Syllabus

MGMT 612: MANAGING THE EMERGING ENTERPRISE

Fall 2017
INSTRUCTORS

Professor Peter Cappelli 215-898-2722 [email protected] SHDH 2205

Professor Luis A. Rios 215-898-6605 [email protected] SHDH 2019
Professor Exequiel Hernandez 215-746-1984 [email protected] SHDH 2021

TEACHING ASSISTANTS

Liat Eldor Human & Social Capital [email protected]

Jayson Weingarten Strategy [email protected]
TBD Global Strategy

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course deals with central issues in the field of management as illustrated through the context of emerging
enterprises, industries, and markets as they grow and develop over time. We focus the attention on the
human capital, strategic, and international opportunities and challenges in these contexts. This course will
provide you with an integrated view of these challenges and show you that successful management in the 21st
century requires a combination of insights drawn from economics, sociology, psychology and political
economy. The course has three main parts, and two “bookend” events. The course starts with a session in
which you meet the entire teaching team and receive a roadmap for this semester-long journey. Several weeks
later, the culminating event will be the presentation of your team project, which will give you and your team
the opportunity to analyze a real-world organization of your choosing, using the tools you have accumulated
in the course.

The first part of the course provides a framework for analyzing the issues associated with managing people.
It will introduce you to topics such as motivating employees, managing performance, understanding careers,
and the interface between management decisions and strategy. The concepts covered in this course will help
you gain insight into how to motivate and lead those you manage as well as better understand your own
motivation and performance at work. Managerial and professional careers involve frequent changes in
responsibilities, so the course also provides concepts for analyzing how managerial approaches may vary in
different organizational and industry settings. We will discuss, based on these analyses, how to develop and
implement organizational designs and systems that achieve competitive advantage through the management
of people. After working for several years, individuals often have developed a number of insights into how
people behave in organizations, and how organizations in turn shape that behavior. We will draw upon your
experiences to develop ways of understanding and analyzing the issues around the management of people
covered in this course.

The second part of the course will deal with fundamental issues of strategy, examining topics that are central
to the long- and short-term competitive position of an enterprise. The goal of this module is to help you
understand and analyze how firms compete and sustain their competitive advantage. We will discuss a set of
analytical frameworks and concepts to identify the opportunities and threats within a given industry, and to
formulate a firm’s strategy. The topics will include industry analysis, complements, competitive dynamics,

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 1

competitive positioning, resources and capabilities, and boundaries of the enterprise. While we often discuss
these topics from the perspective of emerging enterprises, it is important to note that strategic competition
cannot ignore incumbents, and so our frameworks also need to take into consideration the perspective from
established competitors’ position.

The third part of the course stresses the deep and persistent cross-national differences in economic, political,
legal and social institutions that affect the strategy, business model, and performance of firms. Our primary
focus will be on the opportunities and challenges of internationalizing young firms and operating in emerging
markets. We begin by asking when crossing national borders creates value for the firm (the ‘why’). We then
address where the firm should locate its activities and in what sequence it should expand (the ‘where’).
Inseparable from location decisions are choices about how the firm should organize its activities in different
countries and about the entry mode by which the firm enter new markets (the ‘how’). After covering these
core global strategy topics, we consider how firms can exploit opportunities in foreign markets to enhance
their innovativeness, to develop new business models, and to win the hearts and minds of non-market
stakeholders in support of their activities. By the end of the module, you will have a toolkit from which to
identify and evaluate opportunities for improving a firm’s performance through internationalization.

CLASS SESSIONS AND PARTICIPATION

Each class will consist of a combination of lecture and discussion of the day’s topic. On most days, we will
use case analysis to explore the issues at hand. Careful preparation is essential. We expect you to read all of
the assigned materials for each session in advance of the class. In class, you should be prepared to analyze
the concepts from the case and the readings and to discuss any questions provided in the syllabus. If you
cannot answer the questions, you are not prepared for class. We will use cold calling as necessary to ensure
preparation and to establish an even level of participation throughout the course.

We expect you to participate actively in class to help your learning and that of your peers. A productive
learning environment requires active engagement of all class members. Three factors determine good class
participation. First, given thorough and careful preparation, you should be able to identify the important
managerial issues related to the case and/or readings. Second, you should be able to use that analysis to
define a concise and logical position on the issues. Please avoid pure repetition of case facts. You should be
able to show how a particular concept is illustrated in the case or suggest how the substantive problem
presented in the case can be solved. Third, you should be able to analyze constructively the positions your
classmates take. Quality, not quantity, will determine the effectiveness of your comments.

Of course, the underlying condition for class participation is attendance. We expect you to attend all
sessions. Specifically, according to the MBA office, there is no recruiting reason for which you should miss
class. We will be taking attendance. Arriving late is disrespectful to your colleagues and, for attendance
purposes, is treated as a distinct event from being present at the start of class. If you cannot come to class,
you should notify your instructor by email in advance of the class. Finally, in order to facilitate lively, in-
depth discussions and out of respect for each other, there are two simple ground rules regarding mobile
devices and laptop computers: 1) please remember to turn off your phone, Blackberry and/or other
communication devices; and 2) no laptops open during class unless instructed by the professor.

CASE DISCUSSIONS

In preparing cases for discussion in class, you should be ready to comment on (1) the case’s background and
context, (2) the key issues and problems, (3) a framework for analyzing the issues and problems, (4) the
implications of the assigned readings for understanding the case, and (5) a course of action for designing and
implementing solutions.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 2

ETHICS AND USE OF PRIOR MATERIALS

This is a core course for the Wharton MBA. As such, the course covers similar material from year to year. It
is never appropriate to use materials prepared by students or faculty in this course from previous years. You
should not use previously completed case write-ups, summaries of readings or other “cheat sheets.” We will
work with your ethics liaisons to clarify any issues that may emerge. Below is the Ethics matrix for the
course.

