Are downward-pricing pressures in the segment making profit margins slim?

  1. Complete the SWOT Matrix [DOCX] to highlight the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the company (as approved by the instructor) you described in the Week 1 discussion.
    • Your selected company may be a startup company of your choosing, or it may be based on the snack food company scenario provided to you.
  2. Include four items in each category.
  3. As you complete each quadrant of the SWOT Matrix, consider these questions:
    • Strengths.
      • What are your selected company’s likely strengths?
      • Is your product or service in a growing industry and does it lack an entrenched competitor?
      • Are you in a niche market with great potential?
      • What strengths do you and other team members bring to the company?
    • Weaknesses.
      • What are your chosen company’s likely weaknesses?
      • How entrenched is the competition in your industry segment?
      • Is your management team inexperienced?
      • How challenging will it be to produce the product or offer the service and maintain quality?
    • Opportunities.
      • What are your company’s opportunities?
      • Does your segment have more demand than supply?
      • Have larger corporations stopped serving smaller or niche markets that you could enter?
      • Is a new market emerging because of demographics, immigration, changing tastes, et cetera?
    • Threats.
      • What are your company’s threats?
      • Does a clear market leader exist that will be hard and expensive to displace?
      • Are downward-pricing pressures in the segment making profit margins slim?
      • Are there few or no barriers to entry for new competitors?

Post at least one substantive comment to another student’s post.

Notes

  • Textbook Chapter 9, “Strategic Position & Risk Assessment,” pages 143–162, provides additional detail about this topic.
  • You will revise this week’s discussion post as part of your on the Week 3 assignment, Company Description and SWOT Matrix.

Important notes:

1. Complete the SWOT matrix in Word and then copy from there and paste it into the discussion window.

2. DO NOT attach the Word document to the discussion window. 

3. Include your company name and a brief description of what business you are in, as well as the product(s) and service(s) you offer for sale. Provide this information in your response for this week to remind everyone about your business (no more than 3-4 sentences). Save this description to include in all your weekly discussion responses in this class. 

4. A substantive comment is at least 4-6 substantive sentences in length, sharing examples, your perspective, resources, your experience, making connections, asking questions, etc

Medicare’s Role for Dual Eligible Beneficiaries.

Medicare has been in existence since 1965, and during the intervening years, its original design has been greatly modified. The recipients of Medicare may have stayed basically the same, but the delivery, types of services, control, and regulations have changed significantly and continue to change.

For this assignment, read the two articles listed below:

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2011). Restructuring Medicare’s beneficiary design: Implications for beneficiaries and spending. Retrieved from Restructuring Medicare’s Benefit Design: Implications for Beneficiaries and Spending.

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2012). Medicare’s role for dual-eligible beneficiaries. Retrieved from Medicare’s Role for Dual Eligible Beneficiaries.

Address the following questions:

  • Identify one or two main points from each selected article.
  • Explain in detail the issues presented in the articles and their impact on the recipients of Medicare.
  • Explain in detail the issues presented in the articles and their impact on the providers to Medicare recipients.

Assignment should be addressed in a 2- to 3-page document.

Cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.

Medicare has been in existence since 1965, and during the intervening years, its original design has been greatly modified. The recipients of Medicare may have stayed basically the same, but the delivery, types of services, control, and regulations have changed significantly and continue to change.

For this assignment, read the two articles listed below:

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2011). Restructuring Medicare’s beneficiary design: Implications for beneficiaries and spending. Retrieved from Restructuring Medicare’s Benefit Design: Implications for Beneficiaries and Spending.

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2012). Medicare’s role for dual-eligible beneficiaries. Retrieved from Medicare’s Role for Dual Eligible Beneficiaries.

Address the following questions:

  • Identify one or two main points from each selected article.
  • Explain in detail the issues presented in the articles and their impact on the recipients of Medicare.
  • Explain in detail the issues presented in the articles and their impact on the providers to Medicare recipients.

Assignment should be addressed in a 2- to 3-page document.

Cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.

Discuss Ethics in Business

Discuss Ethics in Business

Have you witnessed unethical practices in the workplace? If so, share your experience with the class and explain how this impacted your perception of the business.  If not, research to find a current example of unethical business practices, share the source, and explain how you would have handled this situation differently.

