Journal of Applied Case Research (JACR), Volume 12 Number 1

JACR is a publication of the Southwest Case Research Association (SWCRA). JACR publishes teaching cases in all business disciplines. Cases may be grounded in primary and/or secondary data sources. Whether primary or secondary, sources must be well documented.


Stratford Lane: Valuing a Foreclosure as a Potential Rental Property

  • Scott Hoover, Washington and Lee University

Synopsis

The case is a decision-based analysis of the potential conversion of a residential property into a student rental property. Although the names of the participants have been changed to protect privacy, the case uses primary data from a real opportunity that appeared in the college town of Lexington, Virginia. The case is designed for use early in a real estate valuation course and provides exposure to basic real estate concepts such as Net Operating Income, capitalization rates, foreclosures, title searches, and the impact of uncertainty due to possible hidden property damage. One underlying motivation for the case is that many real estate students may end up not working full time in real estate, but may be tempted to invest in real estate in an entrepreneurial fashion on the side. The case serves to expose students to that side of real estate investment while providing a number of cautions about investing in foreclosures.

Keywords:

Net Operating Income (NOI), Cap rates, Foreclosures, Entrepreneurial real estate, Real estate valuation, Decision case

Citation:

Hoover, S. (2014). Stratford Lane: Valuing a Foreclosure as a Potential Rental Property. Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 1-14. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ V12_N1a_Stratford_Lane_Case.pdf

Evaluating Retirement Planning: The Proper Mix of Investments?

  • Woodrow D. Richardson, University of Mary Washington
  • Rachel Graefe-Anderson, University of Mary Washington

Synopsis

This decision-based case developed from primary sources utilizes disguised names, but actual data to afford students the opportunity to evaluate and suggest changes to a real retirement portfolio. Leon and Billie Reynolds have asked their niece, Stacie, to review their retirement planning. The couple has accumulated just over $1,000,000 in investments with Teachers Insurance Annuity Association (TIAA) and College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF). The case gives the couple’s net worth, current salaries, insights into their spending habits, target retirement ages, family situation, and current allocations of their retirement funds. The case asks students to apply his or her financial planning skills to review the adequacy of the couple’s retirement planning.

Keywords:

Retirement Planning, Portfolio Analysis, Asset Diversification, Decision Case

Citation:

Richardson, W., Anderson, R. (2014) Evaluating retirement planning: the proper mix of investments? Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 15-20. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ V12_N1b_Retirement_Planning_Case.pdf

TBS Shipping

  • Jonathan Davis, University of Houston-Downtown
  • Regena Scott, Purdue University
  • Gary Stading, University of Houston-Downtown

Synopsis

TBS Shipping is a decision-based case centered on loading and preparation of the MV Hamburg Pearl. TBS Shipping was contracted by Lee Energy to deliver a shipment of pressed wood pellets from their Alabama production facility to the port in Tyne, United Kingdom. The agreement between Lee Energy and TBS Shipping called for delivery of between 30,000 and 38,500 metric tonnes (MT) of material at $30 per metric tonne. To ensure the best fitting vessel for the cargo, TBS requested that Lee Energy measure the stow factor of the cargo. The result of this calculation was “max 53 cubic feet per metric tonne.” Based on this calculation, the MV Hamburg Pearl, a handy-max bulk vessel, was selected as the most efficient and cost effective fit for the shipment.
Primary and secondary documents for this case included background data on TBS Shipping, the MV Hamburg Pearl, and Lee Energy. The case-research team participated in meetings with representatives from TBS Shipping and the MV Hamburg Pearl. Permission was granted for use of actual names of firms identified in this case. Only the character names and conversations utilized in this case are fictitious.
The problem surfaced when all seven cargo-holds of the MV Hamburg Pearl, which has a cargo volume of 1,915,470 cubic feet, were loaded, yet 56,175 cubic feet of cargo were left standing on the dock. Where had the measurement calculations gone so wrong? Cubic feet measurements had been conducted by Lee Energy and the ship’s captain and neither calculation foreshadowed the load discrepancy.
This case provides an opportunity to integrate distribution, logistics and supply chain knowledge to resolve real-world transportation issues. This case includes sufficient information for students to assess quantitative issues related to packing, logistics, and stow factor.

Keywords:

Logistics, Shipping, Stowage, Decision case, Stow factor

Citation:

Davis, J., Scott, R., Stading, G. (2014). TBS Shipping. Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 21-30. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/V12_N1c_TBS_Shipping_Case.pdf

Books or Technology: A Small Public Library’s Struggle To Survive In The 21st Century

  • Gwendolyn Pennywell, University of South Alabama
  • Victoria Javine, University of South Alabama
  • Donald Mosley, University of South Alabama

Synopsis

The library serves a community with a high population of residents below the poverty line (which is correlated with high illiteracy and low access to books in the home). Additionally, the library is the only location in a 35 mile radius providing wireless internet access to the local residents at no charge.The local Friends of the Library obtained a grant to fund one of the library’s top two projects; new computers or additional books. Unfortunately, available funding would cover updating either the computers or the book collection, but not both. The Friends of the Library board is analyzing the projects to determine which project should be financed first. It’s understood that it may take a few years to generate the additional funding for the project not chosen.

