個案總覽

Every time Jim Fonner thought about how his own business had zigged and zagged, he was prone to laugh. Once employed at Weyerhaeuser, the international paper- and wood-products company, Fonner had left the management ranks to transform himself into something very different: one-half of the Beach Blues Brothers, a duo of singing, dancing, Hawaiian shirt-clad salesmen selling patio furniture door to door to Florida hotels. Ten years later, in 2007, he was running a company in Lexington, Virginia, supplying commercial outdoor furniture nationally. It had not exactly been a linear progression to the Shenandoah Valley.

Arnie Katz was thinking about his company's recent expansion into Richmond. It was a different environment than Charlottesville, where the company had started up and experienced its first successes. In a larger, less tight-knit city such as Richmond, he did not believe the company could rely on the same organic word of mouth that had fueled its early growth in Charlottesville. Acquiring new customers in Richmond might require traditional advertising. What kind of mix of the two approaches should he employ?

The new president and CEO of ACCION New York, a community development loan fund, was considering leading her organization in a combination with an affiliate organization, ACCION USA, and that morning, she would be conducting a meeting to discuss how to present the combination question to the directors at Friday's board meeting.

Katrina Didot's local organic food business, A Bowl of Good, was on the upswing now, and there was a chance to expand operations. In order to do that, Didot knew she needed a partner to shoulder some of the work. Didot had the recipes and knowledge-and she had drive. She needed someone who could make the trains run on time and ensure things flowed smoothly when it came to operations.

Sitting at their kitchen table early one morning, Renee and Gary Harris agreed that they finally had almost everything in place: a solid business plan, a great network of suppliers, an appealing and well-priced menu, start-up capital from their own personal savings

Using computer spreadsheets to track the finances for his restaurant-CC's Gourmet Kitchen-was one of Carl Coleman's least favorite things to do. This had been especially true at the end of each month since he opened. This evening in July 2010 was no different, as one figure in particular, the paltry $2,800 in profit, was characteristically depressing. "If I don't make some changes soon," Coleman said to himself, "I'm not going to be able to afford this."

BL Gruppo was a holding company that operated eight wildly acclaimed and highly rated restaurants, plus a catering operation, in Boston, Massachusetts. Its culinary mini-empire had continually achieved recognition as a great organization. But the story of BL Gruppo was actually two stories, of two entrepreneurial journeys. One was the journey of Barbara Lynch, a high school dropout who, through hard work, self-education, perseverance, and entrepreneurial focus, became a world-class chef. The other was the journey of someone with no formal business training who built a culinary business employing over 230 people and grossing close to $18 million in revenue. Now Lynch faced what she considered one of her biggest challenges: How might she institutionalize her business to sustain the enjoyment expected by her regular customers and the opportunity for advancement by her loyal employees, while at the same time giving her management team and herself chance to monetize and create wealth? And just as important: Should she keep directing her entrepreneurial zeal toward trying new business opportunities? ?

This case follows a protagonist as he tries to secure start-up capital to get his entrepreneurial venture going.

Jane Darcy stared in dismay at the spreadsheet. As the editor of Bolt, a free daily newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, Darcy had been working since January 2007 to build a devoted readership. Published Monday through Friday, Bolt featured topics such as local news and sports and was written in a snappy style for readers between 18 and 34 years old. Advertising had been steadily climbing. But its parent company was suffering, and Bolt might therefore be on the chopping block. What could Darcy do to save her beloved paper?

David Brown sat at his desk in the stock room of his toy store, Huckle Buckle Beanstalk, looking at the three résumés in front of him. He needed a new store manager, and these three résumés were his top choices. Each offered a different mix of skills and experience, and he hoped he would have the unusual luxury of having one rise to the top in the afternoon interviews. He had fired his previous store manager just over a month earlier for theft, and he knew that the business would suffer if he had to continue managing the store himself.

Elizabeth Franks, CEO of VBV, had a week until her July 2010 board meeting. VBV had just completed a six-month marketing and advertising campaign for a new product line and strategic rebranding, and early responses from the board had indicated mixed feelings.

Marjorie Burnett knew she was taking a gamble and wondered whether the potential new business she was considering would be worth the investment. Was expansion-offering even more products-the answer to increasing revenue, and would that decision be more profitable than her present business?

This case series is appropriate for undergraduate, MBA, executive education, and MBA Exec audiences but is specifically designed for decision analysis, a first-year MBA core course. The Part II case affords the opportunity to examine downstream decisions and a real option regarding how fast to harvest the fish when the virus hits. Monte Carlo simulation would be used to incorporate uncertainties about when the virus hits, if it hits, and mortality, and to generate the risk profile of contribution for the option alternatives and to compare whether to use 1 or 2 squads to harvest the fish. Based on the simulation results, an evaluation will be made of what to pay for the option.

In late 2009 Toyota became the subject of media and U.S. government scrutiny after multiple deaths and injuries were attributed to accidents resulting from the unintended and uncontrolled acceleration of its cars. Despite Toyota's voluntary recall of 4.2 million vehicles for floor mats that could jam the accelerator pedal and a later recall to increase the space between the gas pedal and the floor, the company insisted there was no underlying defect and defended itself against media reports and regulatory statements that said otherwise. As the crisis escalated, Toyota was further criticized for its unwillingness to share information from its data recorders about possible problems with electronic throttle controls and sticky accelerator pedals, as well as about braking problems with the Prius. By the time Toyota Motor Company president Akio Toyoda apologized in his testimony to the U.S. Congress, Toyota's stock price had declined, in just over a month, by 20 percent-a $35 billion loss of market value.

