The Indian Railways 'Cash Cow' - Over or Extra Loading? (A): Confidential Instructions for Sudhir Kumar

This two-party case is designed to teach negotiation within the context of turnaround management, stakeholder management, change management or public sector negotiation. The negotiation between Sudhir Kumar, Officer on Special Duty to the Minister of Railways, and Gaurav Malik, Chief Engineer, is about how to maximise revenues for the ailing Indian Railways, notably by increasing rolling stock axle loads without compromising safety. The case emphasizes the tension between commercial gains and social needs, but also lends itself to discussions about safety, corruption, government and business in India.

• Mapping out stakeholder engagement negotiations • Change management in power-distributed organizations • Negotiating under suspicion • Using negotiation to go from novice to expert • Negotiating corruption • Cross-cultural negotiations, but not cross-border or international • Negotiating conflicting financial and social goals