Case Name :      Strong Tie Ltd.

Authors :           Dan Thompson

Source :             Ivey Publishing

Case ID :            W11712

Discipline :        Finance

Case Length :    05 pages

Solution Sample availability : YES

Plagiarism : NO (100% Original work)

The CEO received the draft 2008 financial statements for Strong Tie, a manufacturer of structural connectors used in the building industry. He began to question the company’s performance when he compared them to previous years. How were profits holding up given the intense price competition in the industry? Were attempts to lower costs through more automation paying off? Where the current problems in the U.S. housing market going to continue to reduce demand for connectors? How would lenders react to this poor performance? Was the company’s financing in danger? After discussing the matter extensively with Strong Tie’s CFO, it was decided that an outside consultant should be hired to provide an independent analysis of the company’s recent performance and to provide suggestions for future action.