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Viacom has built a powerful position in the global entertainment industry through skillful and bold acquisitions. Now its expansion is challenged by the moves of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. Different businesses within Viacom have contradictory positions on how to deal with major opportunities and how Viacom top management should manage the decision-making process.

Sealed Air Corp.'s CEO and COO are considering what approach they should take to building a seamless corporate culture worldwide. Anticipating continuing growth and expansion, especially outside the United States, they are concerned with preserving and promoting the culture that has been one of the company's key assets. However, their experiences in integrating acquired companies, especially outside the United States, have heightened their awareness of differences among the regional cultures of the world and the challenges they face in maintaining a unified corporate culture.

In 1997, Jay Sanders sold his 10-month-old medical device start-up company for more than $33 million. Looking to the future, he wondered if this was a success he could transform into a medical device brokerage business. As he reviewed his career history and the development of his start-up, Sanders was betting that he could replicate his success.

CERNET, the China Education and Research Network, is a not-for-profit, central government body formed to oversee the development and implementation of a university-based nationwide Internet backbone. By 1997, fulfilling this mandate was well underway. CERNET was connected to 280 of China's 3,035 universities and colleges. Much work nonetheless remained. The case deals with managing the growth of the network from the perspective of the director of the Technical Board and Network Centre. Issues he had to contend with include hardware and bandwidth upgrades and installations, access, security, connectivity, costs, and tariffs. With over half the country's population not yet having made their first telephone call, these tasks proved daunting.

Jeffrey Smith and David Johnson have apparently irreconcilable differences over their firm's strategy, which have led Jeffrey to conclude that he must fire David. Focuses on whether Jeffrey has used his influence in such a way as to avoid conflict. If he has no other option, how should Jeffrey go about firing David? A rewritten version of an earlier case.

Lincoln Electric, a 100-year-old manufacturer of welding equipment and consumables based in Cleveland, Ohio, motivates its U.S. employees through a culture of cooperation between management and labor and an unusual compensation system based on piecework and a large bonus based on individual contribution to the company's performance. Despite opening a few international sales and production ventures in Canada, Australia, and France, Lincoln remained focused on manufacturing in the United States until 1988. At that time, the company's new CEO expanded manufacturing through acquisitions and greenfields in 11 new countries, attempting to transfer its unique management philosophy to each. However, Lincoln was unable to replicate its highly productive system abroad. Operational problems led to a major restructuring in the early 1990s, supervised by Anthony Massaro, a newcomer to the company. In 1996, Massaro was named CEO and set about expanding the company's manufacturing base through a new strategy. The case concludes in Asia, where Lincoln's regional president is trying to decide whether and how to establish a manufacturing presence in Indonesia, and in particular whether to try to transfer Lincoln's unique incentive-driven management system.

An Internet start-up company is developing an online marketplace for specialty chemicals and reagents. David Perry has been named a runner-up in the 1st annual HBS Business Plan contest and now faces seed-stage financing questions--how much money to raise, at what valuation, in how many stages, and from whom.

In early 1998, William and Victor Fung had to review their business, the Li & Fung Group, to plan for the next three years. Examines strategic and organizational issues including company culture, international expansion, and venture capital projects. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

Discusses the efforts of three Israeli software engineers' efforts to bring a network security software product to market. The firm needs an investment to complete programming and start marketing.

Presents a compilation of primary and secondary sources as well as a set of data exhibits on the German hyperinflation of 1923. The hyperinflation represented a defining moment in German history and certainly one of the two or three most important economic events of the 20th century. Memories of it continue to shape economic policy in Germany to this day. Equally important, the story of the world's most spectacular hyperinflation is rich in lessons about the many interconnections between money, prices, production, and politics in a modern capitalist economy.

Group Retirement Services (GRS) is a division of London Life Insurance Co. of London, Ontario. The vice president of GRS implemented the balanced scorecard in his division in 1994. Since that time, the industry and London Life have experienced significant change. Although the scorecard was not yet complete (after three years), the real issues here are whether the scorecard has been useful to GRS and whether the scorecard could be improved to assist the department in the future.

LG Group Chairman Bon Moo Koo has announced a corporate goal of increasing revenues from $38 billion to $380 billion between 1995 and 2005. Most of this increase is expected to come from new international sales. As a consequence, LG must add an estimated 1,400 new global leaders to its management ranks. Mr. Y.K. Kim and his team must determine what these new global leaders should look like and how to develop them.

