Students are given Kesmore Corporation's balance sheet as of December 31, 2014, and December 31, 2013, as well as information pertaining to its 2014 activities and asked to prepare a statement of cash flows for 2014 using the indirect method.

Covalent Laboratories Private Ltd. is involved in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients and bulk drugs in Hyderabad, India. In March 2012, the company added a new manufacturing plant and was in the process of obtaining regulatory approvals for its products from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Directorate of Quality of Medicines. Anticipating good growth, the company approached the Commercial Development Bank of India in June 2014 for sanction of a term loan of INR350 million over seven years towards expansion and modernization of its existing manufacturing facilities, including the construction of a captive power plant and effluent treatment plant. As the proposed financial assistance is long term in nature and the company is a new client with average financial strength, the head of the bank's Corporate Banking Department faces a dilemma. He has asked a credit analyst to research the financial performance of the company and to assess the financial viability of and identify the risks in the proposal.

Covalent Laboratories Private Ltd. is involved in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients and bulk drugs in Hyderabad, India. In March 2012, the company added a new manufacturing plant and was in the process of obtaining regulatory approvals for its products from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Directorate of Quality of Medicines. Anticipating good growth, the company approached the Commercial Development Bank of India in June 2014 for sanction of a term loan of INR350 million over seven years towards expansion and modernization of its existing manufacturing facilities, including the construction of a captive power plant and effluent treatment plant. As the proposed financial assistance is long term in nature and the company is a new client with average financial strength, the head of the bank’s Corporate Banking Department faces a dilemma. He has asked a credit analyst to research the financial performance of the company and to assess the financial viability of and identify the risks in the proposal.

WeChat was developed by Tencent Holdings as a lightweight messaging platform. As it grew quickly to become the most popular messaging app in China, it added a range of products and services that sat on top that were designed to appeal to a broad range of consumers and businesses. Official accounts, WeChat payment, and online to offline features expanded its reach, but the core question was whether the company could break out from its home market and offer the rest of the world something that its competitors could not.

Set in 2009-2010, during the fractious U.S. Congressional debate over enacting the Obamacare health reform bill, this ethics case focuses on the choices and constraints facing Bart Stupak, a Democratic Congressman from Michigan's Upper Peninsula, who was both a dedicated advocate for healthcare reform and a lifelong opponent of abortion (as were the majority of voters in his rural, largely Catholic district). The case provides basic background about Stupak, his district, and the Obamacare debate but the heart of the story belongs to the abortion policy sub-plot of the larger healthcare reform drama, which culminated with the final, razor-close vote on the Affordable Care Act in the U.S. House of Representatives on March 21, 2010. At this critical moment, with the fate of the ACA hanging by a thread, the Democratic leadership pressed Stupak and his small group of pro-life House Democrats to abandon their controversial abortion stance and deliver their critically-needed votes to pass the Obamacare bill. At the same time, Stupak's traditional pro-life and Catholic supporters doubled-down on demands that he and his group hold the line, even if it meant dealing the death blow to health reform. Anti-Obamacare Republicans, meantime, maneuvered around the edges, seeking to leverage the abortion issue in a last-ditch effort to kill the bill. The case closely follows Stupak's own perceptions, conflicts, and choices as he tried to walk a middle path in this highly charged atmosphere. In the end, he made a deal with President Barack Obama, who agreed to put abortion restrictions in the form of an executive order in exchange for the support of Stupak and his bloc on the ACA.

As of 2014, housing policies in Singapore continue to be a hot issue with the growing affluence of the population and the long-standing policy of ensuring home ownership for all Singaporeans. Despite the establishment of the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) in 2010, which put in place tighter competition among real estate agents and stricter regulatory rules targeted at cooling the market, ethical concerns surrounding the real estate industry remain. Complaints are mostly made against the agents' unethical behaviour that arise from unsavoury advertising, marketing and sales tactics. This is especially problematic given that real estate agents have an information advantage over buyers and sellers. Without a strong ethical compass, the desire for personal gain and self-interest can often influence agents to act against their clients' best interests. The question remains, will CEA policy action be enough to solve this dilemma?

