BUSINESS MARKETING AND LOGISTICS 752
CASES IN MANAGERIAL MARKETING
WINTER 2011
Professor Robert E. Burnkrant
Office Hours: By appointment
512 Fisher Hall, 292-6600
E-mail: burnkrant.1@osu.edu
Learning Objectives
This course requires you to make and defend marketing decisions. It is expected that you will
apply what you’ve learned in previous marketing courses to the cases under consideration in this
class. You will develop and improve analytical (quantitative and qualitative) and oral
presentation skills by applying your knowledge of marketing principles to real business
problems.
Required Materials
Case Packet containing Harvard cases and supporting materials, available at Uniprint.
Material to be distributed in class.
Performance Evaluation
Evaluation Components
Board of Directors’ Presentation
Strategy Presentation
Written Assignments
Class Participation
Group Midterm Exam
Final Exam
Evaluation Scale:
15%
15%
15%
25%
15%
15%
A
AB+
B
B-
92+
90-91
88-89
87-82
80-81
C+
C
CD+
D
E
78-79
72-77
70-71
68-69
62-67
Below 60
Grades reflect an evaluation of the QUALITY of the delivered product. If it is believed that a
grade does not adequately reflect the quality of the finished product, the grade can be appealed in
writing (one page maximum). Your appeal must include a specific argument explaining why the
grade does not reflect the quality of the completed work. Grade appeals on group work must be
signed by all members of the group. When a grade is appealed, the entire assignment will be reevaluated, and grades may be adjusted in either direction.
You are responsible for all information presented in class, including schedule changes, whether
you are present or not. Assignments are due at the start of class, as soon as the bell rings.
Your class participation grade will be dependent on the quality of your in-class discussion of the
issues raised in the cases and case presentations. It is expected that all students will carefully
read and analyze each case prior to coming to class and participate actively in the class
discussion by drawing on that analysis to answer questions, raise issues and contribute to case
solutions. To do well in class participation, students must regularly contribute to class discussion
by making insightful comments that reflect a careful analysis of the case. Simply reacting on
the fly to what others say or drawing on one’s own personal background to make comments will
not be considered strong class participation. Also, simply attending class does not count as good
class participation.
Schedule of Activities
M
W
1/3
1/5
M
1/10
W
1/12
M
W
M
W
M
1/17
1/19
1/24
1/26
1/31
W
M
W
M
W
M
W
M
W
M
W
2/2
2/7
2/9
2/14
2/16
2/21
2/23
2/28
3/2
3/7
3/9
Introduction to the course.
Discussion of course, case presentations and quantitative analysis. (QA
assignment is due).
Guest Speaker – Tom Marchese, Vice President of Marketing and Innovation,
Bob Evans
In-class discussion of Dominion Motors and Controls (DMC assignment is due.
Team assignments will be made.).
HOLIDAY: Martin Luther King’s Birthday
Team Presentation Case #1 – Black and Decker
Guest Speaker – Tom Harvey, Entrepreneur, Former CEO, Marketing Lecturer
Team Presentation Case #2 – Hilton HHonors Worldwide
Team Presentation Case #3 – Mountain Man Brewing Company: Bringing the
Brand to Light
Team Presentation Case #4 – Brita Products
Team Presentation Case #5 – Rosewood Resorts (Midterm case distributed)
Midterm Group Project Day
Group Midterm Case Report Due
Guest Speaker – Michael Bills, Principal, Fitch Inc., Executive in Residence
Team Presentation Case #6 – Hartmann Luggage
Team Presentation Case #7 – Cumberland Metal Industries
Team Presentation Case #8 – XM Satellite Radio (A)
Team Presentation Case #9 – The Fashion Channel
Team Presentation Case #10 – Springfield Nor’easters
Individual Exam – Covering Principles Discussed in Class
Group Assignments
As the schedule of activities indicates, much of the work of this class will be completed by
project teams. Early in the quarter each student will be assigned to one of 10 project teams (5
scarlet and 5 gray). Team responsibilities will take place based on your team assignment
according to the following schedule:
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Date
Board of Directors
Strategies
S1
G1
S3
G3
S5
S2
G2
G4
S4
G5
S2
G2
S4
G4
G5
G1
S3
S1
S5
G3
W 1/19
W 1/26
M 1/31
W 2/02
M 2/07
M 2/21
W 2/23
M 2/28
W 3/02
M 3/07
Case
Black and Decker
Hilton HHonors
Mountain Man Brewing Company
Brita Products
Rosewood Resorts
Hartmann
Cumberland Metal Industries
XM Satellite Radio (A)
Fashion Channel
Springfield Nor’easters
A General Plan for Team Case Presentation Days
First 1-5 minutes
Followed by
5 minutes
Followed by
10-15 minutes
5 minutes
Introductory Remarks
Board of Directors’ Presentation (20-30 minutes)
Clarification questions, if necessary
Strategy Presentation (20-30 minutes)
Board leaves the room to decide on response to the strategy team
Board evaluates strategy presentation and responds to questions
from the class.
