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The blockchain revolution has taken longer than expected to pick up steam. But now, says Ravi Sarathy, author of Enterprise Strategy for Blockchain, it has reached a maturity level that merits the attention of large incumbent companies. In this interview, Sarathy explains what has held blockchain back and why the time is right to start using it. He explores blockchain's most promising applications and explains how companies can develop and deploy it as a capability.

Spreadsheet for product 9B02N007.

The Rayovac case discusses the company's bold and risky acquisitions strategy as it diversifies into personal care and grooming, lawn and garden care, insecticides and pet foods. The company assumes it can successfully manage diverse product categories across diverse geographic markets in which it has limited experience. Success will depend on how well the acquired companies are integrated and managed under Rayovac's supervision. Increasingly, it will also depend on external conditions beyond Rayovac's control, such as macroeconomic conditions and foreign exchange fluctuations. Students should be able to analyze the case from the point of view of international business and strategy and perform a financial analysis of potential future returns using different assumptions for sales growth and margins of the various businesses acquired.

Cemex, a cement multinational from Mexico, has become one of the three largest cement companies in the world, through internal growth and a series of global acquisitions over the 1999 to 2000 period. It is a relatively small player in the United States with insignificant market share. It has had conflicts with the U.S. cement industry over its cement exports to the United States, being the object of a successful anti-dumping suit brought by the U.S. cement industry before the International Trade Commission. One of its key opponents is Southdown which has testified before the USITC against Cemex. Southdown's chief executive officer is unhappy with his firm's stock price and frustrated by the lack of market recognition despite profitable operations and growth. He is considering selling his company and has talked with Cemex about being acquired. The case allows students to analyze the strategic rationale for an acquisition of Southdown by Cemex, and has information to allow students to probe questions of strategic fit and value.

An investment analyst has been asked to evaluate an investment in the project financing for Ras Laffan, a liquefied natural gas venture in the Middle East between Qatar and Mobil Corp. In order to make a suitable recommendation to the investment board, she must present, the potential returns, the various risks and their possible resolutions. Her analysis must address the political risks amid an atmosphere of instability of the Middle East, commodity price risks in an industry with a history of price volatility, possible foreign exchange risks of dealing in two currencies with historic fluctuations and the commercial risks of the reliance on a single customer who will account for 90 per cent of sales. Medium-term non-recourse financing is one option available for financing the project. She also knows that the quality of her analysis may influence whether or not the investment board will consider her capable of running her own fund in the future.