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Palliser is Canada's second largest furniture company. The company has production facilities in Canada, Mexico and Indonesia, and experimented with cutting and sewing leather in China. The company is looking at further expanding the relationship with China. Ever since Palliser set up a plant in Mexico, the company had faced increasing competitive pressure from Asia, especially from China. The president of Palliser must decide what form this relationship should follow, should it be an investment, either wholly or partly owned, or should it be through subcontracting?

Sun Life Financial is a large insurance conglomerate with $14.7 billion in annual revenues. The vice-president for China must formulate an approach for his company's entrance into China. Sun Life has achieved two important milestones: the right to apply for license and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for Joint Venture with China Everbright, a local securities company. The financial vice-president must consider strategic options for entry and choose a city in which to focus his efforts in getting a license. In doing so, he needs to consider Sun Life's overall priorities, strategic direction and how he will sell the concept to senior management in Canada. Intended for use in an introduction to international business course, the case includes assessing internal capabilities against an environmental scan, formulating strategy and making operational decisions relating to city selection. It also introduces the idea of joint venture management and government relations.

The manager of business development for Carvel Asia Limited is trying to determine how best to increase ice cream cake sales in Beijing. In doing so, he needs to develop a complete marketing program which includes decisions about product offerings, pricing, placement (distribution) and promotion - the 4 Ps. Carvel Asia was a 50-50 joint venture between Carvel (USA) and China's Ministry of Agriculture.

Interbrew had developed into the world's fourth largest brewer by acquiring and managing a large portfolio of national and regional beer brands in markets around the world. Recently, senior management had decided to develop one of their premium beers, Stella Artois, as a global brand. The early stages of Interbrew's global branding strategy and tactics are examined, enabling students to consider these concepts in the context of a fragmented but consolidating industry. It is suitable for use in courses in consumer marketing, international marketing and international business.

PowerPoint presentation supporting material for product 8B07M30.

The president of a national placement agency is preparing to make a final pitch to sign Greyhound Canada as a client. Greyhound wants to reposition its brand as a mainstream travel option, particularly for suburban commuters, and needs cost-effective ways to get its message to consumers. The company views product placement as a viable tool for building brand awareness, but worries about losing control over its brand image. Even more serious are concerns about the absence of reliable metrics to assess the overall effectiveness of product placement. The case covers fundamentals of product placement, particularly with respect to strengths and weaknesses, and provides an excellent basis for discussing its value as part of an overall marketing communications strategy.

Steve Jones, senior investment analyst at Stonehill Capital, among other responsibilities, had to ensure that his team prepared a pitch book which presented all the numbers and graphs necessary to acquire a client's business. Jones was already overworked so he enlisted his intern, Joe Livingston, to help with the task. As the deadline approached, Jones and Livingston worked 18-hour days preparing the pitch book and were very tired and sleep deprived. The morning after the day of the pitch, Jones received an email from the vice-president of Investment Banking telling him that the bank's deal team had been embarrassed by having to explain an error in the pitch book during their meeting to try to secure the deal. Jones is now being asked to explain what happened.

The case describes Naseeb Networks (Naseeb), a social networking site that seeks to offer Muslims an online forum that conforms to Islamic cultural traditions. Using a product platform strategy, the company has been able to expand to other online services to Muslims, including greeting cards and job search. As a company, Naseeb has a number of advantages that distinguish it from other Islamic Internet companies. The case looks at the conditions under which a company can seek to enter a mature market by offering highly specialized niche services and raises questions about how to monetize a niche service with limited expansion options. From an information systems perspective, it provides an example of how a technology platform can be used to expand into other service areas with minimal development costs. Lastly, the case considers how companies that host online communities attempt to balance user-generated content and company-sponsored content and activities.

The founding entrepreneur of Honey Care Africa revitalized Kenya’s national honey industry by focusing on small-holder farmers across the country. Central to success was an innovative business model: a synergistic partnership between the development sector, the private sector, and rural communities that drew on the core competencies of each party as well as their complementary roles. This tripartite model was combined with local manufacturing of beehives, effective beekeeping training, a guaranteed market for small-holder farmers through forward contracts, and prompt payments. Four years later, Honey Care had achieved a 68 per cent market share in Kenya and distributed several brands of organic, fair-trade honey internationally, and was a lead distributor of beeswax. The business model had been successfully replicated in neighbouring Tanzania, and there were plans to expand to Uganda and Sudan.

