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Spreadsheet Supplement for Exercise W27680.

The fictional company Airinit, now a division of the conglomerate ArgentAxis Holdings (AAH) after a recent merger, manufactures air fresheners, and at the start of the year it planned to generate a healthy profit. However, during the year, several events occur that cause the company's financial outcomes to deviate significantly, in an adverse way, from the original plans. To diagnose why the deviations occurred and more importantly whether any actions could be implemented to prevent the adverse outcomes from reoccurring, Airinit's accounting area has prepared a detailed variance analysis for consideration. This case is taught at the Darden School of Business as a full-class role-play in an Executive Education setting. It is also suitable for inclusion as a full-class role-play in an introductory core class in MBA or Master of Accounting management accounting. Alternatively, where the interpretation of a budget variance analysis has not been covered in a core course management accounting, the case is suitable for inclusion as a full-class role-play in an MBA, Master of Accounting, or undergraduate intermediate management accounting elective class. Students at all levels can relate to the fundamentals of the business and the value chain that the business develops-from raw inputs to an in-house manufacturing process and finally to the marketing and distribution of a product. The case takes on an enterprise approach so that the students can see how the budget variance analysis framework can be used to diagnose the internal financial health of an overall business.

This technical note provides an overview of the financial reporting process. It includes a discussion of key players in the process, financial reporting requirements, the external audit process, and the annual report.

This epilogue accompanies, "Fallen Idol? Aung San Suu Kyi & the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis," HKS Case Number 2139.0. Soon after Myanmar's longtime democracy crusader and opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was released from a long house arrest and elected to the country's parliament in 2012, intercommunal violence began to escalate in the western state of Rakhine between local Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims. Over the next five years, the long-persecuted Rohingya minority faced increasingly violent waves of attack, culminating in a humanitarian catastrophe in August and September of 2017 characterized by indiscriminate killing, mass rape, and the wholesale incineration of villages. To the shock of her many admirers around the world, Suu Kyi did nothing to try to prevent or stem the military-led attacks, nor did she condemn the military after-the-fact, instead accusing international monitors and fact-finders of spreading false reports. This case explores the evolution of anti-Rohingya sentiment in Myanmar and details the escalation of intercommunal violence against the Rohingya between 2012 and 2017. It describes Suu Kyi's reaction to the growing Rohingya crisis in these years and ends with assorted theories about why a leader long revered as an icon for democracy, symbol of peaceful protest, and crusader for human rights-having finally become her country's civilian head of state-would choose not to take a stand against the brutal campaign against the Rohingya. This brief epilogue-an acknowledgment of the changed political situation-describes Suu Kyi's sweeping electoral win in Myanmar's 2020 election, the military coup d'état that followed in February 2021, and Suu Kyi's prison confinement from that point forward, virtually incommunicado, as she faced trial and conviction on some 19 criminal charges, a process roundly condemned as illegitimate by the United Nations, many international organizations, and many heads of state.

E-commerce as a share of retail continues to grow, accelerated by the pandemic. This is particularly true of the online grocery market. As one of the largest online grocery markets in the world, the UK has many players, but two of the most dynamic are the market leader - Tesco - and Ocado. These two companies have taken markedly different approaches to executing and fulfilling online grocery orders from customers. Tesco has an extensive network of stores and primarily uses them as picking locations to prepare and ship customer orders. Ocado has no retail stores and uses highly automated distribution centers to prepare and ship customer orders. This case describes the UK online grocery market, the two companies and invites students to consider the different approaches: In what ways do they offer advantages to the company and customer and, ultimately, which one is better suited to the UK online grocery market?

Companies need to find a compelling growth strategy and can pursue several options. They can grow internally via organic means, they can grow through mergers and acquisitions, or they can use various venturing tools such as corporate venture capital, partnering with ventures groups, or hybrid models. All of these involve tradeoffs, and the success of any particular strategy depends on external factors as well as a firm's organizational design. When looking at corporate venturing options, there is no "right" or "wrong" option, and strategic choices will need to be considered in light of internal and external factors. Hilti is a large established legacy company, active worldwide. It has traditionally grown its hardware business via organic growth and internal development. Over the past 10-15 years Hilti has increased its enterprise value, mainly by internal growth and by improving and optimizing financial controls and resource allocation. At the same time Hilti, began a process to use other corporate venturing strategies and to increase the share of turnover earned from software - as opposed to hardware - lines of business.

In 2020, the Indian film industry witnessed a significant rift between producers and exhibitors (cinema owners and multiplex chains) when the producers of the highly anticipated film Gulabo Sitabo opted for a direct digital premiere of the film on Amazon Prime Video, thereby bypassing a theatrical release. The decision angered exhibitors, who viewed over-the-top (OTT) platforms as threats to traditional cinema distribution. Concerns arose that other studios would soon follow suit, jeopardizing their businesses. Although the producers cited COVID-19-related challenges and the increased popularity of streaming services as reasons for their decision, exhibitors accused them of being selfish. Exhibitors emphasized their investments in world-class screens and urged co-operation, threatening retaliatory measures. The rising tension brought up a number of questions: How much of a threat were OTT platforms to traditional film distribution? How could disagreements between producers and traditional distributors be resolved? Might OTT platforms and traditional distribution methods coexist, and if so, how?

In June 2022, two MBA students from a post-secondary institution in India were asked by their professor to build a valuation model for HDFC Life Insurance Company Limited to assess the company's stock price for investors. The students understood the importance of the task and tracked the company's historic stock price. They found that its share price dropped considerably in 2021, as the company's profits decreased due to a high number of claims during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, however, the company witnessed a rise in profits mainly due to a high number of premiums, as fears from COVID-19 infections led more people to buy insurance coverage. Given that the company's profits and performance had been fluctuating, the students wanted to know whether the stock was undervalued, overvalued, or fairly priced. Their task was to determine the ideal stock price and whether to recommend the stock to investors.