Discovery Communications Inc., an American global networks company, had entered the Indian television market in 1995 with its eponymous channel offering that focused on non-fiction, infotainment programming. Nearly two decades later, steered by a solid senior management team, it had built a formidable operation with 11 channels spanning various genres and created a strong brand presence in India. Though the company was a leader in almost all the genres in which it operated, the Discovery team knew that they could not afford to be complacent even for a single day in the extremely competitive Indian television market. With close to 800 channels fighting for viewership daily, they had to make quick and tough decisions day in and day out. Looking back on their journey and some of the strategic moves they had made in India, it was evident that they had managed to pick up certain distinct capabilities along the way. Not only had they successfully "Indianized" a global brand, they had also deftly overcome some of the challenges inherent to the television industry in India. What was next for Discovery? This was the question that the team was grappling with in 2014. With their most recent launch, "Discovery Kids," it seemed that they were once again moving in the direction of children's edutainment. Did this mean they were coming full circle? Could they successfully apply what they had learned from the past to the unknown future? How could they do things differently and yet stay true to their vision and brand promise of making the Discovery television experience deep and enriching? The case presents the hard choices that Discovery needed to make at several strategic junctures as the cable television market changed and evolved over the years. It facilitates an in-depth discussion on whether, and how, Discovery has developed the ability to make astute decisions and acquired the necessary agility to respond to the dynamic market in India.

The Ethiopia: An Emerging Market Opportunity? case centers on the potential and challenges of entering an emerging market. It provides a brief overview of the Ethiopian market, market reforms and policies, and the business environment faced by foreign companies. Three multinational businesses, CareCo, ShoeCo, and MedCo, must decide whether and how to enter the Ethiopian market. Students are asked to make a recommendation for each company based on the attractiveness of the market, the factors that matter most for success, and an assessment of what applies to the companies.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 915501.

The 2015 case "Royal Bank of Canada: Transforming Managers (A)" discusses programs that the bank put in place between 2011 and 2013 to improve managerial effectiveness. The case looks at the traits that make good managers, how to use data to create visibility into managerial effectiveness, the features of a successful intervention action plan, and the challenges with finding ways to reward good managers. Specifically, the case focuses on a pilot intervention program within the Canadian Banking operations division that was designed by Human Resources thought leaders in collaboration with Canadian Banking operations' top leaders. The program had multiple parts: 1) Using an analytics model based on the employee opinion survey to rank all managers in the division based on effectiveness; 2) Dividing all managers into four effectiveness cohorts (roughly in quartiles); 3) Identifying the managers most in need of, and most likely to benefit from, manager effectiveness training; and 4) creating and carrying out action plans. The action plans included formal coaching by each of the targeted managers' managers (the most effective intervention), feedback, and formal training. The case concludes as the bank waits for the results of the next employee opinion survey to gauge how effective its management improvement programs were. The companion case, "Royal Bank of Canada: Transforming Managers (B)," discusses the results of the programs.

The 2015 case "Royal Bank of Canada: Transforming Managers (B)" details the success of the manager improvement pilot intervention program discussed in the companion case, "Royal Bank of Canada: Transforming Managers (A)." Within one year, the division that ran the program, the Canadian Banking operations division, saw marked improvement in nearly all of the managers who participated in the program. Based on these results, the division continued to hone the intervention program details, and RBC expanded the program across the bank.

Team Rubicon, a military veteran volunteer disaster relief organization, has experienced significant success in attracting attention and support in its first four years of operation. The challenges of managing the volunteer base, the cost of responding to disasters, and the evolution of the organization raise significant strategic and organizational issues for the founding team.

The case "Greece's Debt: Sustainable?" describes the Greek economic crisis, bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the debt restructuring that followed. Because of a lack of trust in Greece's ability to repay its debt, two programs were organized that provided financial assistance to Greece. This was followed by a debt restructuring that provided debt relief to Greece through a combination of lowering interest rates, lengthening debt maturity, and rebates on interest and principal. The case outlines how International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), U.S. GAAP, and International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) define accounting for debt and describes the controversy that existed around the proper valuation of Greece's debt. Because Greece had not adopted accrual accounting, its debt was reported in face value terms, according to the Maastricht treaty. This was in contradiction to accounting practices that prescribed fair valuation of debt in line with market prices or present value techniques. The case ends with a series of questions that steer the discussion towards the importance of accrual accounting and valuation of debt. Did Greece have too much debt and as a result a solvency problem? Should Greece push lenders to take a haircut on the debt? Were the austerity measures really necessary? Or did Greece have too little debt, therefore allowing the country to avoid austerity measures, increase spending, and spark growth?

