All cases have primary themes and subthemes that make them useful vehicles for discussing a variety of issues of importance to management education, and that shed light on the challenges of running businesses in the developing world. All cases are applicable to courses in Small Business Management or International Business. Guatemala Case Abstracts Shown in alphabetical order by case name, with country of operation. Suggested use in courses is shown in brackets at end. They face a variety of marketing and organizational issues as they expand their business.
Employee morale is low and turnover high.
To improve the situation, the company is introducing a new quality management program that has thus far met with mixed results. Rattan furniture manufacturer that has just weathered a crippling strike by its labor union demanding simply the legal minimum wage. The strike shut down the factory for 18 months, and now its general manager, the son of a prosperous, industrialist family, weighs whether or not to reopen the factory. An American adviser recognizes that they can improve their handling of inventory, but to make his case he must win the cooperation of the salesmen and the computer programmers, and then convice management of the need for change. Managing director is assessing the appropriate means to sell his produce in local and European markets.