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In 2022, the newly appointed general manager (GM) of the global cookie business at Groupe Aliments Choix must build his business unit in the throes of a major corporate shift in strategy and structure. The newly announced corporate changes are a challenge to the GM because of his unit's traditional country-centred approach to business. He is under added pressure because he has been given just forty-five days to develop an action plan. His recommendations will include structural changes and targets for building new organizational capabilities. As a new leader in a new position, the GM also needs to assess his own capabilities relative to the challenging tasks ahead.

In July 2012, the French multinational company Michelin Group, one of the largest tire manufacturers in the world, was facing accusations of failing to respect human rights and environmental rights in its operations in Tamil Nadu, India. This complaint came at the surprise of managers at the company who had made efforts to create relationships with local communities. At Michelin Group's headquarters in France, the senior member of the sustainability team had to decide how to respond to the complaint in a way that would satisfy both external stakeholders (e.g., local communities and civil society organizations) and internal stakeholders (e.g., employees and managers from other departments).

Nord Stream 2 was an offshore pipeline project of the Russian energy company Gazprom to transport natural gas to Europe. The US government was skeptical about this project as it believed that Russia would use the pipeline to increase its influence in Europe. The Russian annexation of Crimea and reported Russian support to the secessionist groups in Eastern Ukraine further complicated the situation. The events in Ukraine resulted in the United States and European Union imposing economic sanctions on the Russian government, institutions, and specific individuals. The pipeline construction was completed amid continued hostilities, repeatedly imposed sanctions, and political transitions in the US and Germany.<br><br>Nord Stream 2 AG, the Swiss-based subsidiary of Gazprom which was created to operate the pipeline, applied to the German national energy regulator for pipeline certification but was refused until Gazprom created a German subsidiary to operate the pipeline. Such a condition would require Gazprom to dilute its stake and control over its critical asset; however, not meeting the regulator’s conditions would ensure that the pipeline remained inoperative and that the company’s US$11 billion investment to complete the project would be held up until Gazprom could mount a legal, diplomatic, and geopolitical campaign to overturn the regulator’s decision.

In 2020, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the cornerstone of the multilateral rules-based global trading system, faced the biggest crisis of its existence. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe, two of the organization's main functions - providing a negotiation forum to establish new trade rules and resolving disputes between its 164 members - had faced challenges. The crisis facing the WTO had been largely created by the growing geopolitical competition between the U.S. and China. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump was convinced that the WTO could not handle the problems created by China's economic ascent. It believed, first of all, that China's status as a developing country at the WTO gave it an unfair advantage in the international trade arena. Second, it believed the WTO's rules could not address the challenges presented by China with regard to state-owned enterprises and industrial subsidies. Third, it claimed that the Appellate Body had consistently committed judicial overreach in a way that hurt U.S. interests. Based entirely on public information, this case gives students an opportunity to reflect on the WTO's role in today's global economy and how the strategic rivalry between the U.S. and China were challenging the multilateral trading system.

Nord Stream 2 was an offshore pipeline project of the Russian energy company Gazprom to transport natural gas to Europe. The US government was skeptical about this project as it believed that Russia would use the pipeline to increase its influence in Europe. The Russian annexation of Crimea and reported Russian support to the secessionist groups in Eastern Ukraine further complicated the situation. The events in Ukraine resulted in the United States and European Union imposing economic sanctions on the Russian government, institutions, and specific individuals. The pipeline construction was completed amid continued hostilities, repeatedly imposed sanctions, and political transitions in the US and Germany. Nord Stream 2 AG, the Swiss-based subsidiary of Gazprom which was created to operate the pipeline, applied to the German national energy regulator for pipeline certification but was refused until Gazprom created a German subsidiary to operate the pipeline. Such a condition would require Gazprom to dilute its stake and control over its critical asset; however, not meeting the regulator's conditions would ensure that the pipeline remained inoperative and that the company's US$11 billion investment to complete the project would be held up until Gazprom could mount a legal, diplomatic, and geopolitical campaign to overturn the regulator's decision.

