Bus599 module 1 and module 2 both case and slp

BUS599 – MBA Integrative Project

Module 1 – Background

Strategic Review

OVERVIEW OF CASES

The Integrative Case Project (which you learn more about in the Case) focuses mainly on using Organizational Diagnosis (OD) models to analyze Whole Foods Market. For purposes of the Case studies, you will assume the role of a consultant for the Excellent Consulting Group. You will need to study Whole Foods Market and prepare reports for your boss, Art Epance, who is the Senior Project Manager at the Excellent Consulting Group. Essentially, the ABC Company has determined that it will require an outside review of Whole Foods Market to assist the company in determining how to proceed relative to integrating Whole Foods Market into ABC Company.

Each Case will be a separate analysis task in which you will prepare a report. The details of these assignments are explained in the Case assignments in each module.

The five cases in this course include the following:

Case 1 – Strategic Review of Whole Foods Market.

Case 2 – An analysis of Organizational Diagnostic models and identifying a model to use for diagnosing Whole Foods Market.

Case 3 – Diagnosing the Inputs and fit with the strategy of Whole Foods Market.

Case 4 – Diagnosing the Outputs and Performance of Whole Foods Market.

Case 5- Analyzing critical feedback loops and the opportunities for organizational learning at Whole Foods Market.

The SLP for this course involves participating in a simulation exercise. Unlike cases, which are static, simulations are interactive and you can see the results of your decisions. Additionally, you can repeat the simulation to improve the quality of your decisions.

GENERAL SLP SCENARIO:

Joe Schmoe is the current VP of Marketing for Clipboard Tablet Co. He has a pricing and R&D strategy that he intends to use for the next four years: 2012 through 2015. The performance of the company is pretty lackluster and Joe gets fired on Dec. 15, 2015. You get hired to replace him as the company is about to move forward into 2016. But for some strange reason, you get caught in a Time Warp, much like the guy in the movie, “Groundhog Day.” You are doomed to repeat the last four years, 2012 through 2015, until you can improve the performance of Clipboard Tablet.

In particular, you will be looking at income statements and marketing reports and making decisions about pricing, product development (R&D expenditure), and product life cycles for a company that sells Tablet Computers.

This is a brief summary of what you will do in each SLP:

1. In this first SLP it is Dec. 15, 2015, and you are getting ready to make a Marketing strategy for 2016. But you want to review the performance of the company over the last four years, so you review the Financial and Marketing data, as well as the product data and how it stacks up against the competition. You have a great New Year’s Eve celebration thinking you are ready to move ahead.

2. In SLP2, you experience a Time Warp. You are back on January 1, 2012. You realize that you will have to go through 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, but you think you can do better than Joe Schmoe. You work your way through each year, trying to make better decisions and generate more profit and an overall better performance than your predecessor. As you do this, you keep track of your decisions, your reasoning and results, which turns into a final report that you hope will be useful as you move ahead into 2016.

3. In SLP3, the Time Warp strikes again. Once more you are at January 1, 2012. This time you decide to develop a complete strategy for all four years and use CVP analysis to help you. You analyze the results from your first Time Warp and develop another strategy, this time for all four years being predetermined.

4. In SLP4, it is the next day. You begin to implement your new strategy. You do so at the beginning of each year and time flows quickly. At the end of each year you review the results and collect the data. At the end of 2015, you note your overall performance, hoping that you will now move ahead into 2016. But once again, the Time Warp strikes and you have to do it again. This time you vow you will do it better. You analyze the results and use CVP analysis. You now have another strategy ready to go, having spent all of New Year’s day putting it together.

5. In SLP5, on January 2, 2012, you begin the same four-year journey again. You implement your strategy at the beginning of each year and get the results as time flies by. New Year’s Eve, 2015, you note your final results. How did you do? When you wake up on New Year’s Day, it is 2016. You celebrate. Then you understand that you had lessons to learn. So you decide to compare the results of this last Time Warp to the results that you got in the previous Time Warp. You will explain how the results are different and why they are different.

GET FAMILIAR WITH THE SIMULATION

Go to the simulation at Forio.com. You will see the simulation interface, which provides you with information about the Clipboard Tablet Company as well as the input interface to implement your strategy (pricing decisions and R&D budget allocations).

Explore the interface and get familiar with it and the information it provides. The menu on the left-hand side shows these options:

NEED TO BRUSH UP ON CVP ANALYSIS?

