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In 2008, Daqi was one of the largest Internet portals for user-generated content and leading word-of-mouth marketing provider in China. Grace Zhou, Daqi's CEO, was contemplating the risks and benefits of expanding Daqi's services into three new content areas-news, music, and popular bloggers. Each potential area of Daqi's expansion offered extensive benefits, such as major growth opportunity, as well as risks, including private lawsuits, government censorship, and significant capital investments. The case focuses on how Zhou must weigh the pros and cons of expansion both in each of these three areas, as well as the potential of a merger.

Although Google had a stellar performance in Web search, many of its other services, such as Google Video, were less successful. This case describes how YouTube came to dominate the video market for user-generated content (UGC), while Google Video tried various entry strategies and ultimately failed, ending with the acquisition of YouTube. It also reviews the various competitors in the UGC market, chronicles the entry of established and new players in the area of professionally generated content (PGC), and outlines the key challenges related to monetizing the acquisition of YouTube for Google.

An intern has completed her summer internship as Brussels and Bradshaw (B&B), an investment bank in Toronto, Ontario. She now faces her final performance review where she will be told whether or not she has been offered full-time employment following her graduation. After a grueling summer during which she received little training, no formal mentorship and worked tireless 100 hour weeks with no praise, she was frustrated, hurt and bitter about the experience. Despite enjoying finance and the actual work, the intern is unsure whether taking B&B's offer is a good idea, should B&B extend her the opportunity. Despite it being one of the most prestigious banks in the world, she had seen little to no improvement in the abusive approach of her superiors. As she walks to the business department manager's office, she reviews whether or not she should bring up the unresolved issues that transpired during the summer, the mounting frustration of working in teams that gossiped and did not respect her work, and finally her inability to understand why she had been treated so poorly despite her diligent work ethic. On the one hand, the intern could bring up such issues and try to explain herself before the business department manager decides whether or not to extend her the offer. Or, she could listen to the review and continue to take full responsibility for the problems which were not her making in the hopes that it might make her look more mature and professional and potentially aid her in obtaining her full-time offer.

This case describes the history and activities of the A-Team, a major alliance of bicycle assembly firms and parts suppliers in Taiwan, which was created in 2003. A strategic alliance with competitors posed challenges. For the A-Team, it was more complicated because the alliance was between both competing bicycle assembly firms and between parts suppliers. By 2006, progress had been made in making the alliance work but the senior executives were wondering what they could do to ensure future progress. The case can be used in a strategy module or course on alliances/joint ventures in a section examining the competition versus cooperation challenge.

Verne Global, a pioneering startup created to build the first large-scale data center in Iceland, faces critical challenges regarding its green strategy. Verne Co-Founder Isaac Kato is tasked with evaluating how the company can most successfully market and sell the green components of its service offering. Using only renewable energy in its data center facility, Verne can drastically reduce customers' carbon emissions, enabling customers to meet emerging government regulations and to capture the financial benefit of public goodwill arising from green initiatives. But how valuable are Verne's green benefits, and are they sufficient to compel customers to pay a premium for Verne services? Further, how can Verne best integrate its green strategy into its marketing and sales message? Finally, will Verne's green benefits enable the company to overcome obstacles in the sales process, or will they alternatively overcomplicate an already complex sales message? Kato's decision allows discussion of the emerging role of green marketing and sales and helps identify how a product or service which is good for the environment can also be good for the bottom line.

In April 2005, Alexandra was the owner of an Australian farm that produced olives, including Kalamata table olives. Alexandra had invested in the expansion of her farm in anticipation of the evolution of her market from domestic trade in Australia to international export. There was, however, a disruptive dispute before a WTO tribunal between Australia and the EU regarding the protection of Geographical Indications, which identify a product's origins and are treated as trademarks in some respects by international trade rules. Though Alexandra prepared her Kalamata olives in the traditional Kalamata technique, her use of the regionally specific name was threatened by the intellectual property rights provided by GIs. The case focuses on what should be the legal outcome of the WTO dispute, as well as possible business strategies by Alexandra in the event of an adverse outcome to Australia.

This case is appropriate for strategy courses and courses that focus on competitive dynamics. It follows FedEx from when it was the only international express-freight-delivery company with direct flights into such key Chinese cities as Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen and a virtual monopoly over South China's international express delivery market up to the competitive events that had taken some of the shine off FedEx operations in China. Leadership in the fast-growing, highly competitive Chinese express delivery market was key to FedEx's international strategy. Some of the issues students must decide are what these agreements and joint ventures could mean to FedEx's business in China and how it should respond to the increasingly crowded market.

