A symphony orchestra facing declining profitability despite increased marketing must identify the root cause and recommend a sustainable profit improvement strategy. Through data analysis, candidates discover subscription ticket revenue is the primary driver of decline, then use subscriber preference surveys to determine that orchestra quality improvements—specifically either hiring a renowned conductor or increasing principal chair salaries—can restore profitability.
Key Insights:
- Root cause analysis requires breaking down revenue by ticket type to isolate the primary driver (subscription tickets represent largest loss)
- Quantitative data (Harvey balls) must be converted to weighted scores to identify the most impactful driver of customer satisfaction
- Both proposed solutions achieve the $3M profitability target; recommendation quality depends on qualitative justification of strategic choice
- Price sensitivity should be considered—management’s consistent price reductions may signal overvaluation rather than address fundamental quality issues
- New subscriber dominance (51% <1 year tenure) suggests opportunity to address their distinct preferences vs. longer-term subscribers