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Westin Hotels and Resorts adopted a new "lifestyle" brand strategy which provided guests with a new service experience. The dilemma Westin faced was how to operationally build a brand that delivered consistent service on intangible values.

Describes how Bankinter, a mid-sized Spanish bank, altered the information set available to its customer-facing employees. In the spring of 2003, Bankinter introduced an Excel-based program called the mortgage simulator that helped branch managers calculate the price of a mortgage and estimate the customer lifetime value (CLV). Facilitates a discussion of the impact of such a change in the information set for employees when the incentives and decision rights remain unchanged. Also examines the tradeoffs front-line employees face as they divide their efforts between reaching new customers and increasing the amount of cross-selling to existing customers.

In April 2001, Japan curbed imports on three Chinese farm products--fresh shiitake mushrooms, rushes for grass mats, and Chinese onions. In retaliation, in June 2001 China imposed a 100% punitive tariff on imports of three Japanese export products--motor vehicles, mobile phones, and air conditioners. Japan was accused of violating WTO rules. The dispute was subsequently resolved, but given that China was not a WTO member at the time of the dispute, the dispute generated a lot of controversy regarding trade safeguard measures. Introduces students to the WTO dispute settlement mechanism and compares it to the old GATT system, and highlights the role of political interest groups in trade policy. Questions whether Japan had a case for citing their safeguard measures or was it just protecting its powerful shiitake mushroom farmers. In addition, questions whether WTO membership would in turn protect China from trade disputes such as this one.

While preparing a financial forecast, the newly promoted CFO of a small and profitable, but financially constrained, ready-mix concrete company must choose between renegotiating debt obligations, postponing long overdue capital improvements that will prevent more costly future repairs, or reducing the dividend payment to a parent company that just recently purchased the firm. A potential slowdown in the business due to a slowing economy and pressure from the new parent company add additional layers of complexity.

Sometimes the good old tried and true American business team building exercises just don't work. Although frequently successful with teams made up of employees from different sections of an organization, what happens when teams consist of employees from different geographical areas like the United States and Asia-which has a whole set of unique differences. This case follows the experiences of an executive sent to Bangkok Thailand with two other managers from corporate headquarters to clean up and team build following the discovery of fiscal mismanagement and a popular senior executive's high profile firing. This three part case series puts students in the shoes of a financial auditor sent to try and strengthen weakened relationships and performance at Fasco Motors in Thailand. The material describes his efforts to rebuild trust on the Bangkok management team and the difficulties he encounters working as an outsider in every way.

The CFO of JetBlue is trying to decide which of two financing proposals to pursue. A straight equity issue will dilute his principal shareholders' ownership, but seems like the safer alternative in an industry that is notorious for its high failure rate. On the other hand, a convertible debt alternative seems less dilutive, and cheaper, but brings with it an increased risk of default and financial problems. Which option should John Owen pursue?

Cleveland Clinic is consistently ranked among the nation's most eminent hospitals, and for decades has been a leader in pioneering cardiac care. Explores the methods, processes, and personnel that the hospital has cultivated over the years in order to develop its track record of excellence. In light of this, three expansion opportunities are explored and the operational fit of each is investigated.

Describes the circumstances surrounding the introduction of www.google.cn. In order to comply with Chinese government requirements, Google.cn censors web results. This appears to contradict Google's stated philosophy and its mission to organize and make accessible the world's information. A public outcry ensues and Google is forced to defend its controversial decision. Presents both sides of the debate and asks students to consider what they feel is right.

Examines the career of Ernesto Tornquist, a cosmopolitan financier considered to be the most significant entrepreneur in Argentina at the end of the 19th century. Tornquist created a diversified business group, linked to the political elite, which integrated Argentina into the trading and financial networks of the first global economy. Provides an opportunity to understand why Argentina was such a successful economy at this time, and to debate whether its very success laid the basis for the country's subsequent poor economic performance.

Describes an innovative product launch for which a marketing plan and a breakeven analysis are needed.