  • Support your response by integrating citation evidence using SWS-style citations.  Consider using the citation generator tool used in Part 1 to correctly format citations.  The textbook may be used as a source.

https://media.capella.edu/CourseMedia/sumid000144/wrapper.asp

  • Have you witnessed unethical practices in the workplace? If so, share your experience with the class and explain how this impacted your perception of the business.  If not, research to find a current example of unethical business practices, share the source, and explain how you would have handled this situation differently.
  • Support your response by integrating citation evidence using SWS-style citations.  Consider using the citation generator tool used in Part 1 to correctly format citations.  The textbook may be used as a source.

https://media.capella.edu/CourseMedia/sumid000144/wrapper.asp

Creating a Measurable Marketing Strategy Across Cultures

Creating a Measurable Marketing Strategy Across Cultures

In your simulation this week, one item that you will be working on is advertising to include ad copy design, and media placement and ad frequency. As you grow past your home headquarters, you will need to create a marketing strategy that:

  • Presents a core unified picture of your company and brand but also differentiates per individual market segments and cultures
  • Utilizes both traditional (i.e., print media, television, radio) and non-traditional sources (i.e., social media)
  • Is cost effective from a budget and resources perspective and can be measured for the Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)

Assignment Goal and Thought Process

Goal: You are a business that is conducting operations in multiple countries. To engage the audiences in the different geographies with diverse cultural needs, your company will need to create a core message that can be used as a base upon which to create messages that are tailored to each of your audiences.

Thought Process

  • Creating core and tailored marketing messages that you can measure the effectiveness of is critical to maximizing your company brand across all stakeholder groups.
  • If you were going to present this information to your management in a real-world situation, and requesting funds to support your plan, you will need to present a data driven plan with a Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI) measurement strategy to be seen as credible and win support for your plan.
  • In the Unit 1 assignment, Considerations in Expansion, you created profiles of all countries under consideration for initial launch and possible expansion, showing cultural and other demographic information. These profiles will help you tailor the core message to and create the tailored message and select the best delivery mechanisms for the product line(s) you have selected which you will describe in section 2. Make sure you include specifics on measurement (ROMI).
  • This assignment takes you beyond the confines of the simulation, although you will be using the simulation as a construct. These recommendations will not directly apply to the simulation.

Requirements

In a 4-6 page APA formatted paper excluding text, diagrams, and other visual/oral aids as appropriate, you will prepare the following:

  • Present a summary incorporating at least three (3) academically credible sources in addition to the weekly reading of the best practices:
    • creating a core marketing/advertising strategy
    • differentiating elements of this strategy tailored to individual markets, cultures, and age groups
    • integrating traditional and non-traditional sources
    • calculating Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)
  • Select at least one (1) product line your team is working with and submit a specific marketing plan that contains a:
    • Core unified message, and how this message was derived
    • Specific messages to the target customers in all of the countries that are included in the simulation,  North America (NORAM), Latin America (LATAM), Europe, the Middle East and Africa (Europe-MEA), and Asia Pacific (APAC) regions. Four geographic markets have been selected as sites for test marketing, one in each region: New York, Rio de Janeiro, Amsterdam, and Bangalore.
    • A description of the marketing venues you would use, i.e., mix of traditional vs non-traditional for each country. Explain your rationale for these choices.
    • Plan for how you will measure your results.

REMEMBER THAT THIS ASSIGNMENT TAKES YOU BEYOND THE CONFINES OF THE SIMULATION AND DOES NOT DIRECTLY IMPACT THE DECISIONS YOU ARE MAKING IN THE SIMULATION

Building A Competitive Advantage

Select an article from Business Week,
Forbes, Wall Street Journal, etc. that you think describes some internal factors for
a specific company. Answer these questions and be specific. – 25 pts.
o Identify and discuss two internal factors, using information from chapter 4,
for the company in the article. Within your discussion determine and discuss
whether the factor is a strength or weakness for the company.
o Based on what you know about the company, thoroughly explain which generic
company strategy (chapter 5) makes the most sense for them.
o Identify two pitfalls of this strategy that are most important for this company to avoid and
explain why.
Be sure to follow all aspects of the Grading Requirements found on the D2L Content
page and in the syllabus.Select an article from Business Week,
Forbes, Wall Street Journal, etc. that you think describes some internal factors for
a specific company. Answer these questions and be specific. – 25 pts.
o Identify and discuss two internal factors, using information from chapter 4,
for the company in the article. Within your discussion determine and discuss
whether the factor is a strength or weakness for the company.
o Based on what you know about the company, thoroughly explain which generic
company strategy (chapter 5) makes the most sense for them.
o Identify two pitfalls of this strategy that are most important for this company to avoid and
explain why.
Be sure to follow all aspects of the Grading Requirements found on the D2L Content
page and in the syllabus.

What would be the most helpful use of the SWOT analysis?

In the discussion, respond to the following. Be sure to respond to all parts of the questions in order to earn full credit.

  • Think back to the article, Are Your Company’s Strengths Really Weaknesses? Think specifically about the SWOT analysis, and consider how it may or may not be used within a marketing related role in a health care organization. Answer the following in the discussion:
    • Who would likely benefit from the use of the SWOT analysis?
    • What would be the most helpful use of the SWOT analysis?
    • When would you be likely to use the SWOT analysis?
    • How could the SWOT be a beneficial tool for you?
  • Explain your answer to each question and provide rational In the discussion, respond to the following. Be sure to respond to all parts of the questions in order to earn full credit.
    • Think back to the article, Are Your Company’s Strengths Really Weaknesses? Think specifically about the SWOT analysis, and consider how it may or may not be used within a marketing related role in a health care organization. Answer the following in the discussion:
      • Who would likely benefit from the use of the SWOT analysis?
      • What would be the most helpful use of the SWOT analysis?
      • When would you be likely to use the SWOT analysis?
      • How could the SWOT be a beneficial tool for you?
    • Explain your answer to each question and provide rational

Discuss Distribution and Network Models

Your initial post should be a minimum of 300 words in length, and you should respond to two additional posts from your peers.

