In response to growing concern about childhood obesity, in February 2006 the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB) announced an initiative to examine its self-regulatory program on children's advertising. The existing program was a voluntary cross-industry program that monitored advertisements directed to children. However, the program did not stipulate which products companies could or could not advertise to children. In response to calls for action on childhood obesity, the CBBB was considering a number of approaches, including revising children's advertising guidelines, but staying within the basic parameters of the current program. Alternatively, the CBBB was considering launching a new self-regulatory program in which participating firms would constrain the amount of their children-targeted advertising of less-nutritious products. It was widely believed that children's food advertising was a major contributor to childhood obesity, and within the food-advertising category, considerable attention was directed to advertisements of children's presweetened cereals. The major ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal manufacturers, such as Kellogg's and General Mills, were supporters of the CBBB self-regulation programs and were invited to participate in the CBBB initiative. Each manufacturer had been taking different individual approaches to address the concerns of childhood obesity. The case discussion focuses on what actions General Mills should take with respect to the CBBB initiative and on its own.
On September 2003, Richard Grasso stepped down as chairman and CEO of the New York Stock Exchange, following weeks of intense public criticism over the size of his $190 million compensation package. As chairman of the committee that oversaw Grasso's payout, Ken Langone believed firmly that the payment was fair and reasonable. However, NYSE members, government regulators, and the media alike blamed the board for its oversight and viewed Langone as the mastermind behind Grasso's huge payout. Calls to oust Langone as director from all his board positions came within days of Grasso's resignation. This case follows immediate backlash against Langone over his role at the NYSE as well as the connection this scandal had on his eventual departure from General Electric's board of directors. Should Langone have resigned from GE's board?
In 2009 the Economist continued to experience impressive growth and operating margins while many of its peers reeled from both a cyclical downturn and structural threats to print publishing. The case describes the history, organization, and business model of the Economist, and describes three issues confronting Andrew Rashbass, the group's chief executive: first, reevaluating the magazine's digital strategy; second, preparing for e-readers; and, third, positioning the company to exploit what the Economist described as an era of "Mass Intelligence" where more readers sought out sophisticated and challenging information sources.