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International Management
Case
Studies
Woman
CEO Manages by the Textbook (20 Marks)
The
demand for managers with an international background is great. Consider Marisa
Bellisario who was one of the most soughtafter executives in Europe. She was
the first woman to head a major industrial firm in Italy, the state –
controlled ITALTEL Societa Italiana. This company is the biggest Italian firm
making telecommunications equipment. Bellisario’s background, however, is
international. After receiving her degree in economics and business administration
from Turin University, she worked at Olivetti in the electronics division. When
Olivetti sold its date processing unit to General Electric, she spent time in
Miami working on GE’s worldwide marketing strategy for computers. She left GE
to head corporate planning at Olivetti. As the CEO at ITALTEL, she turned the
company around, showing a small profit. (The firm had experienced huge losses
in the past.) Her managerial approach has been characterized as “straight out
of the textbook,” and companies such as GTE Corporation, IBM, AT&T, and
other European and Japanese firms are interested in recruiting her.
Answer the following question.
Q1. Why
was Ms. Bellisario a muc– sought – after CEO ? What was her career path ?
Q2.
What special problems may she have encountered as a woman heading a major
company in Italy ?
Q3. If
she was successful managing by the textbook, why do some managers still think
that management cannot be taught ?
Coke’s European Scare (20 Marks)
What
seemed like an isolated incident of a few bad cans of CocaCola at a school in
Belgium turned into near disaster for the soft drink giant’s European
operations. In June 1999, Coke experienced its worst nightmare a contamination
scare resulting in the recall of 14 million cases of Coke products in five
European countries and huge blow to consumer confidence in the quality and
safety of the world’s most recognizable brand. After the initial scare in
Bornem, Belgium, Coke and Coca – Cola Enterprises (CCE), a thought they had
isolated the problem. Scientists at the CCE bottling plant in Antwerp found
that lapses in quality control had led to contaminated carbon dioxide that were
used in the bottling of a recent batch of Coke. Company officials saw the
contamination as minor problem and they issued an apology to the school. At the
same time that the problems were being dealt with in Antwerp, things were
breaking down at Coke’s Dunkirk, France, bottling plant. In Belsele, 10 miles
from Bornem, children and teachers were complaining of illnesses related to
drinking Coke products. The vending machines at the school were stocked with
Coke from the
company’s
Dunkirk plant’s practices were being questioned. What initially seemed like an
isolated incident was now a crisis. Immediately following the second scare,
Belgium’s Health Minister banned the sale of all precuts produced in the
Antwerp and Dunkirk plants. Things got worse when Coke gave an incomplete set
of recall codes to a school in Lochristi, Belgium, resulting in 38 children
being rushed to the hospital. Immediately following this incident, French
officials banned the sale of soft drinks produced in the Dunkirk plant. It was
believed that fungicide on wooden shipping pallets were the cause of the
illnesses at the Dunikrik plant. On June 15th, 1999, 11 days after the initial
scare in Bornem, Coke finally issued an explanation to the public. Most
Europeans were not satisfied. Coca – Cola officials used vague language and
often contradicted one another when making statements. France’s Health
Minister, Bernard Kouchner, stated, “That a company so very expert in
advertising and marketing should be so poor in communication on this matter is
astonishing.” After three weeks of testing by both Coke officials and French
government scientists, it was concluded that the plants were safe and that
there was no immediate threat to the health of consumers. Coke has destroyed
all of the pallets in Dunikirk and tightened quality control on CO2. How could
this happen to the company that is revered worldwide for its quality control
and the superiority of its products ? Coke has spent decades building its
reputation
overseas
and the European market now represents 73% of total profits. While the scare
has had some effect on Coke’s profits in Europe, the company is more concerned
with damages to its reputation and consumer confidence in its products. Many
critics say that Coke’s slow response time, insisting that no real problem
existed and belated apology have severely damaged the company’s reputation in
Europe. Some would disagree and feel that Coke handled the situation as best it
could. “I think that Coke acted in a responsible, diligent way,” says John
Sitcher, editor of Beverage Digest. “Their first responsibility was to
ascertain the facts in a clear and unequivocal way. Any as soon as Coke knew
what the facts were, they put out a statement to the Belgium people.” The
character and quality of a company can often be measured by how it responds to
adversity. CocaCola believes that this crisis has forced the company to reexamine
both its marketing and management strategies in Europe. Coke executives in
Brussels are predicting that the company will double its European sales in the
next decade and that this setback will only make the company stronger. Wall
Street analysts seem to agree. Only time will tell.
Answer the following question.
Q1.
What are the management issues in this case ?
