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Retiring after 16 years at Evergreen Executive Education, LLC, Martha Hires is reminiscing with a colleague about some of the great and not-so-great client experiences they had shared over the years. Her colleague suggests she make a list of the best and worst client practices to help the firm identify early client-based signals portending a good or bad client engagement to increase the odds for a positive client engagement while also decreasing the odds of a bad one.

Susie Gordon and Antonio Barile, a married couple, own a manufacturing company together. When their first child was born, they agreed that Susie would stay home with the kids while Antonio ran the business, and then, after a few years, they would swap roles. Now Susie is itching to get back to work, but Antonio is reluctant to step out of the CEO's job and return home. Does he have to honor their original deal--and what will happen if he doesn't? This fictional case study is written by Jim Sharpe and James Weber and features expert commentary by Paola Carniglia, Linda Katz, and Mike Katz.

Susie Gordon and Antonio Barile, a married couple, own a manufacturing company together. When their first child was born, they agreed that Susie would stay home with the kids while Antonio ran the business, and then, after a few years, they would swap roles. Now Susie is itching to get back to work, but Antonio is reluctant to step out of the CEO's job and return home. Does he have to honor their original deal--and what will happen if he doesn't? This fictional case study is written by Jim Sharpe and James Weber and features expert commentary by Paola Carniglia, Linda Katz, and Mike Katz.

Susie Gordon and Antonio Barile, a married couple, own a manufacturing company together. When their first child was born, they agreed that Susie would stay home with the kids while Antonio ran the business, and then, after a few years, they would swap roles. Now Susie is itching to get back to work, but Antonio is reluctant to step out of the CEO's job and return home. Does he have to honor their original deal--and what will happen if he doesn't? This fictional case study is written by Jim Sharpe and James Weber and features expert commentary by Paola Carniglia, Linda Katz, and Mike Katz.

Cyprus is a small island member of the European Union, constituting 0.2 per cent of the eurozone gross domestic product. During its growth phase, the Cypriot banking system developed vulnerabilities after suffering heavy losses during the Greek sovereign debt crisis. The European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Union offered a bailout of US$16.9 billion if the Cypriot government could raise US$7.54 billion from within. The government had a few options on the table - a "one-off" stability levy on all bank deposits (a solution loathed by both native and foreign depositors), a bank restructuring plan, seeking help from Russia (which expected access to the island's oil and gas reserves) and a complete banking system bailout (which would come with oversight and control from those offering the bailout). The economy was fast approaching a standstill and Cyprus had only two days to strike a deal to avoid the collapse of its banking system.

In 2009/10, the commissioner of the Ontario Hockey League was generally satisfied with its operations but knew that certain markets were not reaching their potential. Management needed to use data to make some potentially difficult decisions, including possibly closing several teams down. The data included proximity of competition from other hockey leagues and other sports teams; how long a team had been in its city; how many points the team earned each season and how many of its players graduated to the National Hockey League; the make-up of the city in terms of its size, median income, median house price and its immigrant and visible minority populations; and, finally, the price of tickets. There were a few teams that were significant outliers at each end of the spectrum. What was the league going to do with the teams at the bottom that were dragging down average attendance figures? Student spreadsheet 7B13A028 with data is available.

In May 2011, Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAG), a leading real estate company in Vietnam, was going to issue US$90 million of 9.875 senior notes (a debt instrument) in Singapore, due 2016. The company estimated the net proceeds from this offering, after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and other estimated expenses, to be approximately US$80.7 million. From the perspective of an analyst at a brokerage firm who was monitoring HAG, there were many questions of interest arising from the note issue. These included the cost of the debt and the reasons why HAG chose to raise the money in Singapore, and not in Vietnam. What was the cost at which HAG was borrowing through the Singapore note issue? Was HAG's level of borrowing, after the note issue, exceeding the optimal level? What was the likelihood that HAG would be downgraded within a year from its B rating from Standard and Poor's? How would the risk to HAG's equity be affected as a result of the issue? Would HAG's stock price decline? The brokerage firm analyst needed to decide whether her firm should offload its equity holding in the company.

To Jonney Shih, Chairman of ASUSTek Computer, the introduction of Apple's iPad made clear the need to transition his company to a new cloud-computing era. But the company's roots in the manufacture of Windows-powered desktop and notebook PCs bounded the creativity of his design and engineering teams. The case examines the ASUS's efforts to get into the smartphone business, leveraging experimentation it has done in tablets and a range of hybrid devices. Will its experimentation and recombination of features lead it to market success, or simply confuse consumers?

Based on a variety of metrics, Trader Joe's ranked as one of the most successful grocers in the United States in 2013. Experts estimated that the company had the highest sales per square foot of any major grocery chain, even significantly higher than top performer Whole Foods. In 2013, Trader Joe's faced several threats as larger chains such as Wal-Mart and Tesco had begun to open small-format stores that mimicked the Trader Joe's approach. In addition some analysts had begun to question whether Trader's Joe's was losing its authenticity and "quirky cool" as the firm had continued to grow and expand across the country. What should Trader Joe's do to ensure continued growth?

