Scenarios for Meetings: Below are several scenarios

for
meetings. Check your handouts for language you will need to offer
opinions (strongly, tentatively, and neutrally), agree, disagree, ask
for clarification, etc.
lease note: to make it a !it easier to do the roles plays, " have
not changed your names# therefore, you should not consider the
parts
you play as having anything to do with the re a l y o u ($hatever that means%)."n short, the
descriptions !elow are for role play purposes only and are not my opinion of you as a
person.
Each chairperson creates agenda (30 minutes per meeting) according to examples
you already have and distributes it before the meeting.
Meeting Scenario&
'ansko (lectronics (Chaired !y ) )(*tremely successful Central
and (astern (uropean (lectronics company speciali+ing in miniature
devices. ,ounded !y in &---. .he Company needs to select a
new president and decide whether to e*pand into the /sian market.
oint &) Selecting new president: /lthough is generally liked !y all !oard mem!ers,
some feel that as company founder and president to o m u c h p o w e r i s i n o n e p e r s o n 0 s h a n d s .
.herefore, has decided to s te p d o w n. .he candidates for president are:
a) , h1.2 3 e*cellent years with the !oard. 4utstanding academic
record and the highest recommendations from the consulting firm where she worked 5
years. 6oung, relatively ine*perienced !ut with a lot of enthusiasm and many good ideas for
marketing and e*pansion. 7er knowledge of the /sian Market is seco n d t o n o n e (which
means she knows as much as any!ody in the company). She has good communications skills,
!ut some staff find her a !it aggressive and infle*i!le at times.
!) 2 Current vice2chairman. 8ery good with details !ut not really a team
player# p refer s to9would rather work alone. $ife is deputy director of 1ragon 1eals
/ssociates, a consultancy firm with very strong connections to many large /sian
!usinesses.
oint3) (ntering /sia Market: ros: Big Market, few re g u l a tor y res tric ti on s (!ut this will
change in 3:&:), good contacts from partner firms in C+ech ;epu!lic and ,rance. Cons:
China2.i!et tensions could a lt e r re g u l a to r y l a n d s c a p e , /rms (m!argo ! a ckl a s h for (< firms
possi!le, no i n 2co m p a n y l a n g u age c a p a ! i li ti e s.
=otes:
&
Meeting Scenario 3
/' Cosmetics (chaired !y ,ounder )
oint&) /' would like to introduce an all2natural skin
care line.
ros:
> $ould support in d i g e n o u s 9lo c a l e c o n o m i e s.
> .op competitors have similar lines.
> Market research (f o c u s g ro u p s and samples
surveys) shows h i gh p ro ! a ! i li ty (?5.?@) of
success.
> South /merica and Central (urope (C()
cheaper production possi!ilities.
Cons:
> Market c o ul d !ecome saturated in &32&A
months.
> "ngredients cost 35.A@ higher.
> 1istri!utors needed in South /merica) would need to train them.
Should /' Btake the plungeC9take the riskD
oint3) MaEor d i s c r e p a n c ie s 9e rr o r s found !y int e r n al audit. Could possi!ly result in !ig fines
if not corrected immediately. <nfortunately, correcting now would reFuire o v er h a u l of
accounting software (a maEor e*pense of &.G million euro: &: times the software !udget for
3:&:). =e*t scheduled e* ter n al (/rthur /ndersen) audit is in ? months. / temporary
Bfi*C9patch with the old software possi!le !ut risky.
$hat should they doD
ointG) Should the company hire more male shop managers (presently A5@ are women)D
Clientel is A-@ female (or men !uying products for women). "n a confidential poll among
current shop owners and customers, 5H@ were open to the idea# G3@ were opposed# 3:@
had no strong opinion one way or the other# G@ didn0t mark the Fuestion. rofits have !een
increasing !y an average of &?@ for the last four years.
