Suggested Case Questions
Ⅰ-1 Claire McCloud
1. What issues should Claire be considering in her decision to accept or decline the general manager position?
2. List the functional areas of a business and rate each one with respect to the amount of industry specific knowledge that is needed to do the job effectively. What does Claire need to know about the technology?
3. What are OWS’s strengths and weaknesses? How does this compare with Claire’s strengths and weakness?
4. What are the most immediate short and long term tasks Claire will need to address?
Ⅱ-1 Advent
1. What was Advent’s initial strategy? What are Advent’s strengths and weakness? What are Advent’s distinctive technological competences?
2. How would you describe Kloss and the innovation process at Advent? What issues are important to Kloss? What is Kloss’s role at Advent? His approach toward innovation? His management style? What are his skills?
3. What resources are required to successfully develop the full screen television?
4. What options are available to Kloss? What are the pros and cons of each option? What should Advent do?
Ⅱ-12 Eli Lilly
1. What are some of the competitive challenges that pharmaceutical companies face in the 1990s(and beyond)? What are the resulting implications for the new drug development process? What is the importance of time-to market?
2. How is combinatorial chemistry changing the drug discovery process? How does it affect the roles of experience and experimentation? What are its risks?
3. How does combinatorial chemistry affect the different stakeholders in the development process (e.g., traditional chemists, research scientists, middle and senior managers)?
4. As Bianca Sharma, which of the following three alternatives would you recommend to the Project Team Advisory Committee (PTAC) (see case Exhibit 10)? Why is there so much disagreement between experts on these options?
a. Take the lead migraine compound directly into clinicals and bring it to market as quickly as possible?
b. Spend more time to refine the current lead migraine compound [using combinatorial chemistry]?
c. Go back to basis research and spend significantly more time to search for a new migraine drug platform [using combinatorial chemistry]?
Note that Lilly’s management does not favor entering more than one compound into clinicals because of cost and resource constraints (see case page 11).
Ⅱ-4 Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line
1. In 1997, what is the structure of the ADSL industry? How has it evolved?
2. In ADSL potentially a technology winner? Why/Why not?
3. In 1997, how well has ADSL penetrated the telecommunications market? Why?
4. Beyond 1997, on what will the further success of ADSL depend? What can the various ADSL vendors do to enhance the success of the technology?
Ⅱ-7,8 Telecommunications Industry
(A)
1. What was the effect of the Carterphone decision on AT&T?
2. What was the effect of the Modified Final Judgment (1984) on the structure of the telecommunications industry? What was the effect on AT&T?
3. What is the structure of the long distances service segment of the telecommunications industry? The local segment? How attractive are these segment? For whom?
4. What has been the strategic impact of wireless communications in the telecommunications industry?
(B)
1. How has the Telecommunications Act of 1996 affected telecoms?
2. During the period of 1996-1999, what are the key developments that have reshaped the local service industry? What did these happen? What are the implications?
3. During 1996-1999, what are the key developments that have reshaped the long distance industry segment? Why did these happen? What are the implications?
4. How has the Internet affected the telecom industry? What are the implications for providers of local or long distance services?
5. By 2005, what is the telecom industry likely to look like?
Ⅱ-15 Hewlett-Packard: The Flight of the Kittyhawk
1. What would you rate as the strengths and weakness of the way Hewlett-Packard structured and supported the Kittyhawk development team?
2. What do you think of the way the team set out to find a market for the Kittyhawk? What correct turns, and what wrong turns did they make?
3. What do you think are the root causes of the failure of the Kittyhawk program? Is there any way HP could have avoided its fate by addressing those root causes?
Ⅱ-13 Intel
(Background)
1. How has the semiconductor industry evolved over time? How do you expect this evolution to continue?
2. How has Intel’s technology strategy changed since 1968? What was it then, what is it now? How has Intel integrated its technology strategy into its business strategy?
3. How does Intel’s approach differ from that of its US and Japanese competitors? How does the management control system affect Intel’s strategic decisions regarding manufacturing capacity and product development?
4. To what extent are DRAM’s a “technology driver” for Intel? Why, Why not? How important are DRAMs in Intel’s overall product mix? Why?
