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Designed to be the second day of a two-day series on the electronic component distribution industry, following a day spent discussing Note on the Electronic Component Distribution Industry and Raytheon Co.: Diversification. The important teaching themes which this case is designed to highlight are: 1) to practice the diagnosis of the strategic health of an industry leader, with emphasis on applying the tests of consistency for an effective strategy; 2) to provide practice in both qualitative and quantitative diagnosis of a company's resources, and the relating of these to strategic priorities; 3) to examine the strategic difficulties in attempting to be a large firm in a fragmented industry; and 4) to explore the difficulty of limiting growth and turning away opportunity as a strategic alternative. The series can be positioned either early in a course on strategy formulation, highlighting industry analysis and strategic testing, or later in such a course with the focus on strategic reaction to innovation, responding to a changing industry and assessing strategic alternatives.

Designed for use as an in-basket exercise in a general management course. Focuses on the first few hours work of the new president of Yellowtail Marine, Robyn Gilchrist, and the decisions she has to make. The decisions mix strategic and operations issues and make the case suitable for policy classes or small business courses.

Covers the strategy and management practices of the world's largest manufacturer of welding equipment. Discusses the compensation system and company culture, and the leadership style of management.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 376-028.

Describes the efforts of the director of Job Corps to stave off the destruction of his agency by the Nixon administration. In this process, the director built extensive power bases which he mobilized in support of Job Corps. The end result was that Job Corps was not totally destroyed.

Effective administration depends upon three basic personal skills which, for analytical purposes, can be classified as technical, human, and conceptual. Technical skills include a proficiency in methods, processes, procedures, or techniques. Human skill is an ability to lead and work effectively in a group. Conceptual skill, critical for policy decision-making, involves the ability to see the organization as a whole, recognize how various functions interrelate, and understand how the organization is related to the industry, community, and nation. This three-skill approach emphasizes that good administrators can be developed.

Supplements the case.

Company must decide whether to raise prices and tighten consumer credit in light of its strategy to rationalize production, introduce a new line of model elevators and increase its market share. Points up the interrelationships of the different functional areas within a corporate strategy and to some extent the time frame associated with strategic change.

Covers the historical development, current business, management philosophies, corporate strategy, and the nature and role of the corporate headquarters in managing the highly diversified operations. Based on Textron, Inc. (A).

Describes a company that is seeking to restructure the lobster fishing industry by applying technology and management to what has been essentially a cottage industry. The student is expected to identify and evaluate the strategy pursued by the company to date and then to assess the prospects for the future in continuing to follow that strategy.

Permits analysis of the need for adapting strategy to environmental change and for choosing among strategic alternatives in the light of new environmental opportunities. Management and board failures in these areas may be traced to some of the underlying causes, including personal values and leadership styles.

Introduces the students to the principals of Dansk Design.

Dansk Designs Ltd., a supplier of high quality, highly designed tableware products, plans to enter a new product area in housewares. Past growth and anticipated future expansion make organizational changes necessary. Overseas operations, design changes, supplier relations, quality control, marketing strategy, and competition all have impact on the organizational structure.

The chairman of a successful pickle company is concerned with the organizational implications of continued growth. Affords an opportunity to analyze the corporate strategy and the management style of the chief executive.

The three major functions of management are conceptual thinking, of which planning is an essential part; administration, managing the details of executive affairs; and leadership, influencing people to accomplish desired objectives. A three-dimensional diagram, which shows the activities, functions, and basic elements of the executive's job, is useful in establishing the differences between leadership and administration.

A control system developed and refined for six years at a large electronics corporation has helped top executives to effectively manage the performance of about 100 different projects. The heart of the multi-project control system, the Program Status Report, gives information simultaneously on cost, schedule, and technical status. The development of a system for visually displaying essential elements of all projects allows top executives to pinpoint projects demanding immediate attention. The project manager must report the progress of the project monthly and answer for the end results of the project.

Policy problems, mainly organizational issues, face a young middle manager in the context of capital budgeting in a highly technological conglomerate firm with high market uncertainty.

Describes the development of the company to its present preeminence in high-priced skis and the avenues that it can follow to obtain new growth.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 313120.

Effective decision-making requires a distinct sequence of steps. The sequence includes identifying a generic or unique problem, defining the issues of the problem, determining the required specifications, deciding what is right rather than what is acceptable, building action into the decision, and using feedback which tests the validity.