When a bomb explodes in a train station in Boston, the executive team of a financial services firm across the street is plunged into crisis mode. No one is prepared for the city's request to use the firm's lobby as a triage center and temporary morgue. The CEO's instinct is to say yes, but as his team debates the consequences--liability issues, the effect on traumatized employees--he realizes just how complicated a decision it is. Two experts comment on this fictional case study in R1003L and R1003Z. James J. Dunne III, senior managing principal at Sandler O'Neill + Partners, says that acting ethically is what saved his firm after 9/11. Leonard J. Marcus, founding codirector of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, advises the CEO to do what will help employees bounce back the quickest.
When a bomb explodes in a train station in Boston, the executive team of a financial services firm across the street is plunged into crisis mode. No one is prepared for the city's request to use the firm's lobby as a triage center and temporary morgue. The CEO's instinct is to say yes, but as his team debates the consequences--liability issues, the effect on traumatized employees--he realizes just how complicated a decision it is. Two experts comment on this fictional case study in R1003L and R1003Z. James J. Dunne III, senior managing principal at Sandler O'Neill + Partners, says that acting ethically is what saved his firm after 9/11. Leonard J. Marcus, founding codirector of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, advises the CEO to do what will help employees bounce back the quickest.
When a bomb explodes in a train station in Boston, the executive team of a financial services firm across the street is plunged into crisis mode. No one is prepared for the city's request to use the firm's lobby as a triage center and temporary morgue. The CEO's instinct is to say yes, but as his team debates the consequences--liability issues, the effect on traumatized employees--he realizes just how complicated a decision it is. Two experts comment on this fictional case study in R1003L and R1003Z. James J. Dunne III, senior managing principal at Sandler O'Neill + Partners, says that acting ethically is what saved his firm after 9/11. Leonard J. Marcus, founding codirector of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, advises the CEO to do what will help employees bounce back the quickest.
Case (A) starts by reviewing several attempts made by three consecutive Argentine governments between 1973 and 1989 to fight the three-digit inflation rates that had troubled the country since the end of World War II. Next, the implementation of the currency peg under the broad umbrella called the "convertibility plan" is discussed and its rationale is explained in connection with the Central Bank's role in controlling inflation and market expectations. The case then outlines the fiscal reforms introduced in the early 1990s concerning public finance, market regulation, and social security. Finally, the outcomes of these policies are briefly summarized.
The national economic implications of rising healthcare costs were poorly understood, even as the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom instituted reforms in early 2010. Presenting opportunities for cross-national policy learning, this case describes the political economy of healthcare reform. In late March 2010, a major healthcare reform act was signed into law in the United States, expanding coverage and regulating insurers. However, it was not clear that expanding coverage would resolve a longstanding dilemma of rising costs for insurance and care. As the Department of Health and Human Services implemented the new law, it drew on lessons from Germany, which had implemented changes to regulated but competitive insurance and provider markets, and the United Kingdom, which had introduced market-style initiatives while keeping insurance and delivery under the National Health Service.
Franz Humer, CEO of the Roche Group, must decide whether to mount a hostile tender offer for the publicly-owned shares of Roche's biotechnology subsidiary, Genentech. The case provides opportunities to analyze Roche's strategy with respect to Genentech, the pros and cons of merging the two companies with different cultures, the value of Genentech, and the tactics of a hostile tender offer.
"CityCenter (C)" follows the (A) and (B) cases chronologically. The (C) case explores the decisions facing MGM MIRAGE following a lawsuit by partner Dubai World and suspension of Dubai World's cash contributions to the project in early 2009. Issues include the discussion of activity by secured lenders and other involved financial actors, like Carl Icahn and James Packer, as well as MGM MIRAGE major stockholder Kirk Kerkorian. The firm considers various options and remedies with respect to the claim by Dubai World. "CityCenter (C)" can serve as an in-class handout to advance class discussion of the (A) and (B) cases to encompass events as they unfolded.
"CityCenter (D)" follows the (A), (B), and (C) cases with subsequent chronological events through CityCenter's grand opening in December 2009 and financial results through March 2010. The case includes a simple valuation exercise intended to explore CEO Jim Murren's options as he seeks to avoid an MGM MIRAGE bankruptcy. The (D) case presents Murren with the choice of selling the Borgata casino in New Jersey or receiving an ownership stake in CityCenter itself. Students will draw on EBITDA comparables and projections to complete a simple valuation analysis to take a position on which asset to sell. "CityCenter (D)" can serve as an in-class exercise or homework assignment to follow discussion of the (C) case.
This case follows UV4253, which is designed to allow two integration teams, each representing one of two different companies, to construct a joint post-acquisition-integration plan. The confidential background about one of the companies is provided in this case for one of the teams. UV4254 provides confidential information about the other company.
This three-case series, set internationally (Japan) explores corporate responsibility and brand rebuilding in the face of a serious crisis. Suitable for MBA, executive education, and undergraduate students, it depicts a consumer advocate's decision-making process as she considers whether to help the company restore its reputation. In spring 2002, leading consumer activist Nobuko Hiwasa was invited to join the Japanese company Snow Brand Milk Products' board of directors. The CEO wanted her to assist in SBM's revitalization efforts, which were being implemented in the wake of two recent scandals-contaminated milk and beef mislabeling-that had almost brought down the venerable company. Hiwasa had to decide whether to take on this Herculean task. Was the company sincere in wanting to reform and revitalize? Would she be accepted as an equal among the board members, and would her views and suggestions be given serious consideration? Was the request publicity-driven? How would fellow consumer advocates view her if she accepted the position? This case details the history of Snow Brand Milk Products and the missteps and scandals that plagued it in the 1990s and early part of the decade that followed, and includes Nobuko Hiwasa's decision making process as she considers whether to join the board of a company that has been badly tainted by scandal.