In 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) had faced the largest existential crisis since its founding in 1948. The directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system, WHO had been severely criticized for its response to the COVID-19 pandemic by several member countries - especially the U.S. The organization had been accused of being too China-centric, not doing enough to quickly obtain accurate information from China about the new airborne illness, failing to press China for the speedy admittance of a WHO team of international experts, and only declaring the spread of COVID-19 to be a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) at a time and in a manner that was deferential to the Chinese government. Dissatisfied with WHO's actions, U.S. President Donald Trump decided in April 2020 to suspend funding to the international organization and, three months later, formally withdrew the U.S. from WHO. Based entirely on public information, this case gives students an opportunity to reflect on WHO's role in dealing with global health crises, why it was criticized during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, whether that criticism was warranted, and how the organization could be reformed to prepare for future PHEICs.

In 2021, the head of cold storage for North America at A. P. Moller–Maersk (Maersk) was assigned the challenging task of meeting cold-storage requirements for a key client. Increasing demand for frozen food, coupled with many consumers adopting “hoarding” behaviour after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, heightened pressure on already-strained cold-storage facilities across the United States. To show the value of adopting Maersk’s end-to-end logistics services, the head of cold storage and his team had to develop a flexible operational plan for the client. The task was especially difficult in such a hot market, but gaining the trust of this client was critical for Maersk’s goal of establishing a strong hold in the US cold-storage market.

In January 2022, MitiMeth was a Nigeria-based innovative social enterprise that produces handcrafted products made from natural fibres-agricultural waste and aquatic weeds-that are otherwise considered to be waste or a hazard to the environment. MitiMeth added value to this material by transforming it into well-designed furniture and home furnishings, storage boxes, lamps, kitchen and dinner ware, stationery, and souvenir items. Mitimeth's initiative of transforming this environmental nuisance into marketable products provided work for more than 600 people from over twenty-five communities in Nigeria. Despite challenges in exporting from Nigeria, MitiMeth had made good progress in reaching international markets. MitiMeth had already gone through several challenges, and the COVID-19 pandemic only added to the difficulties the enterprise had experienced. Mitimeth needed a plan that ensured MitiMeth's long-term sustainability.

In January 2021, the Japanese fashion company Uniqlo was accused of using forced labour in its supply chains. Various news reports had been claiming that Uyghur Muslims were being detained and forced to work on cotton farms, production factories, and processing facilities in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The United States Customs and Border Protection claimed that Uniqlo was not able to fully demonstrate that its products and inputs were manufactured without use of forced labour or modern slavery in Xinjiang, China and issued a Withhold Release Order to detain Uniqlo's shipment of cotton garments. Uniqlo's attempts to dispute the allegations and overturn the WRO were unsuccessful. The company had to find a way to ensure transparency and uphold traceability across all streams of its value chain activity. But how could Uniqlo ensure ethical sourcing for all aspects of its products, given limited oversight over suppliers and subcontractors? Was cotton traceability a viable and feasible option? How could Uniqlo ensure the compliance all key actors in its value chain streams, across tiers of suppliers and layers of subcontractors?

