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Sagamok First Nation (Sagamok) was one of several First Nations living on land that was a mineral resource. Canada's Indigenous Peoples had an historical claim to swaths of land and their resources; however, as Canada became increasingly colonized, the government negotiated treaties with the First Nations that resulted in smaller boundaries for First Nations lands, but required mining companies that wanted to mine reserved lands to negotiate access with the relevant First Nation. Sagamok had negotiated access with three mining companies and their relationships with the three companies varied. One relationship left Sagamok with open pit mines and an environmental mess; another resulted in good relations, opportunities for Sagamok, and environmental stewardship; and the third was in early stages and already showing problems. In 2016, the Chief of Sagamok needed to resolve the dispute and to consider how to apply what the community had already learned to build capacity in evaluating opportunities for resource extraction, environmental stewardship, and economic development.

In January 2017, Banro Corporation, a Canadian gold mining company in the Democratic Republic of Congo, underwent recapitalization to cope with financial distress, and to optimize its operations of mining assets. Since the commencement of commercial mining in 2009, unexpected social conflicts and operational challenges had led to significantly lower production than expected, with a large cost overrun, while the price of gold declined sharply from 2012. Would the recapitalization enable Banro Corporation to carry out its medium-term strategic plan of incremental growth by operational improvements, through cost reduction and throughput expansion over a five-year horizon? How could the company achieve its long-term goal of being a model of excellence in sustainability?

In May 2017, The White Dog Cafe (White Dog) had been under new ownership for seven years, had opened two new locations, and had continued most of the initiatives that had made it one of the most well-respected and sustainably run restaurants in the United States. But the restaurant was still relatively unknown. How could White Dog's director of marketing convince owner Marty Grims that a brand management agency could help the White Dog brand evolve to meet the expectations of an increasingly sophisticated marketplace?

Malaysia headquartered Genting Berhad has been assigned highest credit rating among global gaming companies. This remarkable gaming focussed conglomerate adopted what in 1965 was a unique strategy to develop a portfolio of stable and recurring cash flow generating integrated resorts. This strategy was to establish flagship IRs in regulated markets such as Malaysia (where Genting is a monopoly) and Singapore (where the company operates in a duopolistic market) before diversifying into competitive markets like the U.S. and U.K. This strategy has enabled Genting Berhad to achieve a net cash position despite operating in a cyclical and capital intensive industry. Using Genting Berhad as an example, this case study delineates the concepts of credit ratings in general, credit ratings of corporates in particular, and industry specific credit rating methodology. The case study prompts users to adopt a systematic approach to fundamental and counterparty analysis by assessing the impact of the macro economy, industry environment, and company specific attributes in evaluating a company's debt servicing ability.

In 2017, Uber, a ride-hailing application that was recognized as the world's most valuable start-up, was considering launching the world's first "urban air transport" service-Uber Elevate. Uber's chief product officer needed to convince the new chief executive officer and the board that electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing vehicles were the future of Uber, and to articulate a strategy to launch the service. But was it the right time to proceed with this bold initiative? Uber had recently seen its value plummet following a string of scandals that had forced its founder and chief executive officer to step down. How could the chief product officer ensure that Uber Elevate would be the success that he believed it would be? What steps were needed to ensure success?

This courseware was created to allow students to model E-Leather's enterprise value (EV) in early 2014. Yellow cells in the Enterprise Value (EV) worksheets indicate where students provide inputs. The other worksheets provide information to help students make decisions about their inputs.

In February 2016, Kathy Hannun--a project leader at X, Alphabet Inc.'s so-called "moonshot factory--had to prepare a recommendation for the senior leadership of X regarding the future of Foghorn, a project she was leading to develop a carbon-neutral process for converting sea water into fuel. Recognizing the blueprint for projects at X--(1) addressing a huge problem with a (2) radical solution using (3) breakthrough technology--Hannun had to decide whether to recommend killing the project. Despite the technical feasibility of the Foghorn process, its expected cost per gallon of fuel produced was signficiantly higher than the established "kill metric"--the maximum unit cost that Hannun and colleagues had set for continuing the project. The case provides an opportunity to examine the management of radical innovation and the challenges associated with assessing early stage ideas. Topics covered include the importance of experimentation and failure as well as the management of opportunity costs in solving large problems.

