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TEACHING NOTE
CASE 23
Robin Hood
Overview
This 2-page case is a classic that works great in the classroom. It forces students to think outside the box,
challenging them to analyze Robin Hood’s crusade against the Sheriff of Nottingham in business terms.
As the case unfolds, Robin Hood’s problems are multiplying. His main source of revenue is declining as
travelers are beginning to avoid coming through the forest (The market is in decline! The present strategy has run
out of gas. Does Robin Hood need to expand into new geographic markets to maintain and grow revenues?). Yet,
because the fame of his Merrymen is spreading, new recruits are pouring in. The size of his band is beginning
to exceed the food capacity of the forest and the band’s camp, because of its increasing size, is easier to detect.
Discipline is becoming harder to enforce. (In other words, costs are rising and diseconomies of scale have
set in—Robin Hood is caught in a classic profit squeeze! Moreover, the culture is being eroded because all
the newcomers do not have the same values and beliefs as the original members who had a common bond of
opposing the evil Sheriff and trying to redress grievances of the downtrodden at the hands of the ruling class.
Furthermore, the Sheriff’s forces are growing stronger (i.e., competition is intensifying!). Robin needs an action
plan to deal with the deteriorating situation, and he needs to implement it quickly.
Suggestions for Using the Case
We positioned this case as the lead off case for the strategy execution section (Chapters 10-12) for three reasons.
One, the case is short—something that students always appreciate. Two, and more importantly, it is an excellent
transition case—there are elements of both crafting strategy and executing the chosen strategy for students to
consider in arriving at their action recommendations. The implementation/execution issues lurking in this case
cut across a wide front—organization, culture, motivation and commitment, policies, control, and leadership.
Some kind of action on Robin Hood’s part is urgently needed—indeed, some pretty big decisions are needed.
The twin issues of “what to do” and “how to achieve good results quickly” are pervasive. Three, in teaching this
case over the years, we’ve seen time and again that the Robin Hood case has all of the ingredients for producing
an exceptionally lively, entertaining class discussion. It’s a case that is virtually certain to be popular with
students, and it’s a fun case to teach.
However, you can also use the Robin Hood case as a leadoff case for the course. The case involves issues relating
to mission, objectives, strategy, and decisive strategic leadership; the need for an action plan is obvious—these
are the very things one looks for in a good leadoff case. And the nature of the case virtually guarantees the
stimulating kind of class discussion one needs to get the course off on the right foot.
*This teaching note reflects the thinking and analysis of Professor Armand Gilinsky, Sonoma State University. We are most grateful
for his insight, analysis and contributions to how the case can be taught successfully.
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What to Tell Students in Preparing the Robin Hood Case for Class. To give students guidance in
what to do and think about in preparing the Robin Hood case for class discussion, we strongly recommend
that you provide class members with assignment questions and insist that they prepare good notes/answers to
these questions before coming to class. Our recommended assignment questions for the Robin Hood case are
presented in the next section of this TN.
To facilitate your use of assignment questions and making them available to students, we have posted a file of
the Assignment Questions contained in this teaching note in the instructor’s resources section of the Connect
Library. (You should be aware that there is a set of assignment questions posted in the student OLC for each of
the 31 cases included in the 21st Edition.)
In our experience, it is quite difficult to have an insightful and constructive class discussion of an assigned case
unless students have conscientiously have made use of pertinent core concepts and analytical tools in preparing
substantive answers to a set of well-conceived study questions before they come to class. In our classes, we
expect students to bring their notes to the study questions to use/refer to in responding to the questions that
we pose. Moreover, students often find that a set of study questions is useful in helping them prepare oral
team presentations and written case assignments—in addition to whatever directive question(s) you supply for
these assignments. Hence, we urge that you provide students with assignment questions—either those we have
provided or a set of your own questions—for all those aspects of a case that you believe are worthy of student
analysis or that you plan to cover during your class discussion of the case.
Utilizing the Guide to Case Analysis. If this is your first assigned case, you may find it beneficial to have
class members read the Guide to Case Analysis that follows Case 31 in the text and in the instructor’s resources
section of the Connect Library. The content of this Guide is particularly helpful to students if your course is
their first experience with cases and they are unsure about the mechanics of how to prepare a case for class
discussion, oral presentation, or written analysis.
Videos for Use with the Robin Hood Case. There are two videos that complement the teaching points of
the case that you can show (or let students view on their own) when having class discussion of the case:
nA 2:26-minute 2014 video entitled “Sheryl Sandberg: What I Learned from Google.” It can be
accessed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TWI8L2oWYo
nA 2:15-minute 2015 video entitled “Insights on Leadership: Sara Blakely, Sir Richard Branson, and
Richard Anderson.” It can be accessed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKhEuKVk0Jc
Suggested Assignment Questions for an Oral Team Presentation or Written Case Analysis.
