個案總覽

The director of logistics at Walmart Canada, was developing plans for a new distribution centre in Alberta. Senior management had presented her with a challenge: why not build the most sustainable distribution centre in the world? Yet, much remained unclear about how to translate this challenge into specific actions, while keeping in mind corporate goals for sustainability. Her team now was exploring three options that promised to be significantly greener: hydrogen fuel cells for forklift trucks, LED lighting and renewable energy generation from on-site wind turbines. Any investment in these sustainable technologies had to make business sense, and any decision could dramatically affect the distribution centre’s operating performance.

<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER -Latin American Business Cases Award, European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) Case Writing Competition</strong></p><br>A Mexican appliance manufacturer, MABE, has evolved quickly after selling nearly half its stake to a large multinational company in the early 1990s. The manufacturer was then able to dominate the Mexican appliances market and venture into other Latin American countries. Just before the 2008 financial crisis, the manufacturer formed a joint venture with a Spanish company and entered the Russian market, but it was not successful. The manufacturer faced a dilemma: Should it leave the Russian joint venture with its Spanish partner and refocus on other emerging markets? Should it acquire a local manufacturer? Should it remain as it was?<br><br>This case can be taught on its own, or in combination with Mabe: Learning to Be a Multinational (B) 9B15M121.

Senior management of a large stock exchange is reviewing a recent software problem that resulted in a botched opening for the initial public offering of a popular social media company. They are drawing up a list of recommendations on how to prevent this type of failure in the future, taking into account the needs of their various stakeholders, including customers, market makers, listed firms, regulators and shareholders. Overviews of the stock market, NASDAQ in particular, and the use of technology to trade stocks securely and quickly are followed by examining the aftermath of a delay in the correct trading of Facebook shares on its opening.

The chief executive officer and chair of the board of directors of a company that designs, builds and sells consumer and commercial refrigeration products are trying to decide if the firm should expand in Asia and, if so, which method it should use. In recent years, Metalfrio has become a global leader in its industry by establishing manufacturing operations in Mexico, Turkey and Russia, as well as expanding within its home territory of Brazil, with sales in over 80 countries. Asia is offering promising opportunities for growth, and key customers are suggesting the company establish manufacturing operations there to better serve its global needs. The case addresses how Metalfrio transfers its competitive advantages across its international operations, and it further discusses how the company coordinates its operations to serve countries in which it does not have a production facility via exports. The case analyzes the competitive advantage of the firm and its transferability to other countries.<br><br>The supplement, A Note on the Commercial Refrigeration Industry 9B13M024, provides an overview of the commercial refrigeration sector.

This supplement to Metalfrio: Achieving Global Leadership in the Plug-in Commercial Refrigeration Industry 9B13M012 gives an overview of the commercial refrigeration sector, including a history of the industry, major participants and markets, and key local and regional competitors. The note also provides select financial and market data for the years 2002 to 2009.

A small startup firm in the environmental services industry has spent the majority of its time developing its technology and overcoming the significant regulatory hurdles involved in bringing its technology to market. Having achieved success with the technology, the company must now decide which path to take to grow. The owners can try to raise the money themselves through a bank loan and do the expansion on their own terms. On the other hand, they can forge a financial partnership with a venture capital firm or a strategic partnership with another firm, or they can issue preferred shares to a local investment fund or corporate bonds to a local insurance company. These alternatives will share the risks and expense of expansion, but the company may lose some autonomy in its decision making in future.

The 2012 U.S. presidential election between President Obama and Governor Romney gave both sides reasons for optimism. As such, it was popularly thought to be anyone's race to win. The election generated a wide range of polling at the state and national level. Despite the abundance of data, it still was not clear to many people whether the race was too close to call or whether one candidate had a decisive lead. On the evening of the election, two friends discuss why the result may or may not be a close one and decide to wager on the outcome.

Two aspiring musicians and music producers launch and incorporate their own record label. At the end of the company’s first year of operations, the partners face their first financial year-end, and they wonder how the company’s assets, many of which are intangible, should be presented in the statement of financial position.

The sole shareholder and manager of a premier soccer cleat retailer/wholesaler must analyze his company's 2010 performance. The company had experienced significant growth during the past two years and the manager was anxious to find out if the company's recent expansion was as profitable as he had predicted.

