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Mr. Stuart Foreman, assistant manager of the London, Ontario branch of the Central Canadian Bank, was reviewing information he had received from Maple Leaf Hardware Limited. Mr. Robert Patrick, president and manager of Maple Leaf Hardware Limited had requested an increase in his line of credit with the bank to cover seasonal working capital needs. Mr. Foreman, who had just received a transfer and promotion to the London branch, realized he would have to evaluate the request carefully.

Noranda is preparing to develop a $400 million copper mine in Chile. The Task Force of Canadian Churches opposes the investment because of the lack of human rights in Chile and has made its presence felt at Noranda's last five annual meetings. Enough data is in the case to analyze the investment on financial and moral grounds. Is Noranda morally right to go ahead? To what extent should the answer to this question govern their decision? What is the role of business ethics in this decision?

The London Regional Children's Museum is engaged in a fund-raising campaign in order to move from temporary cramped facilities to an owned, large building. The needed million-dollar plus goal has been roughly half achieved. The case describes the museum and the environment in which it is seeking funds. The director is attempting to design a campaign to reach private donors.

An entrepreneur was investigating the feasibility of opening an Italian fast food franchise called Rosa's Palas. He spoke to the franchisor concerning a few franchise break-even points, and his return on investment for his restaurant. With this information, the entrepreneur felt he could decide whether he would invest in the franchise.

This note discusses the steps involved in the analysis of a business case: reading, problem definition, information analysis, formulation of alternatives, evaluation of alternatives, choice, implementation and control.

The Canadair Challenger Jet senior management must decide whether or not to proceed with the venture of designing, marketing and producing an aircraft to compete in the world market for large business jets. Canadair executives must decide the product positioning, price, advertising, selling program, and servicing arrangements before they can assess the feasibility of the venture.

Based on a preliminary analysis, the inventor of a licence plate protector believes the product would be viable. He collects information on the investments and costs necessary for production, and develops a selling price. But has he correctly identified the fixed, variable and step costs in his analysis?

Mencotti Wine is considering a new bottle labelling machine. The president wants to analyze a number of alternative investment decisions using the net present value approach. He must consider the income tax effects including the capital cost allowance on fixed assets.

Two young Canadian women have to deal with the threat of strike in a model factory started up in a rural African village. Cross cultural management problems arise as these two women with different management styles attempt to combine rural African norms, roles and expectations to the task of producing school uniforms in an industrial setting. A strike is threatened over a pay dispute, a result of differing perceptions and expectations in the work environment. A sequel to this case, Botswana Uniform Agency (PTY) (B), case 9A79C021, offers further insight.

The managers call a meeting of all staff as a strike is threatened over a pay dispute in this rural African company. They learn that the real issue is the disparity between the pay of some workers. This is the sequel to Botswana Uniform Agency (PTY) Limited (A), case 9A79C020.

An immensely successful Western Canadian real estate agency is considering questions of continuity and sustaining its growth. The agency has prospered because it acted as an agent for its client, not as a broker trying to bring parties together in a sale. A key, the president feels, is getting and keeping good people and instilling in them the concept of acting as an agent.

An engineering manager has just received the resignation from the company's best engineering designer. The designer was asked to prepare a report on a current project to ensure that any problems during the process could be corrected before completion. In the report he was critical of the design features and some crucial parts of the project. The report was presented to upper management, concerns were discussed and it was decided to ignore the report and allow the project to continue without any changes. After finding out about the decision, the engineering designer submits his resignation. The engineering manager is uneasy about the events unfolding and must decide what to do next. Supplements Maintrel (B), (C) and (D), products 9A75J010, 9A75J011 and 9A75J012 highlight the engineering manager's decision and the outcome.

The expatriate manager of an international bank faces two major problems. One is internal - how to resolve the inter-departmental conflicts caused by antagonism between two department heads. The other is external - how to cope with government pressures to establish quotas for hiring personnel at every level in the organization. The internal problems of the organization mirror the major socio-cultural-racial tensions in the society.