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Considers McKinsey's strategy during the first stage of the globalization of the management consultancy industry between the 1950s and 1973. Briefly reviews the history of management consulting before considering the factors that led McKinsey to open its first international office in London in 1959. Describes the subsequent rapid international growth of McKinsey and its leading competitors and their role in diffusing American management concepts worldwide. By 1973, however, McKinsey's new managing director faced evidence that the global demands for such services was in decline, in part because the American management model was becoming less attractive.

New Vine Logistics was founded in 2001 by Katie Schumacher, a member of the failed Wineshoppers.com start-up operational team. Ms. Schumacher believed that Wineshopper's approach to inventory management, logistics, and general operational challenges rampant in the U.S. wine industry had value and managed to get funding to resuscitate Wineshopper's assets. The case provides background of the U.S. wine industry, including consumption figures, consumer demographics, and general industry trends, and explains the regulatory environment governing the U.S. wine industry. It then discusses New Vine Logistic's competencies and value propositions to its various customers, suppliers, wholesalers, distributors and retailer of wine.

Compares two companies in the information capture software industry. Asks students to analyze and compare the performance of two companies (one in the United Kingdom and the other in the United States) from the perspective of a buy-side analyst reporting to the manager of the firm's Global Technology Fund. The analyst must decide whether to recommend one or both stocks to the fund manager. Provides an opportunity to compare the differences in terminology, presentation of financial reports, and accounting methods for the U.S. and U.K. firms.

PalmSource is facing stiff competition from handheld, wireless handheld, and smart phone vendors in 2005. In addition, changes in leadership and corporate structure have altered its relationship with its leading customer--PalmOne. Although Palm renews its license with PalmSource in May 2005, the company must capture new markets to thrive. PalmSource is pursuing a new technology strategy with Linux. Will fresh alliances and a new development environment lead to new growth for this PDA pioneer?

Samsung Electronics' liquid crystal display (LCD) group is faced with a new product development challenge: Should it go with a product that is well received in the market but whose leadership is with the competition or with a product for which the market is yet to be tested but has a remote potential to leapfrog the competition. Highlights the global nature of competition in high-technology industries and the entrepreneurial opportunity for executives to make a difference in positioning their firms for global leadership.

Discusses the introduction of a completely new beverage to the U.S. market. New Century Brewing, which is owned by one of the founders of Boston Beer Co., is a small brewer that outsources production to third-party brewers. It has two products, a light craft beer sold in upscale shops and restaurants, and a caffeinated beer, which is oriented toward younger drinkers mainly between 21 and 25 years of age. Moonshot, created by the legendary masterbrewer, known as the "father of light beer," became the first caffeinated beer in the world. The company follows a differentiation strategy that attempts to appeal to a small niche of customers traditionally ignored by large brewers. Shortly after the introduction of each of its products, large competitors introduced similar products. Nevertheless, Moonshot has a first-to-market advantage that could potentially be leveraged.

Mearl Canada Ltd. does not want to implement Mearl Oil Co.'s environmental impact targets because, in Mearl Canada's opinion, the targets create an extra layer of regulation for considerable cost and negligible benefit. Mearl's position is that all Mearl worldwide operations must adopt these performance standards to allow the company to make operational its stated environmental policy. Each party has an opportunity to make its case at the International Environmental Group meeting, which will decide whether Mearl Canada may deviate from the environmental impact target and continue with its own homegrown environmental management system and standards. Written from the perspective of the manager of Mearl Oil's Support System, Environmental.

Within 18 months of exiting bankruptcy, Kmart's position was sufficiently strong to launch an acquisition of Sears, once the nation's largest retailer and also a core holding of ESL. Looks at a number of compelling issues related to Kmart's bankruptcy, restructuring, and rebirth under the control of ESL, a large hedge fund. Presents some of the key metrics that Eddie Lampert, head of ESL, had available to him as he made two decisions: first, in 2002, to amass a controlling stake in Kmart's defaulted debt during the restructuring; and second, in 2004, to launch a takeover of Sears. The first deal illustrates the decision-making process for a financial buyer, including the downside protection of Kmart's real estate holdings, whereas the second deal represents a traditional strategic acquisition. Illustrates the innovative use of real estate as a "hedge" for ESL in the event that the retail combination does not produce the required financial results. Also focuses on the role of investment bankers and the increasingly important position that hedge funds and LBO funds have carved out in the M&A market.

Several new developments were threatening the success of Big Pharma. The patents on well-known blockbusters were reaching expiry, and generic manufacturers were eagerly waiting to produce lower-priced copies. Throughout the world, governments were taking a more active role in determining the prices at which drugs could be sold. The expansion of government insurance programs was adding to the complexity of the marketing challenges. Another change involved a shift towards direct-to-customer advertising, including the proliferation of information on the Internet, in addition to the traditional process of sales visits to family doctors. Research funding had doubled since 1991, but the number of new drugs emerging each year had fallen by half. The research and development process was also changing dramatically. Whereas blockbuster drugs had been developed as general treatments for common conditions, it was becoming increasingly apparent that not all patients reacted in the same ways to these drugs, and some - although a very small percentage - suffered serious side effects. This reality was expected to lead to the creation of a much larger number of niche drugs, each one targeted at a narrower group of patients. Related to this development was the growth of biopharma in which new biotech companies were creating drugs that could attack specific cells. Some analysts felt that Big Pharma was in a peculiar predicament in that profits were still very large, and this served as a barrier to necessary changes in strategy.