Q2.
What did Coke do and what could have been done differently ?
Q3.
What are the key factors that were or should have been considered by management
? Profiles of Two Visionaries –
Bill Gates & Steve Jobs (20 Marks)
Two men
who gave their hearts and souls for developing their visions have driven the
personal computer revolution. However, the way in which each of theses men went
about this quest has been different. Steve Jobs and Bill Gates have changed the
way the world does business, but the story of their leadership styles is even
more compelling than the success and innovation spawned by Apple and Microsoft.
Bill vs. SteveThe Early Years Bill Gates started developing his computer skills
with his childhood friend Paul Allen at Lakeside School in Seattle. At the age
of 14, the two had formed their first computer company. After high school,
Allen and Gates left Seattle for Boston. Gates was off to Harvard , Gates and
Allen left Boston for Albuguerque to develop a computer language for the new
Altair 8080 personal computer. This computer language would become BASIC and
was the foundation for Microsoft, which was created as a partnership in 1975. After
five years in New Mexico, Microsoft relocated to Bellevue, Washington in 1980
with BASIC and two other computer languages (COBOL and FORTRAN) in its arsenal.
Later that year, IBM began developing its first
PC and
was in need o an operating system. Microsoft development the Microsoft Disk
Operating System (MSDOS)
for IBM
while two other companies created competing systems. Gates’ determination and
persuasion of other software firms to develop programs for MSDOS made it the
default IBM platform. As Microsoft became more successful, Gates realized that
he needed help managing Microsoft. His enthusiasm, vision, and hard work were
the driving force behind the company’s growth, but he recognized the need for
professional management. Gates brought in another one of his friends from
Harvard, Steve Ballmer. Ballmer had worked for Proctor & Gamble after
graduating from Harvard and was pursuing his MBA at Stanford. Gates persuaded
Ballmer to leave school and join Microsoft. Over the years, Ballmer has become
an indispensable asset to both Gates and Microsoft. In 1983, Gates continued to
show his brilliance by hiring Jon Shriley who brought order to Microsoft and
streamlined the organization structure, while Bailmer served as an advisor and
sounding board for Gates. Microsoft continued to grow and prosper in the 1990s
and Gates has become the richest man in the world. Microsoft dominates both the
operating system market with its Windows application and the office suite
software market with Microsoft Office. Gates recognized that his role was to be
the visionary of the company and that he needed professional managers to run
Microsoft. Gates combined his unyielding determination and passion with a
wellstructured management team to make Microsoft the giant it is today. The other
visionary, Steve Jobs, and his friend Steve Wosniak started Apple Computer at
Jobs’ garage in Los Altos, California in 1976. In contrast to Bill Gates, Jobs
and Wosniak were hardware experts and started with a vision for a personal
computer that was affordable and easy to use. When Microsoft offered BASIC to
Apple, Jobs immediately dismissed the idea on the basis that he and Wosniak
could create their own version of BASIC in a weekend. This was typical Jobs:
decisive and almost maniacal at times. Jobs eventually agreed to license
Microsoft’s BASIC while pursuing his own vision of developing a more usable and
friendly interface for the PC. Many see Jobs as antiGates. He is a trailblazer
and a creator as opposed to Gates who is more of a consolidator of industry
standards. Jobs’ goal was to change the world with his computers. He was also
very demanding of his employees. Jobs was different from Gates, Allen and
Wosniak. He was the person selling the idea of the personal computer to the
public. Jobs made the decision to change the direction of Apple to develop the
Macintosh using a new Graphical User Interface (GUI) that introduced the world
to the mouse and onscreen icons. Jobs forced people to choose between the
MicrosoftIBM DOS operating system and his GUI Macintosh OS. In the beginning,
jobs was the visionary who changed the computer world and Apple dwarfed
Microsoft. With all this success, there was a major problem brewing at Apple
Steve Jobs was overconfident and did not see Gates and Microsoft as a serious
threat to Apple. Soon after the release of the Macintosh computer, Jobs asked
Microsoft to develop software for the Mac operating system. Gates obliged and
proceeded to launch
a
project copying and improving Apple’s user interface. The result of that
venture was Microsoft Windows. This cocky attitude and lack of management
skills made Jobs a threat to Apple’s success. He never bothered to develop
budgets and his relationship with his employees has been criticized. Wacintosh
due to differences with Jobs. In 1985, John Scully, CEO of PepsiCo replaced
Steve Jobs as president and CEO of Apple Computers. The 1990s saw Microsoft and
Apple go in two very different directions. Microsoft became one of the most
profitable companies in the world making Bill Gates the world’s richest man.