Starbucks Corporation was the world's largest specialty coffee retailer, with 2005 annual revenue of $6.4 billion. Despite gigantic growth in specialty coffee in the 1990s, a worldwide oversupply of lower-grade coffee had depressed market prices in the previous few years, making it difficult for coffee farmers to earn enough revenue to cover the cost of production. By the end of 2005, Starbucks was at a challenging point in its history. It boasted more than 10,000 stores--up from 676 a decade before--and roasted 2.3% of the world's coffee. Each day it opened an average of four stores and hired 200 employees. To support such a high growth rate, the company's future success depended on a secure supply of high-quality coffee beans to meet increased demand--Starbucks had to ensure a sustainable supply of this key commodity. The company decided to partner with Conservation International, an environmental nonprofit organization, to develop C.A.F.E. Practices (Coffee and Farmer Equity Practices). The goal was to contribute to the livelihood of coffee farmers and to ensure high-quality coffee for the long term. If Starbucks were able to overcome the issues it faced with a widespread implementation of C.A.F.E., the initiative could go a long way towards improving the sustainability of its coffee supply chain while at the same time improving Starbucks' image as a socially responsible corporation.

Health insurer IFA and grocery chain ShopSense have formed an intriguing partnership, but it threatens to test customers' tolerance for sharing personal information. For years, IFA's regional manager for West Coast operations, Laura Brickman, had been championing the use of customer analytics--drawing conclusions about consumer behaviors based on patterns found in collected data. She came away from a meeting with the grocer's analytics chief, Steve Worthington, convinced that ShopSense's customer loyalty card data could be meaningful. In a pilot test, Laura bought ten years' worth of data from the grocer and found some compelling correlations between purchases of unhealthy products and medical claims. Now she has to sell her company's senior team on buying more information. Her bosses have some concerns, however. If IFA came up with proprietary health findings, would the company have to share what it learned? Meanwhile, Steve is busy trying to work out details of the sale with executives at ShopSense. Many have expressed support, but COO Alan Atkins isn't so sure: If customers found out that the store was selling their data, they might stop using their cards, and the company would lose access to vital information. Though CEO Donna Greer agrees, she knows that if things go well, it could mean easy money. How can the two companies use the customer data responsibly? Commenting on this fictional case study in R0705A and R0705Z are George L. Jones, the CEO of Borders Group; Katherine N. Lemon, an associate professor of marketing at Boston College; David Norton, the senior vice president of relationship marketing for Harrah's Entertainment; and Michael B. McCallister, the president and CEO of Humana.

Health insurer IFA and grocery chain ShopSense have formed an intriguing partnership, but it threatens to test customers' tolerance for sharing personal information. For years, IFA's regional manager for West Coast operations, Laura Brickman, had been championing the use of customer analytics--drawing conclusions about consumer behaviors based on patterns found in collected data. She came away from a meeting with the grocer's analytics chief, Steve Worthington, convinced that ShopSense's customer loyalty card data could be meaningful. In a pilot test, Laura bought ten years' worth of data from the grocer and found some compelling correlations between purchases of unhealthy products and medical claims. Now she has to sell her company's senior team on buying more information. Her bosses have some concerns, however. If IFA came up with proprietary health findings, would the company have to share what it learned? Meanwhile, Steve is busy trying to work out details of the sale with executives at ShopSense. Many have expressed support, but COO Alan Atkins isn't so sure: If customers found out that the store was selling their data, they might stop using their cards, and the company would lose access to vital information. Though CEO Donna Greer agrees, she knows that if things go well, it could mean easy money. How can the two companies use the customer data responsibly? Commenting on this fictional case study in R0705A and R0705Z are George L. Jones, the CEO of Borders Group; Katherine N. Lemon, an associate professor of marketing at Boston College; David Norton, the senior vice president of relationship marketing for Harrah's Entertainment; and Michael B. McCallister, the president and CEO of Humana.

AMB Property Corporation set out to be a leader in corporate governance and financial reporting. The company, a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, and owns industrial properties, believed that its governance and reporting practices were among the best in the industry. The implementation of good disclosure practices in the REIT industry was not a simple undertaking. Historically, the real estate industry was dominated by private partnerships and institutional investors who used tax and partnership accounting rather than generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). As a result, there was a need for new financial terms that were meant to bridge the differences between GAAP and private partnership accounting, notably funds from operations. However, because such industry-specific metrics were not consistently calculated, it was difficult for users of REIT financial statements to compare operating results across companies. Public REITs that used non-GAAP metrics were required to reconcile these metrics to GAAP standards, a process which added significantly to the length of REIT financial reports. In addition, companies were required to apply GAAP accounting standards that were mostly designed for industries other than real estate and had the unintended consequence of making it difficult to evaluate the operating performance of REITs and compare those results across periods. Explores the issue of financial reporting in the REIT industry, including important FASB standards that potentially distort REIT financial results, the use of Funds From Operations as a metric of financial performance, and different approaches for valuing REITs.

