It was the peak of summer in Delhi. With the temperature soaring to 47 degrees Celsius, the city was facing power cuts. Amid the looming threat of a potential power crisis, the chief executive officer (CEO) of an electricity distribution company in the city was wondering how technology could help in providing reliable power to all while mitigating other key challenges. He needed to bring down the aggregate technical and commercial losses further so that the company could generate higher revenue with the same power input and still provide better satisfaction to the customers. Not satisfied with the company close to being a benchmark nationally on various parameters, the CEO aspired to meet international benchmarks in power distribution.

A nascent women's apparel online store on Tmall, China's largest business-to-consumer retail platform operated by Alibaba Group, was just beginning to establish itself on the online market utilizing the tools and services provided by Tmall to develop and operate its business. Within four months after the business was launched, Tmall unexpectedly released a new policy which significantly increased the annual service fee and cash deposit for individual stores. This new policy, which was to come into effect in less than three months following the announcement, could render the business of small- and medium-sized e-commerce stores, such as the new women's apparel start-up, on Tmall unprofitable. The management team of the fledgling clothing business had to reconsider whether to renew their contract with Tmall or transfer their store to one of the alternative online platforms, such as Alibaba Group's Taobao Marketplace, Tencent Group's Shop.QQ or Amazon.com's Amazon.cn.

A nascent women’s apparel online store on Tmall, China's largest business-to-consumer retail platform operated by Alibaba Group, was just beginning to establish itself on the online market utilizing the tools and services provided by Tmall to develop and operate its business. Within four months after the business was launched, Tmall unexpectedly released a new policy which significantly increased the annual service fee and cash deposit for individual stores. This new policy, which was to come into effect in less than three months following the announcement, could render the business of small- and medium-sized e-commerce stores, such as the new women’s apparel start-up, on Tmall unprofitable. The management team of the fledgling clothing business had to reconsider whether to renew their contract with Tmall or transfer their store to one of the alternative online platforms, such as Alibaba Group's Taobao Marketplace, Tencent Group’s Shop.QQ or Amazon.com’s Amazon.cn.

It was the peak of summer in Delhi. With the temperature soaring to 47 degrees Celsius, the city was facing power cuts. Amid the looming threat of a potential power crisis, the chief executive officer (CEO) of an electricity distribution company in the city was wondering how technology could help in providing reliable power to all while mitigating other key challenges. He needed to bring down the aggregate technical and commercial losses further so that the company could generate higher revenue with the same power input and still provide better satisfaction to the customers. Not satisfied with the company close to being a benchmark nationally on various parameters, the CEO aspired to meet international benchmarks in power distribution.

A merchant fraud scandal threatened Chinese e-commerce group, Alibaba Group, endangering its positioning, corporate values, reputation, brand strength, share price value and performance. It compromised Alibaba’s leaders’ credibility and the public’s perception of the trustworthiness of Internet-based trading. In the fallout of the scandal, two talented executives were accused of negligence. The board of directors had to decide how to respond to this crisis and to prevent future fraud on Alibaba’s diversified web-based trading platform. Was dismissing the executives the most effective way to achieve these goals?

Following a turbulent 2014 for Standard Chartered Bank, the bank’s largest shareholder, Temasek Holdings, began showing indications that it was seriously considering offloading at least a portion of its massive shareholdings in Standard Chartered Bank. This case seeks to provide a fair valuation of Standard Chartered Bank’s intrinsic value, as well as rationalize the most appropriate way for Standard Chartered Bank to raise funds to satisfy the higher capital requirements under Basel III regulatory rules. Assuming that Standard Chartered Bank decided to hold on to its significant bank investments and to raise funds to satisfy the higher capital requirements, what could be some possible financing alternatives? Would it help to attract more bank deposits, raise debt, or go for a seasoned offering? What would be the impact of these financing alternatives? Finally, what would be a suitable recommendation on how to raise the funds if one took the valuation results into consideration?

