Firms in high-technology industries frequently face the dangers and opportunities associated with strategic inflection points in their development trajectory. Strategic inflection points (SIPs) are caused by changes in fundamental industry dynamics, winning strategies, and dominant technologies. SIPs generate strategic dissonance in the organization because they are associated with divergences between the basis of competition and the firm's distinctive competence, and between top management's strategic intent and strategic action. Top management can take advantage of the information generated by strategic dissonance to develop new strategic intent and lead the organization through the turbulence and uncertainty associated with SIPs. This requires a capacity for strategic recognition on the part of top and senior management. Strategic recognition in turn is facilitated by an internal selection environment that allocates resources based on competitive reality and values dissent and debate. Strategic recognition is the foundation for exerting strategic leadership: encouraging debate and bringing debate to a conclusion that realigns the basis of competition and distinctive competence.
When Washington attorney and longtime Capital Hill staff member James Woolsey became director of the Central Intelligence Agency in 1993, he inherited a bombshell that would soon become public. A joint CIA-FBI investigation had found that Aldrich Ames, a longtime Agency employee, had sold intelligence secrets to the Soviet Union. Ames had compromised the safety of Soviets, who had sought to help the US, in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars, with which he bought a large home and fancy cars. The public announcement of the Ames scandal in February 1994 would pose a dilemma for Woolsey. Public and Congressional reaction -- focused on the failure of the CIA itself to detect Ames' duplicity for almost a decade -- was harshly critical of the Agency. There was a widespread expectation that Woolsey would mete out harsh punishment for those who had failed to detect Ames' activity. For his part, however, Woolsey was unsure as to what sort of punishment, if any, was appropriate. As a public clamor grew for "heads to roll," Woolsey would have to consider what was fair to long-time CIA officials, what was best for the morale of a beleaguered agency, and what was expected by the public. HKS Case Number 1339.0.
The road to the breakthrough Dayton Peace Accords, which ushered in the prospect of a stable peace in the war-torn former Yugoslavia, is built through an intricate, high-pressure negotiation brokered by the United States and involving Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and the western European powers. This case focuses on the dynamics of those negotiations as led by US State Department chief negotiator Richard Holbrooke and members of his negotiating team. It raises strategy issues (When would it be wise to push for a ceasefire?); ethics issues (Is it moral to negotiate with those accused of war crimes?); and personality issues (Is it strategy or the force of Holbrooke's personality which ultimately brings the parties to the table?). Based on extensive interviews with Mr. Holbrooke, this case brings to light new details about one of the highest-stakes negotiations of the post-Cold War era. HKS Case Number 1356.0
FOX Venture Partners (FVP) is a proposed "Fund-of-Funds" that will enable wealthy individuals to invest in venture capital. While several leading venture capitalists are enthusiastic about the concept, FVP's general partners are finding it difficult to invest individually in the fund.
City Year, a successful nonprofit organization, is studying how, when, and where to expand to new sites. This case provides the opportunity to understand the strategy and structure of a successful delivery system for human services. That analysis raises the question of how best to expand to new sites, highlighting classic challenges faced by entrepreneurial enterprises seeking to grow.
In 1994, Lenzing AG, the world's largest rayon manufacturer, is deciding whether to expand production in South Pacific Viscose, its Indonesian subsidiary. Indonesia is a booming market for rayon, but management still has some concerns about the expansion. First, for the plant to remain successful, Lenzing's downstream customers--textile producers--must also remain in Indonesia. Second, despite being located in an area of tropical forests, the Indonesian plant has no local access to wood pulp, its most critical input. Finally, with the expansion, Lenzing would be increasing its exposure in a country that remains politically and economically uncertain.
The new vice president of the industrial group at Vickers, Inc., a pump manufacturer, must decide whether to shut down the company's largest production facility located in Omaha, Nebraska. The plant is plagued by antiquated equipment, antagonistic union relations, and an unclear mission for the future.
