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This case examines the mindset of a father who faces a complex situation when his adult son, who works with him in the family business in India, begins pressuring him to make a will. The father's thought processes are revealed as he tries to understand the reasons behind his son's motivation. The case explores the issue from the father's point of view. It examines his hesitation to make a will and the points in favor of doing so.

Brown Robin Capital details the experiences of Stanford GSB graduates Ryan Robinson and Lucas Braun in pursuing a search fund acquisition. The case explains the search fund model and provides historical asset class performance statistics. Then, the protagonists detail the decision to engage in a search fund, raising the initial search capital, performing due diligence on a series of prospective acquisition targets, abandoning several potential deals, and ultimately buying and running a data services business called OnRamp. The case weighs the personal and professional factors inherent in operating a search fund.

Louis Vuitton, the flagship group within Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), had contributed to the stellar growth of the group in 2010 and 2011. But, there were clouds on the horizon. Was the recent growth sustainable? What steps should Louis Vuitton take to address upcoming challenges? This case takes the student through the challenges a global company faces as it tries to grow a business that is based on one of the most valued high-end brands in the world. The case reveals the fundamental strategic tension between what a firm needs to do, given the competitive environment, what it can do, given its resources and organization, and what leaders want to do, given their fundamental motivations and beliefs, which shape the way they see the issues.

A procurement officer has got himself into some difficulties by trying to do what he thinks was the right thing in being responsive and accommodating for an internal client. In doing so, he has violated a number of unwritten ethical expectations of his role. He is wondering what he could have done differently and, specifically, how to handle an upcoming conversation with his chief executive officer about his future with the company.

In 2011, Gilberto Dimenstein, a well-known Brazilian journalist, created a new model that connected disparate resources to revitalize Sao Paulo. He wanted his model to expand across Brazil and the world. Dimenstein covered many of the social issues facing Brazil as a journalist and became determined to create solutions. Dimenstein started two social ventures, ANDI and Escola Aprendiz, before creating and developing Catraca Livre (meaning "open turnstile" in Portuguese) while he was an Advanced Leadership fellow at Harvard. Dimenstein pursued his idea of "learning neighborhoods", which meant a localized, low cost and effective way to leverage the existing available resources as educational opportunities. The resources were underutilized because of a lack of awareness. He believed that education should not be limited to the classroom and instead should be expanded to the entire city. Catraca Livre enabled Sao Paulo's residents to utilize untapped resources by aggregating all of the available resources and disseminating the information through multiple avenues including a website, subways, restaurants, workplaces, and more. This case shows how Dimenstein spearheads his solution to improve his city and offers a model for revitalizing cities around the world.

When leaders behave capriciously, they signal their power and, often, the authority they need to drive valuable change. But this behavior can also take a toll on employees and potentially undermine organizational performance.

Professional boxing was once a mainstream sport, whose stars were widely known to the general public. Major fights were broadcast on network television. By the 2000s, the landscape had changed dramatically. Boxing had become a niche sport in the United States, few boxers were known beyond the hard-core fan base, top fights were only available on premium cable or pay-per-view (PPV), and other combat sports were on the rise. This case describes the world of professional boxing, including the roles of fighters, managers, promoters, and television. It focuses on a decision facing HBO, one of the important economic drivers of the sport. In September 2012, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. lost a title fight to Sergio Martinez despite a thrilling final round. The fight was seen on HBO PPV. Most observers thought that a rematch would be held, and that it would attract a substantial PPV audience. However, Martinez planned a fight in his native Argentina prior to a potential rematch. Chavez would likely also have an interim fight. HBO considered the possibility of having the interim Chavez match on their cable channel rather than on PPV. This would make the fight available to more viewers, hopefully increasing the audience for the PPV rematch with Martinez, and would guarantee Chavez a sizable payment from television rights. However, if the fight were on PPV, Chavez would have the opportunity to earn more money based on PPV sales (and also take the risk of a lower payday if PPV sales did not meet expectations). If HBO believes that it is in the long term interest of the sport, the fighters, and HBO to have the fight on cable rather than PPV, how can they convince Chavez's promoter, and how can they help the promoter convince Chavez to accept a lower potential payday in exchange for an increased audience and the opportunity to build PPV sales for the planned rematch with Martinez?