Microsoft Windows became the industry’s standard operating system. Apply fell
from grace and became a niche market player. Jobs went on founding NEXT, a
small computer manufacturing company and Pixar, the animation house that produced
Toy Story and A Bug’s Life. Microsoft and Apple at the Turn of the CenturyAn
Industry Giant and a Revitalized Leader With the success of the Windows
operating system, the Office application suite and Internet Explorer software,
Microsoft has become a household name; Bill Gates has been hailed as a business
genius. The fact that Microsoft’s competitors, the press, and the US Justice
Department have called Microsoft a monopoly reinforces Gates’ determination to
succeed. Many people question whether Microsoft can survive that Justice
Department’s decision.
Bill
Gates, however, has shown that he is the master of adapting to changing market
conditions and technologies. Apple had gone in the opposite direction in the
1990s. The outdated operating system and falling market share eventually led to
a decrease in software development for the Mac. Something needed to be done. In
1998 Steve Jobs returned to Apple as the “interim” CEO. His vision, once again,
resulted in the innovative iMac. The design was classic Jobs. In the 1980s he
created the simpletooperate Macintosh to attract people who were using IBM PCs
and their clones. Now he has developed a simple, stylish, and internetfriendly
computer to add some muchneeded excitement to the computer market. Jobs has
also changed as a manger and a leader. He has matured and looks to his
professional staff for advice and ideas. Although he is the interim CEO, Jobs
has sold all but one share of his Apple stock. Larry Ellison, Oracle’s CEO and
Apple board member, attributes Jobs’ ability to lead Apple to this fact: “He
owns only one share of Apple stock, yet he clearly owns the product and the
idea behind the company. The Mac is an expression of his creativity, and Apple
as a whole is an expression of Steve That’s why, despite the ‘interim’ in his
title, he’ll stay at Apple for a long time.”
Many
people believe that this will lead to continued success for Apply and a renewed
battle between Gates and Jobs.
Answer the following question.
Q1. How
did Bill Gates and Steve Jobs differ in their leadership style ?
Q2.
Compare and contrast the managerial practices of Gates and Jobs.
Q3.
What do you think about the future of Microsoft and Apple Computers ?
How to Win at Westinghouse (20 Marks)
Westinghouse
founded the Westinghouse Electric Company in 1886, over 100 years ago. From the
beginning, the hallmark of the company was one of entrepreneurship and
creativity. By inventing a new for tr3nsmitting electric current over long
distances, the firm penetrated the fledgling electric industry. Its aptitude
for technological innovation led the firm into the development and creation of
diverse products, from household appliances to watches to nuclear power
equipment. The firm also demonstrated creative diversity, branching into such
endeavours as radio station operations, softdrink bottling, and low income
housing Today, the Westinghouse Corporation is organized into six operational
groups broadcasting, commercial, electronics systems, energy and utility
systems, financial services, and industries. As Westinghouse grew and began its
expansion into foreign markets, it became apparent that the firm’s
organisational structures and communication systems would have to be modernized
to provide the flexibility demanded by overseas operations. Rigid procedures and
red tape had to be eliminated, and ways had to be developed, by which key
employees around the world could communicate with each other rapidly, so that
their giant company could adequately react to
changing
conditions around the world. To meet this communication support challenge,
Westinghouse established a changeresponsive high-tech communication network to
support its farflung operations. A new commuter system allows employees at all
levels of the corporation to communicate through decentralized support
networks. Westinghouse employees from different divisions and different
departments can linkup in order to share information around the world. The new
support system, called the Westinghouse Information Network (WIN), links more
than 600 Westinghouse facilities, providing both voice and data transmissions
as well as an electronic mail system. Westinghouse employees can link WIN to
their homes or to their laptops when travelling. WIN offers videoconferencing,
which reduces or eliminates the need for costly and timeconsuming travel to
meetings. WIN also contains an advanced negotiation system, called EDGE, which
supports sales personnel during complex sales negotiations. Every working day,
over 90000 Westinghouse employees utilize the WIN system, which provides the
flexible online support that Westinghouse needs to expand its global
enterprises.
Answer the following question.
Q1.
Describe the ways in which international business has an impact on your life.
Q2.
Pick an Indian corporation with which you are familiar and analyse the reasons
why it might be motivated to expand its internationalism.
Q3.
What sorts of adjustments might McDonald’s have to make in its operations in
India?
Q4.
What do you believe India must do to improve its international competitiveness?
Assignment Solutions, Case study Answer sheets
Project Report and Thesis - Contact
ARAVIND – 09901366442 – 09902787224
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