Category: Business

Critically discuss two recent developments in the international financial environment which appear to have impacted on your chosen company’s recent performance and development.

Prepare an individual report discussing the following:

Choose a Multinational Enterprise (MNE) listed on an internationally recognised Stock Exchange (including for example, London, Dublin, New York or Paris) and avoid Banks and Insurance companies.

 

With selected company you are required to:

a. Critically discuss two recent developments in the international financial environment which appear to have impacted on your chosen company’s recent performance and development.

Analyse how these two developments are likely to impact on the company in the near future. (14 marks)

b. Discuss the following key elements of the MNE’s international financial and/or risk management strategy (and how they appear to have affected the financial performance of your chosen company):

• Sources of finance

• Dividend policy (14 marks)

c. With reference to your chosen Multinational Enterprise (and using the most recent annual report published), analyse the financial performance (in terms of profitability, liquidity, efficiency and investment) of the company in the two most recent consecutive financial periods( e.g. 2018/19 or 2019/20, )

using 8 different accounting ratios (prior year comparative figures will be available in the annual report). (32 marks)

What lessons can we draw from this International Entrepreneur? (Lessons learnt should have links to underlying theories and concepts related to entrepreneurs)

International entrepreneurship

Instructions for Course work 1- Case Study on an Entrepreneur.

a. Word limit: 1500 (part A 1000 words, part B 500 words)

b. The assignment is on an “International Entrepreneur” and NOT on the Enterprises or Ventures they own.

c. NO TABLE OF CONTENTS

d. Students are to build/create the case studies using secondary sources (NO CUT, COPY and PASTE). Any plagiarism will not be accepted.

e. Students are free to choose any International Entrepreneur. Choice of IE will not have any bearing on the mark.

f.  Do check your similarity report before you submit your final work.

PART A: (1000 words)

– A brief introduction about an International Entrepreneur + Ventures. Should make use of IE definitions covered in class (Kizner, Hisrich, Oviatt and Mcdougall etc.)

– The motivation to set up the ventures/businesses supported by theories such as: familial influences, education etc.

– Apply trait theories here: Are Entrepreneurs born or made?

– Use effectuation theories by SAVARASTHY, (what makes entrepreneurs Entrepreneurial? What influences their decision making?), applying

whichever of the 5 Principles – Bird in hand, affordable loss, Crazy Quilt, Lemonade and Pilot in the sky – that your chosen IE may confirm to.

– What lessons can we draw from this International Entrepreneur? (Lessons learnt should have links to underlying theories and concepts related to entrepreneurs)

Part B: (500 words) – Themes

– Define the theme: for example, define Technology Entrepreneurship using 2 or 3 definitions

– What are the features of Technology Entrepreneurship? (or Other theme/s selected above)

– One Entrepreneur i.e Bill Gates is both Tech and Social (how do these marry into each other?)

– Try to capture the current debates on the subject

– Look at part A and compare, confirm and dis-confirm whether the literature is congruent with these definitions of an IE and the related themes applied in part B.

References: In alphabetical order + follow Harvard ref Style.

How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? express your educational and professional career objectives.

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure.

How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? express your educational and professional career objectives.

Describe how management has helped to positively influence the organizational culture within this company. You could consider using some specific examples, actions, or strategies that show how management has positively influenced organizationalculture.

Introduction of a Successful Company

Once you have selected a successful company, you will then analyze its application of the fundamental principles of management. Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:I.

Introduction.

Provideabriefoverviewofthesuccessfulcompanythatyouhavechosentobenchmarkformanagementbestpractices.

Consider including specific examples relating to the fundamental principles of management and the company’s mission and visionstatement.

II.Profile of a Successful Companya.