Spreadsheet Supplement for Case W34075.

In early 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown periods, the marketing director of Anand Milk Union Limited (Amul) was in a virtual meeting with his marketing manager. The two men were discussing plans for a marketing campaign for the hotel, restaurant, and cafes (HoReCa) market segment to be run during the pandemic. The campaign was expected to target and engage the key stakeholders (or influencers) of the HoReCa segment-the chefs in the food service industry. Before the pandemic, Amul engaged with chefs mainly through personal relationships, based on individual in-person meetings. However, in context of the adversity caused by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person meetings were no longer feasible. The challenge for Amul was to build a scalable and executable marketing campaign that would engage chefs, the market's key influencers.

Bay Towel Linen and Uniform Rental Inc. (Bay Towel) was a family-owned business based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, that had been serving the state and growing organically for about 100 years. The company provided uniform and linen rental and laundry services from its head office in Green Bay and two distribution centres in central and southern Wisconsin. But in the wake of disruptions to global supply chains caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Bay Towel faced challenges in serving customers better while reducing operating costs. The company had a few options to do so, but how could it choose the most cost-effective solution with the least investment?

The founder of Zentein Nutrition Inc. needed a short-term plan for 2023 to maximize his goals for business growth and customer reach. The company was based in London, Ontario and provided natural, simple, healthy, and nutritious food alternatives to an affluent, health-conscious, and health-knowledgeable customer base. Its competitors included many large companies in a highly competitive and fragmented market, but the company had a competitive edge by offering a simple and sustainable ingredient list, use of collagen as a protein source, and made-to order protein bars. With demand outpacing supply, the founder paused all promotional efforts but the company continued to grow exponentially with only word-of-mouth promotion and a social media presence. The founder was now wondering which sales and distribution channels he should pursue for the rest of 2023, and also for the future, after supply would be increased with automation. The three sales channel options-the company website, the Amazon online platform, and traditional retail stores-each offered specific benefits and drawbacks, but the founder had to make a decision that would deliver both quantitative and qualitative results.

In May 2022, the founder and chief executive officer of Just Kitchen Holdings Corporation (Just Kitchen), a Canada-based and publicly listed operator of ghost kitchens in Taiwan, met with the company's management team to deliberate on the company's plan to expand into new markets, specifically, the Philippines. Their optimism for the Philippine market stemmed from the country's growing online food delivery industry, favourable demographics, and supportive government policies. While the founder his team explored this expansion possibility, they recognized that entering the thriving online food delivery market presented advantages and disadvantages, and questions loomed: What would be the most effective approach to enter this market? And, equally importantly, what challenges and pitfalls should they anticipate as they ventured into such a business opportunity in the Philippines?

In 2021, Hitachi Limited was reconsidering its ownership of Hitachi Construction Machinery (HCM). The decision about HCM's future was one of the last steps in a more than decade-long effort to reorient Hitachi from a manufacturing conglomerate to a service-oriented company. HCM was a global player in the construction and mining equipment business, and although it no longer relied on Hitachi for product technology, Hitachi's technological capabilities might once again become more valuable to HCM as automation and electrification of construction and mining equipment gained importance. Would there be greater synergies from more closely integrating HCM with Hitachi's other businesses, or would both sides be better off if HCM was completely independent?

In 2023, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV leadership faced a developing crisis in the United States after conservative backlash to a Bud Light promotional campaign in partnership with a transgender influencer led to a boycott of the brand. The promotional campaign aimed to appeal to a more diverse and inclusive audience but ultimately resulted in Bud Light losing significant sales and market share. This put the brand at risk of losing its competitive advantage, brand value, and long-standing position as the leading beer brand in the United States. This case is the first in a continuing A-B case set.

In response to the boycott of Bud Light, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV leadership attempted to placate dissatisfied consumers by reaffirming their support for conservative values and distancing the company from both the executive in charge of the promotional campaign and the transgender influencer it had partnered with. This course of action, however, not only failed to repair the company's relationship with conservative consumers but also drew further criticism from liberal consumers who felt that the company's response contradicted its core values of equity and inclusivity. This is the continuing B-case for product W36313.

In July 2017, the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations in Tofino, British Columbia, Canada, grappled with mounting conservation costs, inconsistent and unreliable funding, and the erosion of their cultural identity within their Tribal Parks. Some of the community's past knowledge had also been lost due to ongoing colonial impacts, and the sacred protocol for visitors to the land was often disregarded. The community also had to contend with the significant expenses required to sustain the lands, aggravated by inconsistent support from tourism operators and the government. Julian Hocki

On May 5, 2020, Karen Ball assumed the role of president and chief executive officer for the Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (CCVO), based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, following her predecessor's departure. With board approval of the 2021-2024 strategic plan, Ball and her team were preparing for a board meeting on January 10, 2021, to present their options to diversify revenue streams and leverage social enterprise opportunities. Since the strategic plan's approval, however, considerable change had occurred. Alberta's economy was in a significant downturn, while the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) was making a devastating impact on the province, including the nonprofit sector. As Ball finalized her analysis, she had to determine and present to the board the option or combination of options that would best address CCVO's new strategic direction.

Philippines-headquartered cloud kitchen CloudEats harbored the ambition of becoming the largest cloud kitchen in Southeast Asia, but it was considering several strategic paths forward.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 824146.