The length of the case makes it ideal for an in-class written case or a final exam case. Our suggested written
assignment questions are as follows:
1. As Robin Hood’s most trusted advisor (and as someone knowledgeable in the ways of crafting and executing
effective strategies), please prepare an action plan for Robin Hood’s consideration. It is your job to convince
him to pursue your proposed plan; hence your report should include full justification and arguments to
support your recommended course of action.
2. Since you are Robin Hood’s most trusted advisor and are most knowledgeable about crafting and
implementing effective strategies, he has called upon you to advise him on how to proceed in light of the
situation. Within the next few hours, Robin Hood expects you to provide him with:
(a) A rundown of the issues he needs to address
(b) An appropriate action plan that includes
n a mission,
n a set of performance objectives,
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n a strategy for dealing with the issues/problems he confronts, and
n the action steps that will need to be taken to implement the strategy effectively.
Please provide supporting analysis and persuasive argument for your recommended course of action (you must
convince him to do what you suggest!) and you need to be specific about what to do and how to do it.
Assignment Questions
1. What problems does Robin Hood have? What issues need to be addressed?
2. Do Robin Hood and the Merrymen need a new mission? new objectives? a new strategy?
3. What strategic options does Robin Hood have? Is continuing with the present strategy an option or is the
present strategy obsolete?
4. Why not try to end the campaign by killing the Sheriff?
5. What are the pros and cons of accepting the offer of the barons to assist in securing King Richard’s release
from prison?
6. What action plan would you recommend to Robin?
7. How should Robin implement the recommended plan? What action steps will need to be taken to make the
recommended strategy work successfully?
Teaching Outline and Analysis
1. What problems does Robin Hood have? What issues need to be addressed?
Robin Hood and his Merrymen are caught in a classic “profit” squeeze. Revenues are down because travelers
are avoiding routes through Sherwood Forest. Costs are rising as new recruits pour in and as foraging for
food supplies must reach out farther and farther from the main encampment. Students ought to see that
diseconomies of scale are becoming a serious problem. As a consequence, Robin has to be concerned about
the Merrymen’s ability to continue to succeed at its mission of “rob from the rich and give to the poor.”
There are fewer “customers” to rob. Falling revenues combined with rising costs means there is less “profit”
(or dividends) to distribute to the poor (or “shareholders”).
Moreover, there are cracks appearing in the culture. Robin Hood and his original small close-knit band of
Merrymen shared a common bond and set of values: oppose the evil Sheriff and try to redress grievances
Several issues have to be addressed:
n Whether to institute the fixed transit tax (and shift to a new business purpose or mission).
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2. Do Robin Hood and the Merrymen need a new mission? new performance targets? a new
strategy?
The issue of whether a whole new strategic direction (mission, objectives, and strategy) is needed should be
explored fairly early in the class discussion because the conclusions reached will drive the action plan that
emerges. You can attack the issue of strategic direction by asking the class whether the band’s traditional
mission of robbing the rich and giving to the poor is fast becoming obsolete in light of events.
n Will there soon be any bounty to distribute to the poor? With revenues on the decline and costs on the
rise, won’t “profits” dry up?
n Can Robin Hood and his Merrymen continue to count on support from their constituency (the poor, the
n The Merrymen’s common bond and shared values involve their mutual desire to oppose the Sheriff and
his administration. Robin Hood forged his original band from men who were united in enmity against
the Sheriff, had a deep sense of justice, and were willing to live outside the law to accomplish their
n If the mission-purpose-motto is “rob from the rich and give to the poor,” then what are the appropriate
objectives or performance targets?
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3. What strategic options does Robin Hood have?
Continuing with the present strategy is not a viable option. A SWOT analysis can help sort out the alternative
courses of action Robin Hood needs to consider:
Strengths
n The increasing size of the band
Weaknesses
n The increasing size of the band (raises costs and increases the chances of detection by the Sheriff’s
forces)
n Discipline is becoming harder to enforce—the culture has some disturbing cracks
Opportunities
n Impose a fixed transit tax
Threats
n The Sheriff is growing stronger in terms of money, men, and facilities
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4. Does it make sense to impose a fixed transit tax to counter the decline in revenues?