By 2015, there had been an upsurge in activist shareholders arguing for radical changes in companies' corporate strategies. Personalities like Carl Icahn, Bill Ackman, and Daniel Loeb were feared and loathed in some quarters, celebrated in others. With nearly $120 billion in assets under management in 2014, and big players like Icahn Enterprises managing $22.3 billion, Pershing Square managing $13.4 billion, and Third Point managing $8.3 billion, activist hedge funds had become a prominent feature of the corporate landscape, escaping some of their earlier approbation as corporate raiders or, even worse, "greenmailers." Activism covered a range of approaches-from proxy votes and demands for Board seats, to full blown takeover attempts-and sought to pressure changes on a wide range of issues-from corporate governance and executive pay, to strategic direction and excessive corporate overhead. Yet one of the most common concerned the scope of the corporation. In many cases, activists demanded the splitting up of the corporate entity, or the spinning off or sale of part of the company to another owner.

This two-part case looks at the issues related to the Metropolitan Opera's decision to start transmitting its productions in high definition (HD) to movie theatres after the arrival of its new general manager, Peter Gelb, on August 1, 2006. Part A provides students with all the details needed to assess this decision. It outlines the Met's general and competitive position within the performing arts at the time Gelb took over management, explains the Met's business environment (Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) analysis, its direct and indirect competition in New York and from other major opera houses in the U.S. and around the world), and the facts needed to analyse the various distribution methods available to the Met. It allows students to determine the viability of Gelb's plan to take the Met into movie houses, considering its implications for the company and the changes it would require to the Met's traditional business model as well as its competitive environment. Part B introduces students to the factors underlying the Live in HD project implemented by Gelb and its commercial and financial success. It concludes with a discussion of the possible next steps in the wake of this technological innovation, given that some challenges remain (such as lowering the average age of Met audiences) and their implications from a competitive perspective.

This two-part case looks at the issues related to the Metropolitan Opera's decision to start transmitting its productions in high definition (HD) to movie theatres after the arrival of its new general manager, Peter Gelb, on August 1, 2006. Part A provides students with all the details needed to assess this decision. It outlines the Met's general and competitive position within the performing arts at the time Gelb took over management, explains the Met's business environment (Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) analysis, its direct and indirect competition in New York and from other major opera houses in the U.S. and around the world), and the facts needed to analyse the various distribution methods available to the Met. It allows students to determine the viability of Gelb's plan to take the Met into movie houses, considering its implications for the company and the changes it would require to the Met's traditional business model as well as its competitive environment. Part B introduces students to the factors underlying the Live in HD project implemented by Gelb and its commercial and financial success. It concludes with a discussion of the possible next steps in the wake of this technological innovation, given that some challenges remain (such as lowering the average age of Met audiences) and their implications from a competitive perspective.

Performance feedback is crucial to a career in the information-rich global economy. However, feedback is psychologically stressful to both give, and hear. This teaching note explains why feedback is both valuable and difficult, and goes on to summarize research on effective feedback scenarios. What are the different kinds of feedback? What are the ideal qualities of the feedback giver, and recipient? How do corporate and national culture affect feedback practices? The note ends with a step-by-step "script" for formal feedback situations or performance reviews, with recommendations for both the giver and recipient of the feedback.

According to recent studies by Gartner Group, best practices for a successful adoption of collaboration technologies are still unknown. This case describes the difficult adoption of such a technology within an organization, and the approach used to analyze and diagnose the weaknesses of the process so as to correct the situation. In the case, a step back is taken so as to better understand the organizational, social, cultural and technological context of a collaboration technology and to make a more informed decision about the management practices to be implemented to support its adoption.

"The kitchen purchase" is a simulation of bargaining over the price of a fitted kitchen. The case study consists of a briefing for the sellers (the Hase family) and a briefing for the buyers (the Stulle family). On the basis of these briefings the course participants negotiate individually or in teams of two. The case study has been kept simple so that the negotiations can be conducted with very little preparation time needed. At the same time the case study presents a few "stumbling blocks" and permits a profound discussion on the distributive and integrative conduct of negotiations, handling bargaining power, and the ethics of bargaining. The case study is therefore especially well-suited for course participants with intermediate to advanced negotiating experience.

