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Mike Wilson and Jim Thompson of Northern Mining Inc., a Canadian-listed junior-mining company, deliberated carefully the prospect of acquiring the largest graphite deposit in Ontario, owned by Graphite Mining Corporation (GMC). GMC's U.S. parent company, the Jameson Corporation, had stopped mining operations in the previous year and then proceeded to sell its interest in GMC to Quebec-based graphite producer Graphcar Inc. Over the past five years, CDN$30 million had been spent in developing the mine and erecting a mill, and now Graphcar Inc. was prepared to sell the mill for CDN$1.5 million. (A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet is available for use with this case, product 7A96B014.)

The deregulation of the natural gas industry permitted the creation of new companies, gas marketers or gas banks, such as CoWest. Still in its first year of operations, CoWest had the opportunity to bid on a fixed-price long-term contract to supply gas to a cogeneration plant. The focus of the case is to investigate the possibilities of putting a deal together using financial derivatives.

The assistant treasurer of Videotron Ltee (Videotron) pondered over the Citibank proposals that lay on his desk. Videotron was about to launch a US$150 million, 10-year high yield issue in almost a week's time. Since Videotron's business was transacted almost exclusively in Canadian dollars, it would be exposed to foreign exchange risk on the US-dollar denominated interest and principal debt payments. In light of the recent and dramatic depreciation of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar, the treasurer wondered if he should hedge this exposure. The Citibank Canada exposure management team had proposed hedging techniques using either forwards or cross-currency swaps. (A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet is available for use with this case, product 7A96B021.)

This case demonstrates how forming strategic partnerships with suppliers and clients can lead to win-win-win situations in the supply chain. It can be used to discuss the importance of information sharing and the use of information technology to drive the direction of the individual relationships. It also shows how cultivating partnerships can result in a competitive advantage in a highly competitive service industry. Techniques for developing and maintaining such a relationship are also brought out in the case, and it provides an opportunity to focus on the key concepts of supply chain management as they apply to service industries.

When two or more parties establish a relationship or structure a deal, one of the key issues that arises is the nature of the agency relationship between them. This technical note explains the concept of agency, outlines some of the typical agency relationships that exist in businesses, the agency problems that can arise between people and organizations and the tools that are employed to address these agency problems.

This is a condensed version of case 9A95E003. Western Mining Corporation is one of Australia's largest mining companies. This case tells the story of a large information system project from its inception through its development and to the eve of its rollout into the implementation phases. The Operations Management Project was commissioned to produce the Operations Management System (OMS), a new information system designed to provide operational personnel with better and more timely information to help them in their daily tasks. The project experienced significant delays and problems, from project management difficulties, to systems development methodology shortcomings, to steering committee dealings. Two additional cases on the Operations Management Project are also available: Western Mining Corporation (B), case 9A95E005, and Western Mining Corporation (C), case 9A95E006. The three cases together provide a rich and comprehensive description of the various challenges experienced by information systems personnel and operational personnel alike in the course of developing and implementing new information systems. Both the original case and the (B) case can stand on their own. The (C) case is best used in conjunction with the (B) case.

The Bank of Nova Scotia faced the decision whether to expand its investments in the Mexican bank, Inverlat. In 1995, it had to write down the value of its investments from $154-million to $10-million as a result of the Mexican peso crisis and subsequent recession. This case examines the environment of business in Mexico during the time of the currency devaluation. In particular, it focuses on the factors underlying the peso crisis. Privatization of Mexico's banks and liberalization of regulations created new opportunities, but at the same time, resulted in extreme instability within the financial sector. While Mexico offered the opportunity to become a major player in the growing Latin American market, nevertheless there were risks of major losses. (A sequel to this case is available, titled Bank of Nova Scotia: The Mexico Decisions (B), case 9A97H004.)

LBT Acquisition Corp. (LBTAC) made a Cdn$24 per share hostile takeover bid for John Labatt Limited (Labatt). LBTAC was a subsidiary of Onex Corporation (Onex), a Toronto-based conglomerate which secured financial assistance from Quilmes Industrial S.A., a Luxembourg-based holding company. Prior to the Onex bid, Labatt had been negotiating a merger with Interbrew S.A./N.V., Belgium's largest brewer. People close to the negotiations indicated they had heard rumors that the Dutch Brewer, Heineken N.V., and others were prepared to make bids. The case is from the perspective of Wood Gundy, the financial advisor to Labatt. The challenge for the student is to structure a deal in order to maximize shareholder value.

The operations manager of the Westover Inn has an opportunity to obtain an equity position in the Inn and is trying to decide whether it makes sense for him to take advantage of it. The case examines a purchase decision from a broad range of perspectives - finance, accounting, model building, operations, marketing, strategy, human resources, communications, information technology - and particularly the interaction between the concerns of these functions. A related issue is to determine the value of the property. The focus of the case is the Inn's financial condition - its statements and projections - and various alternative approaches to evaluation. (A supplement to this case, Westover Inn (B), case 9A96M004, is available.)

