Publications

January 2015
Case

Cresud and Argentina

By: David E. Bell and Mary Shelman

Argentina-based Cresud managed 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres) of land in South America. For 20 years, the publicly traded company's strategy had been to acquire underutilized properties and turn them into productive farmland for cattle and crops. In 2014,... View Details

Keywords: Argentina; Farmland Ownership; Farming; Government Agricultural Policy; Agribusiness; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Argentina; South America

February 2013
Teaching Note

Fonterra (TN)

By: David E. Bell and Mary Shelman

Teaching Note for Fonterra View Details

Keywords: Dairy; Cooperatives; Commodity Prices; Agribusiness; Organizational Structure; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; New Zealand

December 2011 (Revised October 2015)
Case

Fonterra

By: David E. Bell and Mary Shelman

In 2011, Fonterra, the world's largest processor and exporter of dairy products, needed to reposition its business to take advantage of rising demand in emerging markets in Asia. View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Product Positioning; Emerging Markets; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Asia

December 2011 (Revised April 2013)
Case

Brasil Foods

By: David E. Bell and Natalie Kindred

In mid-2011, the management of Brasil Foods, a leading Brazilian branded foods producer and protein exporter, is evaluating strategies for international and domestic growth. The team has just received approval from Brazil's antitrust authorities to complete the merger... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Brazil

April 2010 (Revised May 2010)
Teaching Note

Codevasf (TN)

By: David E. Bell and Natalie Kindred

Teaching Note for 510042. View Details

Keywords: Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Brazil

November 2009 (Revised March 2013)
Case

PureCircle

By: David E. Bell and Aldo Sesia

In December 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined that high-purity Rebaudioside A (Reb A), a natural and calorie-free product that a young company named PureCircle manufactured from the Stevia plant, could be used in beverages, foods, and as a... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Investment; Globalization; Leadership; Risk Management; Product Launch; Production; Performance Productivity; Business and Shareholder Relations; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

June 2008 (Revised July 2009)
Case

COFCO Xinjiang Tunhe Co., Ltd.

By: David E. Bell and Aldo Sesia

In 2005, COFCO Ltd., one of China's largest and most successful companies, acquired Xinjiang Tunhe, a tomato processing firm, which had been, in recent years, poorly managed. COFCO changed Tunhe's management team and set out to create a culture of professionalism and... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Customer Relationship Management; Rural Scope; Supply Chain Management; Performance Consistency; Safety; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; China

April 1999 (Revised August 2000)
Case

Compaq Computer: Focus Groups

By: David E. Bell and Ann Leamon

Gives the final report, both results and methodology, of the focus group on Compaq Computer's new consumer notebook. Describes the groups, selection method, and methodology in detail. Should Compaq base its product design on the opinions of 64 people? Must be used with... View Details

Keywords: Selection and Staffing; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Product Design; Outcome or Result; Corporate Strategy; Computer Industry

May 1999 (Revised August 1999)
Case

Victory Supermarkets: Expansion Strategy?

By: David E. Bell and Ann Leamon

Jay DiGeronimo, president of a 16-store supermarket chain, is trying to decide the timing and method for expanding his chain. The family-owned company could continue in a maintenance mode, with each family member running one store. It could expand slowly using a new... View Details

Keywords: Budgets and Budgeting; Cost vs Benefits; Trade; Investment; Market Entry and Exit; Supply Chain Management; Private Ownership; Competition; Expansion; Retail Industry

Find at Harvard

October 1998 (Revised April 2001)
Case

United Way of Massachusetts Bay

By: David E. Bell and Ann Leamon

The United Way of Massachusetts Bay held the monopoly on workplace giving for 50 years. In the 1990s it has experienced a dramatic change in the workplace itself and in donor attitudes toward giving and toward the United Way organization. This case investigates the... View Details

Keywords: Change; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Monopoly; Relationships; Attitudes; Internet; Massachusetts

May 2022
Exercise

Regression Exercises

By: David E. Bell

April 2022 (Revised April 2023)
Case

Highland Park Wood Co. (Abridged)

By: David E. Bell

A major home builder wishes to purchase lumber (Southern pine). The builder wants delivery in six months but prefers to lock-in the price near current rates. The lumber wholesaler must decide on a pricing and sourcing strategy. Examples include: 1) buy & hold, 2) wait... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Goods and Commodities; Futures and Commodity Futures; Price; Forest Products Industry; Construction Industry