General Rules
To assure that everyone in the class has a positive experience, the following behavior is
expected:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Be on time for class. Class will always start punctually, and arriving late is distracting to
the students who are making a presentation.
Do not leave class before class is dismissed, unless absolutely necessary.
Respect the opinions of others, even if you don’t agree with them.
Treat everyone with respect regardless of his/her beliefs, opinions, gender, age, race,
national origin, physical abilities, sexual orientation, religion or status as a Vietnam-era
Veteran.
Do not bring any food or drink to class other than water.
A note about working in groups
You are expected to work with group members and to negotiate conflicts in scheduling, work
habits, level of effort, etc. on your own. Serious problems should be discussed with the
instructor on an individual or group level basis, but in general, working out problems is an
important part of any team effort. In general, groups will be responsible for the negative actions
of any member, such as a member’s failure to complete work or arriving late for a presentation.
However, if a serious problem has been brought to the instructor’s attention in advance and it
becomes apparent from discussions with the group that a member is disruptive or not
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participating, the instructor may either remove the individual from the group or modify the
student’s case and project grades to more accurately reflect performance.
Board of Director’s Presentation – Expectations for Quality
The Board has two major roles: to analyze the firm’s current and past position, and to evaluate
the recommendations of the strategy team.
1.
Analyze the firm/product/brands current and future situation.
Analysis involves using qualitative and quantitative information to describe the firm’s past,
current and future position. An analysis is not a summary of the case material. You should USE
the case material to complete the analysis, but the analysis must offer direction and conclusions
that can be used to plan the firm’s next moves. It should go beyond restating what is in the case.
The discussion will usually involve the following topics:


A clear statement of the problem.
A brief discussion of exactly why the problem occurred and/or why the issue is important.
You must provide a clear set of arguments about why the problem arose or why the issue is
important to the firm at the time the case was written.

A situation analysis.
The main point of the situation analysis is to provide a context for evaluating or choosing among
alternative courses of action. Use appropriate analytical tools. Issues that are frequently
important in case analysis include the following (however, all the issues are not important in
every case):
a.
A macro environmental analysis – Are there aspects of the environment that have led to
the problem or impact the organization’s ability to implement its strategy, and do they
represent threats or opportunities? Focus on those aspects most relevant to your specific
organization. They may include any or all of the following:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
b.
Economic/Financial
Technological
Social/Cultural
Political
Regulatory
Resources/Supply
Timing
A task-level environmental analysis – What aspects of the organization’s day to day task
environment have led to the problem or impact its ability to implement strategy? Do
these forces represent opportunities or threats?
1.
Customers – What do customers want? How are customers served, by the
organization and by its competitors?
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c.
2.
Competitors – Who are the competitors? What are their strengths/weaknesses?
Who is the most important competitor? Which competitors are likely to respond
to changes in the marketing plan?
3.
Channel Partners – Describe relations with suppliers and facilitators (financial
institutions, advertising agencies, manufacturer rep firms, etc.). What
opportunities or threats are present with current and future channel partners?
