Teaching note for product 9B14M050.

A couple who had moved to a new home in Toronto noticed that the area did not offer any dining options similar to the New York diners they had loved in their four years of living there. The couple, who had two young children, could not find a place nearby that was child-friendly and served chef-quality food. Rather than waiting for someone else to fill the gap in the upscale neighbourhood, the couple opened Uncle Betty’s. The restaurant was successful .....more

Teaching note for product 9B11M055.

The vice president and managing director of Nokia India needed to decide whether to undertake an all-India launch of Nokia’s newest service offering for emerging markets, called Nokia Lifetools (NLT). The NLT pilot was very successful, with consumer adoption and retention rates over 70 per cent. However, offering services and applications that came directly loaded onto a handset was new for Nokia, put it in direct competition with service providers, .....more

Teaching note for product 9B11M015.

Rogers Communications’ new president and chief executive officer (CEO) contemplated the future growth opportunities of the company. The CEO was taking control of Rogers at a high point — it was a powerful player in all areas of the telecommunications sector including wireless, television, Internet telephone, and landline telephone. However, competition in the industry was also at an all-time high and innovations were abounding. The CEO knew that to .....more

The need for effective business leaders in India is as intense as it is elsewhere. But the path that Indian firms take to develop effective leaders is considerably different from the path followed by North American firms. Indian managers are fixated on profits, yet if top Indian firms are to depend on leadership development organizations, then these organizations must promote research and teaching in six key areas, including developing and retaining .....more

Service Corporation International, the world's largest funeral consolidator, has just made a formal takeover bid for the Loewen Group, its key competitor. The offer is approximately 50 per cent above the price at which Loewen Group stock traded 30 days ago. Should Loewen Group fight the takeover, or should it accept it? This case helps students understand how to evaluate a company's strategy relative to its external environment and internal .....more

Teaching note for product 9A98M008.

Starbucks is faced with the issue of how it should leverage its core competencies against various opportunities for growth, including introducing its coffee in McDonald’s, pursuing further expansion of its retail operations, and leveraging the brand into other product areas. The case is written so that students need to first identify where Starbucks competencies lie along the value chain, and assess how well those competencies can be leveraged across .....more