Module 3 – Background

Optimizing Inventory/Transportation

Comprehensive Analysis of a Fortune 500 Company

For this Individual Project you will analyze publicly available information about a Fortune 500 Company and develop an assessment of the corporate strategy and its ability to increase competitive advantage.

This assignment requires you to obtain and analyze information at the company, industry and market levels using various databases and reports found in the AIU library, such as Hoovers and Dun & Bradstreet, in addition to at least eight (8) professional or academic peer –reviewed articles.

Your analysis should include an in-depth review of the Company’s most recent SEC Form-10k Annual Report and Form DEF-14A Proxy Statement. These SEC filings can be found at the SEC Edgar Database located at the URL http://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html . Pay particular attention to the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) sections of the SEC Form 10-K and the DEF-14A Proxy statement.  Direct competitors are identified in the “Comparator Group” section of the DEF-14A Proxy Statement. ) These SEC filings also contain information relative to external and industry analysis that will be helpful in your assessment of the Company’s strategy and competitive position.

A thorough analysis requires evaluation of various external stakeholders:

• Competitors Competitors
• Industry
• Vendors
• Customers
• Governmental entities
• Communities

Internal stakeholders that should be considered in the analysis include:

• Shareholders
• Board of Directors
• Management
• Employees

A comprehensive SWOT analysis should be performed relative to the Company’s ability to improve its competitive advantage.

The comprehensive analysis should include both qualitative and quantitative elements, leveraging information available in SEC Filings, business databases, and peer-reviewed articles.

Your work should demonstrate your ability to:

• Apply critical thinking skills to analyze business situations.
• Apply principles of quantitative and qualitative research to business cases.
• Describe the opportunities provided by technology for businesses.
• Appropriately use effective communication techniques.
• Apply the standard of APA style to all research and writing tasks.

You will prepare a report presenting the findings of your comprehensive analysis examining the Company’s corporate strategy and its ability to increase competitive advantage. The written report will have a body length of 10-12 pages excluding title, abstract, references and appendices. Quotation limits should be Not more than 10% of the body of the paper can be quotations, all of which must be properly attributed in APA format.

NOTE: Article collections (scholarly databases) may be accessed in the Library. Suggestions are:

• ABI Inform Global
• Academic Search Premier
• Business Source Premier

 

Please include in paper:

apa format

10-12 page length

3 citations with references

100% plagarism free

One of the most controversial distribution channel strategies is multi-level marketing.  In this method, anyone can become an independent distributor for the product if they pay a membership fee.  Distributors earn commission both from selling the product and from recruiting new distributors.  In general, distributors recruited into a multi-level marketing network are not trained marketing professional.  Instead multi-level marketing companies typically try recruit average individuals with low or moderate incomes who wish to earn some extra money.  In turn, these individuals are then encouraged to recruit friends, family members, and coworkers into the network.  Well known multi-level marketers include Amway and Herbalife.

Many of you have likely had direct experience with multi-level marketing.  Have any of you been a part of a multi-level network?  Or has a friend or family member tried to recruit you into one?  Or have you purchased a product from one of these types of companies?  Explain what kind of experience you might have had, and your overall impression of multi-level marketing.  What advantages and disadvantages do you see for this type of distribution channel strategy?

If you haven’t had any direct experience with multi-level marketing, do some research and find a new company that uses this strategy.  Does this company seem credible, or does it look sketchy?

magine you are a healthcare administrator whose organization is involved in contract negotiations.

What kind of preparation do you need to have prior to starting talks with union representation?

Most of the time the discussion involving pay increases or decreases will be the most heated.

 

As a member of the administration team what type of ethical implications do you have in fair labor talks? There are federal agencies who oversee the processes and there are rules in place to ensure the process is fair to both sides. As you read the story with Mr. McCarty, read to how the negotiation process took place and the different views from those involved.

 

Unit outcomes addressed in this Assignment:  Discuss what effect the Wagner and the Taft- Hartley Acts had on labor management relations  Describe the union organizing process  Identify the steps in the collective bargaining process Course outcome assessed/addressed in this Assignment:  Assess collaboration strategies involving employee and labor relations. At the time of this interview on “CEO Exchange”, Don Carty was CEO of American Airlines. In this clip he expresses the frustration that many executives in a union environment face, labor costs. This video was prior to Carty’s being fired from his position at American Airlines for announcing executive retention bonuses within hours of convincing union members to wage and benefit concessions in order to save the airline from bankruptcy. Carty currently serves as CEO of Dell, Inc.  Requirements  Please be sure to include the answers to the following questions.

The minimum words for the Assignment is 800 words.

If Mr. Carty’s comments on labor costs being part of a cost structure that is higher than revenue are part of American Airlines positioning before contract negotiations, what other preparations is the company probably taking prior to the negotiation process?  Mr. Carty mentions involvement of the federal government in labor relations. What government agencies could he possibly be referring to?  What type of response to Mr. Carty’s comments would you expect from the unions that represent American Airlines employees?

 

Unit 9 Assignment  

View an introduction to the Assignment here. Be sure to adjust your audio settings.

Unit outcomes addressed in this Assignment:

• Discuss what effect the Wagner and the Taft- Hartley Acts had on labor management relations
• Describe the union organizing process
• Identify the steps in the collective bargaining process

Course outcome assessed/addressed in this Assignment:

HA530-5: Assess collaboration strategies involving employee and labor relations.

Instructions

View the video Understanding Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining below . In this video, At the time of this interview on “CEO Exchange”, Don Carty was CEO of American Airlines. In this clip he expresses the frustration that many executives in a union environment face, labor costs. This video was prior to Carty’s being fired from his position at American Airlines for announcing executive retention bonuses within hours of convincing union members to wage and benefit concessions in order to save the airline from bankruptcy. Carty currently serves as CEO of Dell, Inc.

