Posted by & filed under International Business, Management.

Description:  The pressure is building for Meg Whitman to make a miracle happen.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: Aug 22, 2012

Linkhttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/technology/weak-sales-hurt-hp-in-quarter.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the financial condition at HP and the industry in general.
  • What can management do to affect change in a positive direction?
  • Is this a leadership issue?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management.

Description:  What a difference a decade makes for manufacturers of personal computers.

Source: Marketwatch.com

Date: Aug 22, 2012

Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/now-its-dell-being-told-junk-pcs-2012-08-22?siteid=nwtwk

Questions for Discussions:

  • What has happened to the PC business over the past decade?
  • What are the possible choices facing management?
  • What would you advise?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: Facedeals uses cameras in stores to recognize your face and send you targeted deals using your Facebook profile.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Aug 15, 2012

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2012/08/15/t-facedeals.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • What are the ethical issues that management needs to address if they are going to participate in this sort of technology?
  • How could it be abusive?
  • Do you think it will become popular?
  • Is this technology really necessary, given smartphones can signal the presence of an individual inside the store?

Posted by & filed under Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: Progressive Insurance tried to use twitter to calm public outrage in a controversial death case, but it only made things worse.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Aug 17, 2012

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/08/16/n-progressive-insurance-social-media.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the legal issues in this case.
  • What lessons are there for management that does not recognize the public perception of ethical business behavior?
  • What should management do in the future when a similar case arises?

 

CT:  Management, Organizational Behavior –

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: Richard J. Harrington’s entrepreneurship experience includes starting a plumbing supply business with his brother and nearly three decades of helping transform a Canadian holding company into what is now Thomson Reuters (TRI). Today he is executive chairman at Cue Ball, a venture capital firm in Boston. I spoke recently to Harrington, 65, about his career and the new book he co-authored, Heart, Smarts, Guts, and Luck: What It Takes to Be an Entrepreneur and Build a Great Business (Harvard Business Review Press, 2012). Edited excerpts of our conversation follow.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Aug 16, 2012

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-08-16/why-self-awareness-is-crucial-for-entrepreneurs#r=nav

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the advice for entrepreneurial success given by Richard Harrington?
  • How does this jive with discussions in textbooks?
  • What do you think the recipe for success is?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description:  COMMENTARY Some things naturally complement each other. I don’t know why; they just do. Movies and popcorn. Peanut butter and jelly. The Three Stooges. Tuna fish and mayo. The New York Yankees. Okay, so I’m a little biased. When it comes to your career, work-life balance, that sort of thing, there’s a certain combination of activities that also go together. They fit like a jigsaw puzzle. If one piece is missing, the balance is lost and everything goes to hell.

Source: CBSNews.com

Date: Aug 15, 2012

Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505125_162-57493259/overcoming-obstacles-is-all-about-balance/?tag=nl.e713

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about the road to success?
  • Do you agree or disagree with this commentary?

 

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management.

Description:  Nearly nine in 10 US companies with at least 100 employees will use social networks for marketing activities this year, eMarketer estimates. With so many companies tapping social networks to build brand awareness, gain new customers and keep current ones loyal, how much room is left for growth?

Source: eMarketer.com

Date: Aug 17, 2012

Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1009273&ecid=a6506033675d47f881651943c21c5ed4#1HyYpfzYBJwSEIP2.99

Questions for Discussions:

  • What unique feature does each social network offer marketing managers?
  • Do you believe growth has reached a plateau?
  • Do you think the rankings will change over the next five years?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: Fans of the soccer club want the team to pays down its debts and use extra money to bring in star players.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Aug 10, 2012

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/08/10/n-manchester-united-debt-ipo.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Describe the operations success of the club in terms of the revenues, players’ salaries, and debt.
  • Do you think wider public ownership will affect operations?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: In the wake of Zynga Chief Operating Officer John Schappert’s departure, we look at the condition of the company, including the decline of profitability and continuing litigation. Drew Dowell has details on The News Hub. Photo: Getty Images.

Source: Marketwatch.com – video report

Date: Aug 09, 2012

Link: http://live.wsj.com/video/zynga-weighs-future-after-schappert-departure/C292DF9A-FA2A-438A-903D-65395DABC949.html

Questions for Discussion:

  • What were the reasons offered for the change in management leadership?
  • How should management deal with mobile?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description: Among the major French companies that have triggered protests at home this summer by announcing job cuts, Sanofi (SNY) stands out for its audacity. France’s biggest drugmaker plans to slash its research and development staff in Toulouse and Montpellier and is shifting its focus across the Atlantic to Cambridge, Mass.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Aug 09, 2012

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-08-09/sanofis-shock-therapy-enrages-the-french#r=nav-img

Questions for Discussions:

  • Describe and explain the restructuring of the research group in the firm?
  • What do you think the impact will be on the firm as a whole and within this operating division?