.his point came up in response to an article in the ,inancial .imes where a court in California
awarded a &.3 million dollar 1iscrimination in 7iring Eudgment to rofessor ". ;eilly
yssedhoff. rofessor yssedhoff sued the Claire Cosmetics Salons chain for not hiring him
despite his e*tensive managerial and academic e*perience in the industry. B?-@ of their
managers were women# I3@ of the new manager applicants to their salons had less
e*perience than " did. Still they gave me the shaftC, he complained on C==. B.hey said " was
too old. 7ell, "0m all of G- years old%C
=otes:
3
Meeting Scenario G
6ou are the C(4 of Creative 8entures an
international investment firm headFuartered
in Jondon. 6ou speciali+e in high2end
entertainment (you invested 3 million euros
each in Dej vu and The Last King of
Scotland and also sponsored the recent tours of uff 1addy and Sil!er Mond).
6ou are undergoing a !it of a management crisis: 33 out of 35 of your portfolio managers are
white males. Currently you are seeking to invest in the lucrative Bollywood (films made in
"ndia and /sia) market, especially as these films are finding a wider audience in (urope and
the <S. ;4" (;eturn on "nvestment) for these films is averaging G:2?:@ with some statistics
showing 5::@ on the !lock!usters. Statistical proEections !y consultancy firm KML says the
entertainment industry is growing at &A percent a year. 6ou definitely want in !ut you are
aware there are rum!lings9complaints in some Fuarters that your firm is BelitistC and !iased
against women and minorities. ("n fact, there were two legal actions !rought against the firm
in 3::? !ut the courts dismissed them as without merit).
Bharat Shah, "ndiaMs !iggest financier (who capitali+es !etween &H23H films a year), and the
Bgo2toC guy when maEor directors are considering financing, was reported !y the
"nternational 7erald .ri!une as saying: B " would refuse to invest in any film which accepted
money either from criminal elements or from firms which practice discrimination. .hat0s my
!ottom line%C
6 o u r m e e t in g t oda y with your "nternational Board of .rustees is to d i s c u s s a n d d e c i d e
whether Creative 8entures should rethink its hiring practices and get more minorities on
!oard (you have &? minority applicants# four of whom are women).
.en of your present managers (all males) have threatened to Fuit in protest if you hire these
people (minorities) under pressure. 6ou will also need to decide how to handle this situation
with the angry managers.
/t present you are financially solid !ut most of your competitors have already modified
their staff profile to reflect the demographics of the industry. "t is likely you will lose market
share if you fail to make a successful entry into the Bollywood market.
./SKS:
Create Agenda
Chair Meeting
Get decisions
G
Meeting Scenario 5
$e are the ,uture and the
,uture is =ow%
(W.A.F.F.N.)
6ou are mem!ers of $/,,=, an international
association of university alumni selected !y popular
vote to su!mit recommendations for improving the 7igher (ducation System throughout
(urope (!ut, p a r ti c ul a rl y in Lermany%).
6ou are meeting to !rainstorm ideas in three areas:
,inancing (student loans, tuition, etc.)
Curriculum and 1egree rograms (length of study# Fualifications# international
e*change programs)
.eaching Methods and Materials (Classroom materials and facilities, racticums and
rofessional 1evelopment rograms, rofessors and "nstructors)
6ou will evaluate your ideas, discuss them in the group and decide
which to present to the (< Minister of (ducation and to ,ederal
Minister 1r. /nnette Schavan.
TASKS
Create /genda
Decide who
brainstorms
what
Manage Meeting

,ederal Minister
/nnette Schavan

Creat
e list
of
recom
mend
ations

5
Meeting Scenario H
(1<2Care .raining Consultants
$e /re the $orld la+a, Suite ??, Brussels
Senior artner and (uropean roEect Manager
6our firm produces multi2media training materials for corporate, governmental, and higher
education clients. 6ou also give seminars.
6ou have !een asked to recommend a comprehensive and afforda!le G21ay training seminar
for managers who must moderate meetings in an international setting.
6ou ( ) are the proEect team leader. Your team has three tasks:
Brain storm the content for the seminar and put the !est ideas in writing.
