個案總覽

The CareerLeader business career self-assessment program provides diagnostic information in three key areas of individual differences.

This auto parts company has just ousted its longtime CEO and founder, and the new, professional CEO is badly in need of a coherent strategy, clear objectives and metrics, and initiatives that are aligned with the strategy and objectives. Will the balanced scorecard approach help his leadership team create an action plan that makes sense for the company's strategy? This case is designed to be used with the "Balanced Scorecard Simulation Game."

Akhil Patel is passionate about his business idea: an innovative green technology fuel cell. He wants to dive in and commit to his startup, but Roopa Rao, his fiancee, is much more risk averse, his parents don't approve of the startup, and Akhil has an enticing alternative offer from a prestigious consulting firm. Should Akhil follow his dream and become an entrepreneur? Or should he acquiesce to the other forces in his life and take the "safer" consulting job?

Akhil Patel is passionate about his business idea: an innovative green technology fuel cell. He wants to dive in and commit to his startup, but Roopa Rao, his fiancée, is much more risk averse, his parents don't approve of the startup, and Akhil has an enticing alternative offer from a prestigious consulting firm. Should Akhil follow his dream and become an entrepreneur? Or should he acquiesce to the other forces in his life and take the "safer" consulting job? This is a companion case to Career at a Crossroad: Akhil Patel, HBS No. 812-010, giving Roopa Rao's point of view.

Akhil Patel is passionate about his business idea: an innovative green technology fuel cell. He wants to dive in and commit to his startup, but his fiancée is much more risk averse, his parents don't approve of the startup, and Akhil has an enticing alternative offer from a prestigious consulting firm. Should Akhil follow his dream and become an entrepreneur? Or should he take the "safer" consulting job?

When ISS, a large shareholder advisory group, recommended a "no" vote on Jeff Immelt's award of 2 million stock options in April 2011, GE's compensation committee had to decide whether to rescind or amend the award or ignore the ISS recommendation. Was Immelt's 2010 pay in line with his performance? How would shareholders vote on the advisory "say on pay" ballot question at GE's annual meeting in April?

Todovino sells Spanish wines through wine clubs and web sites. Founder-CEO Gonzalo Verdera has partnered with many companies to create cobranded wine clubs, but now he is pondering a joint venture with one of his rivals, a brick-and-mortar wine chain. Todovino would provide the online presence for the chain. Should Verdera help his rival? What are the risks and benefits for Todovino?

Emergia wants to keep its customers happy with its contact center service, but the margins on the help desk contract are dangerously low. Can Miguel Neira, the COO, increase margins while preserving the customer relationship?

Liza Davis, an upscale women's fashion retailer, is reeling from worldwide recession and lower demand. Should the company target the fast growing bargain hunter segment or hold the line on price discounts to preserve its brand image? Customer profitability calculations show that the bargain hunting customer loses money--does that mean the company should ignore this customer in favor of full-price shoppers?

Spreadsheet supplement for case number 102070.

Spreadsheet supplement for case number 101072.

Spreadsheet supplement for case number 100055.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 11063

Owens & Minor (O&M) performed lean inventory services for Virginia Mason (VM) as its alpha vendor, but the outdated industry pricing model created perverse incentives and could not capture O&M's costs. Together, O&M and VM created an activity-based pricing model called the total supply chain costs (TSCC), which incented both companies to be more efficient and to streamline their distribution activities. After beta testing the TSCC for one year, VM's Daniel Borunda and O&M's Michael Stefanic believed that TSCC was a better and more cost-effective pricing model, but could they convince their companies to continue to invest in TSCC?

This case examines the causes and consequences of the credit crisis of 2008 from a national and global perspective and explores the actions taken and proposed by the U.S. and European governments.

HubSpot, a web marketing startup is under pressure from VCs to rapidly acquire new customers and to maintain a low level of customer churn. In the case, students explore the drivers of customer churn and uncover opportunities to increase customer retention across the customer selection, selling, and training processes. Students assess a metric, CHI (Customer Happiness Index) which HubSpot uses to predict which customers will churn, and suggest alternatives to improve the firm's predictions. Students develop programs to reduce churn post-hoc and then reengineer the company's marketing, selling, and customer relationship management processes to manage churn proactively through market segmentation and targeting, product design, and customer interactions.

Transworld Auto Parts had to implement its new strategy flawlessly to survive the auto industry upheaval. The new CEO asked her leadership team to craft strategy maps and balanced scorecards to help each division implement their strategies.

Supplements the (A) case.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 110027.

The pet and pet supply industry was one of the few bright lights in an otherwise dismal retail outlook in 2009. This case gives background pet retail industry information and strategic positioning information for both PetSmart and PETCO to enable students to develop their own Balanced Scorecards and strategy maps for the two companies.