Materials People
MGMT 612

Past exams / assignments

Learning team / approved

Laptop / other electronics

Other student(s) in same

taking the class this term

Past notes / summaries

Internet content / other

Managing the Emerging

Readings/ class notes

sections (same term)

Wharton student not

Approved calculator

Enterprise

Student(s) in other

Person outside of
outside materials
Summary sheet

work team

Wharton
section
Readings & Cases A A A A W W W
Team Assignments A A A A W
Individual Assignments A A A A
A = Allowed material W = Allowed to work together

Blank Cell = Not allowed Blank Cell = Not allowed

The information above covers many common situations but will not cover every circumstance. Remember:
The Wharton MBA Code of Ethics that you accepted requires, among other things, that you represent yourself and your work
honestly, don’t try to gain unfair advantage over other students, follow the instructor’s guidelines and respect confidentiality of
your work and the work of others.
Should you have questions, please contact your ethics liaison or professor.

TEXT AND READINGS

Wharton Reprographics has a copy of the course pack for MGMT 612, which can be purchased from
Study.Net and accessed directly from the course Canvas site. The readings listed on the course outline below
should be read and prepared before that class session.

ASSIGNMENTS, QUIZZES AND EXAMS

(1) Human & Social Capital Write-up: Your assignment is to examine your last job (or an earlier job) and
use theories and concepts from the course to analyze and explain your work experience. Essentially, in this
assignment, you will use your job as the case material that allows you to demonstrate your understanding of
course theories/concepts. You may use course materials from Sessions 1-8 in which we cover such topics as
motivation, job design, reward systems, managing individual and group performance, and group and
organizational influences on decision-making. Certain readings focus on specific theories (e.g. expectancy
theory; equity theory) that provide a full-fledged framework for explaining and predicting behavior; while
other readings include concepts that may not be full theories but can be abstracted and applied to a wide
range of situations, e.g. Rewarding A While Hoping for B (Kerr).

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 3

The choice about what issues to cover and what theories/concepts to apply is yours. In evaluating your
answer, we will look to see whether the theories/concepts you use are described accurately (i.e. substantively
correct), applied appropriately (i.e. fit the job situation you describe), and most relevant to the situation (i.e.
did you pick the theories/concepts that best illuminate your situation).

In analyzing your job, focus on how you were managed, not how you behaved in managing others. It does
not matter whether you had a good job experience or a bad job experience. You can talk about both the
successful and the unsuccessful aspects of the job, and about what was missing for you. The paper presents
you with an opportunity to explore in-depth the course readings, master them, and apply them to your
experience. Thus, very good papers do not simply present a lively and detailed description of your past job. Rather, they
demonstrate in-depth understanding and application of course concepts and theories. More specifically, they:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of five of the main concepts (four if you choose job design)
from Sessions 1-8 by making specific links between theories/concepts and key elements of your job
experience.
2. Explore (and demonstrate your understanding of) the similarities, complementarities, or inconsistencies
among the theories and concepts (i.e., do the theories/concepts fit together and reinforce each other or
do they disagree? How do they complement each other? Conversely, how are they inconsistent or
conflicting?)
3. Explain why the theories or concepts you’ve chosen are important and useful for understanding (and
perhaps for suggesting changes to) your prior job or organization.

Here are some tips based on our collective experience with this course assignment. Each instructor will offer
additional guidance with his/her specific expectations and recommendations.
 Don’t forget that this is an exercise that must be graded. It is easy to get carried away with an
interesting story and forget that this is also a way to test your knowledge of and ability to apply the
course material.
 Be sure to explore your personal experience with your job, rather than writing generically about the
experience of all people in positions like yours.
 Remember to mention course concepts specifically, so we don’t have to read your mind to figure out
what concepts you are applying to your work experience. Drawing explicit links between the concepts
you identify and the case material is the key. Don’t just drop in the names of a few theories or
concepts into the midst of describing your job. Show how they apply to your situation.
 It may be useful to develop a comparative angle in the paper, i.e. compare how your job experience
varied for two different tasks or compare your job before and after a change in your boss or a
company restructuring.
 Comparing and contrasting how two or more different theories can be applied to the same aspect of
your job situation is another effective strategy. Be sure you make it clear to us why you chose those
theories and which you felt provided more insight.

The write-up should be printed double-spaced, using a normal font-size. The maximum length is 1,000
words (plus or minus 5%). Please include a word count on the front page. You will have to be concise and
make choices about what issues to discuss. We recommend that you begin work on the paper early, to avoid
the mid-semester crunch. This is feasible because the raw material (your work experience) is readily available
to you, and each class session will introduce new concepts that are potentially applicable. The write-up is due,
submitted through Canvas, by Wednesday September 21 submitted on Canvas by 11:59 pm. Please use 12-
point font, single-spaced, and one inch margins as this makes it easiest to read.

(2) Strategy Case Write-up: This is an individual assignment. You will answer the questions associated with
the case that will be distributed at the end of class on Oct 10 (Class 4). The case is a simple yet powerful
demonstration of the value of systematic strategic analysis. The main task is to answer the questions using the
classical frameworks/concepts covered thus far (e.g. 5F) and then to use the information in the case to

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 4

provide a recommendation. It is important not just to describe the facts but to analyze (and to demonstrate
that you know how to use to tools from the course to do this analysis). The write-up is to be uploaded on
Canvas by 11:59 pm on Oct 22. Your answers should be a maximum of 1,000 words, not including
exhibits, titles, header. There will be a steep penalty for running over the maximum word count. You are not
to discuss this case with anyone. You are encouraged to attach 1 or 2 exhibits based on your analysis if they
directly support the arguments you make.

