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A recent MBA graduate is working as vice-president equity sales for an investment bank in the Ukraine. The firm's managing director has requested a recommendation regarding whether they should start investing in Ukrainian equities on their own account, or retain their practice of acting purely as an agent - buying and selling shares for clients without taking any ownership position.

For General Motors (GM) China, 2004 brought a wide variety of new challenges that added to an already complex business environment. Industry structure was changing quickly, demand and supply projections for motor vehicles had promised substantial increases in sales and profits but suddenly optimism faded. China's membership in the World Trade Organization created expectations of a level playing field for foreign investors, but major barriers remained, including continuing government intervention, competition from government-owned assembly firms, arbitrary rules such as sector-specific credit restrictions and violation of intellectual property with the copying of foreign automobile designs and false-branding of parts. Meanwhile, inflation was increasing and the government was unsure whether and how to use monetary and fiscal policies. This is an abridged version of GM in China, product 9B05M007.

An entrepreneur from California sold his last start up company over a year ago and was looking at investing in an underperforming company in which he could play an active role and turn around. His investment advisor approached him with a potential deal in which to invest. Alpha Legal Systems was a small software company with $5 million in sales the previous year but had no profitability. The entrepreneur must consider the economic slowdown and an underperforming technology market and the challenges of taking over and managing a young, rapidly growing company.

This corporate strategy case shows how Pepsico stopped worrying about competing with Coca-Cola, figured out what its real business was, and decided how to build its future. Redefining itself as a beverage and snack business, PepsiCo sheds its restaurant business and acquires Quaker and Tropicana. By rethinking the synergistic relationship between the complementary, combined strengths of the merged companies, it strategizes to develop innovative products that will compete in a changing demographic, cultural, and geographical world. Will this strategy work in an increasingly competitive environment?

Much has been written about the qualities that make a great manager, but most of the literature overlooks a fundamental question: What does a great manager actually do? While there are countless management styles, one thing underpins the behavior of all great managers. Above all, an exceptional manager comes to know and value the particular quirks and abilities of her employees. She figures out how to capitalize on her staffers' strengths and tweaks her environment to meet her larger goals. Such a specialized approach may seem like a lot of work. But in fact, capitalizing on each person's uniqueness can save time. Rather than encourage employees to conform to strict job descriptions that may include tasks they don't enjoy and aren't good at, a manager who develops positions for his staff members based on their unique abilities will be rewarded with behaviors that are far more efficient and effective than they would be otherwise. This focus on individuals also makes employees more accountable. Because staffers are evaluated on their particular strengths and weaknesses, they are challenged to take responsibility for their abilities and to hone them. Capitalizing on a person's uniqueness also builds a stronger sense of team. By taking the time to understand what makes each employee tick, a great manager shows that he sees his people for who they are. This personal investment not only motivates individuals but also galvanizes the entire team. Finally, this approach shakes up existing hierarchies, which leads to more creative thinking. To take great managing from theory to practice, the author says, you must know three things about a person: her strengths, the triggers that activate those strengths, and how she learns. By asking the right questions, squeezing the right triggers, and becoming aware of your employees' learning styles, you will discover what motivates each person to excel.

The general manager for U.S.-based Sealed Air Corp.'s Taiwan subsidiary must decide how to improve productivity and achieve profitability. In addition to considering a new approach to compensation, he is wondering how to bridge the gap between Sealed Air's corporate culture and local business practices in Taiwan. A particular problematic practice is the local use of "tea money."

Sealed Air Corp.'s CEO and COO are considering what approach they should take to building a seamless corporate culture worldwide. Anticipating continuing growth and expansion, especially outside the United States, they are concerned with preserving and promoting the culture that has been one of the company's key assets. However, their experience in integrating acquired companies, especially outside the United States, has heightened their awareness of differences among the regional cultures of the world and the challenges they face in maintaining a unified corporate culture.

By rotating key executives through headquarters, companies can keep corporate lean but still hold sway over the units, says BCG Senior VP George Stalk, Jr.

Truly new ideas spawn original language, but where new management ideas should be, there are too many cliches borrowed from other fields. We deserve better, argues HBR senior editor Leigh Buchanan.

