Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies

Richard Burnham had major legal and public relations issues on his hands. He had stepped down as CEO of his for-profit hospice firm, Odyssey Healthcare, less than a year previously, in January of 2004. His cofounder, David Gasmire, had assumed his responsibilities, while he stayed on as Chairman of Odyssey's Board of Directors. Now, less than a year later, a Department of Justice investigation was threatening the viability of his company. In October of 2004, Odyssey Healthcare senior manageme...

The Mid-City Convention and Visitor's Bureau (Cvb)

The Mid-City Convention and Visitor's Bureau (CVB) is faced with low employee morale, relatively fixed current funding, a lethargic, patronage-style board of directors, an uninformed public, and the requirement to deal with a state legislature and disgruntled voters to increase its revenue. The manager of the CVB believes additional revenue is necessary to increase marketing efforts in order to bring in more conventions and tourists. To increase revenue, the manager of the CVB would like to r...

Deep South Forest Products: Management Unfair Labor Practices During Union Decertification?

A firm and its employees' labor union(s) often share a tense and adversarial relationship. From time to time, employees may decide that the bargaining advantages provided by their union no longer secures them the wages and benefits they seek, and they may seek to have the union decertified as their bargaining agent. This case examines this scenario, and demonstrates how a firm's management can legally express its views to its employees regarding the pros and cons of a union decertification. T...

Property Rights in Cyberia a Study of 'Intent' and 'Bad Faith'

The pioneering journey of this Case Study explores new and exciting adventures of virtual property rights in the world of Cyberspace. The objectives, in this instance, is to investigate on the merits the facts of this spirited Case Study and determine current relevant issues relating to On-line/Internet oriented Cyberlaw principles that are directly applicable to contemporary practical business approaches and will help reveal and solve some of the mysteries of Cyberjustice trends. The second ...

Carpet Capital Culture Clash

Teaching culture to business students is important, but often challenging. The authors developed this case study to describe the cultural issues and challenges encountered between an Anglo and Latino workforce in the US. This case is different from traditional cases that discuss culture in a new or "foreign" environment because this case is a domestic-based cultural case. This case profiles Dalton, GA, home of the world's carpet and flooring producers. The industry, struggling for labor, acti...

Auntie Anne's Pretzels: A Knotty Problem

Auntie Anne's is a family owned and operated snack eatery business that holds a strong commitment to customer satisfaction. The company focuses on product quality, strong support to its franchisees, and a commitment to relationships that will help in the long-term growth of the franchise system. Auntie Anne's success can be seen in its growth from a farmers' market stand to the expanded franchise system it offers today. Founder Anne Beiler started the business as a means to fund charitable wo...

Summit Enterprises

The case involves the application of transfer pricing, divisional performance analysis, cost estimation, and cost-volume-profit analysis. The setting is a diversified corporation with one division requesting services from another division. The objective of the case is for students to think about appropriate transfer prices and the use of ROI for service-oriented divisions, as well as to have students provide solutions for break-even points, operating leverage, and high-low cost estimates. Stu...

Vermont Teddy Bear Company

The Vermont Teddy Bear Co is the largest hand-crafter of teddy bears in North America. Approximately 450,000 "Bear-Gram" gifts will be delivered around the world this year. There are over 100 bears from which to choose for any occasion. The situation that has developed in 2005 is especially interesting for a company that is located in a state that demands appropriate conduct, following standards set by Ben & Jerry's. This company set a high standard for being socially responsible with the...

The Federal Government Vs. York County: A Transfer Pricing Case for Managerial Accounting Students

During their college experience, students are exposed to facts and theories in many different subject areas. By the time they graduate, students are expected to have developed critical thinking skills. They should be able to apply what was learned in the classroom to real life situations and be able to effectively communicate their analysis and conclusions. This case is derived from an actual situation occurring between the federal government and York County, Pennsylvania in 2003, as describe...

Urban Outreach Ministries' Organic Gardens: Developing a Sustainable, Triple-Bottom-Line Business for a Nonprofit Social Enterprise

Nonprofits or for-profits with an explicitly responsible social agenda, from microenterprise to highly scaleable operations, are increasingly venturing into new territory-how to do social good, make money, and be responsible to relevant stakeholder groups, especially the people, profit, planet of the triple bottom line. This case study can give useful insights to potential clients and consultants inside and outside the classroom who have been previously assumed to not be affected by triple-bo...

Managing Client Relations: The Case of Peter Vosek

The primary subject matter of this role play case is the interpersonal skills needed to handle a difficult client situation involving power and trust. Since difficult situations often stem from people having different goals, different approaches, and/or different personal styles, diagnosing and attending to these differences are fundamental to resolving both the interpersonal and task-related issues. Resolving difficult situations and retaining the relationship often requires planful dialogue...

Patagonia: Climbing to New Highs with a Smaller Carbon Footprint

The California outdoor clothing and equipment company, Patagonia, has set a very high standard for firms seeking to be environmentally sensitive. The privately-held company has created a culture of reducing its impact on the environment through product design and manufacturing, energy usage, and waste management. The case explores the methods by which Patagonia reduces its " carbon footprint" and asks if other firms can follow its lead.

Adams Jewelry

Jack Adams owns and manages an independent jewelry store in Florida. He is facing a number of issues concerning the store's competitive effectiveness in the local jewelry market. The immediate decision is whether he should move from his long-established store location. Although his store is not very up-to-date, it is in a high-traffic location and receives a lot of exposure. He caters to a middle class clientele, but fancies his business as a higher quality, upscale operation. Thus, there are...

Cape Chemical: Cash Management

Cape Chemical is a regional distributor of liquid and dry chemicals. Growth has been steady since its beginning, but cash to pay employees and vendors in a timely manner has frequently been a problem. While the company ended its last year with a healthy cash balance, there were many occasions during the year that it was necessary to delay vendor payments or obtain short-term bank loans in order to keep the company operating. On one occasion when a major vendor threatened to stop shipments unt...

Cost Allocations for Hospital Management

This hospital-based cost accounting case is unique in its lack of numerical information. The objective is to make students focus on the way the information should be structured and the way the information may be used rather than completing some financial reports. For most students this is far more challenging than it appears at first Jamesville Hospital has grown rapidly, but its accounting system is still very basic. The financial records are adequate, but the hospital's growth has challenge...