Business Finance - Management HOMEWORK

SWOT Analysis 1

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

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Instructions

Background

Assume that you are a consultant to a publicly traded global company. Top managers have requested that you create a strategic plan for them, including a SWOT analysis. A strategic plan is a document that organizations develop to communicate goals and the actions needed to achieve those goals. The plan also has a timeline that includes all critical elements in the planning exercise. Review the company's financials. Identify if the company met the financial goals for the previous fiscal year. Explain and be specific in your report. 

Instructions

For this assignment, complete a SWOT analysis of your company using the template included in this week's resources. Identify at least three points for each of the four SWOT categories. Then, write at least three recommendations for improvement based on the analysis results. For each recommendation, you must identify how this will be put into action (implemented) and what the consequences of each recommendation might be (what could happen after implementation, both positive and negative). 

Length: 1-page SWOT analysis with 4-6 pages of recommendations, not including title and reference pages 

References: Include at least 2 scholarly resources.

Additional Resources

· Company Information & SWOT Analysis

· Citation Resources Guide: APA

Grading

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Instructions

Background

Seminal writing on organizational design and structure identified two basic types of organization: mechanistic and organic. These two categories loosely define all forms of organizational structure.

Instructions

Many publicly traded firms (e.g., Fortune 500) will have organizational charts published on their websites. If not, they will have a list of people on the top management team. Based on their titles, you can get a sense of the firm's structure (e.g., product-based or geography). For this assignment, try to exclude Fortune’s top 50 organizations which include Amazon, Apple, and Walmart, to name a few. Determine if the organization is mechanistic or organic based on the definitions provided in this week's resources. Then, write a paper addressing the following: 

· Research your chosen organizational structure. On a scale of 1 to 10 (using a table or chart), rate your perception of the following characteristics of the organization: 

· Mechanistic vs. Organic

· Task Role: Rigid or Flexible

· Communication: Vertical or Multidirectional

· Decision Making: Centralized or Decentralized

· Sensitivity to Environment: Closed or Open

· After completing this assessment, prepare a summary in which you analyze your results and explain why each characteristic was rated as it was. Support your response with examples. Then, identify which aspects of the organization's structure you would change. 

· Create an updated organizational chart for your chosen organization that depicts the new organizational structure (based on the suggested changes) and explains why and how this new design reflects an improvement in the organization's ability to meet its goals. 

· Conclude the paper by explaining how managers might assess whether your proposal operates as intended after 12 months. What key performance indicators would you measure and why? 

As an appendix to your assignment, please include the organizational chart you found online with the updated organizational chart for comparison.

Length: 5-7 pages, not including title and reference pages

References: Include at least 2 scholarly resources.

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Instructions

Background

For this Signature Assignment, you will assume the role of a member of the strategic planning team after the merger (also called horizontal integration) of two of the companies you used in this course. This merger intends to broaden the scope of the newly merged company and increase accessibility to global markets. As a strategic planning team member, your first task is to provide a draft recruitment plan specifically for addressing the need for three additional members of the company's management team.   

Instructions

Assess the following and prepare a report, including appropriate tables or charts as needed, in which you address each item using what you have learned in this course as background, leading to identifying three final members to serve on the management team. Use the following questions to help think through this frame of the strategic planning process: 

· Where are you now?

· Where do you want to be?

· How do you get there? 

Use your creative thinking skills to add information that may not be available in your references. Address the following in your plan: 

· Provide details of the company's product(s) or service(s).

· Describe the company's background, current number of employees and locations, and the primary organizational culture.

· Discuss any considerations based on your research of the company that may challenge or hinder the selection of the most qualified candidates. 

· Discuss how a change like a merger will affect employee engagement and offer strategies to keep employees engaged.

· Explain how the S.W.O.T. analysis might help select the final three strategic management team members.

· Outline the criteria that will be used to select the final three members of the strategic management team and the rationale for choosing specific characteristics for each of the three members. 

Note: Write a statement at the end of your report that includes specific steps you have taken to minimize personal bias in producing this report.   

Length: 10 to 12-page strategic plan, not including title and reference pages.

References: Include a minimum of 4 scholarly resources.

The terms "international," "multinational," and "global business" are often used interchangeably; however, there are differences among these terms. Multinational Corporations (MNC) have facilities and assets in at least one country other than their home countries. They adjust their products (i.e., goods, services, and ideas) to each local market. Global companies in several countries promote and distribute the exact image/brand in all markets. Still, managing in either form of international business requires understanding the political, cultural, economic, and regulatory environment of the countries where they operate. Also, it is important to know how people are different in each culture. The cultural dimensions of humane orientation, individualism/collectivism, and others are key to understanding people as part of your work as a leader and a manager.

Instructions

After reviewing the learning materials for this week, select three countries from three different parts of the globe (e.g., North America, Pacific Rim or Colony, Europe). Prepare a report that includes the following:

· Briefly introduce the importance of understanding cultural dimensions in global leadership.

· Compare and contrast the three countries based on cultural dimensions. Discuss challenges and considerations to accommodate operating and producing goods and services during a global health crisis.

· Explain how you would manage a typical work situation (choose a work scenario that you are familiar with that might include training, general supervision, etc.) regarding each of the three cultural dimensions within the countries identified earlier.

· Use what you learned from the Week 1 self-assessment to discuss how your leadership strengths and limitations would help or hinder your approach to managing the situation described earlier.

Length: 5 to 7-page report, excluding title and reference pages.

References: Include a minimum of 3 scholarly resources.

Additional Resources

· Citation Resources Guide: APA

· Student Paper Template

Grading

This assignment is worth 10 points and is due on Sunday. For more specifics on how this will be graded, refer to the rubric below.