(3) Global Strategy Memo: You will be given a short article (posted on Canvas) describing an emerging
business opportunity. Your task is to write a concise memo addressed to the CEO of a firm who is
considering the issues described in the article and has hired you to explore foreign expansion opportunities.
The purpose of this brief memo is to apply some of the main global strategy frameworks to a firm’s decision
of where to expand abroad and what strategy it should follow in doing so. The professor will post specific
instructions for this assignment on Canvas on the day the article is made available.

Your memo is due on Friday, November 17 by 11:59 pm, submitted on Canvas. You are allowed a
maximum of 1,000 words. Please include a word count at the very beginning (the memo header does not
count towards the word limit). The memo should be single spaced with 12-point font and 1 inch margins.
This is an individual assignment. No teamwork is allowed.

(4) Team project (details at the end of the syllabus).

GRADING

 Human & social capital write-up due on Sept 21 (16.67%).

 Strategy case write-up due on Oct 22(16.67%).
 Global strategy memo due on Friday, Nov 17 by 11:59 pm (16.67%).
 Class participation (25%).
 Team project (25% total; 5% for presentations, 20% for paper)
o Final Teams formed by Sept 12
o Proposal due on Oct 29th
o Presentations on Dec 5 and Dec 7
o Final paper due on Dec 15

FACULTY LUNCHES

We have scheduled a number of informal lunches with the course faculty. These are totally optional. You
may sign up for lunch on the Canvas page for your section.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS – CONCERT RULES

 Class starts and ends on time

 Sit according to seating chart
 Remain in attendance for the duration of class, except in an emergency
 Name tents displayed
 All phones and electronic devices should be put away. This includes tablets, laptops, phones,
and any device that can cause a distraction. There will be non-trivial participation grade
penalties for students who disregard this expectation. Let us know ahead of time if you are
expecting an urgent message (e.g. true family or medical issues—job and internship
communications can wait).

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 5

 COURSE OUTLINE

Introduction: Overview of the Semester (Tuesday, August 29; all three professors present)

PART I: HUMAN & SOCIAL CAPITAL MODULE (Professor Cappelli)

HSC Class 1: Motivating Individual Performance (Thursday, Aug 31)

 Description: We begin with an obvious truism about human behavior in organizations – that
people will behave according to what actions they perceive are being rewarded. We
then begin our exploration of the theme “behavior is not that simple” by pointing out
how often organizations “reward A while hoping for B”. We also introduce various
motivation theories from the behavioral sciences and contrast them with more
economics-based views of motivation (e.g. agency theory) which emphasize financial
incentives and contract-based goal alignment.

 Readings: Steven Kerr, “On the Folly of Rewarding A While Hoping for B,” Academy of
Management Journal, Vol. 18, pp. 769-83.

Stephen P. Robbins and Timothy A. Judge, excerpts from “Motivation” (covers four
theories: needs, cognitive evaluation, goal-setting, expectancy), Organizational Behavior,
12th edition, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, pp. 192-198, 208-210.

 Case: Automated Travel Systems

1. How did ATS get itself in this situation?
2. What should they do at the end of the case?

HSC Class 2: Designing Reward Systems (Tuesday, Sep 5)

 Description: Here we focus on the design of reward systems, keeping in mind various cognitive
processes that affect motivation. We introduce concepts from equity theory, which
describes how individuals assess the ratio of outcomes (pay, recognition) in relation to
inputs (of effort, skill, experience) for themselves in comparison with others. We then
consider the actions (and shifts in perception) individuals may undertake to establish a
sense of equity. The case discussion emphasizes how the compensation and reward system
of an organization must balance incentive and equity concerns. We also explore the role of
the labor market in constraining the kinds of compensation systems firms can implement.
Please come prepared with examples of reward systems you have encountered and we will
examine them for cross-industry and cross-cultural differences.

 Readings: Elliot Aronson, “The Rationalizing Animal,” Psychology Today, p. 67-77.

Edward Lazear, “Relative Compensation,” Chapter 3 in Personnel Economics,” Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press, 1995, pp. 25-37.

Stephen P. Robbins & Timothy A. Judge, “Equity Theory,” from Organizational Behavior,
12th edition, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, pp. 203-207.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 6

  Case: Brainerd, Bennis, and Farrell – Partnership model

1. How should the lawyers listed at the back of the case (A-F) be paid?
2. Please meet with a team of colleagues (3-4, you create them) and decide how to
apportion 100 points between them. Come to class ready to present and defend
your choice.

HSC Class 3: Designing Jobs (Thursday, Sep 7)

 Description: We next examine job design – one important source of implicit rewards at work. We
compare Frederick Taylor’s scientific management approach, first put forth in the early
1900s but still influential today, with Hackman and Oldham’s job design theory, which
analyzes the five characteristics of a job that contribute to its motivational potential. We
then explore how poor job design can kill motivation even when explicit incentives are
well-designed – or how even an excellent job design can’t overcome poor incentives or
poor leadership.

 Readings: “Frederick Winslow Taylor: Father of Scientific Management,” selection from Business: The
Ultimate Resource, Cambridge, MA: Perseus Publishing, pp. 1054-55.

J. Richard Hackman, Greg Oldham, Robert Janson, and Kenneth Purdy, “A New Strategy
for Job Enrichment,” California Management Review, Vol. 17, pp. 57-71.

 Case: Jennifer Henderson and the International Division at Trustworthy Trust

1. Why are analysts such as Henderson demoralized?

2. How do you explain the motivation level of senior managers? What do you draw
upon for your assessment?
3. What recommendations would you offer the Executive Vice President Marshall
Wilde?

