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This case analyses the evolution of Tencent, now (in early 2019) one of the top 10 listed companies in the world. The case focuses on WeChat, the social networking and lifestyle app created in 2010 and now (in 2019) with more than one billion users. It describes the emergence and growth of WeChat and how it came to dominate large parts of daily life in China; it also provides insight into how WeChat operates and the current strategic challenges facing WeChat. Unlike some case studies on Tencent and WeChat, this case is based on in-depth interviews with executives in the company and in particular Allen Zhang, the founder of WeChat. It therefore provides an in-depth understanding of how WeChat works internally, and it allows the instructor to draw out some general points about innovation in today's mobile-first digital economy.

In February 2018, the owner of Jump Gymnastics Inc. was preparing for her company's upcoming strategic planning cycle. The privately owned children's recreational sport business located in Vancouver, British Columbia, delivered gymnastics programs designed to prepare children for lifelong sport participation and healthy living. In 10 years, the owner had successfully grown the company based on her passion for helping children reach their full physical potential. Now operating in two locations, the company had expanded into hosting birthday parties and other special events. An expert in her field, the owner had also started to engage in outside consulting work. She wondered what additional opportunities laid ahead. Should she pursue growth through new locations or new programs, expand her consulting and public speaking practice, launch a coaching certification program, or focus on the company's core operations? She wanted to consider not only the best use of her time and energy but also the option that would provide the most financial security.

US-based Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI), founded in 1992, was the world's largest agency dedicated to providing adoption services to abandoned children living in Chinese social welfare institutions. By 2017, CCAI had found permanent homes in the United States for more than 12,000 orphaned children and children with disabilities. However, the economic, social, legal, and political environments in China were changing. The number of abandoned children in the Chinese mainland was gradually decreasing, while the number of children with disabilities seeking a foreign adoption was constantly increasing. The founders were determined to apply their experiences, resources, and influence to charitable work, while continuing to pursue the cause of international adoptions. What should they do to help maintain CCAI's sustainable development?

In 2018, President of the United States, Donald Trump, criticized the company Pfizer Inc. (Pfizer) for increasing drug prices-which had been a strategic move by Pfizer in response to industry-wide challenges. This announcement highlighted the complex dynamics of the pharmaceutical industry and the big challenges that innovative research and development (R&D)-intensive pharmaceutical companies faced. The entire pharmaceutical industry was being challenged by issues such as decreasing global average returns on investment and increased R&D costs. In addition, the company faced increased competition from companies from other industries and from emerging-market companies. Pfizer's chief executive officer needed to determine whether or not these changes marked a turning point for the whole industry.

Case B complements Case A (W19390), describing pharmaceutical companies' strategic responses-such as mega-mergers and acquisitions and specialization-to industry-wide global challenges and highlights strategic decisions by Pfizer's chief executive officers between 2007 and 2018.

In January 2018, Fotile Kitchenware Co. Ltd.'s (Fotile's) sales for 2017 were announced at over ¥10 billion. Fotile had become the first kitchen appliance manufacturer in China to reach this significant milestone, despite its relatively short operational history. For years, Fotile had also been considered China's most prominent brand in the kitchenware industry, beating several internationally-reputed brands. Since the company's founding, the founder had set a differentiation strategy for this new venture to compete in the kitchen appliance industry. He had also made numerous tough decisions along the way to ensure that this strategy was persistently followed through. However, could his strategy continue to sustain Fotile's growth for the future?

The case discusses the rapid success and competitive challenges of Guangzhou Chimelong Group Co. Ltd.'s (Chimelong's) marine-based recreational theme park, Chimelong Ocean Kingdom. The theme park was one of the biggest in China and had won several awards for its size and programs, but Western players such as the Walt Disney Company were expanding into China, and several smaller marine-based theme park players were entering the market, posing the threat of imitation to Ocean Kingdom. How should the theme park compete against leading multinationals and burgeoning Chinese domestic players? Could Ocean Kingdom sustain its competitive advantage against these players?

Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, at the Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC), Acelerex was leveraging technologies, such as big data and grid analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI) forecasting tools, cloud computing, real time control systems, energy storage testing software, monitoring, and blockchain smart contracts, to provide consulting expertise and software-as-a-service (SaaS) products to a diverse group of stakeholders, including state and municipal policymakers, regulators, grid developers, utilities, and investors. Demand for Acelerex's services had outstripped supply, and, within a year, the company had grown to 14 professionals, with advanced degrees in multiple technical domains. Moreover, the company had made a profit in its first year, had achieved proof of concept and minimum viable products for all of its targeted services, and made sales along all business lines. But, cash flow had been a constant challenge because of slow-paying clients and rising fixed costs, while talent development had proved a "headache." Acelerex was Johnson's first start-up after 25 years of experience working with major firms and research institutions across all segments of the power sector, including generation, transmission, distribution, consumption, and storage. Having doubled in size for four quarters, he had set himself the challenge of doubling in size again, but he was going to take a year to do it. He was confident there was enough business in the USA to support this rate of expansion and that he could hire the team to deliver it, but was uncertain whether he should raise funds to resolve the cash flow pressure. He was also being asked to do more and more work in China, India, and Africa; did this make sense? And to add to his list of opportunities, he had been asked to provide similar services to transport, natural gas, and water networks.

