個案總覽

In September 2008, the CEO of Rainbow Group, a Chinese group of companies specializing in environmental protection services, was in Beijing, China, thinking about his experience that evening. A few hours ago, eight senior executives from Rainbow Group’s subsidiary in Hangzhou had come to Beijing requesting that the CEO fire their general manager, who had been appointed by the CEO only six months ago. This manager had taken control of the Hangzhou subsidiary with ambitious efforts to implement lean management and better cost control, but had met resistance from the other managers. The CEO was reviewing this appointment and thinking hard. What was the problem? What should he do?

The president JH Men's Apparel, a men’s apparel company in China, is considering the options available to his firm in light of the price war initiated by his competitors who are copying his company’s sweater patterns and selling the sweaters at a lower price point. Several of his biggest customers have demanded a price reduction to match the prices being offered by these competitors. In the face of such fierce competition, the president realizes that the multiple options available to his company boil down to a fundamental strategic choice between competing on the basis of cost leadership or of a differentiated, branded product line. He needs to make a decision and start implementing the strategy promptly.