The Ministry of Manpower in Singapore is designing a new employment pass processing centre. Working with a lean-thinking approach and using previous centers as a template, the project team proceeds to plan an updated version with faster processing times and improved interiors.

In 2008, Michel Safir, our protagonist, was tasked to roll out Lean throughout the Design and Engineering (D&E) departments of FCI, a large multi-national player in the connector industry. This case describes in detail the pilot project where many of the principles of Lean were applied to various aspects of D&E over a period of 18 months.

In 2008, Michel Safir, our protagonist, was tasked to roll out Lean throughout the Design and Engineering (D&E) departments of FCI, a large multi-national player in the connector industry. This case describes in detail the pilot project where many of the principles of Lean were applied to various aspects of D&E over a period of 18 months.

Jacques Esculier arrives in Singapore to assume the position of Vice-President of Repair & Overhaul (R&O) for AlliedSignal Aerospace’s Asia Pacific operations. On discovering that the Managing Director of the facility in Singapore responsible for the repair and overhaul of auxiliary power units has resigned, he assumes the MD role as well.

Compaq Computer Corp., like many manufacturers, faces operational choices that strongly influence the cost of capital engaged in inventory, customer response time, and potential product obsolescence. This case describes some key operations strategy choices regarding two types of inventory: operation inventory (e.g., flow) and tactical inventory (e.g., finished goods).

Compaq Computer Corp., like many manufacturers, faces operational choices that strongly influence the cost of capital engaged in inventory, customer response time, and potential product obsolescence. This case describes some key operations strategy choices regarding two types of inventory: operation inventory (e.g., flow) and tactical inventory (e.g., finished goods).

This case was written to illustrate the importance of business process design as a basis for competition in the textile industry. The case illustrates the impressive performance of Zara, the new fashion player from Spain, which has innovated in process design so as to deliver new collections in its stores with a lead-time of 5 to 7 days.

This case describes ten years of supply chain evolution at Hewlett Packard's European Business Desktop division. It takes the perspective of Xavier de Montgros, Supply Chain Strategy Director PC Group of Hewlett Packard. It shows the evolution from a "Push" system to a "Pull" system, deals with outsourcing decisions, and considers HP's move to direct sales.

This case depicts the situation of a relatively large startup in Singapore that writes "back office" software for the banking industry. They have been quite successful in their niche, providing low-cost solutions to an international client base. The case deals with their latest software product (Symbols) that offers customer relationship management tools and capabilities to their clients.

Case Writers: Greg BLACKWOOD and Charles CHAN

In the year 2000 Knowledge Dynamics is a three-year-old company that designs and delivers business intelligence systems to its customers in the banking and manufacturing sectors. Seeking to accelerate its growth the company is considering a large investment in software development in order to add licensing fees to its revenue model.