An upper-level university student and her business partners had some decisions to make before launching their new venture, a non-profit organization that planned to design and sell customizable laptop skins on behalf of various charitable organizations across southern Ontario. Proceeds from each sale would go to participating charities. The company had received partnership interests from various organizations, and it was time that a decision was made regarding which charities to choose. The partners also needed to determine the remaining strategic and operations details before launching the company.

An accounting firm has just informed the president of a 55-year-old, third-generation family-owned and -operated company that the family business is beginning to struggle financially. This news pushes years of simmering tensions and conflict within the family business into open conflict. The president has accused his sister, a vice president, of not doing her job. The sister is frustrated and needs to decide what action to take.

Carborundum Universal Murugappa International (CUMI) was a leading abrasives manufacturing company based in India with global operations in Russia, South Africa and China. In the global abrasives business, China held 50 per cent of the raw materials for the industry. China was also the largest market for abrasives worldwide and was expected to contribute to one third of the global demand for abrasives. CUMI had the vision to become a global leader in the abrasives industry within 10 years. It had successfully expanded operations in Russia and South Africa, where it was seen more as a partner than a conqueror in its acquisition strategy. In 2006, the company entered China through a joint venture with a Chinese state company but subsequently bought out the partner. However, the company was facing several problems with its stand-alone operation there, especially in terms of maintaining its workforce and hiring local managers. It was clear that winning market share in China was necessary, but the complexity of the Chinese market had proven to be a challenge. The managing director had to present a strategy for working successfully in China to the board.

International Oncology Services Private Limited initially had plans to start operations as a stand-alone facility offering cancer care to patients in Delhi, India, but escalating real estate costs combined with the capital intensive nature of the business were a big barrier. Moreover, the high gestation period in a greenfield project led the company founders to think of an alternative business model: a collaborative arrangement on a hub and spoke basis with an established healthcare provider in the city of Jaipur. This was a success. The company could leverage the infrastructure and in-patient facilities of the partner hospital, while adding its own medical, technological and research expertise to offer services at a cost-effective price. Though the company grew rapidly in its initial years, continued success was by no means assured. The management has to decide whether to expand with a single partner or adopt a multi-partner approach to take the business to the next level of growth.

PowerPoint Presentation for product 8B13M031.

The president of a new venture that sells a high-quality men's made-to-measure clothing line is considering opening the company’s first retail store in the downtown core of major city. He wants to grow the business to become the next big luxury fashion brand, and he believes that opening a flagship retail store is a logical step, but he first wants to analyze its financial feasibility and the investments required to pursue this strategy. The analysis includes a differential analysis, ROI and payback calculations.

In 2012, Apple, Inc. won the largest patent infringement case in history against Samsung Electronics for Samsung’s willful copying of Apple’s iPhone and iPad. Samsung, which recently overtook Apple as the leading smartphone maker, must now devise a strategy to address the court verdict and its potential impact on new product development.

A pharmacist/entrepreneur was investigating the feasibility of opening a GuardMedics Pharmacy franchise in a large urban centre. She spoke to several friends and confidants currently in the industry in an attempt to collect enough data to project cash flows and financial statements for the venture.

This case examines retirement and pension-related decisions from a financial perspective, using the example of a university professor, Dr. Carl Pettigrew. Dr. Pettigrew has a comprehensive pension plan through his employer, but needs to take into consideration his obligations to his ex-spouse and his existing life insurance policy. Due to all of the different elements under consideration, the case represents a moderately complex situation for the pension holder. Students are asked to take the role of a financial planner, to help Dr. Pettigrew work through all of the factors he needs to take into account and make the best decision about when and how to retire.

Instructor spreadsheet for product 8B13N002.

The chief executive responsible for the Indonesian railways, a state-owned enterprise, is under pressure to show profits, but he also needs to balance widely diverging stakeholder expectations that include inexpensive transportation and excellent customer service. The government subsidizes the railway’s passenger travel segment and has capped its fare prices, which has turned the railway’s mainstay into a loss-making business. The chief executive wonders how to best trade off the different stakeholder expectations. He needs to develop a plan to present to the minister for State-Owned Enterprises.