The Ministry of Manpower in Singapore is designing a new employment pass processing centre. Working with a lean-thinking approach and using previous centers as a template, the project team proceeds to plan an updated version with faster processing times and improved interiors. Unexpectedly, plans grind to a halt as the civil servant in their line of reporting raises some crucial queries that call into question the very basis of the new centre's lean and optimal design. Time is of the essence and the project head is now faced with two very tough options: proceed with minor incremental changes that may not meet expectations, or go for a complete redraft which requires time and capabilities that the team may not possess. Which will be his choice? The case stops here to allow a class discussion to evaluate the two options on how to proceed. This provides an ideal setting to discuss how to manage a new-to-the-firm design-thinking project.

Compaq Computer Corp., like many manufacturers, faces operational choices that strongly influence the cost of capital engaged in inventory, customer response time, and potential product obsolescence. This case describes some key operations strategy choices regarding two types of inventory: operation inventory (e.g., flow) and tactical inventory (e.g., finished goods). Tradeoffs in inventory management and customer response time are explored in the context of a firm that is changing from a push manufacturing to a customer-oriented pull system. Optional computer simulations (B case) visually display the dynamics of push and pull systems, kanban squares, and their effect on inventory requirements and customer response times. The simulations require the ProModel simulation software tool (not included, to be purchased separately) and computer simulation model files (available from the authors' website: http://faculty.insead.edu/stephen-chick/simulations).

Compaq Computer Corp., like many manufacturers, faces operational choices that strongly influence the cost of capital engaged in inventory, customer response time, and potential product obsolescence. This case describes some key operations strategy choices regarding two types of inventory: operation inventory (e.g., flow) and tactical inventory (e.g., finished goods). Tradeoffs in inventory management and customer response time are explored in the context of a firm that is changing from a push manufacturing to a customer-oriented pull system. Optional computer simulations (B case) visually display the dynamics of push and pull systems, kanban squares, and their effect on inventory requirements and customer response times. The simulations require the ProModel simulation software tool (not included, to be purchased separately) and computer simulation model files (available from the authors' website: http://faculty.insead.edu/stephen-chick/simulations).

This is an MIT Sloan Management Review article. The word of the hour is "uncertainty"; it permeates all of modern life and business. Uncertainty so strongly affects companies' project management, for example, that three project management experts decided to study companies that successfully embrace it. The authors acknowledge the challenges of increased complexity, the shrinking of development cycles, and the inadequacy of traditional risk management in shifting markets. But they observe that, counterintuitively, projects conducted in such environments often have high returns. The secret is a willingness to redefine everything in midcourse on the basis of the predominant type of uncertainty. Arnoud De Meyer, Christoph H. Loch, and Michael T. Pich, professors of technology management at INSEAD Singapore, observed 16 major projects in a variety of industries. Using interviews and research on project documentation, they identify four major uncertainty categories. In variation, the project plan is detailed and stable, but project schedules and budgets drift from their projected values. Foreseen uncertainty is characterized by identifiable and understandable influences that the team cannot be sure will occur. Unforeseen uncertainty and chaos are the hardest categories to address because they require a balance between planning and learning. Projects featuring unforeseen uncertainty or chaos are common when the technology is in upheaval or when research, not development, is the main goal. At such times, a project may have successful results that are completely unexpected. Companies must learn to ascertain what kind of uncertainty is likely to dominate a project. For those that do, the authors reveal the best mix of tools and techniques to select when managing each type.

This exercise is designed to introduce students to (Q,R) inventory reorder policies, where Q is the order size and R the reorder point. The exercise is motivated by the issues faced by Caterpillar (CAT) in managing its parts warehouse in Europe. The Caterpillar example is based on information obtained from their website, but the numbers utilized in the exercises and assignment are fabricated to achieve the pedagogical objective.

Laurence & Ralph (L&R) is not a case, per se, but a note on the classical Newsboy Problem. This type of problem is exemplary in capacity or inventory economics. It occurs every time a product needs to be ordered or service capacity needs to be set when demand in the forthcoming sales or service period is uncertain. Fundamentally, the inventory decision is equivalent with a capacity decision, as inventory represents a capacity to sell product in the future, while capacity is a form of inventory for future service.

The case was written to illustrate the importance of business process design as a basis for competition in the textile industry. The case illustrates the impressive performance of Zara, the new fashion player from Spain, which has innovated in process design so as to deliver new collections in its stores with a lead-time of 5 to 7 days. The more traditional approach in textile retailing is illustrated here by Marks & Spencer (M&S), the well-known UK retailer. Notwithstanding M&S¿s current problems, the case does not fall into an overly simple comparison between a young, innovative competitor and an aging glory.

Delta Electronics, an automotive supplier, moves from delivering components to integrated systems of hardware and software. The company is facing the entry of Sun's Java and Microsoft's Windows CE into automotive electronics. Delta must decide which of the two possible standards to follow, and understand how the entry of these software platforms changes its own competitive position.