Explain how the company has communicated its mission and vision within the organization. In other words, explain how the company demonstrates the importance of the mission and vision to employees and otherstakeholders.

b.Identify the role management played in helping this company execute its strategic management plan. Justify your response.You could consider including a specific example of a time when this management plan led the company tosuccess.

c.Describe how management has helped to positively influence the organizational culture within this company. You could consider using some specific examples, actions, or strategies that show how management has positively influenced organizational culture.

d.Explain management’s pivotal role in the decision-making process within this company. Be sure to include specific decisions made by management based on principles of ethics. You could discuss specific decision-making models used by the company that may have helped the company besuccessful.

e.Evaluate how the use of the functions of management within this company has adhered to the principles of ethics. You could consider how using the functions of management while adhering to the principles of ethics may have impacted the employees of thecompany.

f.Explain how this company strategically uses human resources to develop its personnel. You could considerhow this use of human resources has enhanced the company’s business processes.

III.Conclusiona.Summarize how the company utilizes the fundamental principles of management to ensure optimal performance. You could consider the actions taken by this company if optimal performance is notmet.

b.Analyze the decision-making strategies of the company for how they consider all the parts of the company as an interrelated system.

You could consider how the decision-making strategies of the company align with a systems thinkingapproac

Describe your initial thoughts on how insights from the required data to be collected could help to inform business decisions.

Economic and Political Environments Comparison

There are many factors that should be examined when considering a new international market. In this assignment, you will explore how a company can qualify or quantify economic factors of markets and how it can influence the process of selecting a new market for a product. As you complete this assignment, consider how the lessons learned and resources used can be applied to your course project.

Prompt

You are an international trade consultant ranking the overall quality of various international markets for a product of your choosing. Select a product you would be interested in introducing to a new market, then complete the Module Three Assignment Template (located in the Guidelines for Submission section of this document). Then rank your recommendations for a new market and justify your rankings using key economic and political data points. Examples of products include digital cameras, activity trackers, curtains, coffeemakers, and so forth.

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

Application of Data: Describe your initial thoughts on how insights from the required data to be collected could help to inform business decisions. For example, consider what information each data point provides, whether you think some data points should be weighted more or less heavily than others in making a business decision, what ideal data points might look like for expansion into a new market for your product, the ways that different political systems may impact a decision, and so forth.

Political and Economic Data Collection: Complete the table in the provided template by finding the appropriate information and data points for each identified category using course and external resources.

Ranking and Rationale: Rank the appropriateness of introducing your selected product into the three markets from “most appropriate” to “least appropriate” using the gathered political and economic data you collected, then provide a rationale for why you ranked the markets the way you did on the basis of the data you gathered.

Guidelines for Submission

Submit the completed Module Three Assignment Template. In Sections One and Three, complete sentences should be used. In Section Two, numbers are appropropriate. Sources should be cited according to APA style.

Discuss what you would need to consider when determining if the company should buy raw materials with the foreign currency in an effort to avoid foreign exchange risk and whether this is a viable option for the company.

Foreign Exchange

Foreign exchange impacts the profitability of transactions in international markets. It can turn a profitable business into one that loses money and can turn an unprofitable business into one that makes money.

In this assignment, you will analyze the impact of foreign exchange on different business scenarios and present your findings in a short business memo.

Scenario

You manage the international business for a manufacturing company. You are responsible for the overall profitability of your business unit. Your company ships your products to Malaysia. The retail stores that buy your products there pay you in their local currency, the Malaysian ringgit (MYR). All sales for the first quarter are paid on April 1st and use the exchange rate at the close of business on April 1st or the first business day after April 1st if it falls on a Saturday or Sunday. The company has sales contracts with different vendors that determine the number of units sold well in advance. The company is contractually obligated to sell 4,000 units for exactly 1.25 million MYR for the first quarter. The break-even point for each unit is $90 in U.S. dollars. Use the following foreign exchange rates:

On January 1, the daily spot rate is 3.13 MYR, and the forward rate is 0.317 U.S. dollars/MYR for April 1st of the same year.
On April 1, the daily spot rate is 3.52 MYR.

