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Founded in 2006, Mi Xue Bing Cheng (Mixue) had become widely popular in the Chinese market by June 2021. Mixue achieved very high levels of growth by using a low-price high-volume strategy, a clever marketing campaign, and an unconventional geographic expansion strategy that emphasized secondary markets. However, the domestic market was becoming too saturated. Seeing Mixue gain recognition, new competitors started imitating its business model and developing a fiercely competitive market. Mixue’s chief executive officer, Hongfu Zhang, was wondering how to sustain the company’s high growth rate. Should Mixue continue following its original strategy or adopt a new and different approach that includes international expansion?

Founded in 2006, Mi Xue Bing Cheng (Mixue) had become widely popular in the Chinese market by June 2021. Mixue achieved very high levels of growth by using a low-price high-volume strategy, a clever marketing campaign, and an unconventional geographic expansion strategy that emphasized secondary markets. However, the domestic market was becoming too saturated. Seeing Mixue gain recognition, new competitors started imitating its business model and developing a fiercely competitive market. Mixue's chief executive officer, Hongfu Zhang, was wondering how to sustain the company's high growth rate. Should Mixue continue following its original strategy or adopt a new and different approach that includes international expansion?

Susan, a first-year analyst at a trading firm, is the only woman among a tight-knit group of 30 analysts, now that Paulette has just been promoted to associate from third-year analyst. She and the rest of the analysts are summoned to an HR meeting because one of the male analysts has been putting Post-It Notes with drawings of penises in Paulette's workspace. All the analysts know who the offender is, but no one, including Susan, identifies him. After the meeting, Susan realizes that what she had considered a joke is actually harassment that could be hurting Paulette. The B case follows Susan's decision and ensuing actions.

Susan, a first-year analyst at a trading firm, is the only woman among a tight-knit group of 30 analysts, now that Paulette has just been promoted to associate from third-year analyst. She and the rest of the analysts are summoned to an HR meeting because one of the male analysts has been putting Post-It Notes with drawings of penises in Paulette's workspace. All the analysts know who the offender is, but no one, including Susan, identifies him. After the meeting, Susan realizes that what she had considered a joke is actually harassment that could be hurting Paulette. This B case follows Susan's decision and ensuing actions.

Having just moved from the sales department to the marketing team at a start-up, Lisa is confronted with a dilemma. Part of the reason she switched departments was to improve the strained relationship between the two departments. Her first assignment is to call competitors, pretending to be a customer, to get their pricing information. Lisa doesn't want to lie, but feels a responsibility to her new boss, her old boss who advocated for her, and both her new and old departments. The B case describes her decision and its consequences. Lisa recognizes that she actually had more options to act ethically than she had thought, and decides to be more thoughtful and prepared for similar dilemmas in the future.

Having just moved from the sales department to the marketing team at a start-up, Lisa is confronted with a dilemma. Part of the reason she switched departments was to improve the strained relationship between the two departments. Her first assignment is to call competitors, pretending to be a customer, to get their pricing information. Lisa doesn't want to lie, but feels a responsibility to her new boss, her old boss who advocated for her, and both her new and old departments. This B case describes her decision and its consequences. Lisa recognizes that she actually had more options to act ethically than she had thought, and decides to be more thoughtful and prepared for similar dilemmas in the future.

This case is part of the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) curriculum. To see other material in the GVV curriculum, please visit http://store.darden.virginia.edu/giving-voice-to-values. Maria Pérez has been working at IBB, one of the largest investment banks in Latin America, for only a few months, when she is confronted by a dilemma. She is working with her mentor and boss, Veronica Muñoz, on an acquisition for one of IBB's clients, and they have identified a target company. When they request preliminary information for the valuation, the accountant for the target company accidentally sends very detailed data. He calls in a panic and asks them not to use the information. Muñoz promises not to use the mistakenly sent documents, but as soon as the call is over, she tells Pérez to use all the data to inform her valuation. Pérez loves her job at IBB, but she needs to slow down and consider her actions in this moment. She does not want to lie to a business partner, as trust and honesty are integral to how she sees herself as a businesswoman. She decides to find a solution that would enable her to remain faithful to their assurance to the target company accountant, prepare an informative due diligence for their client under time pressure, and maintain her relationship with Muñoz. The B case details her decision and discusses a few ways Pérez could prepare a more coherent approach for future encounters.

This case is part of the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) curriculum. To see other material in the GVV curriculum, please visit http://store.darden.virginia.edu/giving-voice-to-values. Maria Pérez has been working at IBB, one of the largest investment banks in Latin America, for only a few months, when she is confronted by a dilemma. She is working with her mentor and boss, Veronica Muñoz, on an acquisition for one of IBB's clients, and they have identified a target company. When they request preliminary information for the valuation, the accountant for the target company accidentally sends very detailed data. He calls in a panic and asks them not to use the information. Muñoz promises not to use the mistakenly sent documents, but as soon as the call is over, she tells Pérez to use all the data to inform her valuation. Pérez loves her job at IBB, but she needs to slow down and consider her actions in this moment. She does not want to lie to a business partner, as trust and honesty are integral to how she sees herself as a businesswoman. She decides to find a solution that would enable her to remain faithful to their assurance to the target company accountant, prepare an informative due diligence for their client under time pressure, and maintain her relationship with Muñoz. This B case details her decision and discusses a few ways Pérez could prepare a more coherent approach for future encounters.

DD Traders was the Asian branch of DEMDACO, a privately held company that wholesaled unique gift products that were marketed and distributed to the specialty retail channel in the United States and some international markets. Carolyn Glasow recognized an opportunity to leverage a quantitative approach to sourcing future allocations across vendors that would also improve the short-term demand transparency that was provided to the company’s key business partners, which could in turn lead to increased bargaining power for price negotiations and production lead times. This was a recurring issue for Glasow and her sourcing team: how should she allocate product purchases among the various manufacturers that bid for the opportunity to supply products to DD Traders?

DD Traders was the Asian branch of DEMDACO, a privately held company that wholesaled unique gift products, which were marketed and distributed to the specialty retail channel in the United States (as well as some international markets). Carolyn Glasow recognized an opportunity to leverage a quantitative approach to sourcing future allocations across vendors that would also improve the short-term demand transparency that was provided to the company's key business partners, which could lead to increased bargaining power for price negotiations and production lead-times. This was a recurring issue for Glasow and her sourcing team: how should she allocate product purchases among the various manufacturers that bid for the opportunity to supply products to DD Traders?

American Airlines is pursuing a growth strategy through international and domestic route expansion. At the same time, the airline is working hard to cut costs while trying to provide the best customer service possible. Is this strategy achievable given the recent surge in jet fuel prices and the competitive framework of the industry?

Describes the Mexican subsidiary of Colgate-Palmolive as it sets its strategy for coping with hyperinflation and the November 1987 devaluation of the peso.