Sunpharma Group, a chain of pharmacies in Slovakia, had recently come under new ownership, and the new CEO recognized the need for better customer service in order for the company's expansion strategy to be successful. The company had, as its stated strategic goal, "to be a long time favorite and most in-demand pharmacy renowned for world class professionals, comprehensive services, and individual approach." Typical pharmacy training only addressed physiological and pharmacological concerns, so it was up to the company to address customer service needs for its pharmacists and technicians. Results from a "mystery shopper" project, which investigated the quality of services in pharmacies in standard situations, highlighted the lack of interpersonal skills among pharmacy staff. This case describes the first steps undertaken by the Human Resources department to analyze work behaviors and identify training needs. The student is asked to design a training program for the company that the HR manager can present to the CEO.

A major U.S. rent-to-own company continues to grow in the recession, opening its 1000th store. The CEO, the son of the chain's founder, is wondering whether it's time to take the company global and tap into underserved foreign markets. The company's international track record has been mixed: It successfully expanded into Canada a few years back, but was forced to close a store in Puerto Rico after only a year. The more risk-averse CFO advises against overseas expansion, citing the bad experience in Puerto Rico and the untapped potential in the U.S. market. But the CEO is concerned about the increasingly tight regulatory environment. The entire rent-to-own industry is coming under attack by consumer advocates and politicians in the wake of the recession. The CEO turns to his father for advice: Should the company take a risk and open stores in Mexico or focus on expanding their domestic presence? The author of this case is Michael Chu, a senior lecturer at the Harvard Business School and a Managing Director of the IGNIA Fund, an impact investing venture capital firm based in Monterrey, Mexico. This fictional case study features commentary by experts Carlos Danel and Robert C. Loudermilk Jr.

A major U.S. rent-to-own company continues to grow in the recession, opening its 1000th store. The CEO, the son of the chain's founder, is wondering whether it's time to take the company global and tap into underserved foreign markets. The company's international track record has been mixed: It successfully expanded into Canada a few years back, but was forced to close a store in Puerto Rico after only a year. The more risk-averse CFO advises against overseas expansion, citing the bad experience in Puerto Rico and the untapped potential in the U.S. market. But the CEO is concerned about the increasingly tight regulatory environment. The entire rent-to-own industry is coming under attack by consumer advocates and politicians in the wake of the recession. The CEO turns to his father for advice: Should the company take a risk and open stores in Mexico or focus on expanding their domestic presence? The author of this case is Michael Chu, a senior lecturer at the Harvard Business School and a Managing Director of the IGNIA Fund, an impact investing venture capital firm based in Monterrey, Mexico.

A major U.S. rent-to-own company continues to grow in the recession, opening its 1000th store. The CEO, the son of the chain's founder, is wondering whether it's time to take the company global and tap into underserved foreign markets. The company's international track record has been mixed: It successfully expanded into Canada a few years back, but was forced to close a store in Puerto Rico after only a year. The more risk-averse CFO advises against overseas expansion, citing the bad experience in Puerto Rico and the untapped potential in the U.S. market. But the CEO is concerned about the increasingly tight regulatory environment. The entire rent-to-own industry is coming under attack by consumer advocates and politicians in the wake of the recession. The CEO turns to his father for advice: Should the company take a risk and open stores in Mexico or focus on expanding their domestic presence? The author of this case is Michael Chu, a senior lecturer at the Harvard Business School and a Managing Director of the IGNIA Fund, an impact investing venture capital firm based in Monterrey, Mexico. This fictional case study features commentary by experts Carlos Danel and Robert C. Loudermilk Jr.

The case is set in February 2006, right after Sonaecom's announcement of its takeover bid for Portugal Telecom (PT) of €9.50 per share. The reader does not yet know how PT will react and whether its management will accept the offer or not. The case recounts this fascinating and intense M&A transaction, taking us through one of the largest takeover bids ever in the European Telecom sector, with a deal value above €15 billion. How will PTs board regard this bid? On the one hand, it represents a 20% premium over the prior stock price. On the other hand, it is a terrible blow to the international aspirations of the PT group. Moreover, the sometimes conflicting views of the general public, the competition regulator, employees and the government have the potential to complicate matters further. Lastly, this deal also has important international implications. One thing is sure. Given all the external pressure, for example from regulators, nothing will be the same for PT or the Sonae Group after this offer. The case serves as a rigorous application of valuation methodology with a focus on understanding the difficulties in forecasting future cash flows and the sensitivity of the valuation analysis to underlying assumptions.

Case A of this series sets the scene for the largest merger and acquisition (M&A) deal in the telecom industry in Brazil and Latin America. Cases B to F follow on by relating the events up to the deal's conclusion. The sequencing of this story creates a sense of urgency for readers and forces them to take position on different questions at different times. Events began in 2003 when a 50:50 joint venture (JV) between Portugal Telecom (PT) and Spain's Telefónica acquired 60% of Vivo, the leading Brazilian mobile operator. In the subsequent years, Vivo experienced double-digit annual growth, as it reaped the benefits of its own heavy investments and booming consumer demand. In May 2010, Telefónica made a€5.7 billion cash bid for PT's share of the JV. According to Telefónica, this was a full, fair and final offer. How would PT's board regard the bid? On the one hand, it represented a 100% premium on Vivo's pre-announcement stock price. On the other hand, it was a terrible blow to the PT Group's international aspirations. Moreover, the occasionally conflicting views of the general public and the government had the potential to complicate matters further. Lastly, this deal also had important international implications. The case shows how: a) corporate governance practices vary across countries, including environments where there are dual-class shares; and b) the role of corporate governance in ensuring that managers undertake activities that maximize shareholder value as well as serving the needs and strategy of the company. The case also allows for an in-depth analysis of a variety of strategic, organizational, financial and economic issues related to growth strategies through JVs and M&As. The key focus of the case is on the links between finance and strategy.