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Traces the evolution of the personal computer industry over the last 20 years and uses this as a backdrop to look at how Dell Computer Corp. grew from a small start-up to a multi-billion-dollar company in a decade. Dell is now faced with a set of decisions on the product markets it needs to serve in order to sustain its growth profitably into the future.

Two managers attempt to compute the cost of capital for B C Telecom Inc. They discuss hurdle rates, dividend yields, stock issues, and borrowing history.

Contains a description of the events surrounding the financing of Centex Telemanagement, Inc. by Sierra Ventures, a venture capital fund. The case is written from the perspective of the venture capitalists and is designed to teach students about the process of venture capital funding. A rewritten version of Centex Telemanagement, Inc., this series separates two decisions.

Vernon Ellis, managing partner of Andersen Consulting -- Europe, Middle East, Africa, and India (AC -- EMEAI), is considering how best to reorganize. AC -- EMEAI has grown rapidly over the past five years to become Europe's largest consulting operation. However, Ellis feels that the organization needs to be reconfigured if it has to continue on its trajectory of rapid growth. Each of the various alternatives that he is considering offers intriguing potential benefits but also carries considerable risks.

Heineken managers are evaluating the results of the research projects designed to identify the values of the Heineken brand and to translate these into effective advertising messages.

The chief financial officer of a rapidly growing U.S.-based software firm that sells its process-control software to industrial users around the globe must review the goals, strategies, and policies of the firm's currency hedging program. This review is prompted by changes in the firm's business, notably its acquisition of a United Kingdom subsidiary, other growing overseas expenses, and its recent initial public offering.

In July 1995, J.C. Penney announced the award to United Parcel Service (UPS) of a billion-dollar, five-year contract for delivery services. This was the largest distribution contract ever awarded and represented a dramatic concentration of Penney's business with one carrier. Invites students to assess the financial performance of Federal Express and UPS. The two firms have competed intensely for dominance of the overnight express package industry. Requires no numerical computations of the students; rather, their tasks include interpretation of the results and reflection on the result's implications.

One third of the 24 National Hockey League (NHL) teams are unprofitable. Another third are barely profitable. This case provides the background and market research data to help the senior managers of the NHL make decisions pertaining to how they would like to grow the fan base. The two choices under consideration are network advertising and grassroots marketing.

The managing director of Disney Consumer Products for Europe and the Middle East is reviewing recent market research in Lebanon regarding the sales potential of Disney licensed products and assessing the pros and cons of several distribution options.

Danone is the largest food company in France and is in the top ten in the world, but most of its activity is in France, Spain, and Italy. How does it become a global company? Should it? How does it leverage its leadership in yogurt, biscuits, and mineral water?

Charles Barker must decide whether to become an outside investor in a private round of financing for an early stage, high-growth-potential venture producing plastic pouring spouts for orange juice cartons. Barker must evaluate the opportunity, content, and deal to decide whether the deal makes sense for him, and whether he should recommend the investment to his clients.

Johnson-Grace is a cash-strapped start-up company negotiating a licensing agreement with America OnLine (AOL), a leading provider of on-line services in the United States. The Johnson-Grace technology would enable AOL to transmit visual images to its customers more quickly than existing technology. In addition to price, Johnson-Grace must consider whether to give AOL exclusivity and whether to encourage AOL to make an equity investment in their company.

The president and controller of Western Chemical Corp. are discussing the best way to measure and report performance of foreign subsidiaries. One subsidiary is a joint venture with its own borrowing capacity; another is wholly owned; and a third is wholly owned and serves as a sales base for regional sales. Applying generally accepted accounting principles gives income measurements that seem to conflict with true success of the operations.

Describes the pharmaceutical industry in the 1990s, with particular emphasis on the mergers between American manufacturers and prescription-benefits managers (PBMs). PBMs are distributors with unprecedented access to information on patient and physician characteristics. Students have an opportunity to analyze the mergers using transactions-cost techniques.

Shows students how a custom software programming company takes advantage of differences between the United States and India in the cost of skilled labor (software engineers) to give its customers rare expertise and lower prices. Asks students to examine the company from its customers' point of view. HCL America offers customers three ways to purchase its services. The company can send its engineers to work on customers' premises on a temporary basis; do programming projects at its U.S. facilities, or send work to its "software factories" in India. A range of factors, including cost, determine which of these methods is best for a particular customer's project. Customers who send work to India often save 50% off the costs of doing the work in the United States. The decision point presents a potential customer, Sateesh Lele, who must decide whether to hire HCL America or a competitor, or use his own staff, for a particular project. If he hires HCL America, he must decide between three methods of work--on-site, in the United States, or in India.

RogersCasey Alternative Investments faces the challenge of managing distributions of stock by the private equity investors in which their clients have invested. These distributed shares appear to behave in complex ways, apparently at odds with market efficiency. A variety of strategies to capitalize on this behavior are considered.

Loblaw wants to develop long-term relationships with its customers and is testing a variety of strategies to do this.

Nypro is the world's leading injection molder of precision plastic parts, operating a global network of 21 plants. Nypro's strategy is for each plant to offer identical capabilities, because its customers are global companies with worldwide sourcing needs. The case describes the way Nypro manages product and process innovation across the global plant network.

On April 2, 1993 Philip Morris USA launched an elaborate integrated program of consumer and retail promotions of unspecified duration that effectively slashed the retail price of its flagship brand, Marlboro, by 20% in the U.S. market. This program represented a major shift in strategy designed by Philip Morris to reverse the alarming declines in Marlboro's market share, which had occurred in the face of severe price competition from discount brands. Given Marlboro's status as one of the world's premier brands and the changing environment of consumer marketing, the date these actions were announced was immediately labeled "Marlboro Friday" and heralded as a milestone in marketing history. This case describes the state of the cigarette industry in the early 1990s, reviews the history of Philip Morris and Marlboro, and sets forth the key elements of the radical defensive strategy launched on Marlboro Friday. Did Marlboro's actions represent incisive brand strategy and enlightened brand management? What were the long-term implications of Marlboro Friday?