Cases in the Environment of Business
International Perspectives
- David W. Conklin - The Richard Ivey School of Business, The University of Western Ontario, Canada
The Ivey Casebook Series
Organization Studies (General)
Cases in the Environment of Business offers an outstanding collection of relevant, classroom-tested cases. In discussing the cases, students participate in managerial decisions in an international context. Most cases deal with a variety of environmental forces, but generally a single set of forces plays a predominant role. In view of this, the cases are divided in accordance with the following themes:
- Industry structure: responses to strategies of customers, suppliers and competitors, dependence of profitability on unique value-added attributes, and the shift of certain activities to low-wage countries;
- Macroeconomic variables: income levels and growth rates, foreign exchange rates, inflation rates, interest rates, and unemployment rates;
- Political variables: regulations, financial incentives, taxation, foreign investment restrictions, and international trade and investment agreements;
- Societal variables: labour and environmental practices, ethics, corporate social responsibility, Boards of Directors, and demographics;
- Technological variables: technological infrastructure and the pace and direction of technological changes, including in particular the Internet and e-business.
"Conklin has compiled an excellent selection from the case library of the Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario, the world’s second-largest collection of business cases written by professors. . . . Cases are clearly written with tables, graphs, income statements, balance sheets, and suggested readings within most cases. . . . Highly recommended."
"The highlight of the book is its diversity and breadth. The cases are chosen from a variety of industries . . . The key differentiating features of this book are the holistic perspective that it provides on the business environment and the different country contexts that it presents."
