List questions Case Studies Essay

Overview and Objectives: The case traces the path taken by an overseas operation from low cost manufacturing to higher value-added activities such as R&D. It asks students to consider the factors driving the evolution and this timing and circumstances that would make it successful. It creates the opportunity to discuss the tensions of designing for marketing vs. designing for manufacturing, the challenges of product development in a cross cultural setting, and the reasons why localized R&D may be successful. vs. adaptation, and the structures and systems built to manage that tension. The case also helps to the diagnosis of the causes of failure of a new product development project, and the sources of challenges of a cross-cultural context. Finally, the case enables students to discuss the â€Å"local for local† strategy. Suggested Questions: 1. What capabilities and resources does a company need to develop new products? 2. Which of these capabilities and resources foes Bella Healthcare India have? 3. Why did Project Baton fail? 4. Should Bella Healthcare India take on project TKO and develop an EKG specifically for the local market? Coloplast 10 years of global operations Ivey 2011 # W12101 STRAT MAGT – Internationalization and offshoring activities; matrix structure UD: 12/12/2012 Overview and Objectives: The case examines the organizational and managerial challenges involved in offshoring and internationalizing substantial portions of firms’ organizational activities to foreign countries. Students will need to consider the learning journey Coloplast underwent in this process, from managing the reconfiguration to the implementation of a new and complex design. They have to understand the features and challenges of the matrix form as the organizational structure used by Coloplast. The case covers three topics: offshoring and international business; international corporate strategy; organizational design and learning. Suggested Questions: 1. What are the strategic challenges of reconfiguring a company like Coloplast in which it transforms from a company with only domestically located activities to have offshored most of its production to a number of foreign locations? 2. Discuss the problematic introduction of the matrix structure. Why can matrix structures be problematic in large organizations? What could have made the matrix structure more successful? 3. The case illustrates how Coloplast reconfigured its organization from being only domestically located to become truly multinational. What are the organizational consequences of reconfiguring the company on a global scale? 4. Coloplast went through an extensive learning journey since the decision to offshore production facilities. Which key learning points were achieved, and how can the company ensure that this knowledge is embedded in future strategic considerations? 5. Identify, describe, and discuss the competitive environment and market characteristics if the ind ustry in which Coloplast belongs. Levendary Cafà ©: The China challenge 2011, HBS #4357 STRAT MAGT – Internationalization; expansion in China; standardization vs. adaptation; relationship HQ-subsidiary UD: 12/12/2012 Overview and Objectives: The case describes the establishment of Levendary Cafà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s subsidiary in China and its evolving relationship with its parent company during the first two years of its existence. It focuses in particular on the decisions and actions of Louis Chen, the founding president of the subsidiary as he tries to establish relations in China and to negotiate its relationships with Headquarters in the USA. The case enables to examine the following topics: 1) the need for standardization and control vs. differentiation and flexibility; 2) the tension between strategic control and entrepreneurial flexibility; and 3) situational leadership, and leadership models. More precisely, it can be used to build an understanding of the roles and responsibilities of country subsidiary management and the corresponding changes in the nature of the headquarters-subsidiary relationship, including the control aspect. Students can also study the global strategic issue of operations of standardization vs. adaptation, and the structures and systems built to manage that tension. Suggested Questions: 1. What is your evaluation of the way Levendary Cafà © has entered the China market? 2. What changes (in any) should Mia Foster make? Specifically, what should she do about Louis Chen? And what changes (if any) would you propose at headquarters? 3. Prepare a specific action program for Foster to help her deal with the need for continued growth in China. What should be on the agenda for her meeting with Chen?