From Apple to Merck to Wikipedia, more and more organizations are turning to crowds for help in solving their most vexing innovation and research questions, but managers remain understandably cautious. It seems risky and even unnatural to push problems out to vast groups of strangers distributed around the world, particularly for companies built on a history of internal innovation. How can intellectual property be protected? How can a crowdsourced solution be integrated into corporate operations? What about the costs? These concerns are all reasonable, the authors write, but excluding crowdsourcing from the corporate innovation tool kit means losing an opportunity. After a decade of study, they have identified when crowds tend to outperform internal organizations (or not). They outline four ways to tap into crowd-powered problem solving--contests, collaborative communities, complementors, and labor markets--and offer a system for picking the best one in a given situation. Contests, for example, are suited to highly challenging technical, analytical, and scientific problems; design problems; and creative or aesthetic projects. They are akin to running a series of independent experiments that generate multiple solutions--and if those solutions cluster at some extreme, a company can gain insight into where a problem's "technical frontier" lies. (Internal R&D may generate far less information.)

At 43, Sheryl Sandberg can look back on an already illustrious career that began with her graduation summa cum laude from Harvard and moved through the World Bank, Harvard Business School, McKinsey, the U.S. Treasury Department, and Google before landing her at Facebook, where she manages the social media giant's complex business operations. Nevertheless, she has faced her own internal barriers to success, which is part of the reason for her parallel career as an outspoken advocate for women aspiring to leadership positions. In this interview with HBR's editor in chief, Sandberg talks about her new book, "Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead"; how and why women hold themselves back; understanding gender differences and celebrating them; the "likability" gap, and much more.

Almost every organization has people it can't do without--specialists with "deep smarts," who are the go-to experts on critical issues. But because their knowledge is experienced-based, it's often instinctive and unarticulated, and never gets passed on. Capturing it is a challenge for both the organization and for colleagues who wish to become in-house authorities themselves. This article offers a methodical system for acquiring deep smarts from an expert. It involves observing that person extensively to understand what makes him successful, practicing the behaviors he exhibits on your own, partnering with him to solve problems, and ultimately taking responsibility for some of his tasks. Describing the experiences of one executive as she takes this journey with a mentor, the authors show how you too can gain the wisdom that will make you indispensable to your firm.

Philippe Starck has designed thousands of products, interiors, and buildings for clients ranging from Microsoft to Baccarat. Here, he reveals the secrets of his productivity: being a control freak, traveling light, and hiring by intuition.

The fast rise of Lenovo among its competitors in the computer industry raised a series of questions regarding the sustainability of its competitive position, as well as the choices it had made in its efforts toward globalization. First, how could Lenovo establish and sustain a leadership role in an industry where competitive positions were increasingly unstable? Next, how could the Chinese firm build a solid competitive position in an industry characterized by smaller and smaller margins? Finally, after the acquisition of IBM’s PC business and the subsequent accelerated international expansion, could Lenovo still be considered an entirely Chinese entity or was it a truly global enterprise of Chinese origin?<br><br>A video interview with Lenovo's strategy and corporate development vice-president, Lenovo: A Chinese Dragon in the Global Village - DVD, is also available.

The co-founder and president of an environmentally friendly moving supply company faces the challenge of expanding his company’s brand. The company, which provides plastic, reusable moving bins and other moving supplies, has branded itself as providing a convenient, affordable and eco-friendly alternative to cardboard moving boxes. The company can expand by setting up additional corporate stores or by selling individual franchises. The co-founder and president also contemplates focusing his efforts on dominating and revolutionizing the Canadian moving industry. He also remains open to the possibility of eventually selling the company to a larger organization. In considering all options, he wants to sustain the integrity and success of the brand he has built and to ensure that any future expansion maintains his commitment to providing consumers with value, high quality and superior customer service.