HSC Class 4: Recruiting and Selecting Employees (Tuesday, Sep 12)

 Description: In this class, we turn our attention to employee recruitment and selection. Researchers have
identified a number of strategies likely to yield fair, valid, and effective hiring decisions. We
review these strategies and discuss possible reasons why many companies do not put these
strategies into place. We then explore the attraction-selection-attrition cycle and the
implications of recruiting and selection for organizational culture and performance. The
SG Cowen case provides an opportunity to analyze one company’s MBA recruiting and
selection practices; to “select” two of their applicants for hire; and to examine our own
beliefs and assumptions about what makes for an effective hire.

 Readings: Ann Marie Ryan & Nancy T. Tippins, “Attracting and Selecting: What Psychological
Research Tells Us”, Human Resource Management, Vol. 43: p. 305-318.

Benjamin Schneider, “The People Make the Place,” Personnel Psychology, Vol. 40, pp. 437-53.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 7

  Case: SG Cowen: New Recruits

1. Who would you hire and why?

2. How will the change in recruiting strategy proposed by Chip Rae affect the nature
of the company and its culture?
3. What are SG Cowen’s goals for its recruiting process? Is SG Cowen meeting its
goals?

HSC Class 5: Driving Performance (Thursday, Sep 14)

 Description: Here we emphasize the power of group norms and information provided by
coworkers, subordinates, and bosses as influences on individual behavior. These
social influences can, if well-managed, help align group and individual goals with
organizational goals, yield higher performance than individuals provide, especially
when tasks are complex and demand complementary skills, and build a common
language and shared experience base to facilitate coordination and creativity. If
poorly managed, however, group norms and information can foster inappropriate
conformity and compliance, diminishing individual, team, or organizational
effectiveness and integrity. We explore both the potentially positive and the
potentially negative consequences of social influence in this class and take a close
look at how managers create (and respond to) groups that are “hot” – lively, high-
achieving, dedicated groups, usually small, whose members are turned on to an
exciting and challenging task.

 Readings: “Social Influence,” from Thomas Gilovich, Dacher Keltner, and Richard E. Nisbett,
Social Psychology, NYC: WW Norton and Co., two excerpts, pp. 213-230 and pp. 240-
253.

 Case: Soul of a New Machine

1. Why is the Eclipse group working so hard?

2. In what ways does West give and receive feedback from his group and the
organization?
3. Do you think West’s leadership of the group is successful in the short-run? In
the long-run? What are the risks involved in his style?

HSC Class 6: Improving Organizational Processes (Tuesday, Sep 19)

 Description: A central topic in management is how to change organizations. We

consider the processes needed to make changes stick as well as the
organization of work and the human resource policies associated with
“lean” production systems pioneered by Toyota. These practices are
increasingly seen as useful in many contexts for improving quality and
productivity.

 Readings: James P. Womack, Daniel T. Jones, and Daniel Roos, “How Lean
Production Can Change the World,” New York Times, pp. 20ff.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 8

 James N. Baron and Michael T. Hannan, “Organizational Blueprints for
Success in High-Tech Start-Ups,” California Management Review, Vol. 44,
No. 3, pp. 8-36.

Charles O’Reilly, “Corporations, Culture, and Commitment: Motivation

and Social Control in Organizations,” California Management Review, p. 9-25.
Start the People Express simulation below for Sept 21.

 Case: Leaping Tiger

1. What would your plan be for turning around this guest house?
2. Specifically, how would you try to ensure that quality customer
experiences we put in place and executed over time?

HSC Class 7: Aligning Human Resources and Business Strategy (Thursday, Sep 21)
*** Team report from People Express simulation exercise due at beginning of class ***
[This is a computer simulation. You will be running a start-up airline. It needs to be done
in a team, so schedule at least two hours this week when you are available to do it. The
simulation will be loaded on every Huntsman computer.]

 Description: In this capstone session, we highlight the alignment (or misalignment) between human
resources systems and business strategy as a source of competitive advantage. We also
discuss debates over whether there is “one best way” for all companies in all industries to
organize their systems for managing people. In the case discussion, we will untangle the
factors behind the high performance of Southwest Airlines, perhaps the most successful
airline in the U.S. over the past 10-15 years. We will compare Southwest with examples, past
and present, of airlines that have taken different approaches to combining their “managing
people” practices with their business model and operational practices, and discuss the
significance of these differences for achieving sustainable competitive advantage in this very
tough industry.

 Readings: Peter Cappelli and Anne Crocker-Hefter, “Distinctive Human Resources Are Firms’ Core
Competencies,” Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 24, No. 3.

Jeffrey Pfeffer, “Producing Sustainable Competitive Advantage Through the

Effective Management of People,” Academy of Management Executive, Vol. 19 (4):
pp. 95-106.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 9

  Case: Southwest Airways: Sustainable Start-up

1. What is Southwest’s strategy? How would it answer the question,

“What business are we in?” Why has it been successful for so long?
2. Can its success be replicated by a competitor? Why or why not?
3. How does Southwest’s system for managing people link to the execution of its
strategy?
4. How would you describe the culture of the organization?
5. What would cause Southwest to fail?

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 10

 PART II: STRATEGY MODULE (Professor Rios)
NOTE: Case questions and Reading Subject to change in order to keep up with the news, adjust to
the pace and interest of the class, and maximize your experience. Please check Canvas
Announcements for any updates.