Prompt

Using the information above, create a short business memo that explains the profitability, viability, and importance of considering foreign exchange on the basis of the scenarios below.

Scenario 1: The company uses the spot rate on April 1st to convert its sales revenue in MYR to U.S. dollars.

Scenario 2: On January 1st, the company uses that day’s forward rate today to lock in a foreign exchange rate for its expected 1.25 million MYR in sales. This means the company agreed to exchange 1.25 million MYR using the forward rate on January 1st when April 1 arrives.

Scenario 3: Another option for the company is to spend the foreign currency and avoid any currency exchange. Because it is a manufacturing company, raw materials are always needed.

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

Foreign Exchange Calculations: Determine the profitability of the international business by using foreign exchange calculations for the first and second scenarios.

Spend or Save: Discuss what you would need to consider when determining if the company should buy raw materials with the foreign currency in an effort to avoid foreign exchange risk and whether this is a viable option for the company.

Conclusion: After determining the result for each scenario, explain the importance to a company’s financial results of considering foreign exchange risk.

Guidelines for Submission

Submit this assignment as a 250- to 300-word Microsoft Word document. Sources should be cited according to APA style.

Explain how the company uses the total cost approach to coordinate the selected logistics activities in a cost-efficient manner. Identify the tools and/or methods (as described in Chapter 4 of your textbook) that the company uses to measure the quality of its logistics performance.

Connecting Logistics and Financial Performance

You will play the role of a logistics analyst who is creating a report on the contributions of logistics activities to a company’s overall business performance.

Select any publicly traded company. Research this company’s website and relevant business documentation to evaluate the company’s performance and profit models, such as inventory turnover, return on assets, or other models that the company uses to measure its performance. Possible sources of information include the company’s annual report, income statement, or other financial documents that report the company’s revenues, expenses, and profits.

These are usually published on the company’s Investor Relations page on their website.

Identify two logistics-related activities the company utilizes to achieve its business goals. You may select, for example, the company’s inventory management system, warehousing operations, order management, transportation management, international logistics, or any other activities.

Your 200-250 word post must include the following:

Name the company that you chose and identify and describe the two logistics activities you selected that support the company’s supply chain and business strategies.

Explain how the company uses the total cost approach to coordinate the selected logistics activities in a cost-efficient manner.

Identify the tools and/or methods (as described in Chapter 4 of your textbook) that the company uses to measure the quality of its logistics performance.

Describe one tool/method, and briefly explain what it measures and how it works.
Support your report with credible sources, citing from the company’s websites, business publications or articles, and assigned readings from this week. Reference them in your discussion post in proper APA style

What are the competitive advantages and disadvantages of the Old World vineyards?Should the French government relax its AOC system, allowing French vintners to expand the size of their chateâux to capture economies of scale? Why or why not?

The Growing Trade in Growing Grapes

USE THE ATTACHED TEMPLATE

Write a 4 page paper in APA format (not including the cover page and reference page).

Read the case, The Growing Trade in Growing Grapes (P.180-181).

Prepare your composition to cover the following topics or questions with in the Body section of the paper described for this assignment:

Both Old World vineyards and New World vineyards compete in the global market place.

What are the competitive advantages and disadvantages of the Old World vineyards?

Of the New World vineyards?

Why are French wines able to command a price premium in export markets?

Should the French government relax its AOC system, allowing French vintners to expand the size of their chateâux to capture economies of scale? Why or why not?

Should the U.S. government adopt an AOC system to ensure the quality of U.S. wines destined for export markets?

“Bottle shops”—small retail outlets specializing in selling fine wines—might purchase a case or two of a specific wine when placing an order. (A case typically consists of a dozen 750-milliliter bottles.) Buyers for large multistore firms such as Tesco or Walmart often order thousands of cases at a time.

Which type of retailer is likely to specialize in Old World wines? In New World Wines?

Give a reason for your answer.

How do modern firm based theories of international trade apply to this case?