Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' Net Present Value (NPV) / MBA Resources

Introduction to Net Present Value (NPV) - What is Net Present Value (NPV) ? How it impacts financial decisions regarding project management?

NPV solution for Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Benoit Leleux, Kurt Verweire, Marion Debruyne. The Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' (referred as “Horovitz Teauform” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Strategy & Execution. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Assessing performance, Corporate governance, Customers, Human resource management, Organizational culture, Strategy execution, Supply chain.

The net present value (NPV) of an investment proposal is the present value of the proposal’s net cash flows less the proposal’s initial cash outflow. If a project’s NPV is greater than or equal to zero, the project should be accepted.

NPV = Present Value of Future Cash Flows LESS Project’s Initial Investment

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Case Description of Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' Case Study

The ChA?teauform' case describes how Jacques Horovitz founded a unique concept in the saturated hotel and seminar market that existing hotel chains find difficult to copy and conquer. The case outlines why the new company has entered that market successfully and how Horovitz grew this concept by copying his success formula in other countries and for different target groups. Permanent questioning and reinvention were keys to the sustainability of ChA?teauform', which maintained the agility and nimbleness of a startup even though it had grown to a company with revenues exceeding a??100 million and almost 1,000 employees. Key to the success of the ChA?teauform' model are some very original solutions to classic supply chain management quagmires in the service industry. The case describes how Horovitz successfully managed this growth. It is a good illustration of how to implement a strategy built on customer centricity and customer intimacy. An interesting element of this case study is the emphasis on managing by values rather than rules and on realigning the whole value chain to make sure the value creation is indeed managed at the customer level, forcing a corporate structure that is very innovative.

Case Authors : Benoit Leleux, Kurt Verweire, Marion Debruyne

Topic : Strategy & Execution

Related Areas : Assessing performance, Corporate governance, Customers, Human resource management, Organizational culture, Strategy execution, Supply chain

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10026352)	-10026352	-	-
Year 1	3458332	-6568020	3458332	0.9434	3262577
Year 2	3959309	-2608711	7417641	0.89	3523771
Year 3	3965564	1356853	11383205	0.8396	3329564
Year 4	3244424	4601277	14627629	0.7921	2569888
TOTAL			14627629		12685800

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2659448

In isolation the NPV number doesn't mean much but put in right context then it is one of the best method to evaluate project returns. In this article we will cover -

Different methods of capital budgeting

What is NPV & Formula of NPV,
How it is calculated,
How to use NPV number for project evaluation, and
Scenario Planning given risks and management priorities.

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Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting

There are four types of capital budgeting techniques that are widely used in the corporate world –

1. Profitability Index
2. Internal Rate of Return
3. Net Present Value
4. Payback Period

Apart from the Payback period method which is an additive method, rest of the methods are based on Discounted Cash Flow technique. Even though cash flow can be calculated based on the nature of the project, for the simplicity of the article we are assuming that all the expected cash flows are realized at the end of the year.

Discounted Cash Flow approaches provide a more objective basis for evaluating and selecting investment projects. They take into consideration both –

1. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Horovitz Teauform have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.
2. Magnitude of both incoming and outgoing cash flows – Projects can be capital intensive, time intensive, or both. Horovitz Teauform shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform'

NPV = Net Cash In Flowt1 / (1+r)t1 + Net Cash In Flowt2 / (1+r)t2 + … Net Cash In Flowtn / (1+r)tn
Less Net Cash Out Flowt0 / (1+r)t0

Where t = time period, in this case year 1, year 2 and so on.
r = discount rate or return that could be earned using other safe proposition such as fixed deposit or treasury bond rate. Net Cash In Flow – What the firm will get each year.
Net Cash Out Flow – What the firm needs to invest initially in the project.

Step 1 – Understand the nature of the project and calculate cash flow for each year.
Step 2 – Discount those cash flow based on the discount rate.
Step 3 – Add all the discounted cash flow.
Step 4 – Selection of the project

Why Strategy & Execution Managers need to know Financial Tools such as Net Present Value (NPV)?

In our daily workplace we often come across people and colleagues who are just focused on their core competency and targets they have to deliver. For example marketing managers at Horovitz Teauform often design programs whose objective is to drive brand awareness and customer reach. But how that 30 point increase in brand awareness or 10 point increase in customer touch points will result into shareholders’ value is not specified.

To overcome such scenarios managers at Horovitz Teauform needs to not only know the financial aspect of project management but also needs to have tools to integrate them into part of the project development and monitoring plan.

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 15%

After working through various assumptions we reached a conclusion that risk is far higher than 6%. In a reasonably stable industry with weak competition - 15% discount rate can be a good benchmark.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 15 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10026352)	-10026352	-	-
Year 1	3458332	-6568020	3458332	0.8696	3007245
Year 2	3959309	-2608711	7417641	0.7561	2993806
Year 3	3965564	1356853	11383205	0.6575	2607423
Year 4	3244424	4601277	14627629	0.5718	1855010
TOTAL					10463484

The Net NPV after 4 years is 437132

(10463484 - 10026352 )

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 20%

If the risk component is high in the industry then we should go for a higher hurdle rate / discount rate of 20%.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 20 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10026352)	-10026352	-	-
Year 1	3458332	-6568020	3458332	0.8333	2881943
Year 2	3959309	-2608711	7417641	0.6944	2749520
Year 3	3965564	1356853	11383205	0.5787	2294887
Year 4	3244424	4601277	14627629	0.4823	1564633
TOTAL					9490984

The Net NPV after 4 years is -535368

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9490984 - 10026352 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Horovitz Teauform to discount cash flow at lower discount rates such as 15%.

Acceptance Criteria of a Project based on NPV

Simplest Approach – If the investment project of Horovitz Teauform has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Horovitz Teauform can ACCEPT the project, otherwise they can reject the project. This means that project will deliver higher returns over the period of time than any alternate investment strategy.

In theory if the required rate of return or discount rate is chosen correctly by finance managers at Horovitz Teauform, then the stock price of the Horovitz Teauform should change by same amount of the NPV. In real world we know that share price also reflects various other factors that can be related to both macro and micro environment.

In the same vein – accepting the project with zero NPV should result in stagnant share price. Finance managers use discount rates as a measure of risk components in the project execution process.

Sensitivity Analysis

Project selection is often a far more complex decision than just choosing it based on the NPV number. Finance managers at Horovitz Teauform should conduct a sensitivity analysis to better understand not only the inherent risk of the projects but also how those risks can be either factored in or mitigated during the project execution. Sensitivity analysis helps in –

What will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

What are the uncertainties surrounding the project Initial Cash Outlay (ICO’s). ICO’s often have several different components such as land, machinery, building, and other equipment.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What are the key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

Some of the assumptions while using the Discounted Cash Flow Methods –

Projects are assumed to be Mutually Exclusive – This is seldom the came in modern day giant organizations where projects are often inter-related and rejecting a project solely based on NPV can result in sunk cost from a related project.

Independent projects have independent cash flows – As explained in the marketing project – though the project may look independent but in reality it is not as the brand awareness project can be closely associated with the spending on sales promotions and product specific advertising.

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Negotiation Strategy of Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform'

References & Further Readings

Benoit Leleux, Kurt Verweire, Marion Debruyne (2018), "Sustaining Customer Centricity at Chateauform' Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.