Zum: Reinventing Student Transportation
2025
| Case No.
E881
| Length
20 pgs.
This case study follows Ritu Narayan, founder and CEO of Zum, as she redefines student transportation by applying a technology-driven approach to an industry that had seen little modernization. Zum evolved from a consumer-facing rideshare marketplace—launched by Narayan to address a problem she knew intimately as a working parent—into a transportation partner to the largest public school districts in the country, and ultimately into a leader in modernizing school bus fleets through electrification. This path required Narayan to pivot the company multiple times, making bold moves and difficult decisions. The case examines the technological transformation Zum brought to student transportation, including the introduction of dynamic route optimization, real-time bus tracking, and RFID-based student check-in systems, which set a new standard for safety and transparency.
Learning Objective
The learning objective for this case study is to understand how a founder-led company evolves through multiple business model shifts while managing operational complexity and strategic decision-making at scale. The case provides a platform to analyze Zum’s transformation across three distinct eras—from a consumer-facing rideshare service, to a technology-enabled transportation partner for public school districts, to a leader in the digitization and electrification of the student transportation industry—and the implications of each pivot for asset strategy, customer segmentation, revenue models, and technology deployment. Students will examine how Narayan navigated key inflection points in the company’s development, including decisions around asset ownership, product-market fit, and stakeholder alignment.
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