Likened in his native China to a rock star of entrepreneurship, Ma had risen from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of modern Chinese business in less than 20 years. How did a former English teacher who had not even been exposed to the internet until the end of the 1990s become iconic among internet multimillionaires? Was there something special about Ma that helped him stand out among an increasingly well educated class of Chinese entrepreneurs?

Founded in 1965 by Jim Thompson, the Crown Worldwide Group ("Crown") began as a small moving company in Japan, shifting its headquarters to Hong Kong in the mid-1970s. Within 30 years, Crown had became the world's largest privately held relocation and logistics enterprise, a success that was attributed primarily to the founder's insistence on high service quality and unwavering commitment to community development. With growing concern among customers about CSR, the company recognized that CSR must be integrated into its corporate strategy and day-to-day business operations to achieve sustainability for both the company and society. In 2008, Crown appointed its first CSR director, whose primary task was to develop and implement a standardized global CSR strategy that would support Crown's environmental and community development initiatives. Various CSR integration steps were taken, such as developing global environmental standards, stimulating employee volunteerism, building CSR communication channels, developing a supplier management system and conducting CSR measurement. In line with the goals of the UN Global Compact-a leadership initiative that guided participants in practicing responsible business-Crown would also publish sustainability reports yearly. Although employees were supportive of the company's CSR efforts, the journey of becoming a well rounded corporate citizen is full of complexities and involves a wide range of stakeholders and multi-dimensional issues. Without a roadmap or framework, CSR integration efforts could be daunting, but inaction is no longer an option in light of increasing CSR expectations. What would be the key success factors for Crown's CSR integration?

Innovation is the key to success in the history of Honda Motor Group (Honda). In July 2007, Guangzhou Honda's Research and Development Co. Ltd. (GHRD) was established. It was the first multinational auto company to develop a R&D facilities with the technological capabilities to produce a completely new car from the ground up. While Honda Motor in Japan would provide technological support, the core technologies would be owned solely by Guangzhou Honda. This arrangement differed from the traditional R&D management in Honda, which, despite the existence of R&D centers around the globe, used to retain its core technologies at its R&D center in Japan. This case shows the motives, new opportunities and challenges behind business model innovation.

In 2006, Thomas Schiller, a managing director of Arthur D Little ("ADL"), arrived in hazy Beijing with a crystal clear objective: to resurrect a consultant practice that lacked brand recognition in China. Despite success and renown around the world for its technology-focused consultancy business, ADL's first attempt at the Chinese market in early 2000s was hamstrung by its global restructuring. Was there a magical key to unlocking the giant market that had eluded Schiller's predecessor? How could Schiller ensure success for the practice in China?

In June 1997, Thailand's currency became the object of intense speculation as the country's balance of payments was in tatters. Amidst the government's efforts to turn things around, finance minister Dr Amnuay Viravan resigned over policy disagreements and the Thai stock market plunged as investors feared a currency devaluation. As Amnuay's successor, Thanong, tried to pick up the pieces, he uncovered an awful secret: Thailand's central bank had virtually no liquid foreign exchange reserves left to defend its exchange rate. What action should he take? And, more importantly, what action could he take?

On 6 November 2007, Alibaba.com debuted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, raising US$1.5 billion to become the world's biggest internet offering since Google's initial public offering in 2004. A frenzied purchase of the stock pushed prices up by 193% on the first trading day, making it the fourth-largest first-day gain in Hong Kong's stock exchange in three years. The closing price of US$5.09 per share valued Alibaba.com at about US$25.6 billion and made it the fifth-largest among global internet companies and the largest in Asia outside Japan. It also made the company one of the most expensive stocks in Hong Kong, trading at 306 times the company's projected 2007 earnings. In contrast, globally recognized brand names such as Yahoo and Japan's Softbank, both major stockholders of Alibaba.com, were trading at only 60 times their projected earnings. Shareholders were therefore displaying extreme optimism towards Alibaba.com's earning prospect by paying a significant premium to own the company's shares. As observers and venture capitalists have remarked, China is becoming a center of technology and a major pole for innovation. Many successful dot com strategies in the West have been copied and refined by Chinese technological gurus who have honed their technical and entrepreneurial skills in the West. These "sea turtles" are beating international giants likes Google and eBay in the burgeoning Chinese market and have their sights set on global domination. Armed with proceeds from a record-breaking IPO, Alibaba.com is poised to stay ahead in the increasingly-competitive online B2B market in China. What strategies can the company pursue and what pitfalls must it avoid?

Founded in 1996, China Minsheng Banking Corporation Limited ("Minsheng") was the first private commercial bank in China. By 2006, Minsheng had acquired almost US$130 billion in total assets and established almost 330 banking offices across the nation. The Banker magazine consistently praised Minsheng's development, ranking it number 310 in its top 1,000 business banks in the world in 2004, number 287 in 2005, and number 247 in 2006. In early March 2008, Minsheng obtained the green light from the China Banking Regulatory Commission to buy a 4.9% stake in US-based banking holding company, UCBH Holdings, Inc. ("UCBH") for US$95.7 million. The deal would eventually take Minsheng's stake in UCBH to 9.9%, totalling around US$200 million. The acquisition not only distinguished Minsheng as the first Chinese mainland institution to invest in a US bank, but was also viewed as a milestone for Chinese banks entering the US and international markets. On the flip side, UCBH would soon use this opportunity to make its own moves into China, leveraging its affiliation with Minsheng to totalingacquire other Chinese banks. This case examines the process of international expansion through acquisitions in the banking industry and the positioning of a growing bank in the global market, covering issues such as value creation, impact of government regulation and international barriers, the Chinese banking industry and its development, and the associated risks.

Unlike most developed economies around the world, Hong Kong did not have a minimum wage law to protect workers' livelihoods. Attempts by the Legislative Council to motion for legislation governing minimum wage and standard working hours had ultimately been unsuccessful. A major reason was considerable opposition from the business community, which feared that deviating from a purely market-dictated wage regime would hurt Hong Kong's position as the world's freest economy and aggravate unemployment. In late 2006, the Hong Kong government launched the Wage Protection Movement, a program designed to protect the wage level of cleaning workers and security guards through voluntary and non-legislative means. It was, however, met with vicious attacks from members of the Legislative Council who advocated a minimum wage, accusing the government of not heeding the plight of low-income earners and instead allowing the issue to drag on without legislation. This case is about economics and business, introducing the topics of minimum wage legislation, Hong Kong's unique economic situation and the probable effects of a minimum wage on the world's freest economy.

The Chinese currency, the renminbi, has been a subject of controversy between China and its trade partners (especially the US), which accuse China of manipulating its exchange rate to make its exports artificially cheaper. They perceive the renminbi as an unfair weapon in international competition. Chinese officials responded that these attacks were groundless: the renminbi was not undervalued, at least not significantly. The peg contributed to maintaining a stable economic environment, which benefited all economic partners. They also said that, if the US was running a large trade and budget deficit, it was partly attributable to capital inflow from China. The US should focus on the weaknesses of its own economy that generated these deficits, instead of treating China as a scapegoat. Officials also said that China was a sovereign country with the right to choose its exchange rate policy. Throughout 2005 to 2007, the debate was regularly in the news and it was likely that arguments would become tougher if US and European trade deficits with China continued to increase. This case is about economics and business, introducing the basics of monetary economics and demonstrating practical applications of monetary policies and exchange rates that pertain to business decisions..