The Federal Republic of Nigeria was the most populous country in Africa. According to a July 2009 estimate, it was also the world's 8th largest nation. With land area roughly twice the size of California, Nigeria was rich in natural resources, especially oil. However, the country seemed to have mineral wealth in equal measure to its economic, social, and political troubles. For decades, the country had grappled with tumultuous military rule, religious and ethnic unrest, as well as a highly unequal allocation of resources. Nevertheless, recent reforms and developments in key sectors had boosted economic growth and spurred a sense of optimism for the country's future. The question was whether or not Nigeria could sustain this momentum, overcome its key challenges, and create a business environment that would allow it to compete on an international level. This paper provides a brief history of Nigeria and explores its current position in the global economy.
This case describes the difficult times Charles Schwab the company faced after the dot-com bust of the early 2000s. It also describes how Charles Schwab the man returned in July 2004 to take on the CEO position, and the strategic actions he took to fix the problems and refocus the company he founded over 30 years ago. The case shows how he was able to draw on the considerable remaining strengths of the company, not in the least its long-established culture that emphasized doing the right thing for customers. Two years following Schwab's return to the CEO job, the company turned in strong results. With the crisis of the past few years weathered, the case focuses on the challenges the company faces going forward as it pursues its strategy of offering good, consistent, un-conflicted investment advice to increasing numbers of smaller investors.
What impact could information technology have on the problems affecting health care in the United States? It seemed that IT would have a fast impact on improving transaction processing (reducing costs), improving the accuracy of diagnoses and treatment (improving quality), and improving the availability of care in some instances. But what had to happen for IT to play a more significant role in health care today and in the future? What forces had to come to bear, what structural and cultural changes were necessary for this? Were there examples of a successful implementation of IT systems in health care today? If so, what was the impact of their investments?
In early 2004, with the organizational integration of the Compaq acquisition mostly completed, top management was looking toward capitalizing on the potential competitive advantages of the strategic integration of both companies to achieve the goal of becoming the leading technology company in the world. Top management had to make sure that HP would achieve superior profitable growth with its portfolio strategy. This would require high performance from its individual businesses in increasingly competitive environments, the development of new strategic leadership skills to capitalize on opportunities for strategic integration across the organization, and continued significant innovation.
Describes the strategic analysis that went into identifying Compaq as an acquisition target to help HP achieve its objective of becoming the leading technology company in the world. Through in-depth interviews with HP senior executives, including chairman and CEO Carly Fiorina and others, the case describes the planning and execution of the merger and the actual processes created to achieve the strategic, administrative, and cultural integration of the two companies.
Examines the challenges and opportunities for strategic integration at LVMH, global, luxury brands company based in Paris. The company is composed of established and newly developed brands of luxury goods such as apparel, leather goods, watches, wines and liquors, and fragrances, which it manufactures and sells in countries around the world. Includes in-depth interviews with key LVMH executives.
Electronic Arts (EA) is a highly successful creator of video games for consoles and PCs. The company also creates content for online gaming. EA occupies a unique place in the information processing industry. The company must have the skills of a Hollywood studio to create compelling content, while at the same time negotiate the technological change and uncertainty associated with the platforms (e.g., consoles, PC, Internet) used to operate and distribute the games.
Examines the challenges and opportunities that entertainment conglomerate Disney faces as it tries to commit itself to embarking on a "Digital Decade" in 2003. The company has built its business models largely around analog distribution technologies. Although the company has had a difficult time in the past few years, it still generates a tremendous amount of cash.
Examines the challenges and opportunities facing Charles Schwab in 2003. The company is a leading brokerage, but the entire industry has been in a severe downturn over the past few years. Schwab made its name as a discount brokerage and grew tremendously in the 1990s, largely as a result of its successful embrace of Internet technologies and efficient customer service and transaction processing. Now competing with the likes of established brokerage houses such as Merrill Lynch, and amid a severe downturn in trading volume, the company is looking for other avenues of growth. Focuses on Schwab's efforts to extend its business model to financial advisers.
Digital media--legitimate and otherwise--were one of the few bright spots for high-technology companies in the middle of a deep and protracted recession. These demands left computer makers, builders of components such as microprocessors, software developers, and others between a rock and a hard place. Consumers disliked many of the anti-piracy technologies promoted by media companies because they often restricted legal (as well as illegal) uses of the technologies. High-technology companies feared government intrusion, legislating which technologies they could market. Many thought that digital media could provide compelling services (the "killer app") that would drive device sales and promote broadband uptake. The issues surrounding intellectual property protection could either promote or inhibit digital media. As these complementors squared off, countless billions of dollars and much of the future of media and technology were at stake.
Much of the landscape in which today's media companies find themselves as they contend with the impact of digitization of content and the convergence of means of distribution was shaped by regulatory forces. Three government rulings in particular were influential: the Consent Decree of 1948 (often referred to as the "Paramount Case"), the Financial Interest and Syndication ruling (also called the "FinSyn" ruling of 1970 of the United States Federal Communications Commission), and the United States Supreme Court ruling in Universal City Studios et al. (including Disney) vs. Sony Corp. (also known as the Betamax case of 1984). These regulatory forces broke up tight vertical integration between content production and distribution (Paramount case and FinSyn ruling) or helped to pave the road for the introduction of new technologies for distribution (Betamax case).
Examines the proposed merger between HP and Compaq and the impact of this merger upon the companies and the industry as a whole. Explores the challenges that a combined HP and Compaq will face in various industry segments.
French utility, Vivendi, purchased the United States-based entertainment giant Universal in late 2000. In so doing, the rechristened Vivendi Universal became a major force in music, films, and television production, adding to its European-based cable television and telecommunications assets. By the end of 2001, Vivendi Universal was betting on continued convergence of distribution channels to knit together an international entertainment conglomerate. Its plans would put Vivendi Universal in direct competition with established entertainment giants such as Disney, Viacom, and the merged AOL Time Warner.
Describes USA Networks following its failed bid to buy the Internet portal Lycos in 1999. By 2001, USA Networks was an agglomeration of assets in two distinct areas: electronic commerce (something USA Networks refers to as "interactivity") and entertainment. In each of these two areas, USA Networks faced much larger competitors operating discretely. Explores USA Networks' attempts to compete simultaneously in the spheres of online retailing and television and filmed entertainment.
The venerable British retailer Marks & Spencer suffered a series of setbacks in the late 1990s. The company's performance, which had been solid for decades, quickly deteriorated, forcing the rapid turnover of chief executives and many restructurings. Perhaps the largest change the retailer made was the abandonment of its global expansion plans, withdrawing from continental Europe and trying to sell off assets in the United States, including the well-known clothiers Brooks Brothers. This case examines the changes Marks & Spencer made between 1998 and 2001, as the company tries to shore up its ailing core business, U.K. retail, while deciding on an appropriate global strategy.
Describes the evolution of Amazon.com from its inception in 1996 as an online bookseller to its position in 2001 as a globally recognized e-commerce brand. Reviews the evolution of the company's business model through an interview with the founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos. At its founding, Amazon.com mostly brokered book purchases through its Web site. After five years of phenomenal growth, the company expanded into international markets and added many categories, partners, and physical infrastructure. Examines Amazon's growth, fueled by the Internet bubble, and looks at how the company coped with increased scrutiny on profitability.