Is crowdsourcing really the proper strategy for tackling a health crisis as severe as the opioid epidemic? We admit to having our doubts. However, this case from Professor Mitch Weiss addresses those underlying skepticisms and offers a fascinating look at what can happen when innovative minds use creative tactics to get disparate stakeholders for a desperate problem in the same room together so they can finally start talking.

With a finance empire spanning mobile/online payments, wealth management, digital-first banking, credit scoring, and yes, cryptocurrencies, Ant Financial is one of the most influential fintech companies in the world. This case from DI professor Feng Zhu on how Ant Financial has managed its growth strategy is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the current state of fintech innovation today.

What are some of the ways that pioneering companies are redefining the relationship with their customers in the digital age? By keeping in mind the importance of such strategies as using the right digital channels, adding value to your customers, and staying flexible to the emergence of new technologies. This article from HBR provides salient insights into how retailers can develop a similarly effective digital strategy as they navigate a rapidly changing industry.

With promises of making big money off of readers without relying on subscriptions and hundreds of alleged partners who’ve signed on as early testers, publishing startup Invisibly might just be the next big thing/media’s best kept secrets. But if it’s not subscriptions, and it’s not advertising, what exactly is Invisibly’s play – and how can they be so confident it will translate into billions?

In response to the growing tendency towards short-form content and 140-character length snippets, Medium established itself as a destination for thought pieces and long-form articles. This case from Robert Siegel and Matthew Saucedo takes a look inside the challenges facing Medium’s leadership team as they strive to build a successful digital media company and develop a sustainable monetization model. As journalism innovates, can Medium serve as a noteworthy model for publishing in the digital age?

One of the most pressing issues facing the news & media today is how to navigate and define journalism’s evolving relationship with giant actors in the platform economy like Facebook, Google. As the 2016 presidential election and the skyrocketing of fake news show, these platforms wield enormous power in shaping the societal dialogue around critical issues, and publishers must grapple with the ramifications of being disintermediated.

Professor Bharat Anand offers some germane and timely advice for media companies (hint: all companies are media companies now) in the digital age. Namely, Anand revisits newspapers and reveals some surprising facts about what really caused the industry’s decline. Professor Anand’s insights are useful for anyone looking to play in the digital landscape and leverage the power of connections to develop profitable business models and avoid falling into the “content trap.”

In an innovative data-sharing partnership, Waze’s Connected Citizen Program connects local governments with traffic incident and congestion data. Professor Mitchell Weiss’s case on the program offers a masterclass in management principles for how small partnerships with government can scale like they’re a Silicon Valley hotshot and successfully build cities fit for the future.