why? Because DSS bills its clients based on hours spent with
them, not on outcomes (as DuPont does). People are its only assets, not hardware (as with DuPont). Its
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capital requirements, budget, and sales cycles are different as well.) Hence DSS it is a potential
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distraction for DuPont’s top management team).
[Consider the following passage from one of the teaching resources, which can also be assigned to
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students to accompany part A of the case:
So
Smart apple farmers routinely saw off dead and weakened branches to keep their trees healthy.
Every year, they also cut back a number of vigorous limbs—those that are blocking light from the
rest of the tree or otherwise hampering its growth. And, as the growing season progresses, they
pick and discard some perfectly good apples, ensuring that the remaining fruit gets the energy
needed to reach its full size and ripeness. Only through such careful, systematic pruning does an
orchard produce its highest possible yield.3
The Case Solution Starts From page 4
CASE STUDY SOLUTION
e
pl
SYNOPSIS
m
Sa
In May 2019, the management team of DuPont de Nemours Inc. (DuPont) was assessing whether to retain
the business entity DuPont Sustainable Solutions (DSS) as part of the overall company, divest it to another
consultancy firm, or sell it to the internal team through a management buyout (MBO). In part A of the case,
n
students are given the opportunity to assume the role of the DuPont management team and determine the
best path to pursue.
tio
In part B of the case, after DuPont’s management team decided to negotiate an MBO for the future of DSS,
students are given an opportunity to assume the role of Davide Vassallo, the chief executive officer (CEO)
lu
of the newly independent DSS. Vassallo has been tasked with reorganizing DSS as an independent
enterprise and ensuring its credibility as a stand-alone enterprise among employees, clients, vendors, and
So
The Case Solution Starts From page 4
, e
pl
m
Sa
ASSIGNMENT QUESTIONS
n
Part A assignment questions
tio
1. If you were part of the top management team at DuPont, would you divest DSS from DuPont?
2. Should DuPont sell DSS to an independent consultancy or carve it out as an independent company via
lu
an MBO?
So
Part B assignment questions
1. What strategic opportunities beckon for the newly independent DSS?
2. What challenges does the newly independent DSS face in relation to customer and employee
recruitment and retention?
3. How can Vassallo overcome these challenges?
The Case Solution Starts From page 4
, ANALYSIS (PART A)
1. If you were part of the top management team at DuPont, would you divest DSS from DuPont?
e
Start by showing the video labelled chapter 5 and entitled “Disruption Comes to the Consulting Industry.”
This helps set the scene that disruption is forcing increasing numbers of companies to become more
pl
entrepreneurial to survive and grow.
m
Next, solicit student responses to the question. Students will be divided over what to do. The main reasons
to divest or retain DSS within DuPont are as follows:
Sa
Divest
• DSS is deemed a non-core business unit (Why? Because DSS bills its clients based on hours spent with
them, not on outcomes (as DuPont does). People are its only assets, not hardware (as with DuPont). Its
n
capital requirements, budget, and sales cycles are different as well.) Hence DSS it is a potential
tio
distraction for DuPont’s top management team).
[Consider the following passage from one of the teaching resources, which can also be assigned to
lu
students to accompany part A of the case:
So
Smart apple farmers routinely saw off dead and weakened branches to keep their trees healthy.
Every year, they also cut back a number of vigorous limbs—those that are blocking light from the
rest of the tree or otherwise hampering its growth. And, as the growing season progresses, they
pick and discard some perfectly good apples, ensuring that the remaining fruit gets the energy
needed to reach its full size and ripeness. Only through such careful, systematic pruning does an
orchard produce its highest possible yield.3
The Case Solution Starts From page 4
