Author: chris

ssignment 1: Discussion—Analyzing a Company’s Annual Report

In this assignment, you will conduct an evaluation of a company based on its annual report. This assignment will provide you with the skills to better analyze a company based on publicly available information.

Obtain the Whole Foods Market 2010 Annual Report by visiting the Whole Foods Market site or searching Google. Review Whole Foods Market’s 2010 accomplishments as well as its goals and strategies for the future.

Based on your review, respond to the following:

What is the Whole Foods’ company strategy? What were the company’s goals and were they successful in achieving those goals?
Would you invest in Whole Foods stock? Why or why not?
What recommendations would you make to senior management for the upcoming year? Would you consider expanding into new markets? Would international expansion be profitable? Are there new products or services that you would recommend to management to offer? Are there markets that you might recommend closing or products/services that should no longer be offered? Should prices be reduced or increased?

(Note: Stating you have no advice or that management should keep doing what they have been doing is not sufficient.)

Write your initial response in 200–250 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

By Saturday, August 1, 2015, post your response to the appropriate Discussion Area. Through Wednesday, August 5, 2015, review and comment on at least two peers’ responses in a minimum of 100 words. Consider the following in your analysis of peer responses:

What have you learned from your fellow students’ analyses?
Do you agree with their recommendations to senior management? Why or why not?

CO #6: Discuss the principles of data integrity, professional ethics, and legal requirements related to data security, regulatory requirements, confidentiality, and client’s right to privacy. (PO #6)

– Describe in detail the following elements associated with Ziegelmueller’s model of an argument:
a. Data
b. Reasoning process
c. Claim

2- Identify and describe three assertive techniques.

3- Briefly define the following:
a. Initial credibility
b. Derived credibility
c. Terminal credibility

4- Briefly describe the listening preferences identified by Kittie Watson and Larry Barker.

5- How does Schema Theory relate to listening responses?

6- Briefly define the following types of arguments:
a. Analogy
b. Sign (circumstantial evidence)
c. Causal correlation
d. Causal generalization
e. Example

7- Briefly summarize the thesis of the following theories: attitude change theory, consistency theory, and social judgment..

8- Briefly describe the listening preferences identified by Watson and Barker.

9-Over the past 40 years there have been three approaches to explain the process of listening as it relates to a second-language listening. Identify and explain these three models

10- The listening quad is described as foundational to teaching listening. Explain the listening quad and how it may be adapted to the communication classroom.

Theories Of Human Learning And Cognition

Overview

Write 5–6 pages in which you examine two or three conceptual approaches to a learning- and memory-related research question.

Psychologists need to understand three conceptual approaches to memory and learning: neurological, behavioral, and cognitive.

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:

• Competency 1: Use information technology and tools to identify information in the domain of learning and cognition. ▪ Summarize scholarly research articles.

• Competency 2: Assess the important theories, paradigms, research findings, and conclusions in human learning and cognition. 
▪ Apply different approaches to learning and cognition to a particular research question. ▪ Explain how research findings apply to a particular research question.
▪ Describe the conceptual approach being used in a particular research article.

• Competency 3: Analyze the research methodology and tools typically associated with the study of lifespan development. 
▪ Describe the methods and measures used in different conceptual approaches to learning and cognition research.

• Competency 5: Apply knowledge of theory and research in learning and cognition to inform personal behavior, professional goals, and values in order to understand social policy. 
▪ Apply knowledge of theory and research in learning and cognition to inform personal and professional behavior.

• Competency 6: Communicate effectively in a variety of formats.
▪ Write coherently to support a central idea in appropriate APA format with correct grammar, usage, and 
mechanics as expected of a psychology professional.

You are the manager of Acme Fireworks, a fireworks retailer who sells fireworks, puts on ground display fireworks, and large aerial display fireworks. The company started in the owner’s garage two years ago and now has 15 employees that you manage. The company started as a sole proprietorship, and the owner has never changed the entity. The owner has informed you that the company has received inquiries from several large businesses wondering if the company could create several fireworks displays on a regular basis. The owner told the inquirers that the company could fill such display orders, and a price per display was agreed upon. It was discussed that most of the cost for a fireworks display is for skilled labor, insurance, and the actual service of setting off the fireworks. No other details were discussed. The owner is anticipating that new employees will need to be hired, but he is worried that if the large orders for fireworks displays do not continue, the company will not have the funds to pay the new employees. The owner is now considering changing the business entity, but he does not know what entity to form or how to form it.

The owner has asked you to do the following:

Determine if the contracts with the businesses will be governed by common law or the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), and explain why.
Analyze whether the owner formed a contract with the businesses, and apply the five essential elements of an enforceable contract.
Explain the potential personal liability to Acme Fireworks if a spectator is injured by a stray firework from a fireworks display.
Discuss the different employment types and relationships relevant to agency law, and analyze the advantages and disadvantages of each type specific to Acme Fireworks.
Explain why Acme Fireworks should not operate as a sole proprietorship. Recommend a new business entity, and provide rationale to support your recommendation.

CSR Evaluation

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CSR is an evolving concept and set of practices. There are increasingly more standards and guidelines for companies to follow, but there remain many differences among companies in how sustainability practices are employed and deployed. As a manager and as a student of sustainability, you must learn to sort, prioritize, and negotiate among CSR desires and needs in order to balance these with what is possible and ethical.

