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The Canadian division of Mearl Oil Company does not want to implement the company's environmental impact targets and would like to continue using its homegrown environmental management system and standards. The division is allowed to present its arguments to the International Environmental Group. This is a supplement to Mearl Oil Company: Environmental Impact Targets (A), product 9B05M018. The supplement Mearl Oil Company: Environmental Impact Targets (C), product 9B05M020 discusses the International Environmental Group's perspective.

Subtle misdemeanors that are not illegal but rather blur the line between right and wrong can cause serious damage to corporations as they are both widespread and widely accepted. This author argues that over the long run it is the pursuit of both societal and economic value that yields long term and stable profits. The article highlights the economic value versus the societal value argument. While institutional structures in most capitalist countries reinforce the economic argument, economic arguments erroneously assume the existence of perfectly competitive markets. However, because the perfect market is an abstraction, negative externalities impact those who have had no role in, nor consented to the economic transaction. On the other hand, focusing exclusively on societal value yields extremely high short term costs and is likely to lead to closure when profits are persistently negative. The author argues that the either-or approach in the debate between economics and ethics has polarized the discussion and distracted attention from the space where economics and ethics converge and where potential solutions exist. Business should, like some have in the past, focus on building sustainable value. To do so, businesses should focus on the long term and invest in social processes, thus building greater resilience to changes in the market place while addressing social issues throughout the organization. The article also chronicles the advantages of active and up-front stakeholder engagement, community participation and involvement, and strategic decision making by using examples of social processes in companies such as Tembec Inc, Home Depot Canada and TransCanada Pipelines.

<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER - Oikos Sustainability Case Writing Competition</strong></p><br>Icelandic New Energy Company, a research and development consortium based in Reykjavik, Iceland, is considering what future direction to take. The two-person team has met their first major goal - the installation of the world's first commercial hydrogen filling station and the coordination of a public transport test project involving the operation of three hydrogen fuelled city buses. The company was founded with the overall objective of investigating the potential for eventually replacing the use of fossil fuels in Iceland with hydrogen-based fuels and creating the first hydrogen society in the world. Working towards the goal of self-sufficiency from fossil fuels, Icelandic New Energy Co was set up in 1999 by the consortium Vistorka and three major partners each contributing a part to the testing - Royal Dutch Shell (the refueling station), Norsk Hydro (the electrolysis technology to make the hydrogen) and DaimlerChrysler (fuel cell vehicles using hydrogen fuel). The shareholder agreement was established with the company's start in 1999 and is set to expire in 2005. With all of the major activities being outsourced and contracted, the team wondered how they could keep the company as a going concern and contribute to Iceland's transition to a hydrogen economy - a feat that could take more than 15 years.

The importance of responsible value creation is indisputable for society. How could we argue that the well-being of future generations is not important? The disagreement is with the role of corporations in this process. This technical note offers two sides of the argument of whether corporations should be involved in addressing societal issues. The purely economic argument says that a responsible corporation is one which fulfills its fiduciary duty to shareholders to maximize profits. The ethical argument is that corporations are morally obliged to give back to the societies in which they exist. Using a sustainability argument, this note shows that there does not have to be a trade-off between economics and ethics. There exists a compelling business case for corporations to operate in the overlapping area of our model where activities are both financially profitable and socially and environmentally responsible. Not only does this middle ground exist, but the activities in this area are likely to generate long-term stable profits and result in a higher level of employee, shareholder and corporate well-being.

Although McDonald's breakfast and snack sales increased, they have not kept pace with industry growth. The primary barrier to this sales growth in the Canadian market, according to a franchise owner, is the quality of the coffee. McDonald's in Canada has tried to build its coffee brand equity for many years. It had switched to the Higgins and Burke coffee but had little success changing negative customer perceptions. To change customer perceptions, McDonald's needed to revolutionize its coffee program. McCafe was introduced in response to this coffee issue: a full-service coffee bar located in a McDonald's restaurant as an extension to the front counter or located as a stand-alone restaurant. Over 300 McCafes existed worldwide. Although McDonald's would like to get a piece of the lucrative coffee market, McCafe's main objective was to eliminate coffee as a barrier to breakfast and snack sales. The question for one franchise owner is whether McCafe's strong initial sales can be sustained.

While McDonald's breakfast and snack sales have been increasing, they have not kept pace with industry growth. The primary barrier to this sales growth in the Canadian market, according to a franchise owner, is the quality of the coffee. McDonald's in Canada has been attempting to build its coffee brand equity for many years. They had switched to the Higgins and Burke coffee but had little success changing customers' negative perceptions. To truly change customer perceptions, McDonald's needed to revolutionize their coffee program. McCafe was introduced in response to this coffee issue. McCafe was full service coffee bar, located in a McDonald's restaurant as an extension to the front counter or located as a stand-alone restaurant. Over 300 McCafes existed worldwide. While McDonald's would like to get a piece of the lucrative coffee market, McCafe's main objective was to eliminate coffee as a barrier to breakfast and snack sales. The question for one franchise owner is whether McCafe's strong initial sales can be sustained.