You were introduced to this method in your previous courses, but this link will provide a refresher. There are other websites you can look at as well, but this one provides a detailed and thorough review.

Accounting for Management.com Cost-Volume-Profit Relationship (CVP Analysis):http://www.accountingfor

management.com/cost_volume_profit.htm

Retrieved 2/20/12.

Introduction – Some background about the company and its three products, and how to play the simulation.
Financials – Provides the financial results of the current year and the previous year. Clicking on the tabs across the top will show different data for the company and for each of the three products.
Market Info – Provides the market results of the current year and the previous year. Clicking on the tabs across the top will show different data for the company and for each of the three products.
Make Decisions – This is where you input your pricing and product development budget (R&D%) strategy decisions.
View Summary – This provides a summary of important information for each round (year). Here you can see your Score. An advisor will tell you how you are doing.
Get Help – This provides additional information about the simulation and some theory that it is based on. You should click on each of these links to gain an understanding: Glossary of Financial Terms; Product Life Cycle (some theory you can use), and Feedback and Decisions. In this last link, notice the Systems Feedback connections.

Every time you open the simulation or reset it to play again, you will be at end of the year of 2011, and the data you see will show the results for 2011 and 2010 (previous year). When you run the simulation you will run it for the next four years: 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. After each year, you will always be at the end of that year and see the results for that year and the previous year.

OPTIONAL READING AND REOURCES:

Remember that in preparing the assignments for this module (as those that follow), you must demonstrate that you know how to use the appropriate business tools for such an analysis.This will require you to integrate learning from courses throughout the MBA program.

OTHER USEFUL RESOURCES:

Useful Internet Sites:

You may access some useful Internet and other resources relating to such matters as financial ratios and processes for measurement of organizational resources (both tangible and intangible)at http://www.investopedia.com/university/ratios/#axzz2JNe7QCr3 andhttp://www.sveiby.com/articles/IntangibleMethods.htm

BUS599 – MBA Integrative Project

Module 1 – SLP

Strategic Review

BACKGROUND:

First, run the simulation using the Default Decisions. In other words, use the prices and R&D percentage that are already there. Capture or collect the results for each product (X5, X6, X7) as you run each year. Copy (using Excel, by hand, or some other method) the Financial results and Marketing results, as well as the information provided by the Advisor.

REQUIRED READING:

Refer to the reading on the SLP in the Module 1 Background. Then read the following scenario before you proceed:

SCENARIO

It is December 15, 2015. Joe Schmoe, the VP of Marketing at Clipboard Tablet Co., is smugly patting himself on the back for how well he has done with pricing and product development on the three products, X5, X6, and X7. He knows his strategy was not very creative, since he did not change any prices or R&D allocations over the four-year period (actually six years, counting 2010 and 2011). But he is certain that he did not need to change anything, and that his overall performance is proof.

However, Sally Smothers, CEO of Clipboard Tablet Co., has a different opinion, and she fires Joe.

You are hired. You applied for the position a few weeks ago and interviewed, unaware of the fate of Joe Schmoe at the time. So here you are, Dec. 15, 2015, VP of Marketing at Clipboard Tablet Co., and ready to move the company ahead into 2016. Your boss, Sally Smothers, is expecting you to take over and move the company forward in terms of product development, and smart pricing.

ASSIGNMENT:

Write a 4- to 6-page paper, not including cover and reference page, according to Sally’s directions as follows:

Sally wants to make sure that you are ready to move ahead and asks you to review the past four to six years to see what was going on in terms of product development, sales, pricing, and performance against the competition. You collect all of the data and write a report which is due on Sally’s desk January 2, 2016.

Analyze the results of Joe Schmoe’s decisions and then write the report that Sally is requesting. Run the simulation of the Clipboard Tablet Co. using the default decisions. Access the simulation site and collect the data for each year (or you can download a copy of it – see below). Make a Case for your proposed strategy using financial analysis and relevant theories.

KEYS TO THE ASSIGNMENT:

The key aspects to this assignment that should be covered in your paper include:

· A review of the products, their life cycles, and how they stack up in terms of price and performance.

· Financial review for each product: X5, X6, and X7 – sales, costs, profitability, prices, unit margins, etc.

· Market review: New Sales, Repeat Sales, Market Saturation, etc.