The vice president and general manager of Mitel's semiconductor division is faced with a rapidly growing market for the company's business communication chips, but has limited capacity at the semiconductor plant. There is little industry capacity to outsource production. He must determine how to pursue the growing market and how to secure additional capacity. Options include modifications to the current facility, construction of a new facility, or the acquisition of a plant from another company.

How do family businesses handle succession? What happens when siblings compete for the position of CEO? Can nonfamily board members navigate successfully through conflicts among family members? Should they even try? This fictitious case study examines a host of issues with which family businesses regularly grapple. It describes the situation that faces the board of directors of Benson Electric, a rapidly growing family enterprise, upon the unexpected death of CEO and patriarch Buck Benson. Benson, the son of the company's founder, left no succession plan. Caught in the middle of an emotionally torn and feuding family, the directors must determine how to proceed. How can they manage the succession process without alienating family members and worrying employees and customers? In 98108 and 98108Z, four commentators--Joseph A. Wolking, Kent Noble, Kelin Gersick, and Victor Ney--advise the directors on their best course of action.

How do family businesses handle succession? What happens when siblings compete for the position of CEO? Can nonfamily board members navigate successfully through conflicts among family members? Should they even try? This fictitious case study examines a host of issues with which family businesses regularly grapple. It describes the situation that faces the board of directors of Benson Electric, a rapidly growing family enterprise, upon the unexpected death of CEO and patriarch Buck Benson. Benson, the son of the company's founder, left no succession plan. Caught in the middle of an emotionally torn and feuding family, the directors must determine how to proceed. How can they manage the succession process without alienating family members and worrying employees and customers? In 98108 and 98108Z, four commentators--Joseph A. Wolking, Kent Noble, Kelin Gersick, and Victor Ney--advise the directors on their best course of action.

How do family businesses handle succession? What happens when siblings compete for the position of CEO? Can nonfamily board members navigate successfully through conflicts among family members? Should they even try? This fictitious case study examines a host of issues with which family businesses regularly grapple. It describes the situation that faces the board of directors of Benson Electric, a rapidly growing family enterprise, upon the unexpected death of CEO and patriarch Buck Benson. Benson, the son of the company's founder, left no succession plan. Caught in the middle of an emotionally torn and feuding family, the directors must determine how to proceed. How can they manage the succession process without alienating family members and worrying employees and customers? In 98108 and 98108Z, four commentators--Joseph A. Wolking, Kent Noble, Kelin Gersick, and Victor Ney--advise the directors on their best course of action.

Does the Braun plaque removal (electronic toothbrush) product under development have a chance against the dominant American player, Interplak? Under an innovative female project manager, the Braun team has come to a decision point that is made urgent by the recent purchase of Interplak by Bausch & Lomb, a major company with a threatening presence in Europe. Looking at the product development process, the "product semantics" of the current design (does it communicate superior value to the consumer?), the technical problems yet to be solved, and the pressure to follow the Interplak lead, students have to develop a product strategy that fits the competitive situation and the competency and character of the company.

This case focuses on analyzing financial statement data for seven large companies in the pharmaceutical industry. The data was obtained from COMPUSTAT PC Plus. The seven firms are all listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The firms (ticker symbols) are American Home Products Corp. (AHP), Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY), Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY), Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK), Pfizer Inc. (PFE), Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. (PNU) and SmithKline Beecham PLC (SBH). The seven companies are all headquartered in the U.S., except SmithKline Beecham which is headquartered in the U.K. All are involved in the development, production and distribution of prescription pharmaceutical drugs.

A large medical electronics firm is refining its outsourcing policies and the new ways in which it needs to work with its suppliers. The firm begins with an objective to purchase assemblies instead of components. This objective evolves until the supplier takes over a large part of the engineering design as well as the product database creation and maintenance. Many problems are encountered, but the product comes to market and is successful. A 1999 EFMD award winner.

Ericsson, the Swedish telecommunications products and systems company, is embarking on a first-ever global advertising campaign for its brand of mobile phones. The idea for consumer brand building, new to an otherwise technology-oriented, industrial company, has come about as a result of developments in the worldwide market for cellular phones: fast growth, entry of new consumer segments, declining product differentiation, and the growing pressure on prices and margins. The expensive campaign, aiming to cement a relationship with consumers, is notable for a total absence of product-related communication. Under the slogan "Make yourself heard," the ads feature a gallery of faces and a range of situations demonstrating the spirit of communication between people around the world. Some of the issues the case raises are: How do you build a strong brand for a product that is increasingly difficult to differentiate? Can pure brand values stand on their own merits without any references to products? What criteria should you use to evaluate advertising execution? A 2001 ECCH award winner.