Requirements

• Please be sure to include the answers to the following questions. The minimum words for the Assignment is 800 words.
  • If Mr. Carty’s comments on labor costs being part of a cost structure that is higher than revenue are part of American Airlines positioning before contract negotiations, what other preparations is the company probably taking prior to the negotiation process?
• Mr. Carty mentions involvement of the federal government in labor relations. What government agencies could he possibly be referring to?
• What type of response to Mr. Carty’s comments would you expect from the unions that represent American Airlines employees?

DISCUSSION 1

 

Chapter 3 of the textbook describes the analysis stage of ADDIE. In this step, a training needs analysis is required. Based on the training needs analysis, describe a training course that could be used for your current job position. How will the training address the needs of the employees?

Use this week’s lecture as a basis for your post. Reference and cite the textbook in your original post.

 

Discussion 2

 

Create three SMART goals that are relevant to receiving your degree from Ashford. How will identifying the SMART goals aid you in achieving the ultimate goal of graduation?

Because of the human aspect of ethics and its links to business success, corporate leaders must be careful about their behaviors, and how they address problems. For this assignment, select the code of ethical conduct for the following restaurant:

 

·

 

·         Cheesecake Factory (http://investors.thecheesecakefactory.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=109258&p=irol-govconduct)

 

 

 

As a basis for your written assignment, you will assume that you are the CEO of your chosen restaurant.

 

 

 

Write a two to three (2-3) page paper in which you:

 

1.       Describe key areas of the selected company’s code of conduct that are of significant importance to the business, and explain why.

 

2.       Explain the key steps that the company should take to ensure that employees follow the code of conduct.

 

3.       Suggest three (3) ways in which the restaurant can engage in socially responsive activities in the community within which it operates.

 

4.       Use at least two (2) quality resources. Note: Wikipedia does not qualify as a quality resource.

 

 

 

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

 

·         Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. 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 and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

 

 

 

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

 

Discuss the roles of ethics and social responsibilities in business. Use technology and information resources to research issues in business. Write clearly and concisely about business issues using proper writing mechanics.

rite a two- to three-page report discussing the sampling design for the proposal.

Describe the sampling procedures (convenience, quota, simple random) that will yield the best results for your research objective and justify your rationale for choosing the procedure(s). Include the following information:

1. Research the objective.
2. Description of the population: Process for identifying the target population and selecting the sampling frame
3. Identify the different types of biases that are likely to occur, and explain what steps you will take to minimize them.
4. Conclusion: Highlight the major points discussed in the previous sections. Be sure to relate the information back to the purpose and relevance of the research.

Biological Criminal Behavior

Choose a criminal offender who committed crimes due to a biological reason.

Write a 1,450 word paper discussing the genetic or physiological evidence that supports the notion that biology played a key role in explaining the offender’s criminality.

Research the behaviors that constitute psychopathy. Discuss in detail the specific behaviors demonstrated by the offender that align with behaviors indicative of a psychopathic individual. Case examples include the following:

• Andrea Yates and the documented evidence of psychiatric issues, including post-partum depression, prior to the murders of her five children
• Charles Whitman, known as the Texas Tower Sniper, and the presence of a tumor discovered post-mortem alleged to have played a role in his overt acts of aggression
• John Hinckley, Jr. and the documented evidence of psychiatric issues leading to his controversial insanity defense in the shooting of President Ronald Reagan

Include at least two academic references.

2 questions. 3 pages long for each question. total of 6 pages.

you have to read the book to answer the questions. the book pages are attached in the ATTACHMENTS below.

 

1st question is :

Critically examine the principal arguments for and against Determinism ( Baron d’Holbach) asd Freedom ( william James ). which account of human agency is correct and why ?(The reading assigned for this question is on the attachments BELOW start from PDF 1 till PDF 4).1 st unnumbered PDF IS INCLUDED  for this question.

 

 

2nd question is : How do John Locke and Martin Luther King, Jr justify rebellion and civil disobedience, respectively? Examine the role of religion in their arguments and contrast their positions with that of Hobbes.

( the reading assigned for this question is on the attachments BELOW start from PDF 5 till PDF 15).

Case Study 2: Application Architecture Due Week 8 and worth 50 points You

> have been tasked with building a payroll program for a large organization

> with offices spread across the United States. The company has one larger

> data center that each office connects to via a wide area network (WAN).

> Write a 3-4 page paper in which you:

>

>    – Explain what type of architecture the new payroll application should

>    use and why.

>    – Identify what types of technology will be involved in the architecture

>    and explain the purpose of each technology.

>    – Create a graphical representation of your recommended architecture.

>    – Identify and describe any potential ethical issues that could arise in

>    connection with the new architecture.

>

> Your assignment must:

>

>    – Be typed, double-spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with

>    one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA

> or

>    school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional

>    instructions.

>    – 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 and the reference page are not included in the required

>    assignment page length.

>    – Include charts or diagrams created in Excel, Visio, MS Project, or a

>    freeware alternative. The completed diagrams/charts must be imported

> into

>    the Word document before the paper is submitted.

>

> The specific Course Learning Outcomes associated with this assignment are:

>

>    – Analyze and articulate ethical, cultural, and legal issues and their

>    feasibilities among alternative solutions.

>    – Use contemporary CASE tools in process and data modeling.

>    – Use technology and information resources to research issues in systems

>    analysis and development.

>    – Write clearly and concisely about Systems Analysis and Development

>    topics using proper writing mechanics and technical style conventions.

>

> Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality,

> logic/organization of the paper, and language and writing skills, using the