The cost of control: Building an IT strategy at Kora Foods

This case explores the strategic, organisational, and technological challenges faced by a rapidly growing Nigerian SME – Kora Foods – as it confronts the limitations of its informal digital infrastructure. Founded during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kora has scaled swiftly by supplying frozen, ready-to-eat meals to supermarkets and schools across southwest Nigeria. However, as order volumes increase, the company’s reliance on manual processes, fragmented tools, and centralised decision-making by the CEO, Temi Adebayo, begins to undermine efficiency and reliability. The case introduces an operations manager, Musa Ibrahim, who advocates for formalising Kora’s IT function and implementing an integrated digital system. This proposal sparks a strategic dilemma as to whether the organisation should invest in structured technology now or continue relying on lean, people-driven processes. The narrative unfolds against the backdrop of infrastructure limitations, cultural resistance, and a founder’s instinct to retain control. Set in a dynamic emerging-market context, the case challenges students to examine how IT strategy can be aligned with business growth, how change should be managed in resource-constrained environments, and how SMEs can design technology systems that are fit for context. Through Musa and Temi’s conflicting perspectives, students are invited to engage with complex questions of governance, organisational readiness, leadership, and sustainable innovation.