Case Name :      Laidlaw: The Resignation of James R. Bullock

Authors :           Joseph N. Fry

Source :             Ivey Publishing

Case ID :            900M17

Discipline :        General Management

Case Length :    12 pages

Solution Sample availability : YES

Plagiarism : NO (100% Original work)

After acquiring Greyhound U.S., Laidlaw, Inc. became the principal provider of intercity transit in North America. Nine months later, the board of Laidlaw asked its CEO to resign, citing performance problems and the need to divest certain operations to strengthen its balance sheet. This case examines Laidlaw’s attempts to enter and consolidate selected transportation service industries. Something has gone terribly wrong and the search for the reasons pushes back to fundamental issues associated with growth by acquisition and the corporate management of (arguably) diverse businesses. This sets up a discussion of whether the CEO’s strategy was reasonable or fundamentally flawed; whether something could have been done earlier by the CEO or the board, and if so, why action wasn’t taken; and finally, the prospects for Laidlaw as it looks ahead.