Not content with nine million customers per day, Toshifumi Suzuki, the chairman and CEO of Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd., was looking for ways to attract more customers and more sales. Fascinated by the optimistic outlook on the growth of business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce in Japan, he contacted several prominent Japanese companies to explore the possibility of working together to launch the biggest B2C e-commerce web site in Japan. Suzuki knew that successfully launching and operating a B2C e-commerce business in Japan, known for its citizens' hesitancy to buy on-line, could be a big coup for him. His challenge now was to convince his would-be partners that he had a potentially successful and lucrative business model. Set in December 1999, this case is primarily about the aspiration of Suzuki to establish a business-to-consumer e-commerce venture targeted at Japanese consumers. Depicts the obstacles that he faces and the methods planned to overcome these obstacles.

Since the Hospital Authority officially took over the management of the public hospitals in December 1991, it initiated numerous schemes aimed at improving the quality and efficiency of its staff and health care services. This included implementing a new management structure in most of the hospitals under its jurisdiction, including Patient Care Hospital. A few of the steps taken to improve the delivery of medical services were successfully and smoothly implemented, but a few met with resistance and complaints from the medical staff. This case takes a look at the management of medical professionals, and also at the role of medical professionals as managers. It introduces students to the culture of medical professionals, and aims to help students understand the reaction of medical professionals toward changes that affect their work routines.