Sea Change: Rewriting the Rules for Port Security

This case describes the task that confronted Coast Guard Captain Suzanne Englebert, the staff point-person who led an initiative to develop new regulations intended to improve the security of the nation's ports from terrorist attacks, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. It is intended for use in a strategic management class. Students are challenged to weigh an array of political, practical, legal, and technical considerations in assessing Englebert's approach. The case provides students with the background information they need to discuss the challenges inherent in tightening port security, including: basic information about the economic import of maritime trade, the range of conditions at US ports, the nature of international shipping and regulation, the particular problems posed by containerized shipping, and the kinds of terrorist attack foreseen by security experts. This case also describes several initiatives, undertaken in parallel, to improve port security immediately after 9/11, including immediate protocol shifts in the international ports, and bilateral negotiations with the largest ports outside the United States. The case introduces Englebert and describes her role in the Coast Guard's simultaneous efforts to work with US legislators to create a domestic port security law and with international partners in the International Maritime Organization to create a worldwide port security regime. The case ends with Englebert facing her next herculean task: to turn the mandates of the new federal law into specific, concrete regulations in just a few months' time. The case was designed as a companion piece to a dvd, case number: 1946.9. Case number 1946.0

• Decision making
• War and conflicts
• Strategy management
• Politics
• Leadership