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This case examines the growth and development of Fogdog, an online sporting goods retailer, from its founding through multiple rounds of venture capital financing to an IPO and, ultimately, to its sale to Global Sports--one of its publicly traded competitors. The Fogdog story is set in the late 1990s, when the Internet economy was virtually exploding with new opportunities. Built to capitalize on the new Internet medium, Fogdog faced a number of issues specific to the unique economic climate surrounding the company at the time. However, the company also faced a number of timeless issues that many emerging companies experience, such as board composition and development, communication between a company and its board, and the respective positions and responsibilities of both management and a company's investors when tough company decisions have to be made. Woven throughout the case are additional themes of hiring management, raising capital, and forming strategic alliances. It ends with the "forced" sale of Fogdog by the company's board at a time when the near-term outlook for Internet-related companies was uncertain. This sale took place despite management's stated desire to continue running the company.

This technical note outlines the core skills needed to give and receive feedback effectively. It is most appropriate for helping managers practice ways of dealing with feedback. These solutions minimize defensiveness and increase the probability that the feedback, whether positive or negative, will be acted upon.

Describes the variety of health insurance plans that Medtronic offers, including a high-deductible, consumer-driven health plan with a health reimbursement account that also enables health care providers to quote their own prices. Asks students to consider the choices facing the firm's human resources manager and its employees and the viability of the new consumer-driven models.

This case describes a "do good and do well" firm that enables individuals to buy health care services at discounted prices. It delineates the characteristics of the uninsured and others who are the primary targets for the firm. "HealthAllies (B)" provides information about subsequent events.

John Bowen has aggressively interviewed with management consulting firms and Fortune 100 corporate planning offices. His efforts have paid off for he has received several very appealing offers. The contenders have been narrowed down to two prestigious, strategic consulting firms. One of the firms is Windburn Associates where the potential salary increase is just not enough to offset its lower starting salary offer. See also UVA-QA-0567 for Windburn's perspective.

In a deal marking the first acquisition of a domestic Japanese financial institution by foreigners, a consortium of Western investors purchased the assets of the Long Term Credit Bank (LTCB) of Japan in March 2000. The new management renames the bank Shinsei Bank, meaning new birth, and sets about implementing a bold new strategy calling for a hybrid bank that includes commercial, retail, and investment banking activities, managed according to Western banking principles. This case reviews the events that led up to LTCBs failure, nationalization, and subsequent purchase. The job of making the hybrid bank work falls to Shinsei president and CEO Masamoto Yashiro. Yashiro wonders how he can manage this hybrid bank.

Supplements the (A) case.

Supplements the (A) case.

One year later, Yashiro and his management team can be proud of the young bank's first-year results, but face a set of difficult implementation issues.

Komia Holdings SA is the second largest fixed-telephony operator in Poland. The chief executive officer must decide if the company should participate in the government bidding process to acquire an operating license for the third generation (3G) wireless telecommunications in Poland. This technology will allow the company to offer high-speed Internet access as well as many promising multimedia services on mobile handsets. He must consider his company's strategy, competition from other operators and several political debates about the bidding process that has lead to changes in the way the process is handled. The supplement, Komia and the 3G Wireless Phone Auction in Poland (B), product 9B01M038 follows, with the decision of Komia to participate in the bidding process.

Case A: Presents three strategic options considered by a fictitious international oil and gas corporation to address the issue of climate change: fight against action, wait and see, and dynamic proactive.

Case B: Presents the climate change strategies of three multinational corporations Exxon Mobil, BP Amoco, and Total-Fina-Elf.

Gerdau Group is a family-controlled Brazilian manufacturer and distributor of long steel products. Describes the evolution of the company's strategy, organization, and smart management, making it the No. 2 steel producer in Brazil. The company must decide whether to buy AmeriSteel, the No. 2 long steel producer in the United States. Considers the strategic, organizational, financial, and human issues posed by the potential acquisition.

Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC) is a key component of the security infrastructure for Microsoft--the large, internationally known software manufacturer. A hacker has informed the program manager of the center of potentially damaging security vulnerability in a piece of Microsoft's Internet server software. Neither the hacker nor MSRC knows for sure whether systems using the software have been compromised, but they do know that the vulnerability has been discussed in hacker news groups. The program manager must determine who should be told, what needs to be done, and when. This case looks at the strategy to solve the problems and deal with any possible public relations issues that arise from it.

Supplements the (A) case.

Supplements the (A) case.

Global Sources Limited is Asia's leading publisher of business-to-business (B2B) trade-related magazines. In the latter half of the 1990s, the Internet became a powerful force for change in the business world, leading to an explosion of Internet-related activities by both traditional bricks and mortar companies, as well as countless upstart dot.coms. The chairman and chief executive officer of Global Sources had foreseen the opportunities afforded by the Internet early on, and had made it an integral part of the company's strategy. Currently, the level of activity in the B2B portal space has evolved so quickly that a noticeable degree of confusion among suppliers, buyers and investors about the merits and drawbacks of these portals has arisen. Moreover, the sustainability of these ventures has been brought into question, which is causing a dramatic reversal of fortunes for many companies. The result is that there are strong signs that the industry will experience a significant consolidation. This has left Global Sources chairman with the key challenge of generating greater visibility among users and potential users of the companies services, as well as greater interest from the investment community in order to remain viable. The company must be able to educate and convey its value proposition to its users, as well as determine whether it should continue to remain an independent player, purchase a competitor, or enter into a strategic alliance.

This note provides a non-technical description of the Chinese legal system relevant to international business. It outlines the Chinese concept of law, the Chinese legal system, dispute resolution, the 1999 Unified Contract Law and the legal framework for foreign investment enterprises.