· Propose an alternate strategy: a general idea of how you might do better with these products: what pricing and R&D allocations, etc., you would have put in place over the last four years, 2012 – 2015.

ASSIGNMENT EXPECTATIONS:

Your paper will be evaluated on the following seven points:

· Breadth – Is the full breadth of the subject, that is, the Keys to the Assignment, addressed?

· Depth – Does the paper address the topic in sufficient depth and include the background reading and other background resources as references?

· Critical thinking – Is the subject thought about critically, that is, accurately, logically, relevantly, and precisely?

· Clarity – Is the writing clear and are the concepts articulated properly? Are paraphrasing and synthesis of concepts the primary means of responding to the questions or are points conveyed through excessive use of quotations?

· Organization – Is the paper well written? Are the grammar, spelling, and vocabulary appropriate for graduate-level work? Are headings included in all papers longer than two pages?

· Referencing (citations and references) – Does the paper include citations and quotation marks where appropriate? Are the references from the background reading and assignment present and properly cited? Are all the references listed in the bibliography present and referred to via citation?

· Application – Are the concepts of the module appropriately applied to the subject?

TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS:

Please note the following tips and suggestions:

· Include a cover page and reference page, in addition to the 4-6 pages of analysis described above.

· Include headings for all papers greater than two pages (basically all papers), but do not use headings as “space fillers.”

· Cite and reference all sources that you use in your work, including those that you paraphrase. This means include citations and quotation marks for direct quotes of more than five words, and citations for that information which you have “borrowed” or paraphrased from other sources.

Follow TUI Guidelines for well-written papers.

Hints for success!

Throughout this SLP, you will be asked to make business decisions under conditions of incomplete information and uncertainty. To do so, you will need to make assumptions based on what you have learned throughout the MBA program about how markets operate. Thus, your strategies in approaching this decision need to rely on models, financial analysis, and theories from such classes as Economics, Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Strategy, and Quantitative Analysis. In addition, the simulation will give you some additional market information as you progress.

Be sure to explicitly draw on concepts and theories from the courses you have taken throughout the MBA program. That means you need to “think like an MBA” and use the financial data you are given. You will have to crunch some numbers and present your data analysis professionally by creating some simple tables, charts and graphs.

BUS599 – MBA Integrative Project

Module 1 – Case

Strategic Review

BACKGROUND:

XCG

THE EXCELLENT CONSULTING GROUP

Communication from Art Epance:

Welcome to this project. ABC Company and Whole Foods Market expect us to provide them with top-notch advice on how to integrate Whole Foods into ABC Company. I will be working on analyzing ABC Company. You will be working on analyzing Whole Foods Market. Review as much information as you can on the Whole Foods Market website, particularly that in the “Investor Relations” section. At a minimum, review the following materials in preparation for your report/analysis:

REQUIRED READING:

Reuters Company Profile: Whole Foods Market. Retrieved on November 7, 2012 from: http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?symbol=WFM.O

Case study: http://pnphillip.asp.radford.edu/whole%20Foods%20Case.pdf (be sure that you do not rely on this document as your primary source of information, but be sure that you have synthesized information from multiple sources). Retrieved on November 7, 2012 from: http://tainted-ink.net/archives/102.

Article: Business Analysis: Whole Foods Market Retrieved on November 7, 2012 (again, do not rely on this document as a primary source of information, but be sure that you have synthesized information from multiple sources).

Whole Foods Market website: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/ Retrieved on November 7, 2012.

Whole Foods Market (about the company) Whole Foods Market Retrieved on November 7, 2012 from: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/company-info.

Whole Foods Market – Annual Stakeholders Report, 2011. Retrieved on November 7, 2012 from: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/company-info/investor-relations/annual-reports.

Review Case Analysis since it is so important in this final course. The purpose of a Case is to show that you have thought critically about the subject matter that you are learning and to make an argument for a Claim about the specific situation in the Case Assignment. Stephen Toulmin has developed an Argument Methodology that is very useful in Making a Case. To review Case Analysis and Toulmin’s Argument Methodology, go to Making a Case page.

CASE 1 ASSIGNMENT:

First, you need to do a strategic analysis of Whole Foods Market. The executives want us to provide an independent, objective view of Whole Foods Market’s current strategic position, including full information of Whole Foods Market’s mission, vision and values. They want to identify its current set of strategic goals, and a critical assessment of the competition and the competitive environment (remote and operating environments). Also, they want to see the opportunities and threats Whole Foods is presently facing, and they need a general idea of the company’s strengths and weaknesses. Whole Foods Market and ABC Company want to know if we think they should make any strategic changes or continue with the status quo. Synthesize everything you have learned, provide a final recommendation, and justify your reasoning.

