Permanent Light Bulbs

Case Prompt

A small R&D lab in the Swiss Alps has developed a super-durable filament for light bulbs; with this filament, the light bulb will never burn out.

• The light bulb industry is dominated by two multinational producers. The two companies sell their products side by side for essentially the same price in similar outlets internationally.
• There are several small local players in various regions of the world who produce local brands and some private store brand light bulbs.
• There have been no technological innovations in light bulbs for many years.

The lab is ready to license this product to a light bulb manufacturer.

Case Overview

This case involves a client that has developed a new technology that will revolutionize the market for light bulbs. You’ve been tasked with helping the client develop a strategy to take the product to market – how should the client proceed?

As you develop a structure for the case, you can use the Market Study Framework. However, firms do not want to see you relying on the basic frameworks. They want to see if you have the ability to blend different frameworks and incorporate your own business smarts into the structure.

This OC&C case has a qualitative difficulty of 1/4 – it’s a beginner level case for some fairly easy case interview practice (first round level). The math is also beginner-level, and you can expect to be asked to interpret some visual representations of data (exhibits).

OC&C Interview Tips

OC&C is looking for candidates who show the ability to use common sense and logic in their decision-making processes.

Stay away from using any jargon in the case.

Make the most of your case interview practice by taking note of the areas you struggle in in the case. Then, use our math, exhibit, or structure drills to double down on those areas.

Need an extra boost in your interview prep? Book an hour of case interview practice with an expert coach today.