Investors these days are paying close attention to companies'' environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. But business leaders are discovering that it''s not enough just to disclose ESG data or invite shareholders to a sustainability-focused event; those sorts of cookie-cutter efforts fail to bring rewards from capital markets. The Spotlight feature "Social-Impact Efforts That Create Value" suggests a better approach--one .....more

To make it through the downturn and return to growth, companies will need to rewire operations, reallocate resources, and in some cases reinvent business models. Joint ventures and partnerships can help many firms with those efforts. In this article, three consultants outline how companies can shore up their existing JVs through capital-raising, cost-reduction, and synergy-tapping techniques that often aren''t available to wholly owned entities. .....more

In this fictional case, Alex, a real estate developer, is at a crossroads in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. His company is a year away from completing a 700,000-square-foot commercial office complex in downtown Moscow, but construction has paused, and the economic future is uncertain. One of his partners, who''s with a Russian company, proposes that they cut their losses and sell to a company in Kazakhstan. The other, a managing director .....more

In this fictional case, Alex, a real estate developer, is at a crossroads in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. His company is a year away from completing a 700,000-square-foot commercial office complex in downtown Moscow, but construction has paused, and the economic future is uncertain. One of his partners, who''s with a Russian company, proposes that they cut their losses and sell to a company in Kazakhstan. The other, a managing director .....more

In this fictional case, Alex, a real estate developer, is at a crossroads in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. His company is a year away from completing a 700,000-square-foot commercial office complex in downtown Moscow, but construction has paused, and the economic future is uncertain. One of his partners, who''s with a Russian company, proposes that they cut their losses and sell to a company in Kazakhstan. The other, a managing director .....more

In July 2019, AFC Ajax''s chief executive officer Edwin van der Sar finalized one of the biggest transfers in soccer-that of Matthijs de Ligt, only 19 years old but already one of the sports world''s brightest stars, from AFC Ajax to Italian powerhouse Juventus FC for a 75 million fee. A few months earlier, Ajax had sold another young star, Frenkie de Jong, to Spanish champions FC Barcelona for a record 86 million. Once Europe''s .....more

In May 2018, Philippe Boisclair, business owner and president of McGill St Laurent (MSL), sought to grow the firm and increase annual profitability by CA$35 million by 2020. MSL was a medium-sized commodities trading firm with interests in wood, grain, and energy. Founded in 2009 by two business school graduates and veterans of the lumber industry, MSL had enjoyed significant growth. The company had not only expanded into grain and energy trading .....more

Bang Si-Hyuk (''Hitman Bang'') is the founder and co-chief executive officer of Big Hit Entertainment, the company behind BTS, a ''K-pop'' band that has found unparalleled success around the globe-a remarkable feat given that most of their songs are in Korean. It is March 1, 2020. With its latest album, the band has now scored its fourth chart-topping album in the U.S. in less than two years. The band''s popularity .....more

In May 2013, TransDigm, a company that manufactured a wide range of highly engineered aerospace parts for both military and civilian aircraft, announced it was buying Arkwin Industries for $286 million in cash (3 times Arkin''s sales of $91 million). Having acquired more than 40 companies in the past 20 years, TransDigm was an experienced acquirer with a unique business model focused exclusively on value creation. This case describes TransDigm''s .....more

Spreadsheet supplement for case 720467.