It provides a framework for discussions around the implementation "pain points" of ambitious strategies with long-term objectives, which involve high uncertainties, risks and business opportunities. It opens the floor for an interesting discussion on how to take on the challenges of a changing business context and balance them against long-term objectives. Allianz and WWF joint venture evolved from a collaborative awareness-raising effort to an action-driven partnership with the ambition to lead the financial industry on the climate change issue by example. The partnership goals were to quantify climate change effects on financial services and use it as an innovation driver for products and services in insurance, banking and asset management business. In 2008, a year after the partnership was implemented, points of tension at the operational level accumulated, mainly in relation to the governance model and follow up on certain issues. In the same period, the financial markets crisis hit. This significantly changed the business environment and pushed Allianz to rethink their strategy and engage WWF on discussing where, if and how the partnership could be adjusted while keeping the core strategy. A video documenting Allianz' efforts on Corporate Responsibility can be used with this case (see link under Notes). Learning ojbectives: 1) Understand the challenges of rolling out sustainability strategies. 2) Illustrate the dilemmas of adapting to a changing business context while staying on course with long-term objectives, particularly in difficult business circumstances. 3) Illustrate the barriers and success factors of corporate sustainability partnerships. 4) Change the traditional perception of business responsibility in pushing forward the agenda for action on climate change and other "mega-issues".

Forty-one year old Andrea Wong, the president and CEO of Lifetime Entertainment Services. When Wong joined Lifetime, she said that the network was "widely viewed as a tired brand...ratings had flattened out, and the audience was aging." Moreover, Lifetime's stereotype had become a network that showed "women in peril" shows and movies. Wong was excited to reinvigorate the Network's brand, but when Wong actually set foot in her new office at Lifetime, she realized her task was going to be harder than she had initially imagined. Beyond the ratings problems and image problems, Wong discovered that numerous cultural issues plagued the company, problems that needed immediate fixing. In rapid fire mode, Wong moved quickly as a leader, making key people decisions in the spirit of changing a culture that lacked clear lines of responsibility, accountability, and nimbleness, while simultaneously changing Lifetime's brand reputation through its programming and marketing.

The case analyzes a successful economic initiative (Red Shield), whose profits help support a legendary religious institution (The Salvation Army) while creating social value for low-income sectors through the sale of used goods. The main focus of the case is on its growth strategy, since Red Shield must increase its financial support of the Salvation Army. In late 2007, the protagonist of the case took over as Director of the Red Shield and was expected to suggest alternatives to boost revenues in order to provide for the organization's sustainability in Argentina. The new Director faces the dilemma over what to do and he contemplates different growth options taking into account the opportunities presented by the context. The final decision remains open and students are invited to evaluate diverse strategic alternatives proposed by the Director of the Red Shield. This case may prove adequate for undergraduate, graduate, and MBA strategy and marketing courses.

IMAX was involved in several aspects of the large-format film business: production, distribution, theatre operations, system development and leasing. The case illustrates IMAX's use of its unique capabilities to pursue a focused differentiation strategy. IMAX was initially focused on large format films that were educational yet entertaining, and the theatres were located in institutions such as museums, aquariums and national parks. However, IMAX found that its growth and profitability were constrained by its niche strategy. In response, IMAX sought to grow by expanding into multiplexes. Additionally, IMAX expanded its film portfolio by converting Hollywood movies, such as Harry Potter and Superman, into the large film format. This shift in strategy was supported by the development of two technological capabilities - DMR for conversion of standard 35 mm film into large format, and DMX to convert standard multiplexes to IMAX systems. The shift in strategy was partially successful, but carried the risk of IMAX losing its unique reputation.

The case 'HubSpot: Inbound Marketing and Web 2.0' introduces the concept of inbound marketing, pulling customer prospects toward a business through the use of Web 2.0 tools and applications like blogging, search engine optimization, and social media. Students follow the growth of HubSpot, an entrepreneurial venture which, in its quest for growth, faces significant challenges including: developing market segmentation and targeting strategies to decide which customer to serve and which to turn away, configuring pricing strategies to align with the value delivery stream customers experience, and determining whether inbound marketing programs can generate enough scale or whether traditional outbound marketing methods need to be employed to accelerate growth.

Ceres is a leading player in the growing organic gardening industry, selling seeds, small plants, and related items. Their distribution depends heavily on retail sales through independent nurseries and garden centers. Because these small dealers are unable to finance much inventory, Ceres has crafted its GetCeresâ„¢ program, which offers steep discounts and vendor financing. Ceres hopes both to accelerate its penetration into new retail accounts and to encourage dealers to accept more inventory in anticipation of seasonal sales. A key focus of the case is the relationship between marketing strategy and credit policy. The case invites students to analyze a range of financial information and to make financial projections; a student spreadsheet (product 4019) is available free of charge.

