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When Chris Knox, a top salesperson at Specialty Fleet Services, volunteers to go after the business of Armadillo Gas & Power, he decides to try a new approach. After all, no one else from SFS has succeeded with Dale Landry, Armadillo's CFO. Knox shows up at Landry's ranch, asks to photograph his beloved bull, presents the photo as a gift to Landry's wife, and engineers several other encounters before Landry learns that Knox is anything more than a charming young man. Not long after he reveals his position at SFS, Knox wins the account. Sales VP Jeremy Silva emails the sales team, praising Knox's maneuvers. But the human resources vice president thinks that Knox breached the company's ethics code. Does Knox deserve a reprimand? Four experts comment on this fictional case study in R0905B and R0905Z. Kirk O. Hanson, the executive director of the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, believes that Knox went astray not by trying to share a potential client's passion but by treating the Landrys as a means to an end - deceiving them and violating their personal space along the way. There's a big difference between deceiving competitors and deceiving customers, explain consultants Don Peppers and Martha Rogers. SFS needs to clarify this difference in its ethics code, apologize to Landry, and fire Silva, who demonstrated in hitting the "send" button that he does not understand the policies and behaviors that build shareholder value. James Borg, a business psychologist and author, argues that Knox didn't coerce Landry into buying SFS's services but instead simply got the CFO's attention and let his persuasive techniques do the rest. Whereas coercion and manipulation satisfy the needs of only one party, persuasion is about achieving a positive outcome all around - exactly what Knox accomplished. Armadillo got a superior product, and SFS won a new customer.

In October 2008, Dr. Richard Mgaga, Head of the Malaria Control Programme in Uganda reviewed the monthly malaria statistics report for the district of Apac, which in April of 2008 had undergone a pilot indoor residual spraying (IRS) program using DDT in a campaign to prevent mosquitoes from biting and spreading malaria. The campaign was halted by a court injunction requested by organic farmers, exporters and environmentalists in May 2008, and the injunction was upheld by the High Court in June. In early August, the Uganda Health Ministry began spraying a pyrethroid insecticide in place of DDT. Meanwhile the Ugandan Attorney General was challenging the High Court's decision. Dr. Mugaga was under pressure by the Presidential Malaria Initiative (PMI) to undertake a full program of IRS in 300,000 households in the northern districts of Uganda, including Apac. However, he was unsure whether to proceed, given the opposition and apparent problems that surfaced when the Apac pilot was implemented.

This case provides an introduction to the structure and dynamics of nonprofit hospital governance in the U.S. A hospital CEO two years into her position is grappling with how to make her board a more effective governing body. The hospital's competitive position was eroding due in part to resistance by its independent medical staff to recruiting new physicians into the service area. In addition, some of the physicians had opened freestanding diagnostic and treatment facilities that reduced hospital revenues. But the board was reluctant to take this issue on. At the same time, the CEO felt that too much board attention was spent second-guessing her new hires and other operational decisions that she felt were her responsibility.

This case study delves into the challenges faced by CGI, which has just signed an agreement for a major project involving the development of information systems for a client in Los Angeles. We sit in on the meetings of the members of the project team as they make important decisions on the main project management and execution parameters. Part A introduces readers to the actors and the project, while exposing the context and the challenges facing this project. Part B illustrates the decisions made by CGI regarding the project's organization and the competencies of the team members, with a specific focus on the innovative development methodology adopted by CGI in response to the specific characteristics of this project.

This case describes the evolution of IT management at Alcan during the period from 2006-2007. At that time, IT governance and the IT function itself were undergoing a complete transformation. The case follows the Vice-President of Corporate Information Technology from the time of his arrival at Alcan: his observations on the current state of IT management, his appointment to the position of Chief Information Officer and the development of his new strategic plan for IT management. Part A presents the main features and challenges of IT management at Alcan up until the middle of 2006. Part B continues with the main concepts and elements of the CIO's new strategic plan for IT management. Students are encouraged to reflect on the characteristics, implications and challenges represented by IT management in a large global organization.

