Appropriate for courses in operations design and performance management. Owners and employees of this company spent considerable effort developing a unique, extremely successful high-performance work place culture based on trust and a decentralized structure and little direct supervision from middle and upper management. Now management wants to consider blending a Lean or Six Sigma program into their work-place culture. A Business Process Improvement Team evaluates four different system designs for launching Lean-Six Sigma. The three-part case series follows the team's investigations, selection criteria development, assessments, and final decision. Students are asked to consider the pros and cons of the alternatives of the team, prepare a recommendation for the senior managers and then critique their choice against the team's recommendation. There is a teaching note (OM-1393TN) available.
Liza Davis, an upscale women's fashion retailer, is reeling from worldwide recession and lower demand. Should the company target the fast growing bargain hunter segment or hold the line on price discounts to preserve its brand image? Customer profitability calculations show that the bargain hunting customer loses money--does that mean the company should ignore this customer in favor of full-price shoppers?
Apple initially recognized revenue associated with its iPhone product using subscription accounting. However, in 2008, the company started providing non-GAAP supplemental numbers where substantially all of the revenue was recognized upfront. Market participants' reactions to the disclosure were mixed. Was Apple "right" in arguing that subscription accounting was inadequate for the iPhone?
The founders of B Lab are on a mission to create a new sector of the economy, and are specifically focused on a three objectives: 1) building a community of Certified B Corporations (B=Benefit) that legally expand their corporate responsibilities to include consideration of diverse stakeholder interests, 2) advancing the public policies necessary to create a new corporate form called a Benefit Corporation, and 3) creating an investment rating system to help drive institutional investment to the emerging asset class of "impact investments." The case considers the challenges associated with achieving each one of these objectives, let alone all three at the same time. Is B Lab's tripartite strategy its secret sauce or its albatross?
This case deals with a rural charitable homeopathic hospital in the state of Maharashtra, India, set in the year 2008. The hospital, Dr. M. L. Dhawale Memorial Trust's Rural Homeopathic Hospital, is one among many clinics and hospitals run by the Dr. M. L. Dhawale Memorial Trust (MLDT). Dr. Navin Pawaskar, the head of the hospital, has to make recommendations to the management team to improve the profitability of the hospital and be financially sustainable. He has findings and data from a field study done by management students of S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai, India. The study involved a preliminary costing exercise of the various services offered in the hospital. The data from the costing exercise must now be analyzed to arrive at actionable conclusions.
The CEO of the company set up to manage a British government effort to promote the venture capital industry considers the progress made to date, as well as how the program can be adjusted.
This short case is intended as a vehicle instructors can use to introduce cases to a management or leadership class and to start a discussion about what organizational effectiveness looks like. The case reviews the experiences of two different managers of top English soccer teams. Students must use the information provided to advise the boards of these teams about whether the two managers deserve to be sacked. Information in the first part of the case provides information about team performance (wins and losses), manager popularity, and other factors that influence perspectives on effectiveness. The second part of the case shows decisions about who was actually sacked, which may surprise some. The two parts together allow for an interesting discussion about what organizational effectiveness is really about. HKS Case Number 1933.0
This sequel is a follow-up to a short case intended as a vehicle instructors can use to introduce cases to a management or leadership class, and to start a discussion about what organizational 'effectiveness' looks like. The case reviews experience of two different managers in top English soccer teams. Students must use the information provided to advise the boards of these teams about whether the two managers deserve to be 'sacked'. Information in the first part of the case provides information about team performance (wins and losses), manager popularity, and such factors that influence perspectives on effectiveness. The second part of the case shows decisions about who was actually 'sacked' which may surprise some. The two parts together allow for an interesting discussion about what organizational 'effectiveness' is really about. HKS Case Number 1933.1
In February 2010, Jane Mendillo, CEO of Harvard Management Company, was reflecting on the list of issues facing Harvard University's endowment in preparation for the upcoming board meeting. The recent financial crisis had vividly highlighted several key issues including the adequacy of short-term liquidity, the effectiveness of portfolio risk management, and the balance of internal and external managers.
Mary Erdoes, the CEO of JP Morgan's Asset Management business, and three colleagues provide insights into risk management issues faced by the firm's Private Bank during the financial crisis in 2008-2009. The case provides perspective on the philosophy with which they approach risk management, issues of greatest concern, tools and processes used in practice, the benefits and limitations of quantitative models and balance between the use of models and exercising judgment, and lessons learned from the crisis about risk management.
Red Lobster, a 40-year-old chain of seafood restaurants, has just completed some market research revealing an opportunity to shift their target customer segment. The chain is in the final stages of a 10-year plan of rejuvenation under CEO Kim Lopdrup. When he took over as CEO in 2004 the chain was closing restaurants and suffering declining same store sales and declining customer satisfaction. But in 2010, even in a recession, the fortunes of the chain are improving. A recently commissioned market research study has revealed, unexpectedly, that 25% of Red Lobster's customers are "experientials," people coming for a "good evening out" rather than Red Lobster's traditional core customer who came because of a craving for seafood. Should this news cause Lopdrup to do anything differently?
In 2010 Glenn Dubin reflected upon the enduring organization and culture he and co-founder Henry Swieca had infused into Highbridge Capital Management over the course of almost two decades. Since the firm's launch in 1992, New York-based Highbridge had grown to become a diversified investment platform comprising hedge funds, traditional asset management products, and credit and equity investments with longer-term holding periods. The company employed more than 315 people at offices in New York, London, Hong Kong and Tokyo, and managed $21 billion for prominent institutional investors, public and corporate pension funds, endowments, foundations and family offices. Highbridge was known by many on Wall Street as a "benchmark," largely due to the firm's investment performance and to the diversity and dynamism of the organization. Investors had come to rely on Highbridge's consistent returns and attention to risk management. The firm comprised a group of gifted, committed professionals as a result of Dubin's longtime focus on talent, nurturing a culture of collaboration, building a sophisticated risk management and technology platform, and maintaining a robust operating infrastructure. In 2009, J.P. Morgan completed its purchase of Highbridge-a strategic partnership the two organizations began in 2004 when J.P. Morgan Asset Management purchased a majority interest in the firm. In 2010, Dubin described his desired impact on the increasingly complex and sophisticated organization: "I hope that my legacy will be a bigger and more diversified Highbridge-but one that has the same culture and core principles of excellence, staffed with individuals with high integrity and an interest in successful collaboration. This is the only way I know to ensure that our initial goal of creating an organization that can outlive its founders will be achieved."
Windward Investment Management has experienced rapid growth in assets under management in just ten years, from under $30 million at year end 1999 to $3.6 billion in 2010. Windward is one of the leading firms in the Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) industry that seeks to value for its investors through asset diversification and active macro-level investing. The firm implements its proprietary investment model by trading exclusively exchange traded funds (ETF). Windward is considering a range of future growth opportunities and how to finance those opportunities, including raising external capital. The case focuses on the decision of what opportunities Windward should consider and on the valuation of the firm if it decides to raise external capital.
A fast-growing retailer is facing two different leasing options for its stores. In choosing between the two options, management is considering the potential impact of the two options on the company's financial statements, in light of the proposed new accounting standard for leases.