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This case explores the career development of professionals with strong leadership potential within an international business group - LVMH. It follows the career progression of an MBA graduate, her exposure to networks and mentors, and her international mobility.

By 2013, Sobey’s Inc., one of Canada`s largest food retailers, had initiated a number of programs in order to reduce its environmental footprint and to try to meet the public’s expectations that business would address such sustainability issues as waste management, genetically modified products and food safety. At the top of Sobey’s agenda was to develop a sustainable seafood strategy. While data collection, metric selection, employee incentives and customer education were important parts of this emerging strategy, a central decision was what products to choose to sell or not to sell. Certain major competitors had announced that they would sell only “certified sustainable” seafood, an approach strongly advocated by well-known environmental organizations. Sobey’s, on the other hand, decided that to abandon uncertified seafood would not only hamper its bottom line but also would eliminate its ability to push the very fisheries that needed more guidance towards better practices. Yet, to continue to sell “red zone” seafood was very controversial and could jeopardize Sobey’s standing as a leader in sustainable practices — an outcome that could have serious negative consequences in the marketplace. In this context, the vice-president of sustainability had to implement a sustainable seafood strategy by year’s end.

By 2013, Sobey's Inc., one of Canada`s largest food retailers, had initiated a number of programs in order to reduce its environmental footprint and to try to meet the public's expectations that business would address such sustainability issues as waste management, genetically modified products and food safety. At the top of Sobey's agenda was to develop a sustainable seafood strategy. While data collection, metric selection, employee incentives and customer education were important parts of this emerging strategy, a central decision was what products to choose to sell or not to sell. Certain major competitors had announced that they would sell only "certified sustainable" seafood, an approach strongly advocated by well-known environmental organizations. Sobey's, on the other hand, decided that to abandon uncertified seafood would not only hamper its bottom line but also would eliminate its ability to push the very fisheries that needed more guidance towards better practices. Yet, to continue to sell "red zone" seafood was very controversial and could jeopardize Sobey's standing as a leader in sustainable practices - an outcome that could have serious negative consequences in the marketplace. In this context, the vice-president of sustainability had to implement a sustainable seafood strategy by year's end.

Harlequin Enterprises is a well-known publisher of women's fiction and the global leader in series romance fiction. In 2013, e-book penetration of romance fiction has exceeded 50 per cent of unit sales. The vice-president of strategy is trying to make sense of the e-book opportunity and threat. She is wondering what impact e-books would have on Harlequin's business model: its relationship with authors, distributors and competitors.

Harlequin Enterprises is a well-known publisher of women's fiction and the global leader in series romance fiction. In 2013, e-book penetration of romance fiction has exceeded 50 per cent of unit sales. The vice-president of strategy is trying to make sense of the e-book opportunity and threat. She is wondering what impact e-books would have on Harlequin's business model: its relationship with authors, distributors and competitors.

After early successes in a very selective management-training program, Daniel Oliveira, a young manager for Brazilian fashion chain Clothes & Accessories, is thrown into the deep end of the pool by being reassigned to a region lagging in sales. Early on, Oliveira discovers that his store, located in mid-sized Vitória in southeastern Brazil, is in trouble. As soon as he tries to make changes, however, he meets with resistance from long-term employees. The case details his pitfalls and growing awareness of the complexities of leading a diverse workforce and managing change.

After years of development, William Krause knew that 2014 was the year to "go big or go home." His Flexible Herbert Screw, a medical device intended to support the healing of fractured collarbones (clavicles), was ready for launch, and he had accumulated the necessary cash?$1 million by his reckoning?needed to comfortably see him through the start-up phase. Although evidence in favor of the invasive device was still inconclusive, other key players were now entering the space with remarkably similar technologies.