How do channel partners provide value, both to the firm and to the final
consumer?
An organizational analysis –Focusing on strengths and weaknesses of the firm.
1.
People – Current personnel, gaps in personnel.
2.
Finances – What is the firm’s current financial position? What are the relevant
trends?
3.
Marketing position – Relative market share, trends in market share growth,
profitability of marketing decisions.
4.
Marketing resources – 4 P’s, product life cycle, brand equity, customer service
and support, sales force strength. What are the firm’s unique marketing
advantages?
5.
Timing – What is the firm’s posture with regard to implementation? Is the firm a
first mover? A follower?
The presentation of the situation analysis can be enhanced by drawing on literature that
provides marketing principles relevant to the product or decision under consideration, and
if this information is provided it should be briefly presented, properly cited and tied very
specifically to the problem under consideration. Use of strategic decision tools or planning
tools that have been learned in previous courses (e.g., the Boston Consulting Group Matrix,
Product Life Cycle Model, etc.) can also be beneficial and if used should be properly cited
and briefly discussed. It would also be advisable to use spreadsheets to address the
implications of data presented in cases. Spreadsheets and related data analysis tools can
help make sense of the data in the case, and they can help provide justification for your
decisions. Just remember to use what is most relevant for your particular case!
2.
You may use brief hand-outs to support your presentation. Each member of your
group must have a speaking part.
3.
Evaluate the recommendations of the strategy team.
After the strategy team makes its presentation, your team will leave the room to prepare a brief
analysis of the feasibility and likely success of the strategy. Base this analysis on your own
assessment of the organization’s situation. Can the strategy work given your own thorough
understanding of the current situation? Your comments should include the following issues,
where relevant.
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4.
a.
Is the strategy feasible and desirable or optimal in light of the current and
projected future environmental forces? Why or why not?
b.
Does the strategy conform to accepted marketing principles and theories (e.g.,
product life cycle, consumer decision-making models, diffusion of innovation
models, etc.)?
c.
What (if anything) would your group do differently and why?
What to turn in.
1.
A complete bibliography (typed, alphabetized) of any references that were
actually used in the preparation of the report. The case write-ups contain all the
information that will be necessary for the decision and it will not be appropriate to
try to find out what the company did when confronting the problem in the case
and rely on that information as part of the analysis. However, it may be desirable
to enhance your presentation of the situation analysis by bringing in reference to
marketing principles that will help structure the decision situation, and if this is
done the basis for the information should be properly cited.
2.
A copy of the slides or other visual aids used in the presentation should be given
to the instructor at the start of the class and another copy should be given to the
other team.
3.
A copy of any handouts (if used) should also be given to the instructor at the start
of the class.
Strategy Presentation – Expectations for Quality
You should view your group as a consulting team that has been asked to recommend a solution
of a case problem to the Board of Directors. You must answer the question “What should the
organization do now?” You must also have a strong justification for your answer to this question.
To answer the question, you must consider at least these fundamental issues:




1.
What are the feasible marketing strategy alternatives?
Justify your choice of one (or a combination) of the alternatives
Detail a plan of strategy implementation – who, what, when, where, how, at what cost
Possible limitations of the plan
Your presentation should contain the following components.
a.
A strong introduction containing your view of the problem and the basis for your
position.
b.
A comparative analysis of the most likely alternatives. If the case presents
alternatives, you do not have to assume that those alternatives are the only ones
that can work. To properly consider the alternatives, you must present the costs
and outcomes of each alternative, in quantitative and qualitative terms. The
alternatives should be analyzed in light of the firm’s current situation.
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c.
