The DIA of Tomorrow: Can New Ownership Turn Around the Business? (Portuguese Version, Portugal)

Description

In 2019, seven years after its IPO, DIA, the third largest supermarket chain in Spain in sales, was going through the most notable crisis in its history. That year they had narrowly avoided a situation of technical bankruptcy, thanks to the intervention of LetterOne, the investment fund of Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman who, after a long, complex, and controversial takeover, had become the largest shareholder in the company. One of LetterOne's first decisions had been to put, in May 2019, Karl-Heinz Holland in charge of the company and Stephan DuCharme as chairman of the new Board of Directors. It is about reflecting on key issues for the new CEO and the new Board: Learning from what happened until 2018, what should be the priority areas of the new CEO to move the company forward? What should be the priorities and contributions of the new Board of Directors of DIA to achieve continuity for the company?

Learning Objective

This case has been designed with the objective of the participant putting themselves in the place of the new top executive or as a new member of the Board of Directors, when everything changes simultaneously in the organization: ownership, Board, senior management and management team. And all this while the company is experiencing a complicated business and financial situation. Specifically, it is about analyzing: - How to deal with the process of taking control of the company. - What role, what priorities and what questions would the new CEO have to ask to revive the company? - What role should it play, what issues should it address and what contributions should the Board of Directors make? Depending on the type of program and its attendees, the case can be addressed with a greater focus on the issues that should concern the new top executive or the Board of Directors.

Keywords

Dia General management Karl-Heinz Holland Organizational change property and government