Walt Disney Pictures vowed it would learn from its mistakes after suffering a loss of more than $100 million on the film John Carter. (The studio had ceded creative control to a maverick director, allowed production costs to spiral out of control, and pursued an ill-conceived marketing campaign.) In planning its two major film releases of 2013, it chose to bet on a bankable star, Johnny Depp, starring in a legendary western, and on a heartwarming, 3-D animated feature made on a moderate budget. The studio got half of what it hoped for. While The Lone Ranger quickly bled $160 million in losses, Frozen emerged as a surprise holiday hit, generating well over $1 billion box office worldwide and spawning related branded products and a future musical stage production.
Use these examples and other management cases reported in the business press to make a list of the many categories of risks facing managers. In particular lines of business, what categories of risks are the most crucial for the firm's profit? How might firms eliminate, mitigate, or insure against these risks?