In January 2013, John C. Liu, New York City's comptroller, wrote to the residents of the city about his audit of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR). Liu summarized his office's findings: "The audit found that DPR was not carrying out and overseeing capital construction projects in a timely and cost effective manner." To investigate the existence of the "planning fallacy" in organizations, information from nearly 1,800 capital projects undertaken between 1998 and 2008 was obtained from the office of the chief engineer of the New York City DPR. In light of the data, how severe was the planning fallacy during this time and could it be used for overcoming the planning fallacy?

In January 2013, John C. Liu, New York City's comptroller, wrote to the residents of the city about his audit of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR). Liu summarized his office's findings: "The audit found that DPR was not carrying out and overseeing capital construction projects in a timely and cost effective manner." To investigate the existence of the "planning fallacy" in organizations, information from nearly 1,800 capital projects undertaken between 1998 and 2008 was obtained from the office of the chief engineer of the New York City DPR. In light of the data, how severe was the planning fallacy during this time and could it be used for overcoming the planning fallacy?

Eikon Device Ltd, a tattoo equipment and supplies firm, has to choose between several alternatives. Their core business is the production of tattoo needles and the power supply that makes tattoo machines operate, selling primarily into the United States and Canada. With increasing international demand however, should they consider establishing a distribution facility abroad? Alternatively, since much of their success is derived from catering to the specific needs of tattoo artists, should Eikon expand its product line for the North American market? At the same time, competition from China has emerged to push Eikon out of its core markets. Eikon management has to prioritize their initiatives.

Ethiopian Airlines plans to expand its African market base to become a leading airline in the continent. As part of the airline's multi-hub strategy, the vice-president of alliances and corporate strategy and his team must identify a suitable hub location and decide on the appropriate mode and level of ownership. Success in the first hub is essential as it will both validate the viability of the multi-hub strategy and set the tone for the establishment of subsequent hubs throughout the continent. The vice-president and his team need to resolve three issues: location of the first hub, entry mode and ownership level.

Ethiopian Airlines plans to expand its African market base to become a leading airline in the continent. As part of the airline’s multi-hub strategy, the vice-president of alliances and corporate strategy and his team must identify a suitable hub location and decide on the appropriate mode and level of ownership. Success in the first hub is essential as it will both validate the viability of the multi-hub strategy and set the tone for the establishment of subsequent hubs throughout the continent. The vice-president and his team need to resolve three issues: location of the first hub, entry mode and ownership level.

Eikon Device Ltd, a tattoo equipment and supplies firm, has to choose between several alternatives. Their core business is the production of tattoo needles and the power supply that makes tattoo machines operate, selling primarily into the United States and Canada. With increasing international demand however, should they consider establishing a distribution facility abroad? Alternatively, since much of their success is derived from catering to the specific needs of tattoo artists, should Eikon expand its product line for the North American market? At the same time, competition from China has emerged to push Eikon out of its core markets. Eikon management has to prioritize their initiatives.

In 2011, the Alberta government launched an aggressive campaign to raise awareness about the growing rate of syphilis in the province. It launched an incredibly successful campaign that incorporated elements of social media that went viral. Though awareness was raised, the health system struggled to keep up with demand. The case deals with the challenges faced by the different areas of the health care system in receiving approval for the campaign and managing the subsequent demand.

Set in 2013, this case describes the expansion of car2go, a popular car sharing service developed by Daimler AG. The case addresses the changing commuting preferences among urban residents, the evolution of urban transportation and new service developments in the automotive products market. Unlike traditional models of car sharing or renting, which required advance bookings, hourly billing and returns to the originating location, car2go's business model offered minute-based rates and a free-floating selection of cars that allowed customers to pick up or leave vehicles wherever they liked.