Lenovo Group Limited had its origins at Legend in mainland China, starting as a personal computer (PC) importer in 1984. After becoming China's largest PC manufacturer, it purchased IBM's PC business in 2005. It successfully evolved into a multinational corporation and a global leader in the PC market. In 2021, it held about 24% of the global PC market share. Despite its success in the PC market, in late 2019, Lenovo prepared for a reshape of its digital and IT service-led transformation. The company began prioritizing growth in IT solutions and services for their higher profit margins, and thus began the move forward into a global digital transformation. In April 2021, a new business segment, Solutions and Services Group (SSG) was strategically formed after a series of reorganization to include all of Lenovo's businesses that were not directly related to selling hardware directly to customers, and its data center services. One of SSG's services called Managed Services aimed at combining Lenovo's hardware, with software and IT services for clients, generating revenue from clients on a subscription basis. Ken Wong was appointed as President of Lenovo SSG to spearhead this transformation and oversee large growth targets. In mid-2021, Lenovo Chairman and CEO, Yang Yuanqing (YY), set a target for Ken to lead SSG to spearhead the company's growth and double the company's net profit margin in three years' time. In 2021, approximately 90% of Lenovo's revenue was generated from smart devices and hardware. The competition among IT solutions and services providers was intense with incumbents such as Microsoft, IBM Cloud solutions and Accenture dominating the market. How could Ken and his team transform the largest PC and laptop maker in the world to the next generation of IT solutions provider, and maintain a strong profit growth for the company at the same time as meeting the targets set for him by YY, his direct boss?

On July 15, 2021, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Loctek Ergonomic Technology Corp. (Loctek), located in Ningbo, China, was reviewing the mid-year financial report of his company. Loctek was a global leader in manufacturing and exporting office furniture—primarily monitor brackets and height-adjustable desks. Figures in the report portrayed the company’s solid growth in the midst of the global pandemic; the contribution from Loctek’s cross-border e-business was hard to miss. These figures assured the CEO that transforming Loctek from a traditional exporting business to a cross-border e-business was both correct and rewarding, despite some painful bumps and detours in the process. The CEO now had to decide whether to continue expanding Loctek’s overseas warehouses. If such an expansion were to occur, the resultant warehouse system could be opened to other small and mid-sized firms where international business had been strangled by limited storage capacity abroad. This idea, though never intended, had emerged during Loctek’s digital transformation. Considerable investments—in the millions of dollars—were at stake.

In 2007, JTD Group (JTD) was founded in the port city of Xiamen, China. Within two years, the founder began pursuing business opportunities in Africa. By 2020, JTD owned a 300-square-kilometre stone mine in South Africa. It was one of Africa’s biggest Chinese companies in the stone industry. From 2018, JTD had started to increase its investment in the neighbouring country of Namibia. Despite COVID-19-related challenges, Chinese market demand for stone, especially premium products, was booming in 2020. The founder had been thinking about how to better capture the market opportunity. Many issues needed attention, including the investment decision in Namibia, human resources policy in Africa, and being a responsible community member in both Africa and China.

In 2007, JTD Group (JTD) was founded in the port city of Xiamen, China. Within two years, the founder began pursuing business opportunities in Africa. By 2020, JTD owned a 300-square-kilometre stone mine in South Africa. It was one of Africa's biggest Chinese companies in the stone industry. From 2018, JTD had started to increase its investment in the neighbouring country of Namibia. Despite COVID-19-related challenges, Chinese market demand for stone, especially premium products, was booming in 2020. The founder had been thinking about how to better capture the market opportunity. Many issues needed attention, including the investment decision in Namibia, human resources policy in Africa, and being a responsible community member in both Africa and China.

Relations between U.S. and Chinese corporations are increasingly strained. In this article, we examine how differences in the key domains of corporate governance, underlying corporate philosophy, innovation, and dispute resolution contribute to this strained relationship. We illustrate these differences by examining the relations between Skyworks Solutions (U.S.) and ZTE (China). We discuss the three broad strategies available to U.S. managers in engaging with Chinese corporations, depending on the extent of their involvement and comfort with discord: (1) playing ball, (2) straddling the middle ground, and (3) decoupling.

The case describes the family tensions and corporate crisis at City Developments Limited (CDL), a large and well-reputed Singaporean property firm that was the flagship company of a larger family-controlled business group. The gradual transition to the third-generation leader was marked by an aggressive growth strategy in China, which unravelled when the Chinese property sector experienced headwinds and CDL’s Chinese joint venture partner experienced liquidity problems. These events forced the family firm to write off US$1.32 billion in 2021, causing it to report its first loss in decades. Moreover, four board members resigned, with one citing “unresolved differences in opinion” as part of his rationale for his resignation. The combination of a corporate crisis and a family boardroom drama elicited questions as to what steps the company should take to recuperate from the adverse events and resume its internationalization strategy.