After a massive earthquake destroyed many buildings in Haiti in 2011, reconstruction has become a source of opportunity and competition for non-governmental organizations, international business and local companies. The Haitian chairman and CEO of a very successful, multi-million dollar information technology company wants to provide affordable quality housing, especially for the disadvantaged poor, using steel frame technology from his start-up, KayTek. What he has not yet determined is how to get his product to market. He has three options: to keep sales and construction in-house, to outsource, or to franchise in order to create opportunities for young Haitian engineers to become entrepreneurs. Each option has costs, in terms not only of finances and time but also of control of brand quality and accessibility.

After a massive earthquake destroyed many buildings in Haiti, reconstruction has become a source of opportunity and competition for non-governmental organizations, international business and local companies. The Haitian chairman and CEO of a very successful, multi-million dollar information technology company wants to provide affordable quality housing, especially for the disadvantaged poor, using steel frame technology from his start-up, KayTek. What he has not yet determined is how to get his product to market. He has three options: to keep sales and construction in-house, to outsource, or to franchise in order to create opportunities for young Haitian engineers to become entrepreneurs. Each option has costs, in terms not only of finances and time but also of control of brand quality and accessibility.

In November 2011, Jacko Maree, Chief Executive of Standard Bank Group, was reviewing the Group's major decisions in recent years, thinking about the future, and looking for opportunities as South Africa emerged from the global financial crisis of 2008-10. The Group had fared relatively well during the financial crisis, in the sense that no major losses had occurred, and there was almost no exposure at all to the U.S. real estate market or to derivatives based on mortgages there. Even so, the global slowdown had hurt South Africa, and Standard Bank's core businesses there had suffered as well. To keep shareholders happy, the Group needed to demonstrate a clear strategic direction and to demonstrate commitment to that strategy, possibly by pursuing acquisition(s) or other kinds of expansion.

Spreadsheet Supplement for UV1317

The CEO of Newmont Mining Corporation (Newmont) had learned that a subcontractor’s truck en route to Lima from Yanacocha, a gold mine operated by Newmont, spilled mercury along the highway and in small villages. Local residents had picked up some mercury with their bare hands and taken it to their homes. The CEO was trying to determine the best way to handle the situation. This A case describes the mine developer’s history, the operations at Newmont’s most profitable gold mine, the significance of foreign investment to Peru’s economy, the environmental impact of gold mining and the local and anti-mining movements' responses to mine operations. In the B case, Newmont Mining Corp. and a Mercury Spill in Peru (B) 9B13M003, the new CEO is trying to decide what else Newmont is morally required to implement before continuing to operate Yanacocha, and Newmont’s other mines, successfully.

This B case is a supplement to Newmont Mining Corp. and a Mercury Spill in Peru (A) 9B13M002. Since the spill, Newmont spent more than US$100 million on compensation and improvements to the mine to reduce its environmental impact and prevent further spills.<br><br>An internal audit concluded environmental standards at the mine were seriously lacking. In-house counsel warned other executives about the possibility of criminal liability.<br><br>Despite improvements at the mine, a large local protest prevented Newmont from expanding its operations in the area. Lack of trust by the locals contributed to the protest. The new CEO is trying to decide what else Newmont is morally required to implement before continuing to operate Yanacocha, and Newmont’s other mines, successfully.

Internationally recognized Brazilian Nizan Guanaes, co-founder of Grupo ABC, a rapidly growing global advertising firm ranked 18th in 2011, had aspirations to be in the top 10 by 2015. Grupo ABC thrived by identifying national (Brazilian) challenges and incorporating them in creative messages. Guanaes steered the group toward thinking big while acting locally, tackling societal challenges and building partnerships, as he entered the world stage; serving as an informal ambassador for Brazil; playing important roles in international forums as the Clinton Global Initiative, UNESCO, and the Cannes Lions Advertising Festival. Guanaes needed to determine the best growth strategy, how to seize opportunities, and/or how to adapt to meet his ambitious goal.