In the summer and fall of 2013, Charter Communications, the fourth-largest cable television company by market share, made multiple bids to acquire Time Warner Cable, the second-largest company, only to be rejected. Then, in late 2013, Time Warner Cable invited Comcast Corporation, the largest cable television company, to make a friendly bid. In February 2014, Time Warner Cable accepted Comcast Corporation's bid. However, a year later, in April 2015, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission recommended hearings on the merger case, signalling that the agency was unlikely to approve the merger. Following that announcement, Comcast Corporation terminated its proposed merger agreement with Time Warner Cable on April 24, 2015, which meant that Time Warner Cable was again available for a merger. At that point, Charter Communications had to decide whether to launch a new bid for Time Warner Cable. If so, what should Charter Communications do differently in this new bid attempt? This case is suitable for students in undergraduate capstone courses in strategic management and business policy, with a view on reinforcing the need to analyze strategic decisions such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) from a richer and more nuanced perspective that includes not only the role of managements of the companies involved but also the role of interested industry players. It is best taught during the second half of the course semester, when corporate level strategies are being covered. This case is also useful in graduate business strategy courses discussing M&As, to broaden the analysis and to understand the role of multiple forces.

In January 2017, the Midea Group Co. Ltd. (Midea), a China-based large manufacturer of electrical appliances, completed its acquisition of German-based KUKA AG (KUKA), a large manufacturer of industrial robots. To ease concerns about technologies falling into foreign hands, Midea entered into an alliance with KUKA that ensured KUKA's independence until 2023. However, within less than a year, KUKA experienced problems in its European and Asian markets. In China, it needed to lower costs. In Europe, a price war slowed down the orders, and the company had insufficient workers to meet demand in the United States and Asia. Some German automotive clients were losing trust in KUKA, and German employees worried about their job security. How could the two companies operate sufficiently independently to maintain their clients' trust, while being integrated enough to improve their efficiencies? How should they be prepared for the expiration of the alliance in 2023?

In November 2017, Jerry Xie, executive vice-president and corporate secretary of China Gold International Resources Corp. Ltd. (CGI), the only overseas-listed subsidiary of China National Gold Group (CNG), a Chinese state-owned gold company, was expected to report his plan for the future development of CGI to the chairman of the board of both CNG and CGI in a week's time. CGI was perceived as the international flagship company of CNG and was listed in both Canada and Hong Kong, yet it had two mines in China and none in Canada. The parent firm needed Xie's help to answer a question from the global capital market: should CGI be kept in operation in Canada?

In 2012, the founders of food wholesale company FoodXervices Inc. Pte. Ltd. identified a gap between food wastage and food insecurity in Singapore. To reduce this gap, they established a charity arm, The Food Bank Singapore Ltd., which operated as a liaison, collecting near-to-expiry, excess, and unwanted food products from food suppliers, retailers, and restaurants for distribution to beneficiary organizations. When the charity was founded, it was set up to be legally independent to ensure clearer accounts and audits and to prevent false allegations of misuse of food donations. In April 2018, the founders were considering integrating these two now-mature entities to take advantage of potential internal and external synergies. They needed to determine the optimal way to integrate the two entities, while considering the needs of all stakeholders.

In the summer of 2016, ARM Holdings (ARM), a British semiconductor IP licensing firm, has been acquired by Japanese conglomerate SoftBank. The acquisition is a strategic leap for Softbank to expand its market outreach into the Internet of Things (IoT) market. Share prices of ARM have soared by 63% just prior to the acquisition. Co-founder of ARM, Jamie Urquhart was, however, worried if this move would be beneficial for the company in the long run? ARM has flourished in the semiconductor industry and paved the pathway for intellectual property (IP) Licensing to become a celebrated business model, further strengthened by an ingenious partnership model and an eco-system. So far, ARM has primarily operated in the processor and consumer electronics industry which typically has a few large players in the market. However, the company's strategic shift towards the IoT market poses a new set of risks and challenges. The IP Licensing business model and strategy that has worked for ARM in the processor market may not necessarily work for the firm in the IoT market. In the IoT space, applications are diverse, there is no clear leader, and there are many smaller individual players. IP licensing model works well when the processor firm can monitor the sales of end products of large licensee organisations with huge revenues. However, in the IoT market, licensees will likely be a large number of smaller firms with smaller production volumes. Under this scenario, the IP licensing model can introduce prohibitively high monitoring costs. Can ARM continue to use its existing IP licensing business model for the IoT market? How should ARM reinvent its strategy and business model to adapt to its new strategic focus?