Distribution and Network Models

We know that most problems which have resources to be allocated from many sources to multiple destinations can be solved using the maximum flow method. Examples may include airline scheduling or fairness in car sharing, etc. Can you explain why for them or find other example(s) to explain it so we can better understand how maximum flow method works in real world scenarios? (If you prefer, you may also choose other examples to illustrate other methods covered in this Distribution and Network Models Module.)

Your initial post should be a minimum of 300 words in length, and you should respond to two additional posts from your peers.

Distribution and Network Models

We know that most problems which have resources to be allocated from many sources to multiple destinations can be solved using the maximum flow method. Examples may include airline scheduling or fairness in car sharing, etc. Can you explain why for them or find other example(s) to explain it so we can better understand how maximum flow method works in real world scenarios? (If you prefer, you may also choose other examples to illustrate other methods covered in this Distribution and Network Models Module.)

Discuss Quantitative Analysis

Your initial post should be a minimum of 300 words in length, and you should respond to two additional posts from your peers.

Project Scheduling

What are the best or most popular software for PERT/CPM project on the market? Can you give one or two examples of how companies can use these software in real world projects?

Your initial post should be a minimum of 300 words in length, and you should respond to two additional posts from your peers.

Project Scheduling

What are the best or most popular software for PERT/CPM project on the market? Can you give one or two examples of how companies can use these software in real world projects?

Discuss ways of promoting a positive culture in a global environment.

Finding from the page 30-31

My highest score to my lowest score

human skill 68

conceptual skills 65

technical skills 52

For this assignment, you will assess your managerial skills to identify ways to make improvements.

To complete this assignment, you will need to complete the Apply Your Skills Engagement Exercise: Aptitude Questionnaire on pages 30–31 in Chapter 1 of the textbook, which was assigned in Week 1. Interpret your assessment findings based on the provided scoring and interpretation instructions.

Instructions

Review your assessment findings from the aptitude questionnaire and write a 3–4 page paper in which you address the following:

Summarize findings of your strengths and weaknesses in the conceptual, human, and technical skills areas, providing clear rationale.

Explain why you think you scored the way you did in each of the skills.

Identify at least one resource to improve each skill area—conceptual, human, technical—for a minimum of three resources.

Provide clear rationale for each resource.

Use Basic Search: Strayer University Online Library or, in your Blackboard classroom, go to Career and search LinkedIn to locate resources.

Describe how your strengths can promote a positive culture in a global environment, providing examples.

Use at least three sources to support your writing. Choose sources that are credible, relevant, and appropriate. Cite each source listed on your source page at least one time within your assignment. For help with research, writing, and citation, access the library or review library guides.

This course requires the use of Strayer Writing Standards. For assistance and information, please refer to the Strayer Writing Standards link in the left-hand menu of your course. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.

The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is:

Analyze the conceptual, human, and technical skills necessary for promoting a positive culture in a global environment.

Examine the concept of the time value of money in relation to corporate managers

 

  • Examine the concept of the time value of money in relation to corporate managers. Propose two methods in which time value of money can help corporate managers in general.

Respond:

 

When we talk about the time value of money, there are several sayings. For example:

  1. Time is money
  2. A nearby penny is worth a distant dollar
  3. A dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow
  4. A Penny SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED
  5. You give a poor man a fish and you feed him for a day. You teach him to fish, and you give him an occupation that will feed him for a lifetime
  6. Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish
  7. Don’t work to want, work to live!
  8. Waste Not Want Not!
  9. Do what today others won’t, so tomorrow, you can do what others can’t.
  10. Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.

And of course, the one that your parents used the most!

  1. Money doesn’t grow on trees

What are some other saying that you have heard? Time value of money deals with present value, future value, and what other values? As a manger, one must be able to look at the present and know how to get what is desired in the future. In essence how do you turn investments into profits? Managers must look at acceptance criteria. Meaning what are investors willing to accept as a return and in how many years or months. This goes into weighted average cost of capital (WACC). This will be discussed later in the course. But for now, what other factors must managers look at when evaluating future value and present value? A better question is why must managers deal with issues as they arise instead of procrastinating until further notice?  A saying that goes with this:

“A stitch in time saves nine” This means it’s better to deal with something now than to allow it to fester or wait and let it get worse and cause more time and ultimately money.

The one thing that affects the time value of money the most is inflation. Why is that? Here is an article on inflation and TVM.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-to-avoid-paying-the-cruelest-tax-inflation-11601631007?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=1