A senior loan officer is reviewing the recent performance of a company that has failed to repay its loan as scheduled. The failure results from a cyclical downturn in sales, coupled with a lag in cutting back production. Inventory risk is minimal. This case is an updated version of Cutrite Shears.
Describes the company's use of information technology to strengthen its position in the elevator sales and service market. Also demonstrates how information technology can be used to better manage and control a large geographically dispersed service organization.
Presents the economic and political dimensions of competition in the commercial aircraft industry, as demonstrated by Airbus of Europe and Boeing of the United States.
Presents the first of two cases describing the struggle to solve creative problems on the Dry Idea antiperspirant brand introduced in 1978 by the Gillette Co. and its advertising agency (Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborne). Provides company and industry background plus a historical brand review, and focuses on the issue facing product manager Carole Johnson in October of 1983: how to get good creativity fast?
Presents the second of two cases describing the struggle to find "the right advertising" for the Dry Idea antiperspirant brand introduced in 1978 by the Gillette Co. and its advertising agency, Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborne (BBDO). The case begins with Gillette's November 1983 decision to stage a bake-off placing BBDO in competition with a second agency to "cook up" a breakthrough advertising campaign for Dry Idea. It then proceeds to describe the six-month bake-off implementation period, provide a report of bake-off copy test results, and pose the question facing product manager Carole Johnson late in April of 1984: who won the bake-off?
Provides an overview of video contents and three attachments: 1) chart discussed at meeting shown in video, 2) historical Dry Idea copy strategies, and 3) graphic comparison of Dry Idea share trends and airing history.
Provides an overview of the two-part video: 1) bake-off participant interviews with managers from Gillette and its advertising agency for Dry Idea, and 2) creative presentations by the two bake-off competitors.
The Wilson Lumber Co. is faced with a need for increased bank financing due to its rapid sales growth and low profitability. Students must determine the reasons for the rising bank borrowing, estimate the amount of borrowing needed, and assess the attractiveness of the loan to the bank. A rewritten version of an earlier case by J.K. Butters.
Yoplait's director of new product development is evaluating alternative line extensions including custard-style Yoplait. He must determine what additional research to recommend. Options include a mini-market test, a simulated test market and a fully-fledged test market.
Yoplait's director of new product development is finalizing plans for the national introduction of custard-style Yoplait. Based on the results of a mini-market test and a BASES laboratory test market.
The big issue for multinationals today is not whether to go global but how to tailor the global marketing concept to fit each business. In determining the degree of standardization or adaptation that is appropriate, managers should consider their companies' overall business strategy, which products will benefit from the economies or efficiencies of standardization, which products won't fight cultural barriers, what trade-offs will result from standardizing various elements of the marketing mix, and how standardization will vary from country to country.
Entrepreneurs should compile a financial forecast that includes three elements: an income statement, a balance sheet, and a cash flow statement. Forecasts should look ahead five years and include three scenarios: a most likely, a most pessimistic, and a most optimistic. Key estimates for putting the income statement together are sales, costs of goods sold, general and administrative expenses, and selling expenses. Key estimates needed for the balance sheet are accounts receivable, inventory, and the debt-equity ratio. These estimates enable one to complete the cash flow statement.
In July of 1985 the managers of Alloy Rods (who recently purchased the company through a leveraged buyout arrangement) find that their chief competitor (a company more than 6 times as large as Alloy Rods) has introduced a new product clearly aimed at Alloy's most profitable market segment. Management must frame a response, and a prime focus of the battle will be among distributors. Provides an excellent vehicle for comparing very different channel strategy and channel management philosophies, and also confronts students with the necessity of developing implementable marketing programs within the context of a financially-constrained organization.
An eight-year-old company is in the midst of growth. This case follows the company from its inception through its growth stages. Teaching objectives are to understand the problems of growth, partnership, and operations-driven companies.
Examines different alternatives for the introduction of telemation and computer aided design in a small firm. The issues involve what extent of cooperation is required by different firms so that a telecommunicative interchange between them becomes effective.
Penney's assistant treasurer was considering various capital markets issues to finance store modernizations. This case provides the financing terms available to Penney for domestic, current, and zero coupon debt. Eurodollar debt, and nondollar SFr and Yen issues hedged and swapped back to dollar liabilities. Also, Penney is considering using interest rate futures, options, and options on futures to hedge a forthcoming debt issue.
Develops a simple option pricing model which provides an insight into the foundations of the Black and Scholes model. The Black and Scholes model is next introduced and its relationship to the simple option pricing model discussed. Last, the problem of pricing debt options is addressed in the appendix and a debt option model is presented. To be read with Introduction to Options.
Following the acquisition of a new business, the manager is approached for the "continuation" of a regular payment for services to "insure labor peace" and maintain a parking lot. The case allows discussion of ethical, legal, and practical issues involved.