This case asks participants to put themselves in the position of a government official in charge of selecting an evaluation design to assess the impact of a social program. The goal is to illustrate the tradeoffs that are made in the real world when trying to balance the desire for a rigorous and credible evaluation design with the logistic, political, financial and ethical constraints that so frequently arise in evaluating social programs. Participants are asked to assess the strengths and weaknesses of three possible evaluation designs using as criteria the scientific rigor, political feasibility, logistical implications, and financial feasibility of each design. The case includes a 5:30-minute video interview with Jason Wilks, a Senior Policy Analyst with the team in charge of monitoring the PATH Program for the Jamaican government. Wilks describes the political context in Jamaica at the time and the internal and external pressures the government was under as it considered the three evaluation designs. The video contains three short segments that can be played throughout the class and a 3-minute "reveal" where Wilks explains the government's ultimate decision. The four segments can also be played sequentially at the end of the case discussion.

Venture Valuation conducts an independent valuation of Genedata, a Swiss start-up company in order to help Novartis Venture Fund analyze and structure the next financing round. Venture Valuation has to, given a very tight deadline, customize the evaluation process to using quantitative and qualitative data to best meet its customers needs. The case outlines the task ahead of Venture Valuation and requires students to make assessments and calculations and finally come up with a valuation for the startup, Genedata.

Part 1 of the case provides a detailed description of the situation before the start of the project at PT. It enables students to diagnose problems, identify opportunities, propose solutions, and support those proposals by referring to the relevant theory from economics, strategy and negotiation analysis. Part 2 describes the actions taken by PT, their impact on a number of operational measures (cost, time to market, etc.) as well as the rationale that supports those steps. The teaching note provides a teaching plan and draws the links with the relevant theoretical material from the fields of Economics, Strategy and Negotiation Analysis.

The case describes the issues arising in Private Equity Partnerships once multiple funds have been raised and are being managed by the same set of partners. In addition, one LP is in financial distress and has asked to be given preferential treatment.

Case A describes how Rodrigo Baggio in 1995 developed the first computer and citizen schools in Brazil to address the problem of digital exclusion. By 2005 the CDI network included almost 1,000 schools throughout Latin America. However, with the rapid growth came quality control problems and organisational complexities. In addition there was increasing competition from the government and from the private sector. Rodrigo and his team needed to re-assess the positioning of CDI while grappling with the complexities of managing a large network-based organisation. Case (B) continues CDI's story and presents the challenges that Rodrigo and his team faced in 2008 and are still dealing with at present. There are now 80,000 privately run cybercafés and 6,000 government Telecentros in Brazil. The CDI team needs to develop new mechanisms for improving the sustainability of the CDI network and empowering the network members. They also need to rethink CDI's added value to society in the context of an increasingly crowded market with competing solutions.

Scott Weiss, CEO of IronPort, a leading internet security company, is contemplating an acquisition offer from Cisco Systems in November of 2006. Although Weiss had originally intended for IronPort to IPO, a series of events have occurred that have made an acquisition a potentially more attractive option. Weiss is worried about what will happen to the IronPort culture once it is absorbed under the Cisco umbrella. Weiss must decide which route is the best way to go for his company and, if he decides to sell, he must determine the best way to share the news with his employees.

In 2008, the acquisition of the General Healthcare Group (GHG) in the United Kingdom had propelled Netcare Limited (Netcare) from a predominantly South African operation into one of the largest private hospital groups in the world. One of Netcare's key long-term goals was to deliver innovative, quality health-care solutions to patients in every continent. Recent South African parliamentary legislation had introduced the potential for regulated pricing and collective bargaining in medical centers, which could change the industry structure and possibly affect Netcare's strategy. As acquisition at home would be increasingly subject to stringent scrutiny from competition regulators, Netcare wondered what the impact of global acquisition would have on executing its strategy. What lessons could be learned from the GHG acquisition, how could those lessons be leveraged for further international growth, and what continent would be best suited to expansion? The case illustrates the international expansion strategies of Netcare, and illustrates the challenges of operating in an emerging market. The ability to overcome these challenges is the basis of a competitive advantage when entering developed markets.