Based in Saskatoon, Canada, Cameco was the world's largest uranium mining company. It had developed its policy for corporate social responsibility in northern Saskatchewan where it had its major mining operations and where there was a large Cree and Dene Indigenous population. The issue centres on whether the same corporate social responsibility policy can be applied to the company's joint venture with the Kyrgyzstan government to operate a gold mine in eastern Kyrgyzstan. Complicating the decision was a chemical spill that had occurred several months before, and relations with citizens in nearby communities were at an all-time low. The joint venture's vice-president of human resources and corporate relations must decide which of the programs might be successfully implemented in Kyrgyzstan, what new programs might need to be developed, and how best to communicate company policy to the local community.

Based in Saskatoon, Canada, Cameco was the world's largest uranium mining company. It had developed its policy for corporate social responsibility in northern Saskatchewan, where it had its major mining operations and where there was a large indigenous population of Cree and Dene Indians. Centers on whether the same corporate social responsibility policy can be applied to the company's joint venture with the Kyrgyzstan government to operate a gold mine in eastern Kyrgyzstan. Complicating the decision is a chemical spill that had occurred several months before; relations with citizens in nearby communities were at an all-time low. The joint venture's vice-president of human resources and corporate relations must decide which of the programs might be successfully implemented in Kyrgyzstan, what new programs might need to be developed, and how best to communicate company policy to the local community.

Daimler-Benz AG, a large automobile manufacturer in Europe and the Chrysler Corporation, one of the Big Three auto makers in North America have merged to create DaimlerChrysler. On the surface, everything seemed to be going as planned. In reality, all was not well. Organizational changes, conflicting information, and doubts about the future structure of the company resulted in the departure of numerous Chrysler employees, including many mid-level managers and engineers. While initially amalgamated into Daimler, the Chrysler Group ended up as one of three separate automotive divisions. In 2001, DaimlerChrysler recorded a $1.2 billion loss in operating profit (before one-time effects). Estimates for 2002 called for a break-even result, but the company was facing a $9 billion lawsuit filed by the fifth largest shareholder, who claimed that Daimler had deceived investors by touting the venture as a merger of equals.

Daimler-Benz AG, a large automobile manufacturer in Europe, and the Chrysler Corporation, one of the Big Three auto makers in North America, merged to create DaimlerChrysler. On the surface, everything seemed to be going as planned. In reality, all was not well. Organizational changes, conflicting information, and doubts about the future structure of the company resulted in the departure of numerous Chrysler employees, including many mid-level managers and engineers. While initially amalgamated into Daimler, the Chrysler Group ended up as one of three separate automotive divisions. In 2001, DaimlerChrysler recorded a $1.2 billion loss in operating profit (before one-time effects). Estimates for 2002 called for a break-even result, but the company was facing a $9 billion lawsuit filed by the 5th largest shareholder, who claimed that Daimler had deceived investors by touting the venture as a merger of equals.

Glegg Water Co. is an international company that specializes in customizing premanufactured components into full industrial water treatment systems. In the early 1990s, the water treatment industry had introduced a process that removes charged particles from water used in industrial applications. This technology was superior to resin technology because it was more environmentally sound and more reliable. However, its applications were limited to low water flows. Glegg, through its development of the E-Cell, refined the technology, making it available to high water flow operations. Despite the clear technological superiority, Glegg was finding it difficult penetrating the market. The CEO must develop a strategy and marketing plan that will make E-Cell the industry standard.

ING Group is one of the 10 largest financial services companies in the world. The president of ING Direct USA is considering adding e-brokering to the ING Direct portfolio. He must examine the company's overall strategy, marketing strategy, operations, information technology, and finances to help determine whether the company should grow its own e-brokerage or buy one of three potential e-brokerage targets.

ING Direct USA is a direct bank operating in the United States. Launched in September 2000, it offers a small menu of simple banking products available to customers online, via telephone, mail or fax. In September 2001, the global head of ING Direct asked the president of ING Direct USA, if he would consider adding e-brokerage to the portfolio of ING Direct USA's direct banking products. The president of ING Direct USA is approaching the decision to add e-brokerage to the ING Direct USA portfolio with care. He first has to decide if it makes sense to add this new service. If he decides to add it, he has to consider if he will build the capability in-house or purchase an existing player.

Glegg Water Company is an international company that specializes in customizing premanufactured components into full industrial water treatment systems. In the early 1990s, the water treatment industry had introduced a process that removes charged particles from water used in industrial applications. This technology was superior to resin technology because it was more environmentally sound and more reliable. However, its applications were limited to low water flows. Glegg, through its development of the E-Cell, refined the technology that made it available to high water flow operations, was expandable and more versatile than previous systems. In spite of the clear technological superiority, Glegg was finding it difficult penetrating the market. The chief executive officer must develop a strategy and marketing plan that will make E-Cell the industry standard.

Meridco Magnesium is an international automotive parts supplier of magnesium die-cast components with manufacturing plants in Canada, the United States, and France. The company has a strong market position in North America; however, two of the three plants are not performing well. The vice president of the company's Global Technologies Organization division believes the weaker performance in the two plants is due to resistance to technological innovations. He must determine the reasons for this resistance and develop a plan to resolve the weak performance in the plants before the upcoming annual board meeting.

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The American plant manager of a large magnesium die-cast auto parts manufacturer has a conversation with the company's vice-president about the technology innovations within the company. This is a supplement to Meridco Magnesium: International Technology Transfer, product 9B01M006.

The vice-president of a major magnesium die-cast auto parts manufacturer is determining why two of the three company plants are not performing well. He meets with the head of each plant to discuss their views on technology innovations in the company. This is a supplement to Meridco Magnesium: International Technology Transfer, product 9B01M006.