Select who will lead the seminar (s)
1ecide on costs, eFuipment, location and other logistics.
As proect !eam "eader# your tasks are$
repare and distri!ute /genda and chair the meeting
1ivide group into two !rainstorming teams (see first and third !ullet points a!ove)
.he meeting is GH25: minutes
J7 SS3::A ;/M
H
/ngel "nvestments
/ngel investors are individuals who invest in !usinesses looking for a higher
return than they would see from more traditional investments. Many are
successful entrepreneurs who want to help other entrepreneurs get their
!usiness off the ground. <sually they are the !ridge from the self2funded
stage of the !usiness to the point that the !usiness needs the level of
funding that a venture capitalist would offer. ,unding estimates vary, !ut
usually range from N&H:,::: to N&.H million.
.he term OangelO comes from the practice in the early &-::Ms of wealthy !usinessmen investing in Broadway
productions. .oday OangelsO typically offer e*pertise, e*perience and contacts in addition to money. Jess is
known a!out angel investing than venture capital !ecause of the individuality and privacy of the investments,
!ut the Small Business /dministration estimates that there are at least 3H:,::: angels active in the country,
funding a!out G:,::: small companies a year. .he total investment from angels has !een estimated at
anywhere from N3: !illion to NH: !illion as compared to the NG to NH !illion per year that the formal venture
capital community invests. "n fact, the potential pool of angel investors is su!stantially larger. .here are a!out
two million people in the <nited States with the discretionary net worth to make angel investments.
.he Brain and Spine ,oundation is a n o t2for2 p rof it charity which aims to
ma*imi+e the Fuality of life for people with neurological disorders and to
reduce neurological disa!ility !y providing an international focus for
research, education and information. ,ounded in 3::3..heir headFuarters is
in Jyons, ,rance with offices in 7ong Kong, =ew 1elhi, 'ohannes!urg, Me*ico
City, and Chad.
=eeds P3.G million for new !uilding and hiring &: new staff for 3::-2&:
;4S: Strong management, young, well educated and highly motivated staff, lots of support
in communities it serves, linked to <=, 1octors without Borders, and (< funding sources.
C4=S: ,iscal management not as strong as it should !e. Staff needs more training in ; and
working with media in general. 7ave made some serious and costly mistakes in purchasing
eFuipment.
1irect ;elief listed in ,or!es Maga+ine as one of 3:: !est run
agencies. ,ounded in &-5A. 7eadFuarters in Brussels. rovides
diverse health and welfare services. $orking in over 5H
countries.
Budget is P &&3 million for 3::-2&:. (-G@ funding goals
reached as of & Septem!er 3::A). "t is a fo r p ro f it a g e n c y .
;4S: Stellar reputation, e*cellent fiscal management, multiple funding sources, well2
connected with government agencies.
C4=S: Some complaints it has lost contact with grassroots organi+ations, too much red tape
and micromanaging of country teams, pro!lems with staff morale, high staff turnover.
I
/ngel "nvestments Meeting Scenario:
6 o u are mem!ers of the !oard of /ngel "nvestments, a small group of international
investors who also seek worthy causes to support around the glo!e.
/lthough you are philanthropists, you are also e*tremely careful where you make
investments9donations and y o u e * p e c t a l l t h e o rg a n i+ a t io n s y o u s u pp o r t t o ! e w e l l
m a n a g e d a n d h a v e a s o l id 9g o o d r e p u t a t io n i n t h e ir fie ld s . ,rom time to time you
volunteer your services and e*pertise as consultants to n o n 2 p r o f it s (especially
newly formed ones9start2ups) who show promise and appear eager to learn.
6ou are meeting to consider the two foundations shown a!ove. 1iscuss their pros and
cons9 strengths and weaknesses. 6ou have P5.H million (&:@ of your profits from
your
3::A investment portfolio) to donate and9or invest in charita!le agencies for
3::-.
6 o u m u s t d e c id e :
> $hether to invest
> 7ow much to invest
> <nder what conditions you will invest (what the foundations have to do to get
the funds)
?