The operations manager of the Westover Inn has just decided to purchase an equity position in the Inn. He has mixed feelings of both elation and dread. Now that the decision has been made, the real work can begin. The focus of the case is dealing with several inter-related strategy, marketing, operations, human resources, technology, and communications decisions required to ensure that the purchase will be a success. (This is a supplement to Westover Inn (A), case 9A96M003.)

A portfolio strategist for the Pegasus Pension Fund, was reviewing a research paper investigating international tactical asset allocation that had been forwarded to him from a colleague. The president of the Pegasus Pension Fund had recently become concerned with the fund's shrinking surplus and had given a directive to the portfolio strategist to investigate new strategies that could enhance the fund's performance. He thought that adopting an international equity investment strategy might be appropriate to enhance the fund's performance. He was scheduled to make a presentation to the President the following week regarding the merits, risks, and possible introduction of one such strategy: international tactical asset allocation.

The environmental coordinator at the Chatham Assembly Plant of Navistar International Corporation, must develop a total waste management program which addresses both corporate waste reduction objectives and regulatory requirements. At the time of the case, a plant-wide waste audit had just been completed by an outside contractor in response to the introduction of provincial legislation, referred to as 3R Regulations. The environmental coordinator must assess the competitive implications of different alternatives, design the program, decide which materials will be recycled, identify who will be involved in implementation, and take into account the reaction of different stakeholder groups. (A sequel to this case titled Navistar: Environmental Management (B), case 9A96D002, is available.)

A newly hired product manager at CIBC Securities Inc., one of the largest mutual fund administrators in Canada, is asked to develop an innovative equity mutual fund. In addition to examining the current product offering of the bank as well as the competition, she must examine the needs of the key stakeholders in this project. She realizes that it may prove difficult to make everyone happy. Among other suggestions she makes to the CEO, the proposed pricing structure of the new mutual fund is unprecedented and could prove to reshape the industry.

One of Cadillac Fairview Inc.'s (Cadillac) key creditors, the Whitehall Street Real Estate Limited Partnership managed by Goldman Sachs & Co., forced Cadillac to seek protection from its creditors under Canadian insolvency law on December 23, 1994. Accordingly, Cadillac was now required to submit to the Ontario General Court a plan to restructure its financial obligations by January 31, 1995, a plan that it hoped would have the support of its various stakeholder groups. Cadillac had grown to become one of the largest developers and owners of prime commercial real estate in North America, with assets of $4.8 billion. (A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet is available for use with this case, product 7A96B013.)

The Vice President - Manufacturing, is faced with a series of disputes between his direct subordinate, the maintenance supervisor, and one of the maintenance foremen. The situation is threatening to disrupt maintenance operations and the VP feels it is time to intervene. His problem is what to do and how to do it. (To be used in conjunction with Martin Brass Company (B) Harry Smith, Supervisor, Maintenance Dept., case 9A96C006; and Martin Brass Company (C) Jim Jones, Foreman, Maintenance Dept., case 9A96C007.)

The Vice President - Manufacturing, is faced with a series of disputes between his direct subordinate, the maintenance supervisor, and one of the maintenance foremen. The situation is threatening to disrupt maintenance operations and the VP feels it is time to intervene. His problem is what to do and how to do it. (To be used in conjunction with Martin Brass Company (A) Tom Fuller, Vice-President, Manufacturing, case 9A96C005; and Martin Brass Company (C) Jim Jones, Foreman, Maintenance Dept., case 9A96C007.)

The Vice President - Manufacturing, is faced with a series of disputes between his direct subordinate, the maintenance supervisor, and one of the maintenance foremen. The situation is threatening to disrupt maintenance operations and the VP feels it is time to intervene. His problem is what to do and how to do it. (To be used in conjunction with Martin Brass Company (A) Tom Fuller, Vice-President, Manufacturing, case 9A96C005; and Martin Brass Company (B) Harry Smith, Supervisor, Maintenance Dept., case 9A96C006.)

Mekong, a joint venture among Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese auto assemblers, is facing significant changes in the business environment in Vietnam. As the government of Vietnam has implemented its economic and administrative reform program, foreign and domestic companies in Vietnam have had to deal with changes in regulations and competitive forces. In addition, Vietnam's membership in ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) has further complicated the business decisions that foreign companies have to make in this newly-opened economy. Students will be challenged to devise a strategy for Mekong as a multi-national company operating in the Far East.

The treasurer of The University of Western Ontario was preparing a recommendation to the Spencer Hall board of directors concerning the financing of the $7.7 million expansion to Spencer Hall. The expansion was currently being financed with short-term loans but the board was concerned about increasing rates and was considering such hedging vehicles as interest rate swaps, caps and collars. A follow-up case is available (9A97N004).

The human resources/operations manager must design an action plan to implement the mission statement he has developed: the store will offer the best in customer satisfaction. The challenge lies in translating this goal into specific actions for the three groups of employees involved in sales: sales supervisors, department heads, and sales associates. Each of these groups will play a different role in attaining the goal and, therefore, each group will require training and motivation.