Choice of strategy (from the alternatives above) and a complete
justification of
the choice. You must be able to show that
the decision makes good financial
sense, is congruent with the
situation, and is congruent with corporate objectives
(usually stated in the case). Where the case presents quantitative data, use
it to justify your decision. Most strategy recommendations that fall flat do so
because the team does not present hard evidence that the chosen strategy is
better (e.g., more profitable, more in line with the skills of the firm or cost
structure of the industry) than the other alternatives. This is a critical aspect
of your analysis and presentation. Justification for the chosen strategy may
also be enhanced by drawing on literature that provides marketing
principles relevant to the product or decision under consideration, and if this
information is provided it should be briefly presented, properly cited and
tied very specifically to the problem under consideration and decision that
was made. Please note, however, that it will not be appropriate to attempt to
determine what was actually done by the company under consideration and
use that as a justification for your decision. The company may have had
different information at hand and may not have made the only or even best
decision in the case.
2.
d.
A detailed plan for implementing the strategy. Which of the 4 Ps will be
affected? Will you alter the product, price, promotion, distribution or some
combination of these four elements of the marketing mix? How? Which
consumer groups will be targeted? How will channel partners be affected? How
will competition respond? What will the plan cost? How will the plan pay off?
Present as much detailed information as possible.
e.
Projected results. What are the likely outcomes of the plan? Be as specific as
possible.
f.
Every strategic plan has limitations, problems or shortcomings. Your presentation
should address the possible limitations of the plan, and offer ways for
management to avoid these limitations. It should be clear about the assumptions
that underlie the plan.
g.
A strong conclusion.
General guidelines for the strategy presentation:
a.
Each team may be tempted to recommend that the firm simply “gather more
data.” This is not likely to be an acceptable alternative. As the cases are written,
you (and the firm) must make the decision with the information at hand. Often
managers must make tough decisions with limited information and limited time.
b.
Remember that these cases allow you to solve marketing problems. The focus of
your efforts should always be on the firm’s marketing alternatives. This does not
mean that your recommendation won’t have financial, legal, technological or
manufacturing implications. However, the focus should be on the marketing
issues and decisions.
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c.
A thorough professional presentation is expected. Each member of the team must
have a speaking part during the presentation. It is unacceptable to read your
presentation. You must be prepared to speak without relying heavily on notes.
Rehearse your presentation. Make sure the individual parts form a cohesive
whole, and that one person’s part does not repeat or contradict another person’s
part. Your presentation should have a strong opening and conclusion.
d.
You do not need to turn in a written report of any type. However, if you use
outside reference sources to support your decisions, you should turn in a complete
bibliography of your references (not copies of the materials themselves).
e.
You will be expected to answer questions from the class and to defend your
strategies during class discussion. Your grade will reflect your ability to do so.
f.
You may use handouts to support your presentation, limited to 3 pages.
g.
Visual aids are extremely important. Handwritten visual aids are not acceptable.
Errors of spelling and grammar on visual aids are not acceptable.
4.
What to turn in:
1.
Outside material if used must be cited.
2.
Two copies of the overheads or other visual aids used in the presentation (one for the
instructor and one for the Board of Directors) are to be turned in at the beginning of class.
3.
Copies of any handouts (if used) are also to be turned in at the beginning of class.
Class Participation
A considerable amount of the learning that takes place in case courses results from the active and
thoughtful participation of the student in the class. Those who prepare the most outside class and
participate most actively in class should learn the most from the class. They will also contribute
greatly to the learning of the other students in the class. Due to the importance of class
participation to student learning, this component of the class grade is heavily weighted. The
following grading guidelines are provided to assist you in understanding what is expected:
Scale
Description
A
A consistent leader in class discussions who regularly makes
strong contributions by making insightful comments that reflect a
thorough analysis of the case under consideration – comments that
advance our understanding of the company, industry and/or
decision under consideration.
B
Regularly contributes to class discussion making insightful
comments that reflect a careful reading of the case.
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C
Contributes to class discussion with reasonable comments that
follow from the prior discussion, but comments frequently do not
reflect a careful analysis of the case.
D
Infrequent comments or a tendency to make comments that do not
appear to be based on a reading of the case.
E
Very few positive contributions to the class discussion.
Class Assignments
All assignments are to be typed with one inch margins and 12 point font although numerical
calculations may be provided in hand written form if neatly written. Please note that on
numerical calculations, it will be necessary to show all of your work. Do not simply provide the
answers. That is, the reader should be able to determine how you derived your answers.