Keywords:

Finance, Accounting, Information Systems

Citation:

Pennywell, G., Javine, V., Mosley, D. (2014) Books or Technology: A Small Public Library’s Struggle To Survive In The 21st Century Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 31-34. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/V12_N1d_Piedmont_Library_Case.pdf

The Launching of the New Performance Appraisal System

  • Mohan Gopinath, Alliance University, Bangalore, India
  • Edwin Castelino, St. Joseph’s College of Business Administration, Bangalore, India
  • Asha Prabhakaran, Alliance University, Bangalore, India
  • Dolphy Abraham, Alliance University, Bangalore, India

Synopsis

It is the prerogative of the HR department in a company to put in place new employee oriented systems which will be for the ultimate good of everyone. This includes changes in systems as well as procedures, and bringing in new formats of various documents which will do the job better than the earlier ones. However, sometimes these can go off the rails and set off a chain of unintended consequences. The incidents narrated in the case are drawn from real life and actually occurred in a multinational bank in Bombay. The HR department at the all India level was invariably headed by a manager from Head Office based in Taiwan. At the time of the incidents narrated the position was headed by John Humphreys, who was in fact a career banker with around 18 years’ experience working in the bank. He in turn reported to the Chief Executive Officer, David Selby, also from Head Office. Selby and Humphreys were International Managers which meant that they would be posted to a country for a period of 2 to 3 years after which they would move on to another country and assignment. Both of them had been posted to India almost simultaneously which was unusual in the bank; normally one of them stayed on for a few months after the other had left so that the element of continuity was established. This fact had an impact on the incidents narrated.
All executives in the bank in India were under the performance appraisal discipline for around three years and the system was working well. The term executive included entry level officers to branch managers. Below the executives, there was a cadre called Staff Officers who were in fact promoted from the clerical cadre. Their job was mainly supervisory in nature and they looked after the routine operations of the bank. If they performed well, they could be promoted as executives.
Humphreys was under pressure to bring in a new performance appraisal system for the Staff Officer cadre. In fact, that was one of the main reasons he had been sent to India as he had experience of launching a similar system in Singapore, which he had done in three months’ time. Humphreys however had no experience in working in a unionized setup and his HR experience was also fairly limited. In fact, this was his second posting in a non-banking function if the Singapore attachment was included. The case describes how Humphreys went about the process of putting in place the new appraisal system in India and the reactions which followed, with all-India repercussions.
Solutions for problems of this nature depend on the circumstances and the personalities who are involved. What is important is that International Managers are made well aware of the problems of working in particular environments, especially when they are new to the place. What can work well in Dubai need not work well in Calcutta.

Keywords:

Change management, Unions, Performance Appraisal, Target setting

Citation:

Gopinath, M., Castelino, E., Prabhakaran, A., & Abraham, D. (2014). The Launching of the New Performance Appraisal System. Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 35-46. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/V12_N1e_Appraisal_Case.pdf

Target Corporation’s Decision to Expand to Canada

  • Alix Valenti, University of Houston-Clear Lake
  • Robert McGlashan, University of Houston-Clear Lake

Synopsis

This is a descriptive case based on Target Corp.’s decision to expand globally and the issues that it faced in dealing with employees, labor relations, and corporate social responsibility. It is based primarily on secondary sources, although managers from Target provided additional information about Target’s hiring practices, training, and compensation policies. This is a case involving Target Corp.’s decision to expand into Canada, the first international expansion in Target’s history. In 2011, Target entered into a transaction in which it agreed to purchase 189 of the stores operated by Zellers, Inc., a well-known retailer that had been in business for 80 years in Canada. Despite the ethnic similarity and geographical proximity of the citizens of both countries, cultural and social differences presented problems for Target in the Canadian market. Canada is more socialistic than the U.S. as evidenced by its universal health care and unionized industries. Specifically, students will be asked to identify the ethical and human resource management issues associated with Target’s employment practices. Students will also examine Target’s environmental and community activities and decide whether they will meet the Canadian market’s expectation of corporate responsibility

Keywords:

labor relations, ethical decision making, corporate social responsibility, environmental sustainability, employee relations, cultural differences

Citation:

Valenti, A. and McGlashan, R. (2014) Target Corporation’s Decision to Expand to Canada Journal of Applied Case Research, V12(1), 47-64. http://swcra.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/V12_N1f_Target_Case.pdf