 Strategy Class 1: Introduction. Industry Analysis (Tuesday Sept 26)

 Readings: Michael Porter, 2008. The Five Forces That Shape Strategy. R0801E-PDF-ENG
 Case: Thomas R. Eisenmann; Liz Kind. 2014. “Andreessen Horowitz”. 814060-PDF-
ENG
*Read whole case, but focus closely on the first 5 pages for this first class. Read
also carefully any exhibits as needed to answer the questions.
Study Questions:
1. Identify each of the 5 (or 6 if there are complementors) forces in the
industry that a16z entered. Try to do a 5-forces analysis (esp. if you have
studied this in another course or prior employment)
2. Is this an attractive industry? List pros/cons
3. Would you enter this industry?
Strategy Class 2: Beating the Averages: Strategic Positioning via Organizational Design
(Thursday Sept 28)
 Readings: Michael Porter, 1996. “What is Strategy?” 96608-PDF-ENG
 Case: Thomas R. Eisenmann; Liz Kind. 2014. “Andreessen Horowitz”. 814060-PDF-
ENG
*Read whole case now
Study Questions:
1. What is a16z’s Strategic Position (use the Porter reading as a guide).
2. Think about Kupor’s (p.8) “source, pick, win” framework. Do you think
a16z developed the right organization to do these three things well?
Come up with some concrete examples of source, pick, and win.
Strategy Class 3: Value Creation (Tuesday Oct 3)
• Readings: Videos:
1. A Definition of Value: http://vimeo.com/61143220
2. How the Pie is Divided: http://vimeo.com/61225993
3. Creating the Largest Pie: https://vimeo.com/61844795
Article:
David Collis 2011. “Quantitative Analysis of Competitive Position: Customer
Demand and Willingness to Pay.” 711495-PDF-EN
OPTIONAL: Brandenburger, Adam, and Harborne Stuart. 1996. “Value-Based
Business Strategy.” Journal of Economics and Management Strategy. Pages 1-
18 only. This reading is the theory behind the videos. I strongly suggest you skim
it, if you can.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 11

  Case: Kenneth Corts, 2003, “Performance Indicator” 702480-PDF-ENG Study
Questions:
1. Why has it been so difficult for PI to get a golf manufacturer to sign a
contract for their new technology?

2. How much do you think the potential customers (that is, GOLF
MANUFACTURERS like Acushnet, Nike, etc.) should be willing to pay
per dozen balls for PI's technology? Does it vary by manufacturer? What
else might result in higher (lower) WTP? Start with the proforma on p 16.
Hint: it is less than the optimistic “profit impact” of $13.10.

3. In light of your analysis, what should Osinski and Winskowicz do?

[FALL BREAK]

Strategy Class 4: Entry Strategies 1: Fundamentals (Tuesday Oct 10)

• Readings: Joshua Gans, 2016. “The Disruption Dilemma.” ROT309-PDF-ENG

Digitopoly blog posts by Joshua Gans (links below and printouts in coursepack):
1. Choosing to disrupt. June 24, 2014.
http://www.digitopoly.org/2014/06/24/choosing-to-disrupt/
2. Choosing not to disrupt (Embedding in a value chain). June 26,2014.
http://www.digitopoly.org/2014/06/26/choosing-not-to-disrupt-embedding-in-
a-value-chain/
3. Another Choice: The Intellectual Property Strategy. July 5, 2014.
http://www.digitopoly.org/2014/07/05/another-choice-the-intellectual-
property-strategy/
4. The Final Box: Architectural Strategy. July 10, 2014.
http://www.digitopoly.org/2014/07/10/the-final-box-architectural-strategy/
Videos:
1. Disruptive Innovation Explained.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDrMAzCHFUU
2. Explained. Again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbPiAzzGap0

 Case: No Case. We will do an in-class exercise applying concepts from the blog.
Individual case handed out
Due at midnight on Sunday Oct 22.

[CORE EXAMS, NO CLASS]

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 12

 Strategy Class 5: Entry Strategies 2: Mixed and Dynamic Strategies in Action (Thursday Oct
19)

• Readings: “6 Companies that Succeeded by Changing Their Business Model” blog:

https://www.chargify.com/blog/6-companies-that-succeeded-by-changing-their-
business-model/
Video: The Pivot. https://ed.ted.com/on/7gLF8601

• Case Luo, Oberholzer-Gee and Chaturvedi, 2016. “UFO Moviez-Gentle Disruption.”

716447-PDF-ENG
Think about how UFO’s business plan changed over time—and how it might
change again.
Strategy Class 6: Platforms, Network Effects (Tuesday Oct 24)
• Reading Marshall Van Alstyne, et al 2016. “Pipelines, Platforms, and the New Rules of
Strategy.” HBR R1604C-PDF-ENG
David Evans; Richard Schmalensee, 2016. “What Platforms do Differently Than
Traditional Businesses.” H02VWY-PDF-ENG
David Evans; Richard Schmalensee, 2016. “The Businesses That Platforms are
Actually Disrupting.” H034IA-PDF-ENG
• Case David Collis, Ashley Hartman, 2015. “$19B 4 txt app WhatsApp…omg!”
715441-PDF-ENG
Study questions:
1. What is the potential size of the IM market?
2. Do a 5-Forces of the IM industry
3. What were WhatsApp’s competitive advantages that allowed it to grow
so fast?
4. Are these advantages sustainable?
5. If sustainable, how do you monetize?
Strategy Class 7: Growing, Scaling and Exits / Wrap-up (Thursday Oct 26)

• Reading Giovanni Gavetti, Jan Rivkin, 2005. “How Strategists Really Think: Tapping the
Power of Analogy.” R0504C-PDF-ENG
Kanyi Maquebela, 2014. “Entrepreneurs Need a Better Way to Cash Out.”
H00UCY-PDF-ENG
Ron Carucci, 2016. “Midsize Companies Shouldn’t Confuse Growth With
Scaling.” H030ZN-PDF-ENG