Students identify promotion, price, place, segment, targeting, and positioning for marketing "the world's cheapest car." This case is effective for MBA, undergraduate, and executive learners studying market segmentation, pricing, cannibalization risk, pricing, and break-even sales in the face of different price and cost scenarios. Has Tata chosen the right marketing strategy? Does the Nano represent an evolution or a revolution in automobile marketing?

EveryDay Medical, a provider of home and durable medical equipment and supplies, uses Internet advertising to attract potential customer flow to their website. With many thousands of potential keywords to bid on and a tight budget for online advertising, EDM turned to Jeremy Gerstle to help them develop a quantitative tool to optimally manage their internet advertising campaign.

We evaluate the impact of a supply chain pilot implemented at Hugo Boss. This pilot entailed altering the way in which Hugo Boss orders from its suppliers. We explore the challenge of assessing the impact of supply chain change, the link between operational performance and firm performance, and the relationship between sales, inventory, and product availability.

This case traces the 30-year development of the rock band U2 and the development of its four members as artists, business leaders, and humanitarians (with particular attention paid to lead singer Bono's global humanitarian work). The case examines the beginnings of the band among four school friends and follows the development of the enterprise as a business and as a powerful social and cultural force in its own right. It also investigates the individual journeys of the band members during moments of great success and significant challenges. The case pays particular attention to the four men's evolving identities as musical artists and to the tradeoffs that have accompanied their fame and larger social commitments. The case takes up the evolution of the global music industry in the face of rapid technological and organizational change, examining how U2 and colleagues navigated such change, built a very powerful brand, and created a successful business model. The final part of the case traces lead singer Bono's involvement in political and humanitarian causes and the potential power of such a model as a framework for artistry, entrepreneurship, and effective leadership in the 21st century.

Ho Tak Kee was originally a professional publisher and printer that started in the 1950s in Hong Kong. Having faced static performance for decades, the founder and grandfather of the family decided to close the printing department. This pushed his youngest son, On-ping, to a critical decision: whether and how to continue the family business. Under pressure, On-ping turned to his son John for support but the request put John in a difficult position of choosing between a professional career and the family business. As a young man without much life and work experience, John had to go through a personal development process to shape up as a leader in order to make the family business thrive again and keep the family together. Case (A) is from John's point of view as he is making his decision and is intended to stimulate students to look at a family business from a third generation's perspective. Case (B) starts with John's decision to join Ho Tak Kee.

In February 2008, as S. Mahalingam (Maha), the CFO of Tata Consultancy Services considered the strategic challenges facing TCS, challenges faced only by the elite segment of IT services companies: IBM Global Services, Computer Sciences Corporation, Accenture, KPMG, and others. The key issue was how to maintain a breathtaking annual growth rate of 35 to 40 percent without sacrificing 25 to 30 percent margins. Maha: "By 2010 we want to become a $10 billion-a-year company producing 25 percent margins". The company's strategy and positioning, combined with excellent execution and a fair number of macro factors breaking its way, had placed it front and center in the leadership competition for global IT services. Since the early 1990s, TCS had grown faster, made more money, created a better brand and reputation, and invested more heavily (as a percentage of revenues) in its future than its Indian or international competitors. The question on Maha's mind was whether TCS had the right strategy to continue to outmaneuver its competitors as it aimed to become the first Indian technology company to join the $10B revenue club.

The case introduces students to the nature of collateralized debt obligations (CDO) and the CDO origination process, with emphasis on the corporate structure of the special purpose vehicles, cash flows to various CDO tranches, and motivation behind CDO origination. Students will learn to quantitatively evaluate the risk-return profile of CDO tranches with emphasis on the equity tranche (also known as "toxic waste"). This is ideal for MBA and advanced undergraduate level courses on financial markets, financial institutions, and investments. In the case, an associate at the Debt Capital Markets desk of Lehman Brothers prepares a CDO issuance for Western Asset. Western Asset had been contacted by a group of commercial banks eager to sell senior secured bank loans and high-yield corporate bonds to lower their capital requirements and free up capital for additional lending.