Supplements the (A) case. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

Supplements the (A) case. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

The technical director of Shimla Dairy Products, a government-licensed food manufacturer, has spent time working in the cheese industry in Australia. He has returned to India and has new skills and ideas that he would like to share with the company. Cheese is a fairly new product in India and he must decide how best to take advantage of the growth potential in the Indian cheese market. He must consider issues of marketing, branding, production processes, operations and customer focus.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. It provides guidelines to determine whether an alliance is an appropriate vehicle to pursue business objectives. Specifically, it covers areas such as the strategic rationale for the alliance, the identification of competence and resource gaps in relation to strategic objectives, and a firm's readiness to enter a collaborative arrangement. Related cases Strategic Alliances That Work: Selecting the Right Partner, Strategic Alliances That Work: Negotiating and Designing an Alliance and Strategic Alliances That Work: Implementing Winning Conditions, products 9B05M023, 9B05M024 and 9B05M025 are also available.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. Key factors to consider during the selection process are the overall strategic fit between potential partners, the complementarities of each organization's strengths, weaknesses and operational practices, the sustainability of the relationship, consideration of how partner cultures may clash or complement one another, the degree of commitment to the partnership, and finally, the personal chemistry between both companies' management. Related cases Strategic Alliances That Work: Should You Build A Strategic Alliance?, Strategic Alliances That Work: Negotiating and Designing an Alliance and Strategic Alliances That Work: Implementing Winning Conditions, products 9B05M022, 9B05M024 and 9B05M025.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. The negotiation process involves pre-negotiation preparations such as putting together the negotiating team, conducting the negotiation itself, and finalizing the ultimate agreement. The agreement should address, among other things, the mission of the alliance, its structure and governance, ownership and control details, identification of performance objectives and milestones, conflict resolution procedures, and provision for termination of the partnership. Related cases, Strategic Alliances That Work: Should You Build a Strategic Alliance?, Strategic Alliances That Work: Selecting the Right Partner, Strategic Alliances That Work: Implementing Winning Conditions, product 9B05M022, 9B05M023 and 9B05M025.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. All the strategic analysis, negotiation, and implementation planning of a strategic alliance aims for the day the alliance can be formally launched. While much of the details depend on the specific nature of the agreement, there exist common practices that will take you far down the path of successful alliance management. These include laying a positive foundation with the right team and establishing productive linkages across both organizations. It also includes dedicated focus on building trusted relationships in the early days and structuring alliance activities for some early successes. Alliances usually define success in terms of financial returns; but when the honeymoon is over, enduring and sustainable benefits will be more easily achieved through additional emphasis on effective communications, constructive conflict resolution and continuous organizational learning - elements that support a productive relationship over time. Related cases, Strategic Alliances That Work: Should You Build a Strategic Alliance?, Strategic Alliances That Work: Selecting the Right Partner and Strategic Alliances That Work: Negotiating and Designing an Alliance, products 9B05M022, 9B05M023 and 9B05M024.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. It provides guidelines to determine whether an alliance is an appropriate vehicle to pursue business objectives. Specifically, it covers areas such as the strategic rationale for the alliance, the identification of competence and resource gaps in relation to strategic objectives, and a firm's readiness to enter a collaborative arrangement. Related cases Strategic Alliances That Work: Selecting the Right Partner, Strategic Alliances That Work: Negotiating and Designing an Alliance and Strategic Alliances That Work: Implementing Winning Conditions, products 9B05M023, 9B05M024 and 9B05M025 are also available.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. Key factors to consider during the selection process are the overall strategic fit between potential partners, the complementarities of each organization's strengths, weaknesses and operational practices, the sustainability of the relationship, consideration of how partner cultures may clash or complement one another, the degree of commitment to the partnership, and finally, the personal chemistry between both companies' management. Related cases Strategic Alliances That Work: Should You Build A Strategic Alliance?, Strategic Alliances That Work: Negotiating and Designing an Alliance and Strategic Alliances That Work: Implementing Winning Conditions, products 9B05M022, 9B05M024 and 9B05M025.

This note is part of a series entitled Strategic Alliances That Work. All the strategic analysis, negotiation, and implementation planning of a strategic alliance aims for the day the alliance can be formally launched. While much of the details depend on the specific nature of the agreement, there exist common practices that will take you far down the path of successful alliance management. These include laying a positive foundation with the right team and establishing productive linkages across both organizations. It also includes dedicated focus on building trusted relationships in the early days and structuring alliance activities for some early successes. Alliances usually define success in terms of financial returns; but when the honeymoon is over, enduring and sustainable benefits will be more easily achieved through additional emphasis on effective communications, constructive conflict resolution and continuous organizational learning - elements that support a productive relationship over time.

Capital Coast Health Limited is a public healthcare facility in central New Zealand. The new chief executive is confronted with serious internal problems and a persistent annual financial deficit that has been with the organization since its inception. Working in an uncertain and rapidly changing healthcare environment and constrained by government regulations, the chief executive officer must find a way to deliver quality care to the community and at the same time, motivate a large team of professionals who were already weary after years of change. The supplement "Capital Coast Health Limited: Being a Good Employer in the Midst of Change (B)", product 905M10 looks at one of the policies the chief executive officer must focus on.