A first year business school student has obtained a summer job as an analyst at a top investment bank in Los Angeles, California. His first assignment was the pricing of MicroComp's junk-bonds in the market place. Looking at the market value balance sheets, it was very clear that MicroComp was in financial distress. MicroComp's dept totaled $150 million, while the market value of its assets were $80 million. If MicroComp was required to repay its debt immediately, it would be forced into bankruptcy. Clearly, MicroComp was in "effective" default, why did its market capitalization remain at $5 million? Why had it not fallen to zero? Students will use option theory to answer these questions.

The manager of a billion dollar hedge fund had just been approached by a syndicate of funds to gauge her interest in a bid to purchase RamSync Incorporated, a Silicon-Valley manufacturer of memory chips. Using a traditional discounted cash flow analysis (the APV method), the manager quickly determines that at a purchase price of $900 million, RamSync has a negative NPV of $33 million. However, purchasing RamSync, which currently produces SDRAM, would allow the owner to enter the much-anticipated MRAM market at a future period in time. The manager is now forced to reconsider how to value RamSync considering the hidden call option it has on the MRAM market.

Rambus is grappling with the ever-changing dynamics of the DRAM/semiconductor industry. The company is actively defending its patent portfolio through litigation and exploring both partnerships and industry standards for keys to future profitability and growth. How can Rambus best shape the direction of the DRAM market? Should it partner with Intel and, if so, how?

The creator of special-event T-shirts has to decide how many shirts to order for an upcoming rock concert. Although she has a best guess and maximum and minimum estimates of attendance at the concert, her decision is complicated by this particular group's history of canceling at the last minute, in which case she would be stuck with all the T-shirts.

At three o'clock in the morning on September 10, 2001, Thierry Hautillac, a risk arbitrageur, learns of the final agreement between Pinault-Printemps-Redoute SA ("PPR") and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA ("LVMH"). After a contest for control of Gucci lasting over two years, PPR has emerged as the winner. PPR and LVMH have agreed for PPR to buy about half of LVMH's stock in Gucci for $94 per share, for Gucci to pay an extraordinary dividend of $7 per share, and for PPR to give a two and a half year put option with a strike price of $101.50 to the public shareholders in Gucci. The primary task for the student in this case is to recommend a course of action for Hautillac: should he sell his 2% holding of Gucci shares when the market opens, continue to hold his shares, or buy more shares? The student must estimate the risky arbitrage returns from each of these choices. As a basis for this decision, the student must value the terms of payment and consider what the Gucci stock price will do upon the market's open. The student must determine the intrinsic value of Gucci using a DCF model as well as information on peer firms and transactions. The student must consider potential synergies between Gucci and PPR and between Gucci and LVMH. The student must assess the likelihood of a higher bid, using analysis of price changes at earlier events in the contest for clues.

Tokyo Disneyland was started as a result of a licensing agreement between Walt Disney (WD) of the United States and Oriental Land Corp. (OL) of Japan. The agreement states that WD will receive a license fee of 7% of sales in exchange for providing OL with managerial and technological know-how and assuming small risks in the venture. When WD proposed a second project with OL, OL's senior executives wanted to find a way to make WD a risk-taking partner through investment in the business as a precondition to venturing into the new project. To prepare for the negotiations, OL's executives needed calculations of the project's net present value as seen from WD's standpoint--both in terms of the existing licensing method and one in which WD would share appropriate risks.

From 10-cent tickets to $17 billion television contracts, examines how a game became a multibillion dollar industry. Looks at the birth and growth of the NFL, how the NFL responded to competitive challenges, how the NFL maximized revenues, revenue sharing, the salary cap, and a financial comparison of the NFL with MLB, NBA, etc. The NFL from start to finish.

What happens when an MBA buys a football team and hires a bunch of MBAs and a coach with an economics degree to run it? In this case, a historic three Super Bowls in five years. The end run Bob Kraft (HBS '65) used to acquire the New England Patriots. Why Kraft ignored the advice of friends and hired Bill Belichick, a man with a losing record as a head coach. The strategies. The principles. The techniques. How the Patriots not only achieved success but sustained it.

Genius? That is not what they were calling Bill Belichick in Cleveland. Why? Four losing seasons in five years. Fans hurled trash and insults. The media resented him. Ownership abandoned him. Players quit on him. Very different from the three Super Bowls in five years Belichick would win with the New England Patriots a few years later. Different players? Different ownership? Different management styles? Different strategies? Different coach? Find out. What happened when the Browns hired a man who began studying football strategy at the age of six? A man with a degree in economics who almost became an MBA candidate before accepting a job in football that paid $25 a week. A man who was long recognized as one of the best assistant coaches in the NFL. Learn how Belichick managed the players, the coaches, the owner, the media, etc.

While Circuit City struggles, Best Buy has overtaken it to become the premier consumer electronics retailer in the United States. What has driven its success? How can it be sustained?

Successful college basketball coach Bob Knight was fired from his long-time role as basketball coach at Indiana University and hired in the same role at Texas Tech. Considers these events in the context of his long career and provides a context for discussing various styles of power, influence, and persuasion in his leadership role as coach and educator.