個案總覽

Dalton Kreiss founded Maguey Melate in 2018 to bring authentic, traditionally crafted mezcal from small producers in Oaxaca, Mexico directly to consumers. In early 2024, he faced fierce competition from cheaper, mass-produced alternatives. Maguey Melate's mission-driven model, focusing on authenticity, sustainability, and social responsibility had garnered success but now confronted the need to either adjust to compete with rivals, maintain its ethos despite challenges, or cease operations.

In 2016, the respective heads of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, Inc. (SeaWorld) were trying to reach a mutually beneficial resolution to their dispute over orca whale breeding. The HSUS opposed SeaWorld's practice of breeding captive orcas and each leader was facing challenges. SeaWorld was experiencing growing negative publicity and a decline in park attendance and revenues, while the HSUS was in the process of publishing a book encouraging business leaders to join the animal protection movement and incorporate HSUS values into their strategic plans. After a decades-long antagonistic relationship, how could SeaWorld and the HSUS find common ground? Could SeaWorld continue operating in a way that was financially beneficial for the parks and entertaining to guests, while also being respectful of the welfare of the orca whales in their care? Could they meet the HSUS’s goals of animal protection?

In 2016, the respective heads of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, Inc. (SeaWorld) were trying to reach a mutually beneficial resolution to their dispute over orca whale breeding. The HSUS opposed SeaWorld's practice of breeding captive orcas and each leader was facing challenges. SeaWorld was experiencing growing negative publicity and a decline in park attendance and revenues, while the HSUS was in the process of publishing a book encouraging business leaders to join the animal protection movement and incorporate HSUS values into their strategic plans. After a decades-long antagonistic relationship, how could SeaWorld and the HSUS find common ground? Could SeaWorld continue operating in a way that was financially beneficial for the parks and entertaining to guests, while also being respectful of the welfare of the orca whales in their care? Could they meet the HSUS's goals of animal protection?

Ken Grossman walked into Bill Bales' office hoping to find an answer. Grossman, the owner of Sierra Nevada Brewing Company was considering the new reality that he was facing, and he brought the dilemma to Bales, his CFO. Grossman had made a commitment to environmental sustainability, the overriding cultural norm of his organization. Initially, the decision to install the five-phase solar array was made expecting California to provide tax incentives that would save the company a substantial amount of money on the installation. Grossman had received word that the company had run up against the "cap" for the State of California, which meant that they would no longer receive any subsidies for green power installments. With one phase of the installation yet to go, the question of possibly putting the money elsewhere kept nagging at Ken. Previous incentives meant the return on their environmental investments had always been fairly rapid, which enabled the company to continue aggressively pursuing their dedication to preserving the natural environment. Now, however, what to do? Finishing the solar array would be costly. Time to payback more than doubled from seven years to fifteen without the incentives from California State. As it stood, the brewery was light years ahead of industry standards and had completed the installation of the majority of the array.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The UFC is controlled by its parent company, Zuffa LLC, which is owned by Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White. The UFC has seen a great deal of success since its purchase from its founders in 2001 for $2 million. The owners have made MMA a highly marketable product in terms of live event ticket sales, at-home pay-per-view purchases, and general popularity among their key demographic: men aged 18 to 34. However, this success has mainly occurred within the United States and Lorenzo, current UFC chief executive officer, wants to expand the organization’s reach across the globe. The UFC has held several successful international events in countries that are fairly culturally comparable to the United States (the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada), and Lorenzo must decide if the organization can be culturally viable in several new international markets — specifically, China, India, and South Korea.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The UFC is controlled by its parent company Zuffa LLC, which is owned by Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White. The UFC has seen a great deal of success since its purchase from its founders in 2001 for $2 million. The owners have made MMA a highly marketable product in terms of live event ticket sales, at home pay-per-view (PPV) purchases and general popularity among their key demographic: men aged 18 to 34. However, this success has mainly occurred within the United States and Lorenzo, current UFC chief executive officer (CEO), wants to expand the organization's reach across the globe. With several successful international events in countries that are fairly culturally comparable to the United States (the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada), Lorenzo must decide if the UFC can be culturally viable in several new international markets. Specifically, he is interested in the potential to operate in China, India and South Korea. This case has been designed for use in: International Business, Organizational Behaviour, Strategic Management, Business and Society (Business, Government and Society), Leadership and Marketing to address the following topics: The difficulty inherent in determining if a potential market (i.e. international location) will be a cultural fit for a product or service, competitive advantage, strategic development, analyzing the external environment, government regulation, the impact a leader has on organizational expansion, and brand development and management.