This case analysis traces the establishment and subsequent operation of FIJI Water LLC and its bottling subsidiary, Natural Waters of Viti Limited, the first company in Fiji extracting, bottling and marketing, both domestically and internationally, artesian water coming from a virgin ecosystem found on Fiji's main island of Viti Levu. The case reviews the growth and market expansion of this highly successful company with the brand name FIJI Natural Artesian Water (FIJI Water). The company has grown rapidly over the past decade and a half, and now exports bottled water into many countries in the world from its production plant located in the Fiji Islands. In 2008, FIJI Water was the leading imported bottled water brand in the United States. In the context of great marketing success of the FIJI brand, particularly in the U.S. market, the case focuses on how the company has responded to a number of corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues, including measuring and reducing its carbon footprint, responsibilities to key stakeholders, and concerns of the Fiji government with regard to taxation and transfer pricing issues. The case provides a compelling illustration of how CSR challenges may jeopardize the sustainability of a clever marketing strategy.

How will Newton-Wellesley Hospital (NWH) preserve its private practice tradition while remaining effective and competitive in a healthcare industry demanding increasing integration between physicians and hospitals? This is the decision facing Newton-Wellesley Hospital president Mike Jellinek in 2009, as several trends-higher costs and lower revenues, shifting workforce demographics, and changing reimbursement models-threaten to disrupt NWH's organizational model. Similar to other U.S. community hospitals, NWH has historically been staffed primarily with private practitioners; however, in recent years Jellinek has taken several steps toward further integration, such as hiring primary care physicians and hospitalists, and even proposing formation of a physicians' organization (PO)-a move its veteran private practitioners sharply oppose. In 2009, NWH is renowned for high-quality care and is financially strong; yet, given external pressures, most at the hospital agree that reforms are needed to improve the hospital's and physicians' profitability while maintaining highest-quality patient care. Diverging opinions over how to improve the hospital has exposed differences between some private practice physicians and the administration. The crux of their disagreement centers on one question: how to make the organizational changes required to keep NWH effective and competitive in the face of a diminishing revenue growth rate, while honoring its tradition of physician independence.

In the early 1970s, the Missouri Division of Youth Services (DYS) took its first steps toward radically changing the way it dealt with youthful offenders remanded to its custody. For years, like most states, it had incarcerated juveniles convicted of felony or misdemeanor offenses in large quasi-penal facilities called "training schools." Instead, DYS began establishing smaller "cottage-style" residential programs that emphasized rehabilitation over punishment and applied a therapeutic approach to its troubled young charges. Over the next three decades, DYS expanded this approach to encompass its entire juvenile offender population. By the mid-2000s, the "Missouri model," as it became known, was perhaps the most admired-and, many considered, most effective-juvenile corrections system in the US. This case describes the Missouri model-including the population it serves, the educational and therapeutic programs it offers, and the frontline staff of "youth specialists" it employs to work closely with young offenders. The case also provides an overview of Missouri's impressively low recidivism figures and a brief discussion of the complexities of comparing such figures among states. It concludes with a discussion of the challenges the Missouri DYS has faced in sustaining its highly regarded, but demanding, approach over many years. The case can be used in classes on child welfare policy and criminal justice. HKS Case Number 1904.0

The nine months leading up to April 2009 were among the most difficult and uncertain in U.S. economic history. A series of destabilizing events had led to substantial uncertainty and panic throughout the economy: Three of the five largest U.S. investment banks had failed, the stock market had fallen by 40%, the Fed had doubled its balance sheet, and the federal budget deficit had expanded to well over $1 trillion. Moreover, the crisis had spread from the United States to the world's leading economies and seemed to signal the beginning of an extraordinary rebalancing of the world economy. This case explores the challenge facing the U.S. economy in spring 2009, the global economic forces and trends affecting the economy, and the likely course of key macroeconomic variables: real and nominal interest rates, exchange rates, GDP growth, inflation and budget deficits.

Students at all levels explore the psychology of entrepreneurship and new product branding and marketing as a young IBM executive decides whether to become an entrepreneur. He must evaluate his business plan; seek advisors; and decide how much money it will take to get started. His product idea? On-the-go water for dogs. With market research complete and a team of advisors assembled, he must decide whether to take the plunge.

This case study teaches students about lean process improvement projects at the Cleveland Clinic, one of the world's leading hospital systems. The majority of the case focuses on one lean improvement project and leads the student step-by-step through the Kaizen events, and the tools, approaches and outcomes of the project. The case study ends with two short mini-cases on additional process improvement projects at the Cleveland Clinic. The detailed and concise case is ideal for a discussion about lean process improvement in the services industry.

The chief operation officer (COO) of Long Wang Sha Tan Ku Company, a boardshorts manufacturer based in Shanghai, China, was expected to present a plan to improve the company's profitability through adjustments to the company's operations. There were at least three possible paths to increase profitability. First, reviewing how production was scheduled between the company's two manufacturing facilities. Second, since the company operated at capacity during busy times, he thought that it might be beneficial for the company to expand capacity in one of its manufacturing facilities. Finally, the COO wondered whether some price adjustments could help out of the company's supply chain and increase contribution.