KEYS TO THE ASSIGNMENT:

1. Do diligent research on Whole Foods Market. I have included links to various websites above.

2. As an MBA, you must perform additional research to find information on competition and general trends for opportunities and threats. For the competitive analysis, identify a minimum of three of the top competitive companies and their best-selling services or products – and justify why each is a viable competitor.

3. Your report should be thorough, and follow closely the outline that I have given you. The final section is the most important one. Use excellent logic and sharp argumentation skills to make your case.

The report must be 5-7 pages minimum and no more than 10 pages.

ASSIGNMENT EXPECTATIONS:

Your paper will be evaluated on the following seven points:

· Precision – Does the paper address the question(s) or task(s)?

· Breadth – Is the full breadth of the subject, that is, the Keys to the Assignment, addressed?

· Depth – Does the paper address the topic in sufficient depth and include the background reading and other background resources as references?

· Critical thinking – Is the subject thought about critically, that is, accurately, logically, relevantly, and precisely?

· Clarity – Is the writing clear and are the concepts articulated properly? Are paraphrasing and synthesis of concepts the primary means of responding to the questions or are points conveyed through excessive use of quotations?

· Organization – Is the paper well written? Are the grammar, spelling, and vocabulary appropriate for graduate-level work? Are headings included in all papers longer than two pages?

· Referencing (citations and references) – Does the paper include citations and quotation marks where appropriate? Are the references from the background readings and assignment present and properly cited? Are all the references listed in the bibliography present and referred to via citation?

TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS

· Optimize your research time: Get an overview of the Case Assignments so you know what information you will be looking for when you do research. As you do research for Case 1, you can also be finding information and data for the other cases, too. Continue this strategy as you do research for the next case and the next, etc. The more information you have about the chosen company, the better you will get to know it. The better you get to know it, the better your analysis will be.

· You may use a simple diagram to highlight important factors. However, do not use the diagram in lieu of valuable analysis (or to take up valuable writing space). It should be in addition to your 5-7 pages of analysis.

· Just because you have written the minimum five pages does not mean that you have adequately covered the topic. Err on the side of writing more rather than less.

· Choose the data you use carefully. Is it relevant and important?

· Include a cover page and reference page, in addition to the 5-10 pages of analysis described above.

· Include section headings within the paper.

· Cite and reference all sources that you use in your work, including those that you paraphrase. This means include citations and quotation marks for direct quotes of more than five words, and citations for that information which you have “borrowed” or paraphrased from other sources.

· Follow TUI Guidelines for well-written papers.

INTERNET RESEARCH TIPS

Search for articles in the business and trade press that give an independent view of the company; you do not want to depend solely on corporate information. Check the financial websites such as Yahoo Finance, MSN Money, Morningstar, Dunn & Bradstreet, and Standard and Poor’s for reports by industry and financial analysts. Wiki’s and blogs are good ways to get an “inside” look and helpful for evaluating corporate culture/climate.

BUS599 – MBA Integrative Project

Module 2 – Background

Case: Organizational Diagnosis, SLP: Time Warp!!

Case 2

Background

Organizational Development (OD) is a fundamental management subject and important for an MBA degree program. One aspect of Organizational Development is Organizational Diagnosis, which is not as comprehensive as the overall development or change process. Diagnosis is often the first step in the OD process. Over the years, there have been many OD models developed. Some are better than others and some are more useful in certain situations than others. Later models were developed with Open System Theory in mind, which tends to make the models more comprehensive. ABC Company and Whole Foods Market are interested in using an OD model to diagnose Whole Foods Market’s current situation. You will need to have an understanding of some of these models in order to make a recommendation.

Required Reading:

Download and read this white paper by Falletta about OD models. Salvatore Falletta, President and CEO of Leadersphere, has written a white paper that reviews several commonly used models of organizational diagnosis. You will use several of these models in conducting your integrative Case project. The relevant part of this paper in terms of this class is the first 31 pages. The last part of the paper (pp. 32-43) deals with the theoretical foundations of the Burke & Litwin model, Falletta’s Organizational Intelligence Model; this is optional reading. We are not covering Falletta’s Organizational Intelligence Model.