The case describes the family tensions and corporate crisis at City Developments Limited (CDL), a large and well-reputed Singaporean property firm that was the flagship company of a larger family-controlled business group. The gradual transition to the third-generation leader was marked by an aggressive growth strategy in China, which unravelled when the Chinese property sector experienced headwinds and CDL's Chinese joint venture partner experienced liquidity problems. These events forced the family firm to write off US$1.32 billion in 2021, causing it to report its first loss in decades. Moreover, four board members resigned, with one citing "unresolved differences in opinion" as part of his rationale for his resignation. The combination of a corporate crisis and a family boardroom drama elicited questions as to what steps the company should take to recuperate from the adverse events and resume its internationalization strategy.

The Green Monday Group was co-founded in 2012 by Hong Kong entrepreneur David Yeung. Capitalizing on the developing global sustainability movement and the market opportunity from growth in flexitarianism, Yeung acquired a research and development company to innovate a plant-based pig meat product, OmniPork. Through product innovation, global distribution, and celebrity endorsement, Yeung was determined to bring OmniPork to global markets. He announced in 2020 that Green Monday Holdings had raised US$70 million of equity investment, the largest funding of its kind in Asia. In 2021, the question left was how those funds could be used to expand flexitarianism globally and capture new consumers of OmniPork.

Pete Anderson, the general manager of Mumbai Dairy Company, is facing several difficult but related challenges. Revenues and profits at the Mumbai, India–based joint venture are in decline. At the same time, worker strikes and disruptions across India have become a major issue. Internally, employees seem to be unmotivated and many—particularly Anderson’s direct reports—appear to be taking him for granted. Employees blame seasonal conditions as the cause of waning performance. Others are complaining that their compensation is too little given the contributions they are making. Anderson needs a plan of action for his upcoming meeting with his Singapore-based boss.

Carlsberg Breweries A/S (Carlsberg) had developed from a local to a global player in the brewing industry, having focused on growth in emerging economies in Europe and Asia. This growth path was against the background of economic transition and political change in Russia—from optimism about opportunities in the new market economy in the 1990s, to increasing regulatory obstacles, political authoritarianism, and increasing local competition in the 2010s. In 2022, Carlsberg, more than other West European consumer goods companies, was exposed to Russia when Russian military forces invaded Ukraine in February. This created complex operational and ethical challenges the company had to address with urgency. The company’s annual general meeting was coming up, on March 14, and by then the executive board had to communicate to shareholders concerned with both the company’s financial performance and its international reputation—as well as to Carlsberg employees across Europe (including both Russia and Ukraine) and the increasingly impatient Danish media—what steps the board would take to address the crisis.

In February 2021, the managing director of The Shakti Plastics Industries (Shakti) was facing challenges related to the Indian government’s announcement of a complete ban by 2022 on single-use plastic—a key item that Shakti had been recycling through technological innovations over the previous few decades. The company was eager to support the government’s vision of enabling a circular plastics economy. However, changes in the regulatory landscape were likely to impact millions of people who were directly or indirectly employed in the unorganized Indian plastic waste sector. The time frame for plastic waste processors and manufacturers to adapt to the changes was short, particularly during the pandemic-induced resurgence of single-use plastic in the form of medical waste. Moreover, there were several other challenges, including price volatility of plastic waste, influenced by disruptive intermediaries in the supply chain; low awareness levels among consumers about waste segregation at the source; and a lack of eco-friendly alternatives to single-use plastic. Shakti needed to make decisions to maintain and advance its competitiveness in the plastic waste recycling sector, in line with the government’s proposed vision for a circular plastic economy.