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As CEO of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), S. "Ram" Ramadorai had grown the company into an emerging IT services powerhouse, with marquee clients such as General Electric, offices in 32 countries, and revenues of nearly $2 billion dollars. Now, he was about to steer TCS through an initial public offering--the largest ever by a private Indian company. Despite his excitement, Ramadorai knew that in some ways the timing of the IPO was not ideal. TCS had profited tremendously from corporate America's willingness to outsource IT and business process functions to overseas providers. But outsourcing had recently come under attack, with some politicians and labor leaders denouncing it as a threat to American jobs and America's economic dominance. In addition, TCS was facing rising labor costs in India and competition from emerging IT industries in East Asia, South America, and elsewhere. How would Ramadorai address these issues to ease investors' concerns on the eve of the IPO?

David Stern, commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA), faces myriad challenges: globalization of product, young players entering the league, loss of fan base, etc. Stern must put together a plan for the Board of Governors that confronts these challenges to create a more dynamic, profitable, and strategic organization.

At Zipcar, customers share the use of cars and, as a result, rely on each other for their service experience. Customers are required to keep the car clean and the gas tank full and to return the car on time. Told from the perspective of two customers: Sal Fishman, who has a car and is running late at an interview, and Anita Karr, who has just arrived at her reserved car's empty parking spot.

Management is struggling to meet consensus quarterly earnings-per-share numbers. Discusses a number of accounting decisions. A report indicating internal control problems in one of the company's divisions raises a Sarbanes-Oxley certification issue. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

This case presents the first of two workshop descriptions and templates for the Sustainable Marketing Leadership (SML) executive program. It enables a top management team to focus on the first two steps in the four-step SML process: strategic visioning and integrated planning.

This case presents the second of two workshop descriptions and templates for the Sustainable Marketing Leadership (SML) executive program. It enables a top management team to approach the last two steps in the four-step SML process: managing performance and marketing controllership.

In 2001 Veropoulos Spar, a 770 million Euro retailer in Greece and the Balkan region, intiated the implementation of a new Internet enabled collaborative ordering IT system with 3 suppliers: P&G, Unilever, and Elgeka. Two years later the project failed and had to stop. The CEO is now evaluating a new proposal for re-starting the initiative.

This case describes how IDEO adapt its famed innovation process (developed to design new products) to the particularities of services and their design. The case series describes four service design projects to show how IDEO has developed and codified a series of design methods, which constitute a toolbox from which teams can pick and choose depending on the innovation project.

China's huge population and potential market had attracted foreign companies since its economy began opening in the late 1970s. Although the profit position of some foreign companies improved by 2003, China remained a frustrating and unprofitable market for many. Highlights four major multinationals that were successful in the Chinese market. Allows for a discussion on what it takes to succeed in the Chinese market, how this compares to what it takes to succeed elsewhere, and the challenges and opportunities associated with leadership positions in emerging economies.

When she becomes chairperson of a large telecommunications board, Irene Charnley must transform the mostly white-led company to be more representative of South Africa's demographics. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

When she becomes chairperson of a large telecommunications board, Irene Charnley must transform the mostly white-led company to be more representative of South Africa's demographics.

Apple has reaped the benefits of its innovative music player, the iPod. However, its PC and server business continue to hold small market share relative to the worldwide computer market over the past few years. Will the iPod lure new users to the Mac? Will Apple be able to produce another cutting-edge device quickly?

In September 2002, Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) needed to decide how to finance its proposed $1.7 billion pot line. The company's financial adviser, Taylor De-Jongh (TDJ), had recommended Alba employ a multisourced financing strategy using as many as five sources of debt from international, regional, and local capital pools. TDJ believed that the strategy would generate competition among the lenders which, in turn, would save Alba millions in financing costs. But the multisourced financing strategy went against the grain of typical project financings in the Middle East and was not without its risks. Alba management must decide how many financing sources to use, which ones, and how much to get from each one. If the market rejects the multisourced financing strategy, the project might become tainted, which could jeopardize Alba's long-term growth objectives.

Financial analysis is one way to detect WorldCom's fraudulent accounting. This case presents two perspectives of WorldCom: the company as viewed by security analysts and the inside view of the accounting fraud. Also looks at the company's acquisition accounting to assess potential for abuse. Teaching Purpose: To assess the probability of accounting risk.

Wal-Mart has been expanding, both domestically and internationally. Covers recent developments at Wal-Mart, including new stores, new store formats, and international expansion.

Introduces the core principles and challenges of bankruptcy law (both individual and corporate) against the backdrop of the early 1970s, when the U.S. bankruptcy system appeared to be failing. With personal bankruptcy filings at record levels and successful corporate reorganizations relatively rare, policymakers had to decide whether the time had come to overhaul the nation's bankruptcy law and, if so, how to structure the new system.

Illustrates the challenges of managing a global business enterprise. A rewritten version of an earlier case.

The largest wireless paging company in the United States has to restructure its debt in response to the collapse of its market. The restructuring faces formidable challenges. Valuing the company is extremely difficult because Arch's public competitors are also severely troubled and the industry's future is highly uncertain. In addition, the company has an extremely complicated parent-subsidiary holding company structure.

Presents the dilemma facing George Jones with respect to the high selling cost at Parisian Department Stores. The challenges to be considered reflect issues at different levels of the organization, including individual salespeople, the store itself, and the merchandise policy for a set of rather diverse stores.

Was Premier, Inc., a hospital group purchasing organization (GPO), guilty of ethical conflicts of interest? Premier was a GPO for more than 200 affiliated not-for-profit hospitals and health care systems in the United States. A series of investigative articles in The New York Times, beginning in March 2002, charged Premier with multiple conflicts of interest. Among its allegations, the newspaper argued that seller-paid fees; investments by Premier and its executives in vendors; and investments by vendors in Premier-sponsored equity funds, research institutes, and conferences all biased the selection process for medical products and services. As a result, Premier did not always choose items of the best quality or value for its affiliated hospitals. Moreover, The Times charged, new products--particularly those developed by small firms--were effectively locked out, suppressing medical innovation and hurting patient care. Richard A. Norling, CEO, and other top executives of Premier faced the difficult task of formulating an effective response to the charges raised by The New York Times. Received the Emerson Center Award for the Outstanding Case in Business Ethics for 2004.