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Jeremy Leahman, president of Filtroil, Inc., and Albert Randolph, founder of the firm, had partnered with a supplier in China to ramp up the manufacture of their China-based filtration system and start a new zinc alloy venture. They opened a new factory in Dongwan that was a merger between Shenzhen Filtroil and their supplier, Liu Li-whose own factory was on the verge of bankruptcy. Liu would own 10% of the merged factory and Shenzhen Filtroil would own the rest and acquire all of the necessary equipment. The two businesses filter and zinc would operate under the same roof. One year later Leahman was on a plane headed for China to hash out problems with Liu, who had demanded a monthly raise for himself and his wife, a new company car, and an increase in profit sharing. He had also threatened to delay product shipment to the United States if his conditions were left unmet. Qian Kai Nam (Qian) and Shea Kai Young (Thomas), who ran Shenzhen Filtroil and were in on the zinc partnership, believed that Liu's behavior put the entire business relationship at risk. The case reveals options Leahman could take to manage the situation. The case is suitable for use in organizational behavior, human resource management, and strategy classes at the MBA and executive education levels. The material can be used to exemplify the challenges of changing a U.S.-based company into a global competitor.

Jan Gronski, managing director of the Cisco China Research and Development Center (CRDC), and Ivo Raznjevic, engineering director, set out to establish a new R&D facility in Shanghai, China. This case focuses on the building of a culture through human-resource practices while describing such steps as securing an appropriate building, assembling a workforce, seeking appropriate projects, developing managers, building teams, evaluating performance, protecting intellectual property, and managing growth. The case presents specific challenges that arise regarding talent management: How does a manager overcome dramatic cultural differences within a diverse workgroup? Should a local female employee be promoted from a test engineer to a development manager? How should Raznjevic help his newest manager through his first encounter with Cisco's ranking system? What action, if any, should Raznjevic take regarding a senior engineer who sent out a controversial e-mail? This material highlights organizational culture and offers an opportunity for students to learn to recognize and manage difference. The case could be taught near the end of a term to serve as a review of organizational behavior at a graduate level or in an executive education program focusing on issues of team-building, growing managers from within, and related talent-management issues in a global context.

Can a company diminish employees' mistrust and distress when downsizing? Is there such a thing as an "effective" workforce reduction process? In this disguised, yet actual case, Peter Morris, manager of Coastal Power Corpus Christi Plant (Bayland) in Texas, tells his team leaders that they had to cut their workforce 10%. Throughout the (A) case a close approximation of how the dialogue went in that meeting offers several ideas for the reduction that include: length of service, experience, outsourcing, covering the plant with a single electrician, and reducing one person from each operating unit. The case includes data for students to use to generate their own assessment of who should go and who should stay. At the end of the (A) case, Morris shared his plan and asked team leaders to generate a ranking sheet of skills they value, rate employees, and build a consensus among them on where plant workers should be placed on the list. In the (B) case the assessment tool is revealed and all plant workers are ranked to identify the bottom performing employees. They are fired. Then the (B) case adds a new twist when two weeks later, Morris stood in front of the remaining employees to hear their reactions. As he explains how criteria was developed, Morris committed to a plant wide process using the same criteria for everyone remaining employed at the plant-including team leaders. We learn in the (C) case that the second "all-hands" round of rankings was consistent with the team leader's rankings.

"Hee Soap, Hee Soap," Timothy Jones sang out in a mocking fashion towards Hee Seop Choi, a fellow learning team member at a noted graduate school of business. Hoping to gain the benefits from a diversity of resources, knowledge, and ideas, MBA students at this school were assigned to learning teams. Each member was specifically chosen with an effort to mix up gender, nationalities, professional backgrounds, and interests. But those advantages may be outweighed by problems stemming from multicultural differences. This case offers a disguised, yet real, team experience that can be used in the classroom to unpack how this richly diverse group had trouble getting along and why their personality clashes intensified. The opportunity to discuss the challenges in light of culture, and the difference between that and problems stemming from personalities will help students reap the benefits intrinsic in multicultural teams.

Not all groups are teams. That statement certainly applies to the learning team in this case study. Tony Marshall, a second-year learning team mentor, witnessed an interaction with the team last night confirmed what he suspected. Only three weeks into the first year of a MBA program at a big name school, the learning team (LT) was in trouble. From his own experience the year before, Marshall knew that a first-rate learning team made a huge positive difference in a student's first year. The corollary was also true; a bad or difficult LT experience could taint the entire FY and school experience. Although Marshall wanted to help, he just was not at all sure how. In the case, Marshall thinks about how to describe the situation to his fellow peer mentors in his second year elective class on managing teams in an effort to draw out some good ideas.

"Hey that was my idea!" How often have your students had that exact thought? Were they on a team when they felt most able to identify with that statement? This case is about a recent MBA graduate who faces challenges within her consulting team on her first post-graduation job. She is frustrated with one teammate in particular who she believes practices self-interest politics-he takes her ideas. The case allows for a healthy discussion on team dynamics and strategies to help students when the team mix is wrong. The case may also be used to discuss issues regarding women in business.