After studying medicine and specialising in paediatrics in India, Dr Vibha Krishnamurthy, the founder and Medical Director of Ummeed, underwent further training in children's developmental disabilities in the US. The resources available at the centres there highlighted the lack of similar facilities in India. After relocating to India in 1998, she decided to set out on her own. In November 2001, supported by her husband, Vibha founded Ummeed - a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that provides an integrated medical and therapeutic support system for children with developmental disabilities. Founded with an initial staff of only three, Ummeed has grown to include about 50 professionals, ranging from paediatricians to therapists and social workers. It has also moved into areas of training, research and advocacy, and is increasingly well regarded as one of India's leading NGOs, respected for its work with children with disabilities. But with this growth, the constant challenge to procure adequate funding has been exacerbated. Ummeed's strategic plan and business model is built around the theory that if it were able to access children with disabilities early through their families, it could maximise their outcomes for educational, financial and social achievement. Hence, its business model involves creating ways to access families by building awareness and demand in communities, with subsequent capacity building and training. But is this the most effective way to create a change for children with disabilities? Vibha also recognises that Ummeed's evolution has brought her to a crossroads where a decision will soon have to be made: while on the one hand, she would like to keep Ummeed 'small', retaining the personalised organisation culture that she has embedded at all levels - on the other hand, she would like to scale-up Ummeed, so that it could extend its reach. How should Ummeed position itself? What would be the best way to create an impact in this field?

Established in 2004, Facebook had shown stupendous growth. However, faced with the evolving mobile communication industry and increasing competition, the company was on the lookout to increase its user base by acquiring WhatsApp. Was it the right decision for Facebook to acquire WhatsApp — and at the steep price of $19 billion? From WhatsApp’s perspective, the company’s founder wanted to continue with his vision of connecting people, irrespective of the decision involving Facebook. Should WhatsApp sell its assets to Facebook or should it insist on an equity alliance instead?

(With SaaS, vendors stored a client's data in an external server or in the cloud, and maintained the software and relevant hardware.) Transitioning to SaaS required the €114 million company simultaneously to transform its strategy, business model, technology and culture; and the change process was bumpy. SaaS customers paid as they used services, rather than upfront as they did with the licensed software and installation business; that difference had an immediate negative impact on Basware's revenue stream. The company's new SaaS technology would be best in breed when it was complete, but it was taking longer than expected to be ready. Basware also needed to reorganize as a global organization, its sales people needed to be retrained or transitioned out, and its culture needed to adjust to match these rapid changes. At the same time, Basware's e-invoice operator business was booming. In 2013, there were an estimated 63 million transactions across the Basware Commerce Network, and the company expected to hit 150 million transactions by the end of 2015. Speed was the name of the game for Basware, as each transaction brought in money and because the network's size was Basware's competitive advantage. Although the software and e-invoicing businesses were two separate businesses, they were synergistic. The more customers moved from paper to e-invoicing, the more they would be able to use the full functionality of Basware's automated software solutions.

This case deals with a project to build a hybrid operating room for cardiac surgery at Montreal's Sainte-Justine University Hospital. The case is discussed from the perspective of change management and implementation processes at the personal and organizational levels. The change involved the learning of new practices with state-of-the-art equipment and the collaboration of two medical teams: surgical and cardiology. This initiative, suggested by a cardiologist in 2002, was finally completed in 2010 following several years of fundraising efforts and the departure of several stakeholders. The arrival of a new CEO in 2009 gave fresh impetus to the project. The leaders of the two teams managed the change to the best of their ability, and a Tactical committee was set up to plan activities and prepare the various actors for the change (managers, cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, technologists, etc.). This case study of a successful change reports the perspectives and perceptions of fourteen key actors, including doctors, nurses, managers, administrators, heads of sectors and other units, and the chief executive officer.

In 2012, the general manager at the Seoul location of a European manufacturing company faces an ethical dilemma involving bribery and “facilitation” payments. A key decision maker in a local construction company’s purchasing department has asked for a “facilitation” payment as a necessary condition for securing an order. If the expatriate manager decides to pay the money, he will secure an order that will lift his company to a new level of success for years to come. If he decides not to pay, the order and all the company has worked for over the last year will be lost. The expatriate manager must decide whether or not the payment would violate laws internationally, locally and in his home country. What are the real risks? Who can help him answer the many questions he has regarding this local practice?