WK 1 & WK 5 DISCUSSIONS
Instructions:
Please refer to the Discussion Grading Rubric before starting the assignment. Be certain to read the case scenario carefully. The companies profiled in the case scenario are fictional (e.g. not real companies), so providing a citation for any statement about them will be considered a Support Error (point deduction). Be careful to address each question posed. Include APA formatted in-text citations and a reference list. (In this class, all applicable citations should contain the page or paragraph numbers. The only exception are videos or podcasts.)
Use the lettering system indicated below in your memo. Your answers should be listed in sections labelled "A" through "D".
CASE SCENARIO - PAUL'S DISCOUNT TIRES & REPAIRS BUSINESS STRATEGIC PLAN
It’s a Friday at 4:00 and you are looking at the clock – it’s been a tough week at Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs business, and the week is not over! The global COVID Pandemic has hit the business hard, and you saw several people working there laid off this week. You feel lucky to still be working as their business consultant!
The business is a family-owned and has been in business for over 21 years. The founder of the company, Paul Wilford, started the company as a small tire shop then expanded into service repairs. Now Paul’s grandson, Steve Wilford, runs the company which has grown to several million in annual revenues over the past couple years.
Steve Wilford stops by your cubicle. He looks worried and worn out from the long work day. Despite that, he greets you warmly.
“You are taking a course in Strategic Management right now, aren’t you?”, Steve asks you.
You reply yes.
“Well that is great timing,” says Steve “because I just drafted a 10-year strategy for our business! If I get you a copy, would you mind looking it over during the weekend and giving me your thoughts?”
You tell Steve that you’d be happy to give your input. Within 5 minutes, a one-page document is on your desk. At the top of the page is written “Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs Strategic Plan”. You start to read it in your remote work office at home.
The basics of the plan are highlighted with the following three (3) bullet points:
1. Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs core business will continue to be providing tires and minor vehicle repair services to our retail customers over the next ten years.
2. Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs will beat its competitors by providing the lowest price discount tires, vehicle repairs, exceptional customer service and quality work.
3. Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs culture is rooted in its 21-year history. Paul's will overcome the setbacks caused by the COVID Pandemic by sticking to its core values and cutting costs wherever necessary. Our people will help get us through these tough times.
You look at the bottom of the page and see a post-it note, with questions posed to you by Steve.
A. What is wrong about this strategy?
B. What is right about this strategy?
C. We are the market leader in discount tires and repairs our city, indicating that we currently have a competitive advantage. Will we sustain it with this strategy?
D. What is one thing we could do to improve on this strategy?
Directions for Initial Posting: Write a memo to Steve answering these four questions. Your memo should outline all four questions, and the answers to all four questions should be supported by course materials.
Other Writing Guidelines for this Discussion:
· Use the grading rubric while completing the project to ensure all requirements are met that will lead to the highest possible grade.
· This is a business memo to Steve Wilford who runs Paul's Discount Tires & Repairs. Ensure your memo answers all 4 questions, and that your writing is concise. There is a balance between providing a robust answer and writing succinctly and to the point.
· Third person writing is required. Third person means that there are no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first person writing).
· Contractions are not often used in business writing, so do not use them here.
· Students will not use direct quotation marks but will instead paraphrase. What this means is that you will put the ideas of an author or article into your own words rather than lifting directly from a source document. You may not use more than four consecutive words from a source document (including the case scenario) or change words in a passage as doing so would require direct quotation marks. Use a passage from a source document by putting into your own words (paraphrase) and attribute the passage to the source document. Changing words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having to have quotation marks. If direct quotes are presented, they will not be included in the grading.
· Use in-text citations and provide a reference list that contain a reference associated with each in-text citation.
· Only course materials (from this course's content) may be used. Sources other than this course's ebook or the course materials listed under content will not be considered as sources of support.
· Provide the page or paragraph number in every in-text citation presented. Refer to this link for more guidance on how to do this: In-Text Citations - Including Page or Paragraph Numbers
COURSE MATERIAL
What is Strategy and Why is it Needed?:
· What is Strategy? Common Misunderstandings
· Your Strategy Needs a Strategy
· What is Strategy?: The Three Levels of Strategy
· What is Strategic Planning, Really?
· Strategic Management Process
· Creating a Strategy That Works
Tools and Techniques: (Make sure you understand the nuances of each formula for Quiz 1)
· Most Important Financial Ratios