Sometimes the good old tried and true American business team building exercises just don't work. Although frequently successful with teams made up of employees from different sections of an organization, what happens when teams consist of employees from different geographical areas like the United States and Asia-which has a whole set of unique differences. This case follows the experiences of an executive sent to Bangkok Thailand with two other managers from corporate headquarters to clean up and team build following the discovery of fiscal mismanagement and a popular senior executive's high profile firing. This three part case series puts students in the shoes of a financial auditor sent to try and strengthen weakened relationships and performance at Fasco Motors in Thailand. The material describes his efforts to rebuild trust on the Bangkok management team and the difficulties he encounters working as an outsider in every way.

Sometimes the good old tried and true American business team building exercises just don't work. Although frequently successful with teams made up of employees from different sections of an organization, what happens when teams consist of employees from different geographical areas like the United States and Asia-which has a whole set of unique differences. This case follows the experiences of an executive sent to Bangkok Thailand with two other managers from corporate headquarters to clean up and team build following the discovery of fiscal mismanagement and a popular senior executive's high profile firing. This three part case series puts students in the shoes of a financial auditor sent to try and strengthen weakened relationships and performance at Fasco Motors in Thailand. The material describes his efforts to rebuild trust on the Bangkok management team and the difficulties he encounters working as an outsider in every way.

Sometimes the good old tried and true American business team building exercises just don't work. Although frequently successful with teams made up of employees from different sections of an organization, what happens when teams consist of employees from different geographical areas like the United States and Asia-which has a whole set of unique differences. This case follows the experiences of an executive sent to Bangkok Thailand with two other managers from corporate headquarters to clean up and team build following the discovery of fiscal mismanagement and a popular senior executive's high profile firing. This three part case series puts students in the shoes of a financial auditor sent to try and strengthen weakened relationships and performance at Fasco Motors in Thailand. The material describes his efforts to rebuild trust on the Bangkok management team and the difficulties he encounters working as an outsider in every way.

Sometimes, friendly acquisitions feel more like friendly fire. After all, a job lost is a job lost. Such was Lek Pharmaceuticals' concern over its recent sale to a larger interest. Based in Slovenia, the home-grown industry feared losses of employment, identity, and creative freedom. Lek employed people in 20 countries, so even the slightest change would have loud repercussions. But Lek's strategic planning director was charged with just that: change. How was he to conduct this transition? And wasn't there a pill for this?

This note discusses the importance of observing process in teams. Specific areas to observe and suggestions on how to observe are outlined.

This case describes the everyday decisions made by an alliance team. The case focuses on a budgetary decision where the two parties are $100 million apart, and describes the prior decisions of which each partner is clearly aware. Weighing partnership needs against individual company needs is one of the critical concerns manifested.

Choosing the right summer internship can often mean landing a plum position in the company after graduation. Ria Kumar arrived fully prepped for the summer slot interview having studied industry reports, research articles, and analyst reports. She talked to alumni and even spent time at the local Wal-Mart studying the merchandising assortment and product placement. Not surprisingly, she was offered the 12-week internship. The disguised (A) case describes Kumar's 12 weeks and allows students to think about the issues her experience brings forth. Were there red flags? Was her supervision appropriate? Would she be offered a position post graduation? Would she want it? In the (B) case, Kumar decides to work part-time in the local Wal-Mart to gain an "in-store" perspective. Again, she behaved proactively as part of her strategy to get the job offer. The in-store-experience, however, left an unfavorable view of the organization in Kumar's mind. What had her expectations been when she started the part-time job? What did this suggest about corporate management practices?

Choosing the right summer internship can often mean landing a plum position in the company after graduation. Ria Kumar arrived fully prepped for the summer slot interview having studied industry reports, research articles, and analyst reports. She talked to alumni and even spent time at the local Wal-Mart studying the merchandising assortment and product placement. Not surprisingly, she was offered the 12-week internship. The disguised (A) case describes Kumar's 12 weeks and allows students to think about the issues her experience brings forth. Were there red flags? Was her supervision appropriate? Would she be offered a position post graduation? Would she want it? In the (B) case, Kumar decides to work part-time in the local Wal-Mart to gain an "in-store" perspective. Again, she behaved proactively as part of her strategy to get the job offer. The in-store-experience, however, left an unfavorable view of the organization in Kumar's mind. What had her expectations been when she started the part-time job? What did this suggest about corporate management practices?

With so many team-driven activities for students in the fast-paced, high-pressure environment of a business school, students need to have an opportunity to discuss the issues and dilemmas that may arise. Harry's difficulties in mastering finance cause some members of the team to feel frustrated, because they have to spend so much time helping him. When the members pressure the others to spend less time with Harry, other problems arise in the team dynamics, involving such issues as trust, participation, team performance, and quality of learning. Students need to explore alternative ways to improve the situation.

Set in a German automotive company, this case traces the dynamics of a consulting project team doing a high-profile strategic project as part of a company-specific international management program. With weeks to go, the team is in a shambles, the project presentation a disaster, and the team dynamics terrible. A decision about what to do with the team must be made immediately by the project director. The case focuses on how to make a tough management call with serious implications as well as on how to intervene constructively in a cross-functional, international team. See also the B case (UVA-OB-0706).

This case reports the actions taken and personal reflections of team members described in Case A, "Making the Tough Team Call (A)" (UVA-OB-0705). Set in a German automotive company. In the A case, a decision had to be made immediately by the project director about what to do with this team. The B case focuses on making a tough management call with serious implications as well as on how to intervene constructively in such a cross-functional, international team.