• Case You should have submitted your proposals this past Sunday. So each team should
have a chosen firm. We will do exercises in class that will draw from all we have
learned so far, using examples from your final project proposals. Be prepared to
think about your focal firm using the frameworks we have covered.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 13

PART III: GLOBAL MODULE

Global Class 1: Why should firms (not) internationalize? (Tuesday, October 31)

Reading:
1. Introduction and summary of ADDING Framework from “Summary of Global Strategy Frameworks”
Document.
2. If needed, review the concept and calculation of net present value (NPV) analysis: “A Refresher on Net
Present Value” by Amy Gallo (https://hbr.org/2014/11/a-refresher-on-net-present-value). If you have
a strong background in NPV analysis, you can skip this.
3. OPTIONAL Research Example: Chang, Kogut, and Yang (2016) “Global diversification discount and
its discontents: A bit of self-selection makes a world of difference.” Strategic Management Journal, 37(11):
2254-2274.

Case: “Haier: Taking a Chinese Company Global.” HBS 9-706-401

Study Questions:
1. What made Haier so successful in China during its startup phase (from 1984 to the mid 1990’s)?
2. Do those same factors help Haier succeed internationally as the company matures (post mid 1990’s)?
3. Did Haier make the right decision by globalizing first into developed markets?

Global Class 2: Where should firms internationalize? (Thursday, November 2)

Reading:
1. Pankaj Ghemawat, “Distance Still Matters,” Harvard Business Review, Sep. 2001
2. OPTIONAL Research Example: Exequiel Hernandez (2014), “Finding a Home away from Home:
Effects of Immigrants on Firms' Foreign Location Choice and Performance.” Administrative Science
Quarterly, 59 (1): 73-108. (A summary of this article can be found at
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/foreign-firms-immigrant-workforce/).

Case: “Uber Growth: The Globalization of a Startup” Wharton School Case

(Download the spreadsheet that goes with this case from Canvas (Files > Global Module > Uber
Spreadsheet.xlsx. Bring your laptop/tablet with the spreadsheet to class.)

Study Questions:
1. How does Uber choose foreign markets?
2. Do you agree with Uber’s attempts to standardize its globalization playbook?
3. What types of CAGE “distances” are most (and least) impactful for expanding Uber’s business abroad?
4. Did Uber expand globally too fast?

Global Class 3: How should firms internationalize—Strategy? (Tuesday, November 7)

Reading:
1. Summary of AAA framework (part of the “Summary of Global Strategy Frameworks” document.)
2. OPTIONAL Research Example: Siegel JI, Larson BZ. 2009. Labor Market Institutions and Global
Strategic Adaptation: Evidence from Lincoln Electric. Management Science 55(9): 1527–1546.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 14

Cases: (NOTE: Each is a brief mini-case rather than a full-length case)
1. “How Amazon Adapted Its Business Model to India” by Vijay Govindarajan and Anita Warren,
Harvard Business Review.
2. “Netflix, Amazon Take Divergent Paths to Reach Indian Audience” by Shalini Ramachandran, Wall
Street Journal (1 Nov 2016).
3. “The Globalization of R&D by US Multinationals: What Are the Effects at Home?” by Theodore
Moran and Lindsey Oldenski (https://piie.com/blogs/realtime-economic-issues-watch/globalization-
rd-us-multinationals-what-are-effects-home)

Study Questions:
1. What are the differences in the global strategies of Amazon, Netflix, and the US firms doing R&D
abroad described in the mini-cases?
2. How do these companies create and capture value in each case?
3. What risks is each company taking by the kind of strategy they are following in foreign markets?

Global Class 4: How should firms internationalize—Entry Mode? (Thursday, November 9)

Reading:
1. “The Resource Pathways Framework,” Chapter 1 of Build, Borrow, or Buy: Solving the Growth Dilemma (by
Laurence Capron and Will Mitchell).
2. OPTIONAL Research Example: Sanjeev Agarwal & Sridhar N. Ramaswami, “Choice of Foreign
Market Entry Mode: Impact of Ownership, Location and Internalization Factors.” Journal of International
Business Studies, March 1992:1-27.

Cases: (NOTE: Each is a brief mini-case rather than a full-length case)

1. “How a 10-month-old startup's founders convinced investors to give them millions of dollars to buy a
93-year-old German razor factory,” Business Insider, 13 June 2015
2. “Lyft, Didi, Ola And GrabTaxi Partner In Global Tech, Service Alliance To Rival Uber,” TechCrunch, 3
December 2015

Study Questions:
1. Why did Harry’s acquire Feintechnik? Why not manufacture it’s own razors or, if Feintechnik makes
unusually good razors, sign a simple supply contract to get the razors it needs?
2. Why did Lyft, Didi, Ola, and GrabTaxi establish an alliance? Why not build their own ridesharing
services in foreign markets, like Uber has done?

Global Class 5: Global Alliance Networks and Innovation (Tuesday, November 14)

1. “Comparing Network Advantage: Sony versus Samsung,” Chapter 2 in Network Advantage by Henrich
Greve, Tim Rowley, and Andrew Shipilov.
2. “The First Step to Successful Innovation? Choosing the Right Partners,” Knowledge@Wharton
(http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/the-first-step-to-successful-innovation-choosing-the-
right-partners/)
3. OPTIONAL Research Example: Hernandez, E and Balachandran, S (2017), “Networks and
Innovation: Accounting for Structural and Institutional Sources of Recombination in Brokerage
Triads,” Organization Science (forthcoming).