"The kitchen purchase" is a simulation of bargaining over the price of a fitted kitchen. The case study consists of a briefing for the sellers (the Hase family) and a briefing for the buyers (the Stulle family). On the basis of these briefings the course participants negotiate individually or in teams of two. The case study has been kept simple so that the negotiations can be conducted with very little preparation time needed. At the same time the case study presents a few "stumbling blocks" and permits a profound discussion on the distributive and integrative conduct of negotiations, handling bargaining power, and the ethics of bargaining. The case study is therefore especially well-suited for course participants with intermediate to advanced negotiating experience.

Agile Scrum is a process to guide the creation and delivery of working software to clients. This book explains the basics of Agile Scrum, why it is used, what it can be used for, and how to use it. The process of Agile Scrum includes manageable iterations (sprints) and team meetings to keep work on track (ceremonies). Agile Scrum is described in a structured way to teach students how to work effectively on an Agile team in order to improve their marketability. A particular discussion about managing risk in an Agile Scrum environment is also given, and each chapter ends with questions and activities to reinforce learning. This book will help new Agile Scrum team members, team leaders, trainers, and educators understand Agile Scrum and how best to use it. Chapter 1 describes the basics of Agile Scrum, a process that guides the creation and delivery of working software to the client community and that can be used in various other areas, like creating an online training. Reasons why Agile Scrum is valuable are given as well as a short background on the IT industry and the "Manifesto for Agile Software Development." An in-depth example of using Agile Scrum is offered, including a diagram of how the process works and what each step entails.

Agile Scrum is a process to guide the creation and delivery of working software to clients. This book explains the basics of Agile Scrum, why it is used, what it can be used for, and how to use it. The process of Agile Scrum includes manageable iterations (sprints) and team meetings to keep work on track (ceremonies). Agile Scrum is described in a structured way to teach students how to work effectively on an Agile team in order to improve their marketability. A particular discussion about managing risk in an Agile Scrum environment is also given, and each chapter ends with questions and activities to reinforce learning. This book will help new Agile Scrum team members, team leaders, trainers, and educators understand Agile Scrum and how best to use it. This chapter provides a more in-depth look at exactly how Agile Scrum works. Ceremonies - including the vision ceremony, grooming ceremony, and repeating iteration ceremonies - are explained. The basics of creating user stories are given along with the process of backlog grooming - a way of converting user stories to be accepted into an Agile Scrum iteration. The Agile iteration cycle is discussed in detail; the process includes iteration planning, building, testing, and moving to production. While the three ceremonies happen at certain times, the daily standup ceremony occurs every working day.

Agile Scrum is a process to guide the creation and delivery of working software to clients. This book explains the basics of Agile Scrum, why it is used, what it can be used for, and how to use it. The process of Agile Scrum includes manageable iterations (sprints) and team meetings to keep work on track (ceremonies). Agile Scrum is described in a structured way to teach students how to work effectively on an Agile team in order to improve their marketability. A particular discussion about managing risk in an Agile Scrum environment is also given, and each chapter ends with questions and activities to reinforce learning. This book will help new Agile Scrum team members, team leaders, trainers, and educators understand Agile Scrum and how best to use it. This chapter looks at key systems of Agile Scrum further - user stories, ceremonies, story pointing, and burn down charts. Everything an Agile Scrum team does relates back to user stories. Objectives that good user stories meet are outlined along with a template for user stories. Ceremonies are meetings with specific purposes and are held on particular days in the Agile cycle. An example chart of a ceremony schedule is provided as is a chart outlining the purpose, agenda, who, and when of each type of ceremony. Story pointing creates a rough planning estimate at the macro level. Examples, charts, and words of caution concerning story pointing are all offered. Burn down charts show how much of a team's available time has been used rather than assuming a constant use of hours at the same level every day. Descriptions of how to build and use a burn down chart are given. These four systems make up the necessary infrastructure to have an Agile Scrum team function.