5. What are the advantages of a fungible manufacturing capacity? What are the disadvantages? How fungible is Intel’s manufacturing capacity with respect to the three processes: DRAM, EPROM and logic?
6. How does the structure of R&D shape the nature of innovation at Intel? Why? What are the differences in design approach between the three technology groups? What would Intel lose by getting out of DRAMs? How similar are DRAMs and EPROMs in terms of markets and key success factors?
(DRAM Decision)
1. What has Intel’s technology strategy been with respect to DRAMs? How does this compare to the strategies regarding other key Intel technologies?
2. Why did Intel lose its leadership position in DRAMs? Could this have been avoided?
3. How has the organization reacted to the dramatic loss of market share in DRAMs (see case Exhibit 4)?
4. What should Intel do regarding DRAMs in 1985? Why? Evaluate the four options laid out at the end of the case.
5. How should Dr. Grove implement his decision? What problems could he anticipate?
Ⅲ-5 NEC
1. What is your assessment of NEC’s new technology strategy? What does it take for this strategy to succeed?
2. How can NECI, the new research site in Princeton, best contribute to NEC’s success?
3. What is your assessment of NECI’s performance to date?
4. How should NEC’s management ensure the long-term survival and growth of NECI?
5. What should Mr. Shinoda do next?
Ⅲ-6 3M Optical Systems
1. As Andy Wong, how would you handle the authorization for expenditure (AFE) for the relaunch of the privacy screen?
2. As Paul Guehler, would you approve the AFE if Wong set it up to you?
3. How effective has Wong been as a front-line manager in the 3M context? How effective has Guehler been as a 3M division president?
4. What is it about 3M that makes it perhaps the most consistently entrepreneurial large company in the world?
Ⅳ-1 Product Development at Dell Computer Corporation
1. What are the competitive forces shaping the computer industry in 1993?
2. What has been the state of Dell Computer Corporation prior to and including 1993? Its finances? Its customer base? Its products and product development process? What are they trying to change or improve?
3. Why has Dell’s senior management introduced the new 18-month development process? What are they trying to change or improve?
4. Which battery option should Holliday’s team select? Stay with the proven NiHi battery technology? Or go with the new LiOn battery technology under development at Sony? Or should they defer the decision until the qualification phase review?
Ⅳ-3 Team New Zealand (A)
1. How would you evaluate Team New Zealand’s use of simulation in the design process? What are its advantages and disadvantages? How did their approach to simulation differ from that used by other syndicates?
2. Which yacht construction strategy should Team New Zealand follow? Why? How much improvement would you expect from each?
3. Optional: Please enter an answer to the on-line poll by 10:00 am on the day of class [What would you advise Team New Zealand to do]:
－ Two similar boats now;
－ Two different boats now;
－ One boat now; one boat later.
Ⅳ-4 Braun AG
1. What is your evaluation of the role of industrial design at Braun AG? What has it contributed to the KF 40 coffee machine?
2. What is “responsible design”? Is “masking flaws” responsible design? How should management resolve the current design issues?
3. What recommendations would you make to Waxlax at the end of the case? Be specific, especially with regard to major risks, how they can be addressed, and what changes should be made in current thinking.
V -1 Apple Computer
1. Historically, what were Apple’s major competitive advantages?
2. Analyze the structure if the personal computer industry over the last 10 years. How have the dynamics of the PC industry changed?
3. Evaluate Apple’s strategies since 1990.
4. What should Steve Jobs do today?
V -2 Intel Corporation in 1999
1. By 1998, how successful has Intel been? Why?
2. In 1998, what are the key strategic challenges facing Intel in its core business? How well is top management addressing these challenges? How confident are you they will meet these challenges effectively? Why?
3. Beyond 1998, what are the key strategic challenges facing Intel in developing new businesses? How well is top management addressing these challenges? How confident are you that they will meet these challenges effectively? Why?
4. Suppose you were Craig Barrett’s Technical Assistant at the time of the case. Please prepare the outline of a strategic action plan for Intel for the next 3 to 5 years to help Craig with a presentation he will be making to Intel’s Board of Directors six weeks from now.