Determine the factors involved in making decisions about pricing these products that you believe to be the most influential.

From the scenario for Katrina’s Candies, examine the procedure Herb will use to estimate the demand model developed in the scenario for Week 1. Analyze the elasticity of demand for products within the selected industry relevant to Katrina’s Candies. Determine the factors involved in making decisions about pricing these products that you believe to be the most influential.

Evaluate their effectiveness and select a program, policy, procedure or initiative which you believe needs to be changed.

Due Week 2 and worth 60 points

Choose an organization with which you are familiar or one in which you have an interest. Research and analyze the organization’s Human Resource Management programs, policies, procedures, or initiatives. Evaluate their effectiveness and select a program, policy, procedure or initiative which you believe needs to be changed.

Write a one (1) page paper in which you:

  1. Assess the current Human Resource programs, policies, procedures, or initiatives in terms of effectiveness.
  2. Hypothesize the changes that require improvement.
  3. Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
    1. Typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
    2. Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

  • Evaluate an organization’s readiness for change.
  • Use technology and information resources to research issues in managing organizational change.
  • Write clearly and concisely about managing organizational change using proper writing mechanic

Describe a performance issue which resulted from a motivational problem (what, why, who).

The relationship between the organization and its members can be greatly influenced by what motivates individuals to work. The style of leadership, job design, resources on the job, and environment can all have a significant effect on the satisfaction of employees and their performance. Performance is also influenced by individual motivations (e.g., social, recognition, financial reward, personal growth and development, and/or intrinsic satisfaction) and can equally impact the organization. There are many theories that attempt to explain the nature of motivation. Write a four- to five-page paper (excluding the title and reference pages) evaluating the relationship between motivation, job satisfaction, and work performance. Be sure to address the following:

  1. Describe a performance issue which resulted from a motivational problem (what, why, who).
  2. Use a content theory of motivation (e.g., Maslow, Alderfer, Herzberg, or McClelland) or a process theory (i.e., Adams, Locke, or Heider and Kelley) to explain how the issue creates a performance problem for the organization.
  3. Use the theory of motivation you selected to describe an intervention/action to change the motivation/behavior and correct the performance problem.

Your paper must use a minimum of three scholarly sources, in addition to the textbook. Your paper must be formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center..

Describe an example of a data set that cannot be represented by a tree, but that be represented by a more general graph.

Task Background: Graphs and trees provide you with ways to visualize data sets, and the opportunity to do analysis on the data (e.g., shortest path). Knowing the structure of a database enables you to choose a proper algorithm for searching for data within a database.

Primary Task Response: Within the Discussion Board area, write up to 3 paragraphs that respond to the following questions with your thoughts, ideas, and comments. This will be the foundation for future discussions by your classmates. Be substantive and clear, and use examples to reinforce your ideas.

Part I

Trees are somewhat less complicated than graphs, which makes things like data searching easier, when a data has the structure of a tree. However, not all data can be represented by a tree. Describe an example of a data set that cannot be represented by a tree, but that be represented by a more general graph. Explain why it cannot be represented by a tree.

Part II

The set of all possible sequences of moves in a chess game can be represented by a tree (decision tree). If you were to write a chess-playing computer program that can determine the best move at each step by searching the tree of possible moves and outcomes, would you use a depth-first or a breadth-first search for the bes

Analyze the elasticity of demand for products within the selected industry relevant to Katrina’s Candies.

From the scenario for Katrina’s Candies, examine the procedure Herb will use to estimate the demand model developed in the scenario for Week 1. Analyze the elasticity of demand for products within the selected industry relevant to Katrina’s Candies. Determine the factors involved in making decisions about pricing these products that you believe to be the most influential.

Describe the major pollution issues for your biome, and elaborate on the sources of this pollution.

You

Each part of the United States has at least one ecological crisis based on location, biome, and industrialization pattern. For example, the Midwest was once a prairie with very fertile soil. However, when people realized that with the right watering and drainage system this area could become productive farmland, there arose ecological problems. The conversion of the prairie to farmland is the root cause of many ecological problems in this region.

Regardless of what biome you consider, humans have likely had an impact on the ecology of that area.

For this assignment, identify the biome in which you live. The following are a few examples of biomes:

  • Tropical rainforests: This biome has high average temperatures, high moisture levels, and high species diversity.
  • Prairies: The prairies have grassland-variable temperatures, variable moisture levels—depending on proximity to mountain ranges—and are mainly dominated by grasses and ungulate herbivores.
  • Deserts: These biomes have hotter average temperatures, low moisture, lower species diversity, and a composition of species limited mainly to those that are adapted to hot temperatures.
  • Temperate forests: The temperate forests have variable temperatures, high moisture levels, and higher species diversity.
  • Taigas: These biomes have colder average temperatures, lower moisture levels, and lower species diversity.
  • Tundras: The tundras have cold average temperatures, low moisture levels, and low species diversity.
  • Coral reefs: These biomes have high average temperatures and high species diversity.
  • Open oceans: These biomes have a wide range of temperatures and species diversity varies.
  • Chaparrals: The chaparrals have higher average temperatures, lower moisture levels, and are dominated mainly by grasses and shrubs.
  • Alpines: These biomes have low average temperatures, low precipitation, and receive high ultraviolet (UV) rays due to high elevation.