As businesses expand worldwide, corporations are increasingly being forced to grapple with definitions of "acceptable" foreign conduct. What differentiates a "bribe" from a "commission"? Should managers abroad refer to local custom or their own national laws in determining how to respond to ambiguous or conflicting situations? The case contains 10 short scenarios and asks students to evaluate how they would respond to each.
Maureen Frye, assistant product manager at Quaker Steel and Alloy Corp., is asked to implement an action plan for changing the call pattern of the salesforce. Currently the salesforce is spending too much time on small accounts. Earlier Frye attempted to change their call patterns without success. Now with the express call mandate of top management she has to present a plan that will work.
Rick Melnick oversees the Student Educational Loan Fund (SELF), which provides loans to Harvard Business School students. SELF is changing the terms of student loans from variable-rate with semiannual payments to fixed-rate loans with equal monthly payments. Melnick must decide how to finance SELF in light of the new loan mix. SELF can use a wide range of interest-rate derivative products to modify the terms of its existing financing.
Escorts, a large historically successful Indian conglomerate, was confronted with a dramatic change in its external environment caused by liberalization policies in its domestic market. At issue is the formulation and implementation of the company's restructuring strategy in response to the changed conditions. The case should be used in a general management/business policy course to illustrate the formulation and implementation of strategic responses to similar environmental changes occurring in a number of developed and developing countries. A second case, Escorts: A Restructuring Plan, 9A95M011, documents Escorts' 1994 plan of response. A third case, Escorts: The Tractor Division, 9A95M010 concerns a specific division and illustrates implementation barriers otherwise unapparent in the previous cases.
Presents several conceptions of corporate purpose and responsibility as articulated by a variety of groups and individuals during the period 1970-95. Included are materials from the Business Roundtable, the American Law Institute, the Royal Society of Arts and Manufacturers (U.K.), the U.S. Catholic Bishops, and excerpts from the writings of economist Milton Friedman and lawyer Christopher Stone. A brief introduction provides historical background on the corporate responsibility debate.
The owner/operator of Fleetway Bowling Centre in London, Ontario, is faced with making a decision on whether to introduce a new computerized software program that could combine bowling with the game of bingo. If he decides to go ahead with Bingo-Bowling, he needs to develop a complete marketing plan to introduce this game to the public. In particular, he must decide whom to target (league/recreational bowlers), what media to choose and whether this opportunity would be financially attractive for Fleetway. Lastly, he wondered how to market the game to a group with weak representation at Fleetway: The University of Western Ontario student market.
Melissa Simpson, a loan officer at the St. Thomas Alliance Trust Company, has to decide about a $100,000 loan request for a new restaurant, The Ugly Dog Pizza Company. The operators, Pete Bates and John Symonds, have some experience in food management, but neither of them has ever started and operated a restaurant. Other factors contributing to her difficult decision include minimal collateral coverage, a recent approval from the federal government for a business loan and a fiercely competitive restaurant marketplace.
The owner of Garlic's restaurant in London, Ontario, must make some quick decisions to ensure her first month's high sales figures would translate into long-term success. She needs to improve the current dinner reservation system to ensure customer satisfaction. Other options to meet or suppress demand include expansion or price increases. Operationally, the food being served is not as hot as customers expect and two alternatives to solving this problem - hiring a bus person or buying a plate warmer - are examined. Cost benefit analysis along with their impact on the financial statements need to be elaborated.
A newly appointed maintenance supervisor for the day shift at a pharmaceutical company must make a decision regarding whether to discipline an employee for inappropriate behaviour on the job. The situation became more complicated as the employee, who was a steward for the local union, had a history of filing grievances within the plant and was himself in line for the maintenance supervisory position. (Two sequels to this case are available, titled Carl Jones (B) and Carl Jones (C).)
A newly appointed maintenance supervisor for the day shift at a pharmaceutical company must make a decision regarding whether to discipline an employee for inappropriate behaviour on the job. The situation became more complicated as the employee, who was a steward for the local union, had a history of filing grievances within the plant and was himself in line for the maintenance supervisory position. This is a sequel to Carl Jones (A) and describes an incident with Jones which leads to a grievance. (A sequel to this case Carl Jones (C), describes further events.)