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) was the most successful team of Indian Premier League (IPL) till it was banned for two seasons (2016-2017) in 2015. The match-fixing and betting controversy and the resulting lawsuit in the Supreme Court eroded the brand value of CSK from US$72 million in 2014 to $67 million in 2015. Since the ban, key CSK players had moved to other IPL teams, with CSK captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni becoming the captain of Rising Pune Supergiants, and key CSK players Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Dwayne Bravo and Ravindra Jadeja joining Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Supergiants. Since the ban, newer sports leagues have also emerged and gained momentum because of the Indian viewers' new and insatiable appetite for all sports ranging from traditional kabaddi, wrestling, hockey and football to the newer badminton, tennis, boxing, futsal and mixed martial arts. With sports viewership spreading farther and wider than cricket, IPL is in for tough competition to gain and retain eyeballs. Under these circumstances, the return of CSK in 2018 is a challenge in itself. What strategies should CSK management adopt to rebuild the brand? Should it hire more star players to jump start rebuilding the brand? What factors could jeopardize the successful relaunch of CSK? What activities should the team engage in to increase fan involvement? Learning objective: 1. To understand issues in the relaunch of a sports franchise, and the associated challenges; 2. To understand potential strategies for rebuilding a brand in the sports industry; 3. To apply marketing tools and thinking to the sports industry; 4. Understanding brand equity concepts, such as Keller's Customer-Based Brand Equity model; 5. To understand sports consumption and sports fan engagement.

How should nonprofits design compensation systems to attract and retain talent? GiveDirectly is a respected charitable organization with an unconventional approach. Instead of spending on traditional aid programs in areas such as health care and food access in developing countries, GiveDirectly transfers cash directly to the poor. As experiments have shown this approach to be an effective and efficient way to improve recipients' life satisfaction, the organization has attracted considerable attention among donors and the media. Now, GiveDirectly is looking to grow, and it is contemplating how best to recruit talented employees and keep them motivated. In addition to offering salaries competitive with the private sector, GiveDirectly is considering linking employee compensation to organizational goals regarding the amount of cash transferred-an unusual strategy for a nonprofit.

Yash Building Centre, based in Raipur, central India, was in the business of manufacturing fly ash bricks and blocks. At the beginning of 2016, after achieving decent growth and gaining goodwill among local builders and contractors, the managing partner was actively looking to expand business operations into tiles, pavers, and curbstones. He believed this expansion would improve the firm's profitability by allowing it to take full advantage of its reputation among existing customers. It would also enable the firm to increase its size. A key question was, would this decision facilitate value creation for the firm? To make the investment decision, the managing partner needed to consider the return on investment and the capacity at which the new unit would break even.

Student spreadsheet for case W18130.

Many decisions involve trade-offs between present and future costs and benefits. We procrastinate difficult tasks, and we forgo larger rewards for smaller ones if we can get them sooner. Why do we change our minds about the value of upcoming events? The traditional discounting model, which predicts how individuals discount future consequences and resolve trade-offs between present and future costs and benefits, does not account for this observed behavior. The behavioral discounting model presented in this technical note accounts for observed behaviors by incorporating patterns of overall high discounting, magnitude effects, and decreasing impatience.

China Resources expresses disagreement over the validity of the results of the board vote as announced by China Vanke. It further raises objections to Vanke's handling of the announcement as well as reiterates its doubts about the strategic rationale of the proposed transaction.

Baoneng calls for the removal of China Vanke's board of directors, citing as reasons the directors' mishandling of the Shenzhen Metro proposal as well as the company's various breaches of corporate governance requirements. Vanke defends itself against Baoneng's allegations, and also responds to the Shenzhen bourse's inquiries regarding the validity of the board vote.

In the battle for control over China Vanke, the Chinese securities regulator steps in to censure Vanke and Baoneng for acting against the interests of the market and minority shareholders. The Chinese insurance regulator also finds Baoneng to be in violation of insurance regulations, and subjects its insurance arm to severe restrictions on further sales of its products. A rival private property developer, China Evergrande, also joins the fray, buying enough shares to become Vanke's third largest shareholder. The case finally relays how the battle for control winds down and the eventual resolution.

Spreadsheet supplement for cases 218006 and 218052.

Following a full takeover of Darden Restaurant's Board of Directors, Darden COO Gene Lee is weighing an offer to become interim CEO.