Students assume the role of regional president, Asia, for Delta Beverages, a large U.S.-based firm and a leader in the beverage industry. In assuming this role, students face the task of selecting a country manager for India. In this two-part case, Part 1 focuses on the most critical criteria to select the best candidate, while Part 2 focuses on the personal details and experience of the five top-rated candidates for the position.
This case is a supplement to Ellen Moore (A): Living and Working in Korea. In this follow-up case, Ellen discusses how a major crisis was averted and reflects on what she learned during her assignment in Korea.
The controller for Asis Electronics, a subsidiary of a European-based corporation, was concerned that Asis might have overcharged the U.S. Ministry of Defense in a contract for transmitters. However, Asis’s chief financial officer did not address the matter when he learned of it. After being asked to sign an annual compliance document related to anti-corruption practices, the controller needed to decide whether or not to report the irregularities through established “protected communications channels” that ensured confidentiality.
In 1995, the United Nations began to ease sanctions on Iraq in what was known as the “Oil for Food” program. One of the first companies to return to Iraq under the UN program was U.S.-based International Farm Equipment Co. (IFE). IFE had been an important supplier of agricultural equipment to Iraq until the Gulf War in 1990. Shortly after IFE established its Iraq office upon returning, the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture demanded a direct payment of 10 per cent of all future contracts. Several other companies had agreed to make the payments, including at least one prominent competitor of IFE. The payments would be classified as “post-sale commissions” and would be conducted through a third-party agent working on IFE’s behalf. IFE’s business manager for the Middle East needed to decide how to proceed.
Just as Arla Foods has re-established its reputation in the Middle East, another provocative cartoon is released in a Swedish paper and the communications director of Arla Foods must decide how the company will respond. This is a supplement to Arla Foods and the Cartoon Crisis (A), Ivey product 9B08M005.
The communications director of Arla Foods is hoping the decision to denounce to the cartoons will bring an end to the boycott. Instead, it brings complaints from Danish women's groups. This is a supplement to Arla Foods and the Cartoon Crisis (A), Ivey product 9B08M005.
After a Danish newspaper publishes cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, consumers across the Middle East decide to boycott Danish goods. Arla Foods (Arla) is one of Europe's largest dairy companies. Suddenly, it finds itself caught in the middle of a crisis that appears to be beyond its control. Prior to the boycott, the Middle East was Arla's fastest growing region and represented an important component of the company's long-term growth strategy. As the largest Danish company in the region, it stands to lose up to $550 million in annual revenues. Students are asked to take the role of the communication director for Arla, who, along with other members of the newly formed Crisis and Communication Group, must decide on a course of action to deal with the crisis. The case addresses a variety of topics, including culture and religion, international management, risk management, crisis communications, and managing in a boycott situation. It also creates an opportunity to discuss doing business in the Middle East and management in an Islamic context.
The CEO of Coca-Cola is faced with increasing criticism over the company's handling of alleged human rights abuses in Colombia. A grass roots protest movement known as The Campaign to Stop Killer Coke has built international support for a boycott of Coca-Cola products on college campuses. The campaign centers specifically on the intimidation and murder of union leaders at a specific Coca-Cola bottling plant in Colombia. Coca-Cola asserted that it was not responsible for such abuses. Rather, the violence at the Coca-Cola plant was the product of a political situation that was beyond the company's control. The company further argued that it was in compliance with local labor laws, and had been dismissed as the defendant in lawsuits filed in Colombia and U.S. courts. At the time of the case, Coca-Cola is faced with anti-Coke campaigns at more than 100 college campuses worldwide and official boycotts of its products at a number of large well-known campuses in the United States. In response, the company has undertaken an audit of its bottling plants in Colombia. It also launched a public relations campaign aimed at refuting accusations of human rights violations. The case can be used to discuss corporate ethics, extraterritoriality, marketing and public relations.
The senior vice-president for corporate development for Charles River Laboratories must prepare a presentation to the company's board of directors requesting up to a $2 million investment in a Mexican joint venture with a family-owned animal health company. However, the chief executive officer views the proposed joint venture as a potential distraction while his company continues to expand rapidly in the United States. He is also worried about the risks of investing in a country like Mexico and the plan to partner with a small, family-owned company. Moreover, the Mexican partner is unable to invest any cash in the joint venture, which would need to be fully funded by Charles River Laboratories. The supplement Alpes S.A.: A Joint Venture Proposal (B) looks at what happened.
The senior vice-president for corporate development for Charles River Laboratories must prepare a presentation to the company's board of directors requesting up to a $2 million investment in a Mexican joint venture with a family-owned animal health company. This is a supplement to Alpes S.A.: A Joint Venture Proposal (A).
After the U.S. sales manager of a large multicultural company emails his supervisor regarding the supply of a new product, the message is forwarded to two others. The final recipient, the president of the Franco-Japanese joint venture partner that is manufacturing the new product, is offended by what he perceives as unfair criticism. The sales manager draws on his recent training in intercultural management to try to salvage the situation. The companion case, Charles Foster Sends and Email(A), product number 9B05C019, includes the complete series of email. Together, the (A) and (B) cases present a setting for discussing three issues: the relationship between a communications situation and the medium chosen to deliver it, the effects on business relationships when an inappropriate communications medium is chosen and the processes needed to communicated effectively in multicultural business relationships.
