Takes an inside look at ABB's unprecedented 1997 to 2000 transformation under Gvran Lindahl, the second CEO of this electrical engineering powerhouse, who succeeded Percy Barnevik during late 1996. After a highly successful first decade of existence under Barnevik (1988 to 1996), ABB found itself in the midst of a crisis by the end of 1997, after the combined effects of global deregulation, radical technological innovations, and an unpredictable but sweeping financial crisis across most emerging markets. ABB's response was to shift its strategic focus radically to favor knowledge- and service-based offerings across all of its businesses. The company's implementation of such strategy took place in two bold steps. The first one comprised a major global restructuring of ABB, as a result of which the company divested from mature manufacturing businesses such as power generation and transportation and became a global leader in areas such as industrial process automation and electrical distribution solutions. The second step was to transform ABB into a fast-growing high-technology company, moving from old to new economy Internet-based services and solutions. The case contains two mini-cases in ABB distribution solutions and ABB's global information systems group--two instances that show first-hand the pains of rapidly transforming a vast, manufacturing concern into an Internet- and solutions-based powerhouse as the new millennium unfolds.

Provides an inside view on how the former Daimler-Benz and Chrysler companies organized their integration efforts following their May 1998 merger, the first truly transatlantic merger in history and, at the time, the largest ever. As such, this merger presents an unusually broad array of management issues that were both unprecedented in scope and rather unique, ranging from cross-cultural management and global strategy and implementation to international M&A alliances and change management. Describes a journey that started during the early 1980s, until the events that preceded the Daimler-Chrysler merger, outlining the key strategic, organizational, and execution challenges facing both companies.

Provides an inside view of how the former Daimler-Benz and Chrysler companies organized their integration efforts following their May 1998 merger, the first truly transatlantic merger in history and, at the time, the largest ever. As such, this merger presents an unusually broad array of management issues that were both unprecedented in scope and rather unique, ranging from cross-cultural management and global strategy and implementation to international M&A alliances and change management. Describes how DaimlerChrysler actually organized and moved to implement the post-merger integration process, raising a set of issues around structural risks, cultural aspects, and execution skills in a high-stakes, global context of a major post-merger integration effort.