Classic Cases

Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle & Off-the Shelf-Procurement

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

One of the explanations often given for the high cost of military hardware is the fact that many items of military equipment are built in such small quantities that the Armed Forces do not benefit from the economies of scale that keep prices...

The Alaska Railroad: 1984

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

For years, Alaskans have debated the pros and cons of taking over the Alaska Railroad from the federal government. With the passage of the Alaska Railroad Transfer Act of 1982, however, the debate assumed added importance. In the act, Congress...

The Congressionally Mandated Mobility Study

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

The Congressionally Mandated Mobility Study (CMMS), completed in 1981 by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, examined the capacities of the American military to transport troops and material to Europe and the Persian Gulf. The study was...

US-Canada Free Trade Negotiations (I): Gaining Approval to Proceed (B: Sequel)

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

In 1985, US Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter began preparing for trade talks with Canada, the largest US trading partner. The goal was an agreement that would virtually eliminate trade barriers between the two nations. But by the mid-1980s,...

US-Canada Free Trade Negotiations (I): Gaining Approval to Proceed (B)

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

In 1985, US Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter began preparing for trade talks with Canada, the largest US trading partner. The goal was an agreement that would virtually eliminate trade barriers between the two nations. But by the mid-1980s,...

US-Canada Free Trade Negotiations (I): Gaining Approval to Proceed (A)

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

In 1985, US Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter began preparing for trade talks with Canada, the largest US trading partner. The goal was an agreement that would virtually eliminate trade barriers between the two nations. But by the mid-1980s,...

Denise Fleury and the MN Office of State Claims

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

When Denise Fleury left the insurance industry to become head of the Minnesota Office of State Claims in June 1984, she knew the job would be challenging. Recent changes in state law had changed and broadened the mission of the state claims...

Striving Toward Excellence in Minnesota

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

On February 13, 1984, Minnesota Commissioner of Administration Sandra J. Hale told a group of some 200 state managers that her department would soon launch a program to improve the "effectiveness and productivity" of state government. Hale and...

Judge Tauro and Care of the Retarded in Massachusetts

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

On October 9, 1986, US District Court Judge Joseph L. Tauro signed an order withdrawing five Massachusetts state schools for the mentally retarded from federal supervision. The court had been involved in the schools since 1972, when parents of...

Multiple Launch Rocket System: On Time and Under Budget (Abridged)

Publication Date: January 1, 1987

During the period 1978 to 1984, cost overruns in defense system development and procurement were commonplace. In the same period, however, program costs for the Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS), a track-mounted field artillery rocket...

Multiple Launch Rocket System: On Time and Under Budget

Publication Date: January 1, 1987

During the period 1978 to 1984, cost overruns in defense system development and procurement were commonplace. In the same period, however, program costs for the Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS), a track-mounted field artillery rocket...

Plastic in the Public Sector

Publication Date: January 01, 1987

This five-paragraph case sketches a debate in the state of Minnesota about whether to allow to pay for their annual $15 park permits by credit card. The debate took place in the context of a larger Department of Natural Resources effort to...