It is important in business to present your recommendations and the basis for them both
completely and concisely. Therefore, page limits will be provided for your assignments.
Assignments one and two are limited to two pages (including all calculations).
All assignments will be due at the beginning of class and turned in at that time. However,
it will be important for you to make and bring to class an extra copy of the assignment that
you can keep with you to rely on during class discussion.
Assignment One – Review of Basic Quantitative Analysis – Due Wednesday, January 5
This assignment will be distributed separately on the first day of class.
Assignment Two – Dominion Motors and Controls – Due Wednesday, January 12
1. Define the problem, and briefly explain how it came about and why it is important.
2. Using information provided in the case and the cost and large user price figures provided
in exhibit 2, calculate the unit contribution generated by each alternative. If the
alternative involves added investment, also determine the volume that would be needed
to break even.
3. Specify which alternative you would choose and justify it both qualitatively and
quantitatively.
Additional assignments will be made in class throughout the quarter.
Examinations
There will be two examinations in this class. A group midterm case report will be due at the
beginning of class on February 14. An individual exam will be held during the regular class
period on March 9.
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Group Exam
You will receive a copy of the group exam case on February 7 at the end of the class. You will
then have until the start of the class period on February 14 to complete a group analysis of the
case. The analysis should include problem statement, situation analysis, alternative justification
and presentation, recommendation presentation and justification, and statement of limitations or
risks involved in the decision. You must turn in a single group report that is no more than 7
pages in length plus tables that summarize quantitative information. You must use 12 point type,
either single or double space, and one inch margins. It is expected that you and your other group
members will work on this project without involving other groups or people outside of the class
and that the report is developed from analysis undertaken in this class.
Individual Exam
The individual examination will test your knowledge of principles that come out of our
discussion of the cases focused on throughout the term. That is, you will be asked questions
about issues that were discussed earlier in the quarter. Those issues will have been presented in
discussions of the cases assigned throughout the quarter. The exam may include both problems
and short essay questions that present specific case-like situations or scenarios. It is expected
that you will bring a calculator to class on the day of the exam.
Academic Integrity (Academic Misconduct)
Academic integrity is essential to maintaining an environment that fosters excellence in teaching,
research, and other educational and scholarly activities. Thus, The Ohio State University and the
Committee on Academic Misconduct (COAM) expect that all students have read and understand
the University’s Code of Student Conduct, and that all students will complete all academic and
scholarly assignments with fairness and honesty. Students must recognize that failure to follow
the rules and guidelines established in the University’s Code of Student Conduct and this
syllabus may constitute “Academic Misconduct.”
The Ohio State University’s Code of Student Conduct (Section 3335-23-04) defines academic
misconduct as: “Any activity that tends to compromise the academic integrity of the University,
or subvert the educational process.” Examples of academic misconduct include (but are not
limited to) plagiarism, collusion (unauthorized collaboration), copying the work of another
student, and possession of unauthorized materials during an examination. Ignorance of the
University’s Code of Student Conduct is never considered an “excuse” for academic misconduct,
so I recommend that you review the Code of Student Conduct and, specifically, the sections
dealing with academic misconduct.
If I suspect that a student has committed academic misconduct in this course, I am obligated by
University Rules to report my suspicions to the Committee on Academic Misconduct. If COAM
determines that you have violated the University’s Code of Student Conduct (i.e., committed
academic misconduct), the sanctions for the misconduct could include a failing grade in this
course and suspension or dismissal from the University.
If you have any questions about the above policy or what constitutes academic misconduct in
this course, please contact me.
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Other sources of information on academic misconduct (integrity) to which you can refer include:

The Committee on Academic Misconduct web pages (oaa.osu.edu/coam/home.html)

Ten Suggestions for Preserving Academic Integrity (oaa.osu.edu/coam/tensuggestions.html)

Eight Cardinal Rules of Academic Integrity (www.northwestern.edu/uacc/8cards.html)
.
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