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 15

Case: “Tesla Motors: Disrupting the Auto Industry?” INSEAD Case CS-EN-0-01-2016

Study Questions:
1. What is the difference between the first, second, and third degree network perspectives?
2. Focus your reading of the Tesla case on its partnerships across the world. Does Tesla have a “hub and
spoke” or an “integrated” network? (Thus infographic is very useful:
http://kogodnow.com/2012/09/how-tesla-used-strategic-alliances-to-power-green-products/)
3. How does Tesla’s global network affect its ability to innovate and disrupt the auto industry?

Global Class 6: Class 21: Markets with Poorly Developed Institutions (Thursday, November 16)

Reading:
1. Summary of Institutional Voids (part of the “Summary of Global Strategy Frameworks” document.)
2. OPTIONAL Research Example: Tarun Khanna, Krishna Palepu, & Jayant Sinha, “Strategies that Fit
Emerging Markets.” Harvard Business Review, June 2005:4-18.

Case: “Mobile Banking for the Unbanked,” HBS 9-511-049

Study Questions:
1. Which was the better business model: the third-party-led (WIZZIT) or the MNO-led (M-PESA)
model? Why?
2. What country-specific factors influenced the performance of WIZZIT in South Africa and M-PESA in
Kenya? (Consider infrastructure, institutions, population, regulations, etc.)

Fri, Nov 17 GLOBAL STRATEGY MEMO DUE (11:59PM, ON CANVAS)

[Thanksgiving Break]

Global Class 7: Managing Non-Market Stakeholders (Thursday, November 30)

Reading:
“Managing government relations for the future: McKinsey Global Survey results” (link to article provided
by professor before class)

Case: “Uber’s Challenges in Foreign Markets (A)” (Wharton School Case)

Study Questions:
1. What are Uber’s main challenges in foreign markets at the time of the case?
2. Who are the key stakeholders making demands on Uber in each market? What do they want? Has Uber
done a good job of responding to those stakeholders?
3. If you were Travis Kalanick, what changes would you make to Uber’s approach towards dealing with
regulators, the public, and other stakeholders?

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 16

TEAM PROJECT DEADLINES

Tue, Dec 5: Team project presentations

Thu, Dec 7: Team project presentations

Fri, December 15: Team paper due by 11:59 pm (via Canvas)

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 17

Term Team Project

The project should be worked on in a team of six students. Your assignment is to use theories and concepts
from the course to analyze and explain the activities of a given firm located in a given country, vis-à-vis the
firm’s employment practices and organizational and human-resource systems, its corporate strategy, and its
global strategy. Essentially, in this assignment, you will use an actual firm as the case material that allows you
to demonstrate your understanding of and ability to apply course theories/concepts. The project can
incorporate such competitive strategy topics as industry analysis, positioning, firm capabilities and resources,
and the horizontal, vertical and geographic boundaries of the firm; such human and social capital course
topics as motivation, job design, reward systems, recruiting and selection, managing individual and group
performance, improving organizational processes, and links between the HR system and business strategy;
and global strategies of aggregation, adaptation and arbitrage, the role of business groups and the tension
between shareholder value maximization and stakeholder demands.

This assignment requires you to prepare a report (25 pages in length) and a presentation summarizing its
main themes and findings. For both, you should consider the drivers of the firm’s recent relative performance
as well as the sustainability of these drivers over time. To ensure that the project meets the course objectives,
each project team would submit a brief project proposal (through Canvas) that will include the name of the
company, the industry that the company is in and the course topics that will be covered in the project..

The choice about the relative weight to put on different issues, theories and concepts in explaining the firm’s
activities and its performance is yours. In evaluating your paper, we will look to see whether the
theories/concepts you use are described accurately (i.e. substantively correct), applied appropriately (i.e. fit the
context you describe), and most relevant to the situation (i.e. did you pick the theories/concepts that best
illuminate the firm’s situation). In choosing a focal firm, remember that you may not choose a firm
highlighted in the cases from the course; and that the firm must, to some degree, be global, i.e. involved in
cross-border activities (not only serving a domestic market).

Note that we have created an "off‐limits" list for focal firms this year. Each year, certain firms are popular
choices, selected by multiple student teams. To maximize the range and variety of firms analyzed for this
assignment (and to avoid repetition in team presentations for students and faculty alike), we establish an “off‐
limits” list each time the course is taught. Typically the list is based on firms that were chosen by two or more
teams in previous years. For this year's course, the “off‐ limits” list includes: AirBnb, Bonobos, Chipotle,
FitBit, GoPro, Groupon, Lending Club, Linked In, Lululemon, Shake Shack, Spotify, Square, Tesla, Tough
Mudder, Uber, Netflix, and Yelp. Additionally, any firm that we studied as a focal case will be off-limits.

Here are some tips based on our collective experience with this course assignment. Each instructor will offer
additional guidance vis-à-vis specific expectations and recommendations.

• Don’t forget that this is an exercise that must be graded. It is easy to get carried away with an
interesting story and forget that this is also a way to test your knowledge of and ability to apply the
course material.

• The paper must cover material from all three modules of class, including concepts/frameworks from
each module. However, not all modules need to receive equal coverage. Your decision of what to
emphasize will depend on the issues most salient and interesting for your company. Remember to
mention course concepts specifically, so we don’t have to read your mind to figure out what concepts
you are applying to your case. Drawing explicit links between the concepts you identify and the case
material is the key. Don’t just drop in the names of a few theories or concepts into the midst of a
description. Show how they apply.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 18

 • Do not expect the reader to “crunch the numbers” that you display in your exhibits to see what is
really happening; this is the difference between a case and a paper: you have to provide the data and
the analysis.

