7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item

7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item

Question 1

The Australian car industry operates within a relatively small domestic market and faces increased competition from imports. It is perceived value as a ‘strategic industry’, along with political considerations, has seen successive Australian governments providing financial and other assistance to this industry sector. In 2008, for example, the Productivity Commission calculated that total assistance — including financial assistance and remaining tariffs — equaled $23,500 for each automotive industry worker per year. While tariffs have since been further reduced, the government has continued to provide new funding for the sector, including a recently curtailed ‘Green Car’ program. While many economists have raised concerns over the efficiency of car industry subsidies, the leader of the federal opposition, Tony Abbott, recently stated that car making was essential to Australia’s status as a ‘'first world economy’. In early 2012 the federal Manufacturing Minister, Kim Carr, also visited the headquarters of General Motors and Ford in Detroit, USA, to try and gain commitments from these firms that they would continue to manufacture motor vehicles in Australia.

The Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education has asked your firm to provide an independent report that critically analyses the above situation and provide conclusions and recommendations regarding the future of the Australian car industry. Critical questions that your report needs to address include:

·         Should the Australian government continue to use tax payer money to support a local car industry? (Why? Why not?) and

·         Do you think the retention of a car manufacturing sector is essential to Australia’s status as a ‘first world economy’? (Why? Why not?)

Please remember that your conclusions must be supported by your research and analysis. Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include international trade theories the political economy of international trade and foreign direct investment).

Question 2

Cloud computing represents a potential paradigm shift in how organizations access and use information, communication and technology (ICT) services. Put simply, Cloud providers offer firms the ability to source ICT infrastructure and services from external providers via the internet; many such providers are located offshore. Cloud services include: infrastructure as a service (IaaS) – includes shifting an organization’s data into externally based data bases; Platform as a service (PaaS) – provides organizations with underlying hardware, operating systems, storage and network capacity via the internet; Software as a service (SaaS) – includes internet based email systems; and Business processes as a service (BPaS) – outsourcing of former in-house services such as payroll or accounting services to internet based providers.

OZ University is a large public Australian university that has traditionally run its own relatively large internal IT section and associated data bases. It also currently provides and runs its own email system. However OZ University is currently looking to cut costs by shifting much of its ICT work and associated infrastructure and services to externally based Cloud providers. Please note that as a university its data bases contain large amounts of confidential information. It has asked your firm to provide a report that critically analyses its proposed Cloud computing outsourcing strategies. Your report should include conclusions and recommendations as to whether you think that OZ University should go ahead with its proposed Cloud computing plans? Please note:

        i.            If you conclude that the firm should go ahead and implement its Cloud computing strategies then your recommendations should address the potential challenges associated with this strategy (i.e. how the university should better address these challenges?);

      ii.            If you conclude that the university should not go ahead and implement its Cloud computing strategies then your recommendations should include ways to address some of the challenges associated with not using lower cost Cloud providers (e.g. how the University can remain competitive if other universities begin implementing Cloud computing strategies?).

Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include outsourcing/offshoring (make/buy) decisions and strategies.

Question 3

Securency is an Australian firm that specializes in polymer bank note technology. It is half owned by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA); Australia’s central bank. Polymer notes are more durable than conventional bank notes and are difficult to counterfeit. The export of polymer bank notes has therefore become an increasingly lucrative business for Securency. However, recently the firm has been at the center of allegations that some of its employees engaged in bribery and kickbacks in overseas countries where it has been awarded contracts. In 2011 six Australian businessmen linked to Securency were arrested and charged for allegedly paying bribes worth millions of dollars to officials in Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. These arrests have been extremely embarrassing for the RBA.

The RBA has asked your firm to provide a report that critically analyses the above situation and provides conclusions and recommendations that may assist the RBA and its subsidiaries in preventing similar problems in the future. Your report should further consider whether paying bribes is just a cost of doing business in these countries? (Why? Why not?). Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include international business ethics.