This is a supplement to Honey Care Africa (A): A Different Business Model.

This is a supplement to Honey Care Africa (A): A Different Business Model.

As opposed to other emerging countries, the tire market in India was almost exclusively dominated by local players: 90 per cent of all tires on the Indian market were made and sold by local Indian companies. It is important to note that the big names of the world tire industry - Michelin, Bridgestone, Goodyear and Continental - were hardly visible in India. Michelin was absent from the Indian tire market and it is very surprising that the world leader of the tire industry had neither a production facility nor a distribution network in India. Why such an absence? Why did Michelin have so little presence in Asian emerging countries and especially in India? This case presents the main features of the tire industry in India. The case allows students to carry out a comprehensive strategic evaluation of the industry's attractiveness as well as an in-depth analysis of the structure of competition. Students will also conduct performance analysis for each company.

This is a supplement to Michelin in the Land of the Maharajahs (A): A Note on the Tire Industry in India, product 9B07M030. This case presents the performance and the geographic positioning of Michelin as well as its international expansion strategy. The information provided allows students to analyse Michelin's strategy and performance.

Two managers attending a week-long executive education course are working on an assignment which requires them to estimate the cost of capital for EnCana Corporation, a leading North American oil and gas producer. The two managers disagree about which costs need to be taken into account to complete the assignment. They are not sure about the costs of different sources of capital, the overall cost of capital and the appropriate use of the hurdle rate.

A vice-president of Ventures West, a leading Canadian venture capital firm, must decide what due diligence to conduct in order to recommend an investment in AudienceView, a company that provides software and services for the sports and entertainment ticketing markets. While the case is focused on due diligence, there is sufficient information to allow for a full venture capital investment analysis, including valuation and deal terms.

The chief financial officer (CFO) of Workbrain Corporation (Workbrain) must prepare a memo for the upcoming board of directors meeting. Workbrain, a venture-backed company, has grown substantially since its founding in November 1999. Now the CFO must communicate to the board whether it is time to consider an initial public offering (IPO) and, if so, in which exchange market the stock should be offered. The company must also consider what financing alternatives are available (including maintaining the current venture financing arrangement) and whether the company needs to raise money at all. The CFO is thinking about the memo, knowing that his words will have considerable impact on the company.

This case looks at the issue of whether an investment bank should invest in Tritortric, a privately held Turkish company specializing in white goods. Tritortric is planning an expansion in Europe either as OEM or through the acquisition of an existing European brand. Students will evaluate the attractiveness of Tritortric as a company and to provide guidance related to the mode of international expansion. This case also allows a broader discussion of how a company from an emerging country can compete against companies/brands from a developed one.

The CEO of Coca-Cola is faced with increasing criticism over the company's handling of alleged human rights abuses in Colombia. A grass roots protest movement known as The Campaign to Stop Killer Coke has built international support for a boycott of Coca-Cola products on college campuses. The campaign centers specifically on the intimidation and murder of union leaders at a specific Coca-Cola bottling plant in Colombia. Coca-Cola asserted that it was not responsible for such abuses. Rather, the violence at the Coca-Cola plant was the product of a political situation that was beyond the company's control. The company further argued that it was in compliance with local labor laws, and had been dismissed as the defendant in lawsuits filed in Colombia and U.S. courts. At the time of the case, Coca-Cola is faced with anti-Coke campaigns at more than 100 college campuses worldwide and official boycotts of its products at a number of large well-known campuses in the United States. In response, the company has undertaken an audit of its bottling plants in Colombia. It also launched a public relations campaign aimed at refuting accusations of human rights violations. The case can be used to discuss corporate ethics, extraterritoriality, marketing and public relations.

A manager at a public accounting firm was contracted to perform a second financial performance review and issue recommendations for improving the performance of California Choppers, a manufacturer of high-end motorcycles. She needed to analyze several financial indicators including liquidity, asset management, long-term debt payment ability, and profitability. Poor performance results and interpersonal difficulties between the owner and chief executive officer were making her job very difficult.

The snack bar supervisor of The Waterview resort in Northern Ontario just had another argument with his boss. He was angry and hated the thought of finishing the remaining four weeks of his summer contract. It was obvious to the supervisor that his boss held a personal grudge against him that was growing in intensity. He wondered how to finally settle their differences. Students will analyse a set of complex issues.