The newly appointed branch manager at a branch of PEB Securities was worried. He had just finished speaking to a sales assistant regarding a series of transactions made by him over the last few months. Earlier in the day, the branch manager had received a call from a client's lawyer regarding the mishandling of her account by the firm. As he sat down to review the file again, he wondered which of the transactions, if any, exposed the firm to legal liability and what his next course of action should be. The main pedagogical objectives of this case are to explore liability issues. Several transactions are presented; in each case, students must examine the legal as well as ethical issues and determine to what extent the individual or firm can be held liable.
Gervais Lavoie, managing director of the Canadian-Chinese joint venture, Beijing Oasis High Nutrition Food Co., needs to decide what means of distribution is most appropriate for the company's newly-developed fruit nectars. The decision is complicated by the fact that different means of distribution have different implications for the ultimate pricing and promotion of the products.
Kent Van Dyk and Ian Kennard are celebrating their third year anniversary as the owners of Willie's Cafe. Their restaurant has achieved impressive growth but the partners want to grow the business even further. They are contemplating renovating the basement of the restaurant and using the area to expand their catering operations.
Anthony Ng, the general manager of Kowloon Development Co. Ltd., has been approached by a real-estate agent proposing a new development project for possible investment by Kowloon Development. Although the project is attractive, there are a number of associated uncertainties that complicate Ng's decision about whether or not to recommend investment. He has only a few days to review the proposal and make a decision before the next board meeting.
Stock Research Group (SRG) is an information broker. SRG's primary business is serving as a collection point for information useful to investors seeking to invest in small-cap mining companies. SRG, in effect, pulls potential investors to its site, then channels them to the specific sites of companies in which the investors may have an investment interest. SRG's revenue comes from the mining companies, who generally pay on an impression basis (i.e. pay for eyeballs delivered to their web pages). The resource companies are willing to pay for this, since on their own they are much less likely to attract much investor traffic. SRG is also in the business of developing web pages for these small-cap resource firms, since generally the companies do not have in-house expertise to create and maintain their web presence. SRG thus represents a new kind of business - the specialized infomediary, or information broker. SRG is doing quite well financially, something that cannot be said of many web-based companies. SRG's main challenges involve managing growth, deciding on appropriate future directions, and determining how best to lever the virtual community they have created.
One of Canada's high-tech success stories, Bombardier, changed the airline industry with the introduction of its short-haul turbo-prop planes and jets in the early 1990s. By the mid-1990s, a new player from Brazil, Embraer, had entered the market and was capturing a lot of business from Bombardier. Bombardier claimed that the success of Embraer was due to unfair subsidies through a government program, so Bombardier challenged the policies through the WTO. Embraer charged back that Bombardier had long received subsidies through Canadian government loans and grants. In an industry which was expected to double in the next five years, the stakes were high. This case discusses the dispute resolution process within the WTO, and the impacts that subsidies and WTO subsidy restrictions may have on industry structure.
Tom Barnes, executive director of Asiasports Ltd., was evaluating several options for growth for the sports management company. Asiasports principal sports properties were the South China Ice Hockey League and the World Ice Hockey 5's tournament, both based in Hong Kong. Among the alternatives available: Barnes could develop hockey in other countries in Southeast Asia; he could acquire new sports properties; or he could expand into in-line hockey promotion in Hong Kong.
Grant Lewis, a Chartered Accountant (CA) and senior manager at a Big Six professional services firm, was investigating the feasibility of establishing a CA firm with two former colleagues. Mr. Lewis recognized the need for external financing during the start-up phase of the business. In preparation for a meeting with his bank manager, Mr. Lewis has been asked to prepare a projected monthly cash flow statement as well as a balance sheet and income statement for the first year of operations. The primary objective of the case is to get students to develop these financial statements and appreciate the links and differences between a cash flow and an income statement. The case also allows students to examine the bank lending process, discuss the merits and drawbacks of starting a small business, and become familiar with some of the basic components and sources of relevant market information for a new venture.
Anthony Ng, the general manager of Kowloon Development Co. Ltd., has been approached by a real-estate agent proposing a new development project for possible investment by Kowloon Development. Although the project is attractive, there are a number of associated uncertainties that complicate Ng's decision about whether or not to recommend investment. He has only a few days to review the proposal and make a decision before the next board meeting.
Edward Jones is a leading, highly profitable retail brokerage firm with a unique strategy very different from those of its rivals. The case describes Jones's activities and allows a rich discussion of its positioning choices, supporting activities, and tradeoffs. Jones must cope with a rapidly evolving industry, which, at least on the surface, is a threat to its strategy.
Defines management development objectives for family members employed in their family business. Outlines a process of putting these individuals on a career path to provide them with needed developmental experiences while respecting the broader needs of the organization.
Reviews the history of Mike Corbin's entrepreneurial career and describes in detail the successful organization he has created. Explores his management philosophy and leadership. Explores the usefulness of continuing family involvement in this business.
A gifted project leader lacks significant new product development experience. The case highlights the issues and procedures related to defining the project strategy: organizing senior management approvals and support for creating a "heavyweight" team; aligning the disparate perspectives, interests, and biases of project members; and implementing best-practice tools for managing teams within the project. Creates a framework for establishing organizational design rules and key new product development processes, and also provides insights about models of leadership for new product development.
A brief note on the origins and uses of standard times in production process flow diagrams and on the benefits and drawbacks of division of labor. A rewritten version of two earlier notes.
The essence of effective persuasion and negotiation comes down to the ability to craft "frames." A frame orients a reader or listener. It provides the perspective we want the other party to adopt, a rationale for the evidence we present, and the sequential pattern for presenting that evidence. Building a frame consists of four basic steps: 1) Determine your specific objective; 2) Conduct a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis of the other party's current status; 3) Determine the other party's core values; and 4) Write a simple, vivid, evaluative statement linking the three sides. The frame must orient a decision-maker to assess information from the specific perspective that casts the most favorable light on your proposal.
In companies in which a brand is the key source of competitive advantage, it is essential to collect and evaluate data as a part of brand management. To do this, managers need information from a variety of functional areas throughout the firm. One of the ways accountants can provide useful information for marketers is by conducting periodic brand valuations, assigning financial value to the equity created by the name or image of a brand such a NIKE or Intel. Doing this aids management decisions regarding short-term expenditures and long-term benefits. We describe here how brands can be valued and how this information can be used for decision-making. Methods of brand valuation include cost-based approaches, market-based approaches, income-based approaches, and formulary approaches (which use multiple criteria in arriving at brand value, as practiced by the consulting firm Interbrand and Financial World magazine). Advantages and disadvantages of these approaches are noted. The measure of brand value may include subjective elements, but the lack of a financial measure means that the importance of intangible assets might be overlooked. Brand valuation, as a bridge among different functions and disciplines, appears to be the most promising technique capable of illustrating the importance of the brand to managers.