Instructions:

You will create a case study on a corporation that is listed in the 2014 Fortune 500 Global Index that addresses the following.

1 Create a description of your corporation that provides the reader with its Fortune rank, type of industry, its Global Standard Industrial Classification (GSIC), CEO name, number of employees, headquarters, number of offices globally, reported sales and company performance over the last fiscal year (including data from Standard & Poor’s and one other source).

2 Evaluate the company’s CSR position. Incorporate evidence of its compliance with or violation of CSR principles, including information from the company’s website and two sources external to the company. (Note: These two external sources are not considered part of the five scholarly sources that are required for this assignment.). Incorporate the ranking of the company’s CSR and sustainability practices from at least two rating sources, including one non-profit or NGO source. (Note: These two rating sources are not considered part of the five scholarly sources that are required for this assignment.)

3 Evaluate the company’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, using the SWOT model, relative to its CSR and sustainability performance.

4 Devise a concluding plan that provides your opinion of the company’s overall level of social responsibility.

Requirements:

• Your paper should be 12-15 pages in length, not counting the required title and reference pages.

• Incorporate at least five scholarly references to support your claims and findings. You may not use the required or recommended readings for this course. Format your paper, including all in-text citations and references, according to APA requirements

You will choose a Statistics topic from the material that you learned this semester and write a report about your topic. You will conduct research on the background of the topic and include an example of how the statistical approach is used in modern Engineering.

Projects Due: August 15, 2015:
– Research projects are to be at least 5 pages including images and excluding the Literature Cited
– Paper Format: 12 Times font, single spaced, 1 in. margins
– Submission: Your project is to be submitted using Blackboard and will be uploaded using the TurnItIn link under the “Statistics Project” tab

• Introduction: (≈ 1/2 page)
o Briefly describe the reason that you chose this topic
o Briefly describe the importance of this statistical approach
• Background: (≈ 1 page)
o Describe the statistics topic
o Explain who invented the approach
o Give a historic background on how this technique came about
• Importance in Statistics: (≈ 1-2 page)
o Describe why this topic is important to statistics
o Explain in which areas of our society this approach is important
• Importance in Modern Engineering: (≈ 1-2 page)
o Describe why this topic is important to engineering in today’s world
o Explain in which areas of engineering this approach is most important
• Example of Statistical Technique: (1/2 page)
o Make up a real world example problem of your choosing and analyze the solution to this problem using the statistical approach that you chose. It would be best for you to use Excel for this, but you are welcome to use any software you like.
o Briefly describe what the importance is of the solution to your example problem.

For this assignment, select a company from the following list:

Adelphia Communications Corporation
Arthur Andersen LLP
Coca-Cola
Countrywide Financial
Galleon Group
Global Crossing Ltd.
ImClone Systems Inc.
Microsoft
Monsanto
Nike
Tyco International
WorldCom

If you would prefer to complete this assignment using another company that has experienced an ethical crisis but is not included in the list of suggested companies, you must first obtain approval from your instructor.

Research the business and the ethical crisis the company has faced. Write a background summary report of 1,000 to 1,500 words. Your report should accomplish the following:

Summarize relevant information regarding the business and its history.
Summarize the crisis. What stakeholders were involved? What actions did they take? What were the results of those actions?
Explain the legal and ethical issues surrounding the crisis.
Include a minimum of four academic citations.

There are five essential principles of management. These include planning, organizing, directing, controlling, and leading

You and your teammate have been asked to give a presentation to a group of new managers in a health care setting. This presentation must cover each of the five principles discussed above. For each principle you will need to provide a real world example in which you or another leader has successfully performed the function and the impact that function had. You and your teammate need to demonstrate in your presentation the value each principle has in the real word.

Write a 350- to 700-word paper in which you explain how the portfolio management concept supports an organization’s mission and goals.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines

Due 8/1/2015

Scenario 2: Training on a new process

You are on a project management team for a medical association with three office locations. Each location has five administrative assistants, two records specialists, two transcriptionists, one office manager, three nurses, and three doctors. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) recently changed the standard operating procedure for releasing patient privacy information. All personnel must be trained in the new policies and procedures. Training hours per position are as follows: administrative assistants require 2 hours, records specialists require 3 hours, transcriptionists require 1.5 hours, office managers require 5 hours, and nurses and doctors require 1 hour. All offices reside in the same metropolitan area, within a 30 mile radius.

Define activities for a project based on the scenario you choose. You must include the following:

Identify the scope of the project.

Define the needs of the stakeholders.

Create a WBS for the project.

List necessary tools and techniques.

List activities, activity attributes, and milestones for the project.

Sequence the activities in a chart or diagram.

Submit your chart or diagram.

Due 8/8/15

Resources: Your Week Three and Four Individual Assignments and Ch. 9.1.3 & 10.2.3 of PMBOK® Guide

A Project Management Plan has many components. Some aspects of the plan are introduced in future courses in the project management certificate program. For the purpose of this assignment, include only the elements of the Project Management Plan discussed in this course and the preceding course in the project management certificate program.

Create a Project Management Plan in which you include the following:

The WBS created (from Week 3)

The activities defined (from Week 3)

The sequenced activity chart or diagram (from Week 3)

A human resource plan (from Week 4)