Last month, at their invitation, I spent some time at Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., to work with members of the company’s Consumer Operations division on a case study, with a goal of encouraging innovative and forward thinking.

The plan was to present the “Yellowtail Marine” business case study to this group.  The day before I arrived Google launched its Nexus One phone and had a situation with China arise.  The phone release created a slew of customer service complaints.  People looking for support online (which is the method Google handles complaints) were unable to find answers and were required to email questions to Google that would take at least two days to respond to.

This situation presented an opportunity to insert a “real time ” problem into an academic case study and discussion.

The Yellowtail Marine case study seeks to enable individuals  to think about prioritizing and decision making when they’re in a place of upheaval and unintended consequences – almost exactly like the situation Google was faced with in the week following the phone launch.  The case study provided framework for the discussions, while Google’s customer service problems  were analyzed and suggestions discussed.

In the Yellowtail Marine case, students are encouraged to examine who their customers are, what they want and how to satisfy those wants.

During the session, I worked with Consumer Operations group to explore the reasons for the problems and different strategies for improvement. It was important for Google to understand that the Nexus One phone is hardware and different from the search engine and advertising vehicle that Google operated.