This case explores the strategic options available to TAV Airports Holding, a Turkish firm, after it withdraws from a bid to build Istanbul's newest airport. The new airport would eventually replace Istanbul Atatürk Airport, where TAV makes 43% of its current revenue, and losing it will leave the company without a presence in its nation's largest city. TAV weighs four options: continue expanding internationally to the U.S. and other distant markets, buy an ownership stake in Istanbul's other remaining airport, diversify into related businesses, or seek out large infrastructure projects unrelated to airports. Will vertical or geographic diversification be more likely to ensure TAV's future?

This case explores the strategic options available to TAV Airports Holding, a Turkish firm, after it withdraws from a bid to build Istanbul's newest airport. The new airport would eventually replace Istanbul Atatürk Airport, where TAV makes 43% of its current revenue, and losing it will leave the company without a presence in its nation's largest city. TAV weighs four options: continue expanding internationally to the U.S. and other distant markets; buy an ownership stake in Istanbul's other remaining airport; diversify into related businesses; or seek out large infrastructure projects unrelated to airports. Will vertical or geographic diversification be more likely to ensure TAV's future?

In the years after 2009, Qualcomm navigated the wireless industry's transition from 3G to 4G, retaining its technological leadership and experiencing dramatic growth in revenue and profit. In March 2014, Qualcomm appointed a new CEO, Steve Mollenkopf, who had to contend with a rash of new challenges, ranging from new technologies and new competitors to anti-trust battles and an activist shareholder disappointed by weak stock performance. This brief case brings the analysis of Qualcomm's competitive position up to 2015, when it was preparing for the evolution to 5G, while also investing in new areas, such as IoT, automobiles, eHealth, and eEducation, despite a mixed record in diversifying beyond wireless communications technology.

To achieve its goal of redefining success in business, B Lab recognizes it needs to scale. Its strategy to do so requires B Lab to depend heavily on new partners, venture into new markets, influence new audiences, and to strike a balance between standards and flexibility. Is this the right strategy to achieve B Lab's ambitious goals? Is the business world ready to commit, with real accountability, to purposes beyond shareholder value?

John Park, the owner of 401 Games in Toronto, was wondering where to take his store in the future. One of his product lines, board games, was in the midst of a massive expansion and he was at the forefront in the Toronto market. This provided many opportunities for him to explore. He could expand into online sales, as had most of his competitors. As for his bricks-and-mortar store, he would have the opportunity in the next year to rent out additional space as the second and third floors of his current building would become available. Were he to rent out that space, he thought he would open a board-game café. Another option open to him was to open more stores in other parts of Toronto, or other cities entirely. In addition to overall strategic options, he also had decisions to make about product, promotion and price.

The U.S.-based executive vice-president (EVP) of Glenmark Generics Inc., the subsidiary of an Indian generic manufacturer, is weighing his options on whether or not to proceed with what is known as a Launch @ Risk in the U.S. market. Defined as a “risk taken by a generic company when it puts a product on the market before resolving outstanding patent lawsuits against it,” Launch @ Risk is a widely acknowledged route to gain an entry into the world's largest and most profitable pharmaceutical market. The focal product is the generic version of a hypertension drug whose patent is set to expire in 2015. Glenmark Generics has just secured approval from the U.S. Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) to launch a low-cost generic version of the patented drug but the FDA approval is being contested in a court of law by the patent holder. While awaiting the court’s ruling, the EVP must evaluate his company's options and decide whether to proceed, in the interim, with the product launch.

Arçelik, a member of the Turkish Koç Group, had grown from a leading manufacturer of household appliances (also known as ‘white goods’) in Europe’s largest emerging economy to a substantive international player. Yet the company faced new challenges in strengthening its positions in advanced economies, exploiting its competitive advantages across a wider range of emerging economies and in raising the profitability of its international operations. In Western Europe, its Beko brand was often perceived as a low-tier brand, and in most of the region, brand recognition was low. In Eastern Europe, Arçelik’s low-cost strategies matched local demand, but the potential for demand growth was limited. In the Middle East, brand recognition was strong, but political risks remained high. In other emerging economies, Arçelik’s product offering fit local demand patterns well, yet trade barriers inhibited import market penetration. Thus, the firm needed to design and prioritize strategic initiatives for future growth.