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As if the challenges facing a business leader today weren't already formidable, along comes one that may be the most difficult and least understood of all. Emerging risks, unanticipated and unplanned for, such as the eruption of a volcano in Iceland earlier this year, are having a serious impact on companies' long-term strategies and earnings. Though a relatively new phenomenon, emerging risks can be managed, and this author describes what leaders can and need to do to prepare their companies for them.

Many a good idea has been sabotaged by a co-worker who, during a presentation, cuts right in to say, That's a good idea but. Readers of this article will learn what tactics they can use to effectively disarm and discourage such a saboteur and allow their ideas to be heard fully and ultimately win acceptance.

Creating wealth is considerably different than sustaining that wealth, particularly if you are an entrepreneur or corporate executive. The path to this particular type of sustainability can be a perilous one, but a Family Office can smooth that path and ensure that it remains clear for those who will inherit the wealth.

In the book Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done, co-authors Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan essentially wrote that, It's all in the execution. Perhaps the most important step in executing well is to build a bridge that connects the vision and the strategy to the execution plan. Readers will learn what those bridges are and how they can build them to last.

There is risk management as we know it, and then there is CSRisk, as this author defines it, a triad of Creativity, Strategy and Risk Management. As he writes, the development and merging together of these three capabilities will allow CEOs to build globally competitive businesses and rest secure knowing that their exposure is limited to the absolute minimum. Readers will learn how to build a CSRisk capability in this article.

Managing supply chain risk can be extremely daunting due to the many moving parts in a supply chain. This article highlights this risk and suggests what firms operating in the global environment can do to manage it. It explains how organizations consider global sourcing for reasons of organization, improvement, finances, and revenues. A major under-appreciated factor in dealing with offshore suppliers is the element of risk, with one key risk factor being the cultural gap between two firms. The first levels of risks are familiar and include preconceived circumstances and are often based on past experience. The next levels, however, are typically less likely to be risk factors, but their consequences are more severe when they do become factors. Categories of risk include culture, distance, communication, urgency, and intellectual property. Leaders most often consider intellectual property, but neglect one or more of the other potential pitfalls. To illustrate supply chain risk, this article considers the example of a global French automotive parts firm with a problematic Greenfield operation in China. The operation’s supply chain crises resulted in the French firm spending far more than it had expected with a low-cost supplier. This article proposes fundamental changes to the French firm’s approach that would have led to cost savings: 1) source two suppliers at the outset; 2) spend the necessary time to understand the cultural and operational dynamics in China; and 3) embrace visibility as a simple and effective risk-assessment tactic.

...You can't control people through policies, procedures and policing. You can only do it through a strong risk management culture and absolute integrity in all leaders. Leadership on Trial, A Manifesto for Leadership Development, p. 39, comment recorded in Montreal. This observation is one of the thousands shared by the 300 C-suite executives, who participated in a series of candid discussions spearheaded by a group of Ivey faculty over the past year. Our basic purpose in bringing together these executives was to find out if better leadership could have made a difference in preventing the financial meltdown that led to the recent global economic crisis.

<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER - Oikos Sustainability Case Writing Competition</strong></p><br> The owner and operator of Y U Ranch, a Longhorn cattle ranch in southern Ontario, is required to make a set of interesting but seemingly unimportant decisions. In this case series, students will see that each decision builds on the previous decision (i.e. the decisions are path dependent). Taken together, these cases illustrate why industrial farming has supplanted the farm-based agricultural system. After reviewing the case series, the instructor can engage students in a discussion about the importance of systems in influencing organizational resilience.

This is a supplement to Y U Ranch: Strategy and Sustainability in Cattle Ranching (A), product 9B09M080 and, taken together, this case series illustrates why industrial farming has supplanted the farm-based agricultural system.

This is a supplement to Y U Ranch: Strategy and Sustainability in Cattle Ranching (A) and (B), products 9B09M080 and 9B09M081 and, taken together, this case series illustrates why industrial farming has supplanted the farm-based agricultural system.

Polar Challenge was a company that offered an annual 320 nautical-mile race to the magnetic North Pole organized by Arctic experts. It had been successful in the United Kingdom, establishing marketing partnerships with the BBC, Sony, Fujitsu and others. Polar Challenge saw the United States market as untapped potential for both sponsors and racers. In 2008, with the centennial of polar exploration approaching in 2009, the company decided to offer the race to Americans. The director of marketing is given responsibility for establishing a presence in the United States, but he soon finds that U.S. companies and media outlets do not have the level of interest he expected. In addition, companies worldwide were cutting back on advertising spending in response to the global economic crisis. This case examines a number of issues focused on expansion into new markets and resource commitments to such endeavours. It can be used to discuss the importance of understanding the target market, targeting the unique needs of different customer segments, adapting product offerings to international markets and establishing realistic goals.

Apple Inc. is one of the world's most successful and most recognizable companies. Over its 30 year existence, the company had seen a lot of changes in the computer industry. What would the future hold for the computer giant in a rapidly changing world? How should the company allocate resources between its more traditional offerings (computers) and its newer products (iPods, iPhones, Apple TV, etc.) in order to maintain and improve its market position. Also, how should Apple's unique retail strategy be used to support the company's product decisions, and by capitalizing on new and emerging trends thus further maintaining its competitive advantage.

The (A) case follows Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Suntech Power Holdings, on his journey to create a global solar PV company headquartered in China. It covers his background and inspiration for the idea, his dealings with the local Chinese government authorities, the company's business strategies, competitive landscape, and performance to date. The case concludes with the founder contemplating future options for his company, including the possibility of taking the company public on the New York Stock Exchange. The (B) case follows the company in the post-IPO years, providing an update on strategy, financial performance, and the competitive landscape.

The (A) case follows Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Suntech Power Holdings, on his journey to create a global solar PV company headquartered in China. It covers his background and inspiration for the idea, his dealings with the local Chinese government authorities, the company's business strategies, competitive landscape, and performance to date. The case concludes with the founder contemplating future options for his company, including the possibility of taking the company public on the New York Stock Exchange. The (B) case follows the company in the post-IPO years, providing an update on strategy, financial performance, and the competitive landscape.

Brief introduction to the field of strategic management, including basic concepts and scope.

Technical note on industry analysis and competitive dynamics.

Brief discussion of managing for stakeholders and the role this plays in achieving value creation and competitive advantage.

Most of the everyday communication between employees and managers is anything but truthful and candid.This iconoclast and management professor describes how leaders can create an environment in which the spoken truth will be recognized and rewarded.

The drive to build a sustainable company starts at the top, and is actively led all along the way by the CEO. Readers of this article will learn how the CEOs of two very different companies embraced sustainability and embedded the best practices for achieving it in their respective organizational cultures.

If a client doesn't control the consulting relationship, a project will fall short of expectations. Only when clients engage consultants based on merit and manage those consultants carefully, and only when company staff are seen as integral as the individual consultants, can companies hope to achieve or even exceed the goals they set. These authors tell readers how they can do that.