Falletta, S. V. (2005) Organizational Diagnostic Models: A Review and Synthesis. Retrieved November 7, 2012 from http://www.leadersphere.com/img/OrgmodelsR2009.pdf

Falletta provides an overview of Open Systems Theory (OST) in his paper (pp. 8 & 9). Keep in mind that OST is not an OD model, but rather a basis for most of the later models. For a deeper understanding, go to the following optional reading and read about systems, systems thinking, and organizations as open systems. You will see that businesses are not unlike living organisms: they depend on the environment for sustenance; they comprise multiple, mutually dependent parts; and they affect the environment in the course of their daily activities. Open Systems Theory provides valuable insights into organizations.

Optional Reading

National Defense University, Systems Thinking and Learning Organizations, Retrieved November 7, 2012 from http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/ndu/strat-ldr-dm/pt1ch4.html

There are no reading assignments for the SLP.

However, if you need a refresher on various theories (product life cycle, pricing, price elasticity, market saturation, product development, etc.) there are a multitude of articles on the Internet.

Optional Review Materials

Once again, a small sample of Internet materials that may help you throughout the course can be accessed by clicking here, and can serve as a complement to previous course materials. You are encouraged to supplement this list if you need additional refreshers.

BUS599 – MBA Integrative Project

Module 2 – SLP

Case: Organizational Diagnosis, SLP: Time Warp!!

InModule 2, you will continue with the scenario and simulation you began in the Module 1 SLP.

REQUIRED READING

SCENARIO CONTINUATION:

SLP2 – It’s New Year’s day, 2016. You just had a great New Year’s Eve celebration. You have finished analyzing the performance of Clipboard Tablet Co. in a great report that you turned in a few days early to Sally Smothers. Now you are ready to charge ahead into the future.

As you turn on the TV you notice something strange. The TV commentator is saying something about New Year’s Day, 2012. You look around and everything looks different. Yes, it’s true; it’s New Year’s Day, 2012. Time has rewound – a Time Warp, like the guy in the movie “Groundhog Day.”

You realize that you get to make the decisions for Clipboard Tablet Co. starting with 2012. Perhaps you can do better than Joe Schmoe.

At the beginning of each year (2012-2015), you will determine your pricing, your R&D allocations, and whether or not to discontinue any products. You make your decisions and time advances to the end of that year, and you look at the results to see what happened. You keep track of your decisions and make notes about your reasoning and analysis of the data, keeping the data for later analysis.

You run the Marketing of Clipboard Tablet Co. through the end of 2015. It is now December 31, 2015, New Year’s Eve. What is your total Score? Did you do better than Joe Schmoe?

You decide to organize your notes about your decisions, your analysis, and your reasoning into a report, which you think will help you move ahead into 2016.

ASSIGNMENT

Run the Clipboard Tablet Co. simulation with your strategy, making decisions year by year for prices and R&D allocations. Write a 4- to 6-page paper, not including cover and reference page, in which you:

Write a report that shows your decisions and the results. Discuss why you did better or worse than Joe Schmoe.

KEYS TO THE ASSIGNMENT

The key aspects of this assignment that should be covered and taken into account in preparing your paper include:

· As you run the simulation, keep track of your decisions and the results – both financial and marketing. Copy and paste the results into Excel or into a Word document. You can also record the information that you get from the Advisor who discusses the market and compares Clipboard Tablet Co. products to the competition. Make note of the Final Total Score.

· You should include your Final Total Score, some tables, and/or graphs showing some of the results. Be sure to explain the differences clearly, using good logic.

· Remember that the key here is analysis.

· Time Line Summary:

SLP1

· 2015: Hired on December 15.

· Turned in first report to Sally a few days early on December 30.

· Celebrated on December 31.

SLP2

· Time Warp begins: January 1, 2016 warps into January 1, 2012.

· You realize you have to make decisions for 2012 – 2015.

· January 2, 2012 – input decisions for 2012.

· January 2, 2013 – input decisions for 2013.

· January 2, 2014 – input decisions for 2014.

· January 2, 2015 – input decisions for 2015.

· December 31, 2015 – You have gone through all four years, and you write your report to summarize how you did. You are hoping that you will wake up tomorrow and it will be 2016.

ASSIGNMENT EXPECTATIONS