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Manufacturing companies striving to compete on quality must design products that not only are technically elegant and manufacturable but also reflect customers' desires and tastes. For optimal results, marketers, designers, engineers, and strategists should work closely together from product conception to end result. A Japanese innovation, the house of quality, can help get interfunctional-team conversations started. Presented here in clear, step-by-step exhibits, the house is a conceptual map on which interdisciplinary teams can display and organize the evidence they need to set targets for design. Once all relevant facts are on the grid, the team makes its choices. The process has clarified opportunities, stimulated negotiation, and helped set an agenda. And the format is flexible. Once engineering targets have been set, the team can draw up new houses.

When Alice Rivlin became the first director of the Congressional Budget Office in February 1975, she found herself in charge of a new agency with no staff, no permanent offices, a very sketchy mandate from Congress as to its duties and responsibilities, and few allies on Capitol Hill. The case traces the early history of the CBO, from Rivlin's appointment to the agency's first appearance before the House Appropriations Committee the following year. The 1974 Budget Act which created CBO required the agency to provide cost estimates on bills, economic forecasts, and an annual budget report to Congress. Rivlin envisioned an agency that would also provide detailed policy analysis to Congress, but her view proved controversial on the Hill. In addition to her other roles as director, Rivlin spent considerable amounts of her time articulating and defending this vision during her first year. HKS Case Number 872.0

An American project manager (with a team of 12 Americans), who is just about to conclude a week long negotiation with a team of 12 Koreans, is faced with a dilemma. He is being pushed to make a decision he is ill equipped to make; he feels it might not be in his company's best interest, but could be in the best interest of the joint venture that his firm is in the process of establishing with the Koreans.

The mid-1986 Sears new catalogue contained a 20-page section called Elements. This section bore a striking resemblance to the format of an IKEA catalogue, and the furniture being offered was similar to IKEA'S knocked-down self-assembly line. The head of IKEA'S North American operations wondered how serious Sears was about its new initiative and what, if anything, IKEA should do in response.

The CEO of ServiceMaster Industries has convened an internal task force to come up with ideas for reorganizing the company to accommodate unusually fast growth. In developing both alternatives and criteria for appraising them, the task force has to keep in mind the strong company culture.

Describes the challenges facing the president of an old-line foodservice and food processing equipment manufacturing company as it attempted to accelerate sales and profit growth through the introduction of innovative products. The introduction of a "revolutionary" combination oven, ongoing labor confrontation at the headquarter's plant, and a series of acquisitions were among the issues occupying Louise O'Sullivan as she prepared to enter her third year as the senior executive of Groen. The policies and practices of Dover Industries, designed to motivate operating company presidents "to think like owners," are also described because of their relevance to her behavior and performance in that job.

Almost every company wants to develop its businesses over time and earn high profits immediately, to respond quickly to market changes and make careful decisions, to coordinate business units and make unit managers accountable. But these goals are contradictory. They cannot all be achieved, no matter what the strategy decisions. Senior managers can decide, however, which goals are most important and choose a management style that works toward them. Success depends on choosing an approach that maximizes one's strengths and goals.

Discusses how Philips, a major Dutch-based multinational company, attempts to bring about a fundamental change in its strategy, organization, and culture in response to a rapidly changing market and competitive environment.

Describes elements of the job of the general manager that are addressed in the Management Policy and Practice course at the Harvard Business School. These include: 1) establishing strategic direction, 2) setting goals and managing standards of performance, 3) marshalling and allocating resources, 4) selecting and developing people, 5) organizing effort, 6) maintaining an understanding of day-to-day operations, and 7) building a positive working environment.

Does matrix management stifle or foster the development of new products? The arguments for and against matrices consist primarily of anecdotal success or failure stories. The issue is further obscured by the failure to recognize that there are different types of matrices. Data on the usage and effectiveness of three matrix structures (functional, balanced, and project matrices) were collected from 500 managers experienced in product development. The results indicate that matrices still are the dominant approach for completing development projects. However, while all three types of matrices have comparable usage rates, the project matrix is considered the most effective. Companies using matrix management should consider project matrices if they are trying to improve performance.

Since 1977, British Petroleum (BP) has operated a post-project appraisal unit - a team of inside analysts and investigators who scrutinize projects several years after they have been completed to learn why they succeeded or misfired. The appraisal process has helped managers be more accurate in developing project proposals and more efficient in implementing them. At BP, every project generates a return on investment at least as high as that in the project's forecast.

Managers often take projects well past the point at which they should drop them. To see if they have come to this point, managers must look closely at themselves and recognize which of the influences they may be under. Some influences are psychological--they've been rewarded in the past for sticking to their guns, so why shouldn't the same thing happen this time? Some are social--no one likes a loser. And some are structural--important members of the organization are publicly committed to the project. The rest of the job belongs to top management. Its course is to rethink what behavior it rewards and how it staffs projects and to ensure that its information systems report the real odds.

This case presents Harlequin in 1979 at the peak of its success. The company is looking at diversification, trying to use its ever increasing cash flow. Specific issues are the type of diversification (if any) the company should engage in, and whether it should set up its own sales force in the U.S. The general issue is one of accurately identifying Harlequin's capabilities. This case should be used, although it is not strictly necessary, with the Harlequin Enterprises Limited - 1984 case 9A87M003.

The entrepreneur and owner of Designer Classics Carpet, is deciding upon future growth opportunities for his company. Opportunities for forward and background integration have been identified. As well, the acquisition of a firm manufacturing a related product line is being considered. He must decide upon priorities, direction and timing of all these moves.

Kettle Creek has opened an attractive fashion market niche by selling its unique garments through a chain of franchised retail outlets. Rapid growth has stretched its financial and management resources, seemingly to the limit. The President, a majority shareholder, is concerned about her next steps. See Kettle Creek Canvas Company 1985 (B).

The president is considering three steps to deal with financial and operating problems at Kettle Creek (see Kettle Creek Canvas Company 1985 (A)). They were to sell equity, even the whole business if necessary, to recruit a board of directors, and to hire a general manager. She reviews three applicants' resumes for the job. Do any of them fit the bill?

The objective is to reconcile the trade-offs involved in setting an agricultural policy in delicate ecological settings and determine the role business should play in an imperfectly competitive developing region.

Provides an update to the global competitive interaction between Caterpillar and Komatsu described in companion cases Caterpillar Tractor and Komatsu Ltd. Caterpillar's response to Komatsu's growing market share is outlined, then the impact of rapidly changing dollar/yen exchange rates provides Caterpillar with an interesting pricing decision.

Describes the internationalization of the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) fast food chain, focusing on KFC's entry into Japan. An entrepreneurial country general manager, Lou Weston, battles numerous problems to establish the business and is eventually highly successful. In doing so, Weston ignores or circumvents policies and control from KFC's headquarters and becomes very upset when more sophisticated planning, coordination, and control systems begin to constrain his freedom. The case presents both the headquarters and subsidiary perspectives and allows discussion of the conflicts between strategic planning and control and entrepreneurial independence in a multinational company.

When Procter & Gamble launched Pampers in Europe, it directed the marketing strategy from European headquarters. The result: a big flop. In pushing new strategies successful MNCs diverge from traditional hierarchical structures in which the top formulates--and the national subsidiary simply implements--strategy and planning. By cooperating and co-opting capabilities, the parent's sales and market share get a big boost from the country unit's technical expertise, market knowledge, and competitive awareness--all without losing boundary-crossing benefits like scale economies.