Using the readings for this module, the Argosy University online library resources, and the Internet, respond to the following:

  • Explain how humans have impacted the biome in which you live. List the types of environmental damage that have been caused and the species that have been impacted.
  • Describe the major pollution issues for your biome, and elaborate on the sources of this pollution.
  • List any species that have become extinct in this biome.

Support your statements with appropriate examples and scholarly references.

Write your initial response in approximately 300–350 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

By Saturday, January 16, 2016, post your response to the appropriate Discussion Area. Through Wednesday, January 20, 2016, review and comment on at least two peers’ responses. Address the following:

  • Propose how the environmental damage listed in your classmates’ posts could be reversed.
  • Consider if any “ideal” laws exist today to address these issues. Cite your examples.
  • Recommend the type of laws you would implement, from an ecological standpoint, to manage and restore this biome.

Explain how other firms employ this concept of intangibles to erect barriers to entry for competitors.

What is values-based service? How can a company create value for customers and other stakeholders?

Values-based service is defined as service that is firmly based on the core company values as well as social and environmental responsibility. When the core company values and the social and environmental values are in accordance with the values of customers and other stakeholders, resonance (rather than dissonance) occurs. To be successful, a values-based service business must seek resonance with its customers and other stakeholders in terms of values and avoid any suggestion of dissonance. Companies, such as IKEA, nurture and communicate values in their customer relationships.

Read the article “Values-Based Service Brands: Narratives from IKEA” by Edvardsson from the readings for this module. Using IKEA as the company in point, conduct research, using the  University online library and the Internet, to better understand the “IKEA environment.”

Based on your research, write a report addressing the following points:

 

  • IKEA’s Marketing (1 page) 

    Corporate strategy begins with marketing and understanding the key elements of the marketing plan. For IKEA, describe the following elements of its marketing strategy:

    • How do IKEA’s products, services, and related attributes satisfy the wants and needs known as its value proposition?
    • How does IKEA create a well-defined market position that appeals to customer wants and needs and differentiates its offering from competitive offerings in a process known as positioning and differentiation?
  • Assess IKEA’s strategy using the criteria listed below:
    • Value Chain (1 page)

      Analyze the three sources of value (economic, social, and environmental) in IKEA’s value chain.

      • Explain sources of value as they relate to the wants and needs of IKEA’s core customer.
      • Explain how IKEA’s supply chain supports its value proposition.
      • Explain how IKEA’s focus on customer value (economic, social, and environmental) is reflected in its supply chain.
    • Intangible Products (1 page)
      • Explain IKEA’s intangible products and benefits.
      • Explain how other firms employ this concept of intangibles to erect barriers to entry for competitors.
      • Explain how the concept of intangible benefits is used to increase profits.
    • Customers (1 page) 

      IKEA considers the customer to be a critical stakeholder. The IKEA message is directed to the majority of people and what they can afford, and its pricing is dependent on the economic values that serve a majority of its customers.

      • Explain how this approach may or may not maximize profits for IKEA.
      • Explain if this premise is at odds with supply and demand economics. Give reasons for your answer.
    • Performance Measures (1 page)

      Suppose you are a vice-president of manufacturing for IKEA and are responsible for establishing operating performance measures.

      • For all of the performance factors other than quality and cost, create a set of 4–6 performance measures for evaluating your managers that integrates IKEA’s values (economic, social, and environmental) as discussed in the article written by Edvardsson.
      • For each performance measure, identify one specific process measure that demonstrates how well these values are being upheld in the manufacturing activities including suppliers of the company.
      • Recommend how you would develop the workforce to livethese values in the workplace. Suggest types of hiring, training, and performance management criteria that you will apply to the workforce.

Write a 8 page paper in Word format. Please use 3–7 scholarly articles in your research. Apply APA standards to citation of sources. Use the following file naming convention: LastnameFirstInitial_M3_A2.doc.

 

Then, develop a short 6–8-slide Power Point presentation (not including the title and reference slides) covering the same information. Include headings for each slide, and provide your talking points in the notes section to explain the content if the presentation is given verbally. Use the following file naming convention: LastnameFirstInitial_M3_A2.ppt.

By , January 23, 2016, deliver your assignment to the