In January 2018, the second-generation scion and director of Natural, an Indian ice cream family business, was preparing for a meeting with the general manager of the company's retail operations. The company was founded by the director's father in 1984 under the name Kamath Ourtimes Ice Cream Private Ltd. and was known for its handmade artisanal ice cream brand-Natural Ice Cream. Several years after his entry into the family business in 2009, the son insisted on professionalizing the company as a means of achieving a vision of growth, despite an increasingly competitive market. In 2014, almost 30 years after the company was established, the general manager was the first professional to be hired by the company. Although professionalization brought about an increase in sales of two and a half times during 2012-2018, the director was sensing a change in the culture of the company, which he found troubling. He wondered if he had grown the company too big, too fast in his haste to transform it into a high-growth enterprise.

One fall afternoon in 2018, Bertin Nadeau, chair of the board and owner of Casavant Frères, was wondering how to ensure the sustainability of his company. Since its 1879 founding in Saint-Hyacinthe (Quebec, Canada), this world leader in the manufacture, delivery, and installation of new pipe organs had built more than 3,900 organs for churches, concert halls, music schools, and private homes on all five continents. The firm was also active in the restoration, renovation, maintenance, tuning, and moving of organs. Despite this international success, Casavant Frères could not rest on its laurels. Its national and international business environment had changed dramatically over the years, requiring strategic positioning to ensure its survival. Several opportunities had already been exploited, explored, or studied. Students will be asked to consider Nadeau's various possible options based on the company's current situation, its history, its objectives, and the international organ market. They will have to understand the key success factors for an SME facing sustainability challenges in a cutting-edge sector with a strong artisanal component.

In September 2017, the chairman and the president of Shanghai Shine-Link International Logistics Co. Ltd. were considering their company's future. The company was established in May 2001. After more than 16 years of rapid development, it became a leading information technology empowered logistics provider, offering high value-added services, with the lean management and innovation capabilities of modern logistics enterprises. In September 2017, it was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange main board. The management team had to reconsider the company's next steps for growth. The two men realized it was time to convene the board of directors to consider the company's future. With so many opportunities and risks in front of them, good decision-making was essential to their prospects.

In early 2018, Modena, Italy's Pagani Automobili S.p.A (Pagani Automobili), a boutique designer and manufacturer of high-performance internal combustion engine powered supercars, was struggling to develop a response to the emergence of electric vehicle technology. This technology appeared to be interesting and potentially useful. It outperformed internal combustion technology in terms of speed and power. In 2018, relatively inexpensive electric cars could already accelerate faster than most supercars over a quarter-mile distance. However, the electric car driving experience seemed very different from the experience of driving a supercar powered by an internal combustion engine, due largely to fundamental differences between the technologies. Could Pagani Automobili build an electric vehicle that its customers would perceive as a true Pagani Automobili creation?

It is not unusual for companies to generate substantial revenue through alliances. However, alliance failure rates are high, leaving much revenue at risk and value unrealized. The big challenge facing managers is to align company interests with alliance interests. Such alignment can only be achieved when executives pay considerable attention to building the right collaborative business model. In this article, we synthesize the insights of the existing literature to arrive at three collaborative business models-sharing, specialization, and allocation-that managers can use to address the specific requirements of their alliances. Because the literature provides limited insight into how to operationalize these models, we highlight what managers need to focus on when operationalizing each of these models. We find that the choice for an overall business model is relatively straightforward in most cases but that operationalization of business models requires more complex combinations of management techniques. Finally, we show how the three collaborative business models can be combined to build hybrid models

The video game industry has ignited a global controversy surrounding microtransactions in gaming, especially the use of loot boxes: randomized rewards with potential real-world value. Consumers and legislators are calling for the regulation of these revenue models on the grounds that they are unfair, predatory, or could be considered gambling. This article examines the controversy from a management perspective. First, I introduce current regulatory responses to the controversy and what they mean for business practices. Then, I explain ongoing industry-level and firm-level attempts to self-regulate as a way to placate consumers and governments. These tactics highlight a wide range of broader strategies that game developers and other stakeholders can pursue in order to improve customer relations and, more publicly, signal their commitment to self-regulation and avoiding consumer harm. These practices can be applied more broadly to firms that offer controversial products or services that do not yet fit within current regulatory frameworks.

While we understand well how social media channels sway consumers, there is little understanding of their influence on online trading behavior. We argue that social media are creating a new class of self-directed online traders by simultaneously encouraging and biasing trading decisions. Through an empirical study, we show that heavy social media users are more likely to engage in online trading but are largely affected by online herding behavior, and are four times more likely to blindly follow other traders. Bloggers, influencers, social network contacts, and social media news shape these users' online trading behaviors. As online traders influenced by social media are unlikely to receive adequate returns, companies face an ethical dilemma: They could leverage social media to efficiently access funds but they risk inappropriately exploiting the inexperience of online traders biased by social media. We offer a set of nine practical recommendations for organizations to respond to these new challenges.