This case outlines the turnaround efforts Snow Brand undertook to address its grave missteps: shifting to a consumer-oriented, integrity-focused management style; providing greater transparency and communication; establishing a corporate ethics committee and a Snow Brands Code of Conduct. In June 2002, after much consideration and reflection on Snow Brand's issues (as outlined in the A case), consumer activist Nobuko Hiwasa joined its new board as its sole outside director, serving as the impetus for the changes the company made. Her appointment indicated Snow Brand Milk Products was indeed serious about reform and revitalization.
The turnaround at Snow Brand Milk Products was a real learning experience for all involved. The lessons were many, and while prioritizing them was difficult, it seemed clear that the most significant was the realization that the company existed to serve the consumer and, through that service, the broader society. This brief case outlines the successes that Nobuko Hiwasa pushed Snow Brand management to accomplish, and introduces the challenges that the company faced in 2009: primarily, continuing to build its Corporate Social Responsibility approach and addressing environmental and social issues.
Lars Hallberg is preparing for a meeting with the executive management of Sandvik Tooling, a world leader in metal cutting tools. The purpose of the meeting is to review the Coromant Recycling Concept (CRC), a global recycling program for Coromant, the leading brand of Sandvik Tooling. The case is an opportunity to evaluate a global recycling program, including its value to the company from business and environmental perspective, the match between the reverse and forward supply chain as well as decisions regarding keeping recycling in house or outsourcing it.
In December 2008, Thomas G. Tsao, acting CEO of Digital Media Group (DMG), a venture-backed provider of technology and media used primarily in subways, must decide how to structure the company's bid for the advertising concession in Shanghai's 13 existing and planned subway lines. This is complicated by the fact that he is also a general partner in Gobi Partners, one of DMG's largest investors. The company is bidding against its largest competitor, which also investigated acquiring DMG a few months before. DMG has very little cash, and the publicly traded competitor knows it. How does Tom structure the bid? How does he get the money for it? How does he manage the company, given its inability to attract a CEO and his firm's need to have an exit? Lastly, how does he manage his responsibilities - to his firm, his limited partners, his coinvestors, and the company?
PANELpro is a startup company and presently a subcontract assembler of control panels. Its president is a former high-tech executive with technological, management and sales experience who wants the company to grow rapidly based on such expertise. He is unsure of the business model to follow (design, assembly, parts distributor or consulting) and how to promote PANELpro. He has some information about potential customers and competition but wants more before proceeding. Two marketing research approaches have been suggested but he ponders whether he should spend his limited funds on research or act based on what he already knows from his corporate experience. If he spends on research, what should be its objective, method and possible payoff?
This case considers the process of organizational transformation undertaken by Partners Healthcare System (PHS) since the 1990s as their hospital and affiliated ambulatory medical practices have adopted both EMR and CPOE systems. Encompassing a strategic investment in information technologies, wide-spread process change, and the pervasive use of institutional clinical decision support and knowledge management systems, this story has been 15 years in the making, culminating in 2009 with the network-wide use of EMR and CPOE by all PHS doctors. These developments in turn opened the door to the redefinition of services delivery and to the replacement of established therapies through the leveraging of the knowledge residing in 4.6 million now-digitized PHS patient records. As such, the PHS experience serves as a window into how one organization strove to address the daunting challenges of 21st century health care services information management, as a template for success in the implementation of large-scale information systems among research-based hospitals across the United States, and more broadly as a learning platform for industry executives in their efforts to transform health care delivery through data and knowledge management.
In the decade that the chairman, president and chief operating officer of Linens 'N Things (LNT) had been leading the firm, there had been significant changes to the industry. Specifically, its main competitor was experiencing higher sales and profits with the result of increased market share. External advice was sought to identify strategies available to LNT to catch up to its competitor and a successful Guest Oriented, Locally-Driven (GOLD) pilot was launched. Due to dwindling interests and internal resistance to the initiative, however, the chairman was left to decide what to do with the roll-out. He had several options to consider: Should he maintain the current pilot, or simply shut it down? Could it be changed or altered to encourage participation? Should it be district-specific? Or perhaps issuing an executive mandate would generate involvement. The chairman knew any decision would have to consider these and other cultural and strategic issues.
In January 2010 Mark Pincus is deciding how to double the number of Zynga games' players to 500 million without sacrificing profitability. These ambitious growth plans required changes to product, corporate strategy, and customer acquisition and retention. With regard to product Pincus needed to decide to invest in evolving the successful games or develop new games. With regard to corporate strategy, Pincus had to choose whether each game should compete on its own, or force every game to build functionalities that support other Zynga games too. Finally, to ensure customer acquisition and retention Pincus faced the choice between deepening commitment to Facebook or developing its own distribution channels.
In 2009, Amyris Biotechnologies was building a plant in Brazil that used synthetic biology to convert sugarcane into both renewable fuels and renewable chemicals. The Amyris' marketing team was investigating the commercial interest for both types of products, while the research and development team and the operations group were building processes that could accommodate both as well. CEO John Melo hoped to have commercial product available in 2011; however, he realized that pursuing both chemicals and fuels added even more complexity to a business that was already executing multiple development steps in parallel. The case looks at the various strategic and operational decisions facing Melo as he planned the company's optimal commercialization strategy.