• When facing a choice as to whether to narrow your paper to a more focused topic, recognize the
benefits of this strategy in terms of richness, thoroughness and completeness but balance these
benefits against the costs of reduced data availability and difficulty in legitimately speaking to all three
elements of the course. Choose the narrowest possible topic that offers sufficient data and allows you
to describe and integrate a discussion on corporate strategy, human and social capital and global
strategy.

• It may be useful (though it is not required) to

o Develop a comparative angle in the paper, i.e. compare your firm to another firm in the
same country or your firm’s operations in the focal country to those in another country.
Doing so, however, enhances the risk of spreading yourself too thin so be cognizant of this
risk if you choose this approach.
o Compare and contrast how two or more different theories or frameworks can be applied to
the same case. Be sure you make it clear to us why you chose those theories and which you
felt provided more insight.

Please consider the following suggested sections to include in your report (NOTE: You are not required or
expected to cover all of these questions in your paper—they are given just as a means to get your team
thinking of possible issues to cover. In fact, trying to cover all these issues in one paper is not a good idea.):

1) Short history/overview of the focal firm, its strategy, and its management practices, including the
influence of its home country’s political, economic and social institutions;
2) Short history / overview of the economic, political, legal or social context in the focal country and the
focal firm’s perceptions of their likely evolution over time, as it pertains to the evolution of the focal
firm’s strategy and management practices;
3) Industry analysis, both (potentially) globally and in the focal national market;
4) Management challenges, including (but not limited to) organizational design, structure, and processes;
culture, i.e., how the firm’s culture deals with differences in national culture that affect its activities; and
HR practices related to rewards, skills/talent, hiring and retention, job design, supervision and
performance appraisal;
5) (Prospective or actual) global strategy (e.g. ADDING framework) of the firm in the focal market,
including mode and sequence of entry;
6) Impact of different national laws, policies, institutions, and norms on the focal firm when (or if) it
operates in different counties (i.e. CAGE framework);
7) What is the nature of the competitive forces within the industry currently and how are these dynamics
likely to change in the near and medium term?
8) How is this firm positioned with respect to its industry competitors? Note that this analysis should
include both external (i.e. execution of the strategy vis‐à‐vis customers) and internal (i.e. organizational
practices that develop capabilities underlying the strategy) activities. Do these activities reinforce each
other, per the concept of an activity system?
9) If relevant, how does the focal country or location position itself to attract firms and investment, from
within and outside national borders? Why did the focal firm choose to MGMT 612, Spring 2017 ‐
Syllabus Page 8 locate in this particular place (if the firm is a startup, why are its headquarters in that
location)? What location choices are competitors making?
10) Overall assessment of this firm’s competitive advantage – its sources, distinctiveness, imitability, and the
sustainability of its competitive position.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 19

PLEASE NOTE THAT ANY QUOTATIONS OF LONGER THAN A PHRASE MUST BE
EXPLICITLY NOTED IN THE TEXT. INSUFFICIENT ATTRIBUTION TO EXTENDED
QUOTATIONS FROM EXTERNAL SOURCES WILL RESULT IN FORMAL CHARGES OF
PLAGIARISM TO THE OFFICE OF STUDENT CONDUCT. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON
POLICY, SEE http://gethelp.library.upenn.edu/PORT/documentation/plagiarism_policy.html

The write-up should be printed double-spaced, using 12-point Times New Roman Font. The maximum
length is 25 pages not including Exhibits. Please include an Executive Summary and Word Count on a title
page. You will have to be concise and make choices about what issues to discuss. We recommend that you
begin work on the paper early, to avoid a last minute crunch. This is feasible because some corporate and
national material is readily available and each class session will introduce new concepts that are potentially
applicable.

You will also do a presentation to the faculty and your classmates ofyour report’s primary themes and
conclusions. As noted above, the presentation will count for 5% of your course grade; the paper is worth
25%. In addition to providing an opportunity to present ideas before a group of peers, the presentations will
also allow you to share the learning from your project. We will assign team presentation slots on a random
basis. Each slot will be comprised of two components: the actual presentation (the same length for all teams
in all sections, likely around 9‐10 minutes) and Q&A (length adjusted depending on the number of teams
in the section) where team members field questions from your fellow students. (Note that we will rely
on students to step up and ask questions rather than posing queries ourselves. Indeed, we will assess your
involvement in the Q&A as part of your participation grade.) With only 9‐10 minutes for your presentation,
you will have to be very selective in what you present. How you distribute the presentation time is up to you;
there is no need to give everyone “air time”. For the Q&A, it is best to have team members who have not
presented step forward to field the questions. Of course, some questions relate to the specific research done
by one team member, so this isn’t an absolute rule. The idea is to get the whole team involved as much as
possible. We tend to lower the grade when presentations plus Q&A (combined) are dominated by 1‐2 people.
Remember that the in‐class presentation is primarily for your classmates. Think of what about your team
project has been most intriguing for you and would be most interesting for them. Tell them what key events
or crucial decisions or important periods of growth and development you chose to analyze (emphasizing the
“founding conditions” where appropriate), what course concepts you applied, and what future‐looking
recommendations (grounded in your analysis) you can offer. If you have any confidentiality concerns, just
leave out anything that would be problematic. We recommend a slide‐based presentation (e.g. PowerPoint or
similar application) to communicate the most important material from your project. During the presentations,
the faculty will take notes and use them in order to evaluate the clarity, insight, creativity and timeliness of
what your team communicated in the presentation. We will also keep track of the questions asked by
students, and team member responses, during the Q&A; as noted, these will be included when we calculate
the individual participation grade.

You may want to explore and draw from the following sources of information (this is a partial list, to which
we will be adding other suggested resources). An updated list of the available sources is available at
http://guides.library.upenn.edu/mgmt612.

MGMT 612, Fall 2017 - Syllabus Page 20