Within a short time frame, seven diverse team members assemble to write a business plan for a new company and struggle to define their roles, make decisions together, and resolve conflict. Henry Tam, a second-year Harvard MBA student, who joins an aspiring start-up company and a fellow classmate to enter the school's business plan contest. The founders of the company are two internationally accomplished musicians and a 1987 Harvard MBA, all Russian, who are trying to create, produce, and sell a unique computer-based music game. Conflict builds as the team generates a range of ideas about how to market their product, but has trouble agreeing on which ideas to pursue. Henry Tam wrestles with how to fix the problems that have hindered the team's progress.
Warners Inc. is a world-leading packaged goods company that supplies a large number of packaged goods to Marshalls International Inc., a leading mass merchandiser. The health and beauty category manager at Warners has been asked to examine its hair care category for opportunities to allow Marshalls to achieve a leadership position in the category among its competitors. He must examine the leading retailers in the category and their marketing strategies and compare them to Marshalls' strategy.
The first food safety commission is established for the European Union. How does it handle food safety, scientific evaluations, and people's attitudes toward scientific changes in food growing and processing--for example, genetically modified organisms?
Surging costs of building a state-of-the-art fabrication facility were pushing firms to outsource manufacturing while advanced technologies were requiring a tighter coupling between design and manufacturing. Explores the development of strategy in this environment. Although Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) began as a pure-play manufacturer, its position in the industry grew, and it had the power to wield influence over several critical control points in the chip development process. The central issue is the decision TSMC must make regarding how to structure its dependencies and interfaces with its customers and technology suppliers.
This appendix supports student preparation of the associated multimedia case study of the same name. See the abstract and teaching note for that case to obtain a summary of the teaching purpose, subject, issues, and classroom applications. Information contained in this appendix would be useful in executive education settings and wherever the student needs hard-copy reference to the material in the case. Generally, students who are adept at use of the computer will find this appendix to be redundant. Thus, the instructor's use of this appendix is entirely optional and should be linked to the needs of the student.
In May 1999, the CEO of this company (the largest brewer in Brazil) is contemplating a bid for Antarctica, the second-largest brewer in Brazil. The primary motives are to exploit economies of scale and other synergies and to prevent other competitors (mainly foreign multinationals) from acquiring the firm. The tasks for the student are to value the target and buyer, propose an exchange ratio of shares, and generally design the terms of the transaction.
Andy Carr, the founder of a small consulting firm that specializes in telephone call-centers, is completing an analysis of call center operations for Lion Financial Services (LFS). LFS operates three call centers that collectively employ 170 agents and handle 30,000 calls per week. Agents are organized into different "pools," according to their training and experience; complicated rules are used for routing calls among the three centers and their constituent pools. Carr's analysis and recommendations touch upon a variety of issues: capacity requirements, including the mix of agents by skill category; training programs, promotion ladders, and the definition of agent pools; call routing protocols; potential benefits of physical consolidation; and most prominently, the degree of call "scripting" that is appropriate in designing the LFS work system. Carr believes that by developing a small number of "call blueprints," training agents in their use, and measuring adherence to the blueprints in call-monitoring programs, LFS can improve the quality of service it delivers and reduce the experience and educational levels required of its call-center agents. Concerns are raised about the creation of a factorylike atmosphere.
Mike Ramsey, TiVo's CEO, must decide on which direction to build the company. Facing an onslaught of new competitors, a huge opportunity in the cable industry, and the possibility of becoming the new "user interface" for TV entertainment, Ramsey must balance the demands for profitability with the hope of driving TiVo to mass adoption.
Duke University Health System has for the past five years operated a specialized clinic for the management of congestive heart failure, a very common and costly condition in the surrounding community. Nurse practitioners, whose work is guided by highly specified protocols and overseen by cardiologists, staff the multidisciplinary clinic. The chancellor of the health system views the program as a huge financial burden and an undesirable use of academic cardiologists' time. The case examines models of disease management; Duke's heart failure program operations, finances, and outcomes of disease management; and the relationship between its nurse practitioners and cardiologists.
BLES Biochemicals Inc., a research and development company, specializes in natural surfactants. After many years of trying, the president has finally obtained approval for the company's only product, BLES, which is used to help premature babies suffering from respiratory distress syndrome--without it, they could die. The company was able to sell the product in advance of receiving approval but with the news of receiving the go ahead, the president had to decide his next move. The obvious step was to pursue international expansion: The worldwide market potential for BLES was incredible. However, there were trade-offs associated with each of the markets under consideration. Moreover, the inherent risks associated with growth gave him cause for concern. He was anxious to develop a growth strategy that explicitly considered the interests of the company, prospective patients, his family, his partners, and his employees.
The group product manager for Xbox Canada was working on his marketing plan for the product's second year in the Canadian market. Xbox is a video game console and trailed Sony's PlayStation 2 in the marketplace. The group product manager must present his plan at the Microsoft Global Briefing. He knew the gaming market was turbulent and fickle and he wondered what he might do as an encore to the Xbox launch program.
Rogers Communications Inc.'s interest in acquiring Videotron caused the chief executive officer at Quebecor Inc. to consider purchasing the company as well. Quebecor was a large international printing, publishing and media company and this acquisition would make the company the third largest cable TV company in Canada. The acquisition had a number of considerations: it would require CRTC approval, Videotron did not earn the same level of return on assets and sales as Quebecor's other lines of business, there were questions about the quality of Videotron's management, the purchase would limit cash flow affecting the growth and development of new products and services and countering Rogers offer could led to a bidding war. Did the company want to go down this road?
Supernova is the name given to a new way to manage client relationships that originated in the Merrill Lynch Indianapolis offices. During a trial period, Supernova generated very good results among financial advisers and their customers, but challenged the traditional ways in which financial advisers were rewarded and the nature of the relationship with their clients. The case protagonist needs to decide whether to recommend a national rollout for Supernova.
This team-based exercise uses an educational tool called "The Electric Maze," developed by Interel Corp., to teach insights about the social and psychological challenges facing employees who must engage in collaborative learning. The tool is a grid-patterned rug with 54 squares implanted with electronic programmable sensors that beep when pressure is applied. The instructor programs the maze in advance to create a pathway of nonbeeping contiguous squares from one side to the other. Because students have no information about how to traverse the maze correctly, experimentation--a systematic iterative process of trial and failure--is needed to develop a solution. Provides instructions for students participating in the exercise and should be distributed only at the beginning of the simulation.