In the fall of 2002, the directors of process engineering at Rogers Cable had discovered that a significant portion of Rogers Cable's installations and service activities had been followed by repeat visits within the following 30 days. This meant that services were not properly completed the first time. If high numbers of repeat and rework problems continued, customers would readily take their business elsewhere in the highly competitive environment. Eliminating repeat visits is the focus and driving force behind the First Time Right initiative, aimed to satisfy customers on the first try. The directors must devise an action plan that will motivate and retain behavioral change among field service technicians.

The spring of 2002 had been grueling for the owner of Pet Care Veterinary Services, a small-animal veterinary practice with two clinics in Southwestern Ontario. Everything seemed to be going wrong at Pet Care's Avery, Ontario location. Profitability was disappointing, medication had disappeared, and the owner had serious concerns about her associate veterinarian's quality of animal care. The owner wondered what would be her best course of action. She could afford to keep the clinic open for another year and try to either fix the operational issues or leave things as they were and see if the problems resolved themselves. The owner wondered whether it would be best to sell and avoid future problems. What price would she ask for the clinic if she chose to sell? Whatever her choice, she knew she had to make a decision quickly, because the uncertainty and stress of running two clinics were beginning to take their toll.

The newly appointed executive director of the Office of Alliance Management (OAM) at Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) was returning to his office after his first meeting with his supervisor, the senior vice-president of Corporate Strategy and Business Development (CSBD). The executive director had been promoted to the position just a week earlier, and now the senior vice-president has asked him to conduct a complete review of the OAM strategy. The senior vice-president made it clear that it was fine to leave the strategy as it currently existed, or to change it radically if the situation warranted. Now the executive director must decide what Lilly should do to build and maintain its leadership in alliance capability.

According to a World Bank report written in 2001, "in a modern, globally integrated Mexican economy, it is hard to argue for the continued existence of an institution such as INFONAVIT." The report went on to argue that the first-best option was "closing INFONAVIT." In the same year Victor Borras and a new team of managers took control of INFONAVIT under the new PAN government of Vicente Fox. In 2005 the fund issued 376,444 mortgage loans, one and a half times the number issued by INFONAVIT in 2000. During this same period of expansion INFONAVIT had: reduced its defaulted loan rate from 21.7 percent in 2000 to 6.6 percent in 2005; increased its productivity from 51 loans granted per employee to 98 per employee through outsourcing and the modernization and streamlining of operations; launched a new vivienda economica (affordable housing) program to target the majority of its members who earned less than four times the minimum wage (TMW); helped jump-start a nascent housing development industry; increased the real return to the pensioners' funds from 2 percent to 3.5 percent per year; and issued approximately $4.5 billion in mortgage-backed bonds. The case can be used to teach about government innovation, privatization, strategic management, and the public provision of financial services. It would also be appropriate for a course in international development or international housing. It raises questions about the appropriate role of government in the provision of financial services, as well as the role outsourcing and privatization can play in promoting the efficiency and effectiveness of public services, especially when the government is a major purchaser in a market of relatively small suppliers. HKS Case Number 1878.0`

This case illustrates ratio analysis using financial data for a global power company. It is best suited for an introductory discussion of ratio analysis for both the cross-section and time-series. Ten years of standard ratios pertaining to profitability, efficiency, liquidity, solvency, capital structure, and market multiples are provided. The case highlights the correspondence between firm performance and equity values.

In the summer of 2006, Nike announced a major corporate reorganization that would shift the company's focus to a category-driven approach. The six major business categories were running, men's training, basketball, soccer, women's fitness, and sportswear. For years, Nike had organized its business around footwear, apparel, and equipment. Integration between these three business units was inconsistent at best. The goal of the reorganization was to take a more consumer-oriented approach to the market to give customers holistic collections of everything they want and need in a particular sports category. This would require the organization to break down its product-oriented silos and collaborate on a more formal, ongoing basis. The reorganization also reflected a change in Nike's corporate strategy. The elevation of women's fitness to a major focus for the company was a substantial victory for the team that had been fighting for the increased prominence of this market segment for years. Darcy Winslow, general manager of Nike's global women's fitness business, and a team of individuals across the company working across traditional boundaries within Nike's complex, matrixed organization to achieve the required level of cross-business integration to deliver cohesive collections of footwear, apparel, and equipment to the women's market. Focuses on Winslow and her team as they tackled challenges related to product development, operations management, organization structure, reporting relationships, change management, and stakeholder buy-in.