After the U.S. sales manager of a large multinational company emails his supervisor regarding the supply of a new product, the message is forwarded to two others. The final recipient, the president of the Franco-Japanese joint venture partner that is manufacturing the new product, is offended by what he perceives as unfair criticism. The supplemental case, Charles Foster Sends an Email (B), product number 9B05C020, includes the sales manager's response to the president, and the ensuing correspondence from the joint venture. Together, the (A) and (B) cases present a setting for discussing three issues; the relationship between a communication situation and the medium chosen to deliver it, the effects on business relationships when an inappropriate communications medium is chosen and the processes needed to communicate effectively in multicultural business relationships.
Less than one year after being awarded a contract to develop one of the world's largest offshore petroleum fields, Statoil's future in Iran appeared to be in jeopardy. Statoil was at the center of a corruption investigation that had resulted in the resignations of three of the company's top executives, including its CEO. The issue was alleged bribes paid by Horton Investments, on Statoil's behest, to secure lucrative petroleum development contracts. According to the Iranian government, Statoil used Horton to channel $15 million in secret bribes to unnamed government officials. Statoil's country manager, who had considerable experience in the region and was unaware of the secret deals, is left with the difficult task of trying to salvage the operation and rebuild the social capital he had established between Statoil and its Iranian counterparts.
According to the American Management Association, 25 per cent of companies are dissatisfied with outsourcing and more than half have brought outsourced services back in house. Education Development Center (EDC), a non-governmental organization, is an example of offshoring best practice and will help identify factors for successful implementation of an outsourcing project. The case starts with a description of EDC and its inability to manage a high level of growth with a fragmented and outdated information infrastructure. As a non-profit organization, EDC had different pressures on its cost and revenues that for-profit organization.
A small team of Canadian managers from a large financial institution is faced with the challenges of managing a recently acquired Mexican operation. Managers must cope with a language barrier and cultural differences as they try to restructure the over-staffed Mexican financial institution. A second teaching note (5A97L01) discusses how to use this case from a cross-cultural orientation perspective.
Cambridge Laboratories is essentially a fee-for-service provider of laboratory tests. It spends less than 0.5 per cent of revenues on research and development and holds relatively few patents for a biotech company. It now has an opportunity to invest $5 million to establish a joint venture with an Australian proteomics company that operates on a drug discovery (royalty) model. The founder of this company believed that his technology could eventually result in the discovery of new drugs that would generate significant royalties. While the proteomics firm has superb technology, some of the intellectual leaders in the field on its staff, and partnerships with some impressive companies, its technology is yet unproven. Cambridge Labs is also concerned that its existing relationships with big pharmaceutical companies could be jeopardized if it begins to take an intellectual property position in proteomics. In addition, the Australian company consists primarily of PhDs in molecular biology, while Cambridge Labs is dominated by business executives whose primary focus is generating strong financial returns for shareholders. The cultural differences between an Australian science-oriented laboratory and a publicly traded American outsourcing company become apparent during the negotiation phase of the joint venture proposal. Students are asked to evaluate the joint venture and consider whether the cultural and strategic differences can be reconciled.
Modine Manufacturing operates primarily in a single product category consisting of the manufacture and sale of heat transfer equipment. A major customer announced the cancellation of an agreement with Modine to develop a key engine component, which was needed by automotive companies in order to make their engines comply with new emissions guidelines set to take effect in several years. However, the expectation that the government would relax emissions guidelines was believed to have led to the cancellation of the project. Would other customers do the same? Considerable resources were spent on this project, causing projects that would be handled by the new product development area to be developed outside of this unit. The vice-president of technical services must analyse the company's new product strategy to determine its effectiveness in developing new products and what model the company should use for product development.
This note discusses the impact of immigration on attitudes and government policy in Western Europe's three largest countries, Spain, France and Germany. It also examines how the histories and political structures of these countries have influenced immigration policy and the integration of immigrant populations. Finally, it predicts the impact that immigration policy will have on employment and productivity in what some observers have dubbed Fortress Europe.
After completing their exchange semester, the American students felt that they had gone beyond being mere tourists. However, for most, the reality of spending a term in Europe had turned out very different from their expectations. This supplement to the European Experience (A) case, product 9B02C031 continues the discussion as students finished their academic term and prepare for their work placements. This case is the second part of a case series used to help prepare North American undergraduate business students for international exchange programs. See also European Experience (C), product 9B02C033.
Follows the experience of an American exchange student studying in Spain, as he embarks on a co-op work assignment with a major international manufacturing company. This supplement is the third part of a case series that is used to help prepare North American undergraduate business students for international exchange programs. Supplement to The European Experience (A), product 9B02C031, and European Experience (B), product 9B02C031.