The fixed transit tax would entail an altogether new business definition and business purpose. While it might
rejuvenate revenues if the tax is viewed by travelers as an acceptable price to pay for safe passage through
the forest, a fixed transit tax is a questionable alternative. The Merrymen will resist such a radical redefinition
of the band’s purpose; they are proud of their motto: “Rob from the rich and give to the poor.” A transit tax,
imposed uniformly on rich and poor travelers alike, would antagonize the band’s main source of support
and information (the poor and the townspeople) in addition to its lack of cultural fit or temperamental fit.
5. What about expanding the band’s operations to geographical areas to the north, south,
east, and west of Sherwood Forest as a way of rejuvenating revenues and cash flows?
At first blush, this option has some appeal. Expanding into new geographic areas could provide a much
needed revenue boost and thwart the efforts of rich travelers and abbots to use routes around Sherwood
Forest. It would also capitalize on the increasing size of the band and provide jobs for the new recruits
pouring in.
But geographic expansion would pose serious problems for Robin Hood and his functional organization
structure. With the present organization, Robin Hood can maintain tight personal control over all operations
and supervise his key lieutenants (Will Scarlett, Little John, Scarlock, and Much the Miller’s Son). Shifting
to a strategy of geographic expansion to the north, south, east, and west of Sherwood Forest would probably
require shifting to a geographical organization structure.
n Who would be put in charge of the geographical units? Are Will Scarlett, Little John, Scarlock, or Much
the Miller’s Son ready to assume general management responsibility—their skills and experiences are
limited to a single functional areas? Could anyone other than a loyal lieutenant be trusted with the job
of heading up a geographic unit?
n Would not each band need to operate on a decentralized basis and assume responsibility for handling
n How would the operations of the geographical units be coordinated?
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forces? Which decisions would it make sense for Robin to decentralize; for instance should he be
willing to delegate authority for specific “raids” to his geographic heads or should all plans for raids
be cleared with Robin first? Should he simply set policies and guidelines and concern himself mainly
with supervising the geographic heads? How often should he expect reports from them—daily, weekly,
monthly?
You should raise as many of the above questions with the class as seems necessary to get the class to see the
range of managerial and organizational issues that a geographic expansion strategy entails. This phase of the
6. Why not try to end the campaign by killing the Sheri?
While the case states that killing the Sheriff would “not solve the basic problem,” some members of the class
may not see why this option holds out no solution for Robin. Or, they may disagree with the statement in the
case. So this is an issue you may want to explore briefly.
Killing the Sheriff has numerous problems as a solution. To begin with, should “murder” or “assassination”
be countenanced? Is this a legitimate purpose of the organization? Is it compatible with the band’s mission/
motto of “rob from the rich and give to the poor” (which, it might be argued, is a “nobler purpose”)? Is
7. What are the pros and cons of accepting the oer of the barons to assist in securing King
Richard’s release from prison?
While this option may not have seemed appealing at the outset, by this point in the class discussion it starts
to loom as something that must be considered very seriously. None of the other options have stood up
under careful scrutiny. We like to dig into this option by asking the class why the barons have approached
Robin for his assistance. The obvious reason, it seems to us, is because Robin Hood’s activities put him in a
position to provide some of the ransom. He might also serve as an emissary to deliver the ransom and some
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expertise from members of his organization could prove valuable as well. But, Robin’s primary value to the
barons is likely the assist he could provide in collecting the necessary monies for the ransom. There’s likely
to be no disagreement from the class on this point.
The benefit of Robin joining with the barons is the promise of amnesty for himself. Amnesty gives Robin a
way out of his dilemma and offers a way to successfully end his campaign against the Sheriff. Yes, there are
risks but they seem no greater than are posed by the other options he has.
But there are some difficulties that some class members may not have thought about.
n If Robin gets amnesty, then he has his golden parachute. But what about the rest of the Merrymen? Is
Robin to abandon them to fend for themselves?
8. What action plan would you recommend to Robin?
9. How should Robin implement the recommended plan? What action steps will need to be
taken to make the recommended strategy work successfully?
Assuming that the choice is to pursue negotiations with the barons and participate in their efforts to restore
King Richard to the throne, there are several actions that Robin should take:
n Have a meeting with the Merrymen and explain fully the strategic dilemma that the organization finds
itself in for the long term and the tough choices that have to be made. Let everyone know that the future
does not look promising, that things cannot continue going as they have been, and that the time has
come to chart a new course.
n Stop accepting recruits immediately and begin a program to downsize the organization.
n Encourage people to leave the organization voluntarily. Perhaps Little John should come down hard on
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n Pursue negotiations with the barons to secure amnesty for all the remaining Merrymen, the justification
being that their efforts have helped generate the monies that Robin Hood can contribute to the ransom
for King Richard.
n Avoid further conflict with the Sheriff and lessen the urgency for the Sheriff to secure reinforcements.