The Ciber Case Series: In early 2012 in the wake of economic uncertainty and industry-wide losses, shipping industry giant Maersk Lines deliberated about its future pricing strategy. Should it continue a strategy of aggressive price cutting as has often worked to its advantage in the past? Or should it consider raising prices for its services despite a weak demand and strong competition?

In March 2013, Susan Plagemann, vice president and publisher of Vogue - widely regarded as the world's most influential fashion magazine, and publishing conglomerate Condé Nast's marquee title - is seeking answers to two questions. First, how she can best approach the intensely competitive advertising market in which some competitors in recent times have had two to three times the page growth that Vogue has had? Second, how should she utilize the growing importance of digital channels that may increase pressure on traditional revenues sources but also fuel new ecommerce partnerships and other opportunities? Can Vogue, as both the fashion industry and the magazine's readers have become so accustomed to, stay one step ahead?

In 2012, as part of a routine disclosure under U.S. law, Wal-Mart revealed it had spent $25 million since 2008 on lobbying to "enhance market access for investment in India." This disclosure, which came weeks after the Indian government made a controversial decision to permit FDI in the country's multi-brand retail sector, created uproar in India. Lobbying by multinationals drew strong emotions in India, evoking images of the millions spent by Enron in the 1990s to "educate Indians" - a suspected euphemism for bribery. Opposition political parties accused Wal-Mart of bribing the Indian government, which, on the eve of a general election, appointed a judicial commission to investigate Wal-Mart. Already under pressure from allegations of bribery in Mexico, Wal-Mart risked becoming embroiled in another embarrassing scandal. How had the company landed in its current situation and how could it respond to the investigation into its India-related lobbying?

The executive vice-president and chief operating officer (COO) of Canadian National Railway Company (CN), wants to change the culture at his organization. The COO has been promoted to his current position after CN purchased Illinois Central, and his first task is to review CN's operations across the country. He notices that employees are leaving work early, a practice called "early quits" that is supposed to reward employees for working harder during the day. He also notices there are other practices, such as late starts that encourage lower productivity. With the goal of improving productivity in mind, the COO elects to tackle the issue of late starts before fixing the early quits problem. This case introduces behavioural science as one of the many management tools that can be used to influence behaviour.

This case follows IBM's use of iterative software development to manage projects. The head of IBM's Rational Product Development is asked by the head of IBM's WebSphere Product Development to deliver an additional feature in the Rational product that would enable WebSphere to accomplish some new tasks. The feature requested is a critical requirement that has been requested very late in the product development cycle. Can the Rational Product Development team meet the WebSphere request? Should it undertake the changes to accommodate the new requirements? If so, can the team deliver the functionality without delaying the product release? This case also provides an opportunity to evaluate an iterative approach to project management.

Gomak Inc. is a small business in the distribution industry. The company, owned by Mr Gauthier, imports 28 products in the food industry that it distributes throughout North America. In order to improve its current cash utilization, it is considering changing its inventory policy. Its most important product is a Guérande salt ordered directly from the producer three times a year. Mr Gauthier is considering changing the ordering pattern to improve both the company's performance and cash flow.

Jon Flint came up with the idea of a science-based beauty company while talking with his hairdresser about the problems with typical hair and skin care products. Together with a small team that included Professor Robert Langer of MIT, he committed to assemble a team of scientists from outside the beauty industry to challenge the conventional wisdom. Their company, Living Proof, wanted to offer women "proof in a bottle" rather than "hope in a bottle." As the firm came to market with its first products, it focused on explaining its science to consumers. It found it increasingly necessary to direct more of its resources towards marketing, including a major investment in Jennifer Aniston as its celebrity spokesperson. Were they becoming less of a biotech company and more like a traditional beauty company? How did they reconcile the desire for continued high spending on R&D with the need to ramp up marketing?

Describes Olam's development of a sustainable cotton supply chain in Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa. Key dilemma for its managers: feasibility of introducing tractor technology for improving yield.

On April 24, 2013 the Rana Plaza factory building collapsed in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Over 1,100 people were killed in the worst industrial accident since the Union Carbide plant gas leak in Bhopal, India. Most of the victims worked for garment factories, whose primary clients were European, US and Canadian firms. Export contracts to such firms had helped Bangladesh become the world's second largest clothing exporter. Rana Plaza was not the first tragedy to occur in Bangladesh's garment industry, and without intervention, more might follow. International brand owners, domestic and foreign governments, labor unions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), stepped up to discuss their responsibilities for improving conditions for Bangladeshi garment workers.

In January 2013, nightlife impresarios Jason Strauss and Noah Tepperberg are celebrating the re-opening of their famed New York City-based nightclub Marquee. While most clubs are over within their first one and a half years, Strauss and Tepperberg managed to keep Marquee one of NYC's hottest clubs for almost nine years. Meanwhile, they significantly expanded their portfolio of clubs in New York City, Las Vegas, and abroad. Now, after a costly renovation of Marquee New York City, would their investment pay off? Was it a wise idea to model the revamped club after its namesake in Las Vegas that had become North America's highest-grossing club by focusing on electronic dance music and featuring a high-profile DJ every night? Could Strauss and Tepperberg make the seemingly risky economics-which involved placing large bets on superstar DJs-work in a very different market?