STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS/VISION, MISSION, GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS/VISION, MISSION, GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

MGT 599 Strategic Management

Module 1 – SLP

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS/VISION, MISSION, GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Simulation

To begin the MGT 599 SLP sequence, you first need to first run the simulation using the Default Decisions. In other words, use the prices and R&D percentages that are already there (do not change any decisions made by Joe Thomas).

Capture or collect the results for each product (W1, W2, and W3) for each year that you run the simulation. Copy (using Excel, by hand, or some other method) the financial results and marketing results, as well as the information provided by your Advisor.

REQUIRED READING:

Read the following scenario carefully before you proceed:

SCENARIO

It is December 31, 2016. Joe Thomas, the VP of Marketing at the Wonder Company, is smugly patting himself on the back for how well he has done with pricing and product development of the three company products: W1, W2, and W3. Of course, Joe knows his strategy was not creative at all (i.e., he did not change any prices or R&D allocations over the past five-year period: 2012 through 2016). But he is certain that he really did not need to change anything anyway, and that his overall performance is proof of his good work.

Sally Smothers, the CEO of Wonder Co., knows better, and she fires Joe (but why did she wait so long?).

On the same day Joe is fired, you are hired to replace him. And so…here you are, on December 31, 2016, as the new V.P. of Marketing of the Wonder Company. You are ready to move the company ahead into 2017. Your boss, Sally Smothers, expects you to make intelligent and informed product development and pricing decisions (after all, you are an MBA).

Session Long Project

Write a 6- to 7-page paper (not including cover and reference pages), using Sally’s instructions, which follow:

Sally asks you to review Joe’s decisions from 2013 through 2016 to see what was going on in terms of product development, sales, pricing, and performance. Your final report is due on Sally’s desk by January 15, 2017 – you have only 2 weeks to run the simulation, analyze your results, and write up the report, so you had best get started on this now!

Using the default decisions (i.e., make no changes within the simulation), analyze Joe Thomas’s decisions and results, and then write the report that Sally is requesting. Access the Wonder Company simulationand collect the data for each year. Determine where you believe Joe went wrong, and propose a new strategy. Support your revised strategy using financial analysis and relevant business theories.

KEYS TO THE ASSIGNMENT:

The key aspects to this assignment that are required to be covered in your paper include:

1. A review of each product – W1, W2, and W3 – its life cycle, and how each product stacks up in terms of price and performance.

2. Financial review of each product – W1, W2, and W3 – sales, costs, profitability, prices, unit margins, etc.

3. Market review: New Sales, Repeat Sales, Market Saturation, etc.

4. Propose an alternate strategy: A general idea of how you might do better with these products: what pricing and R&D allocations, etc., you would have put in place over the last four years, 2013 – 2016. In short, what would you have done differently than Joe Thomas at each decision point? Be specific.

SLP Assignment Expectations

Your paper will be evaluated using the grading rubric.

TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS:

Please note the following tips and suggestions:

• Include a cover page and reference page, in addition to the 6-7 pages of written analysis described above.

• Use section headings as appropriate. Use graphs, charts, or figures strategically – but do not use these as “space fillers.” Include large tables or graphics in an Appendix instead.

• Cite and reference all sources that you use in your work, including those that you paraphrase. This means include citations and quotation marks for direct quotes, and citations for that information which you have “borrowed” or paraphrased from other sources.

• Follow TUI Guidelines for well-written papers.

NOTE: Throughout the SLP sequence, you will be asked to make business decisions under conditions of incomplete information and uncertainty. To do so effectively, you will need to make assumptions based on what you have learned throughout the MBA program as it relates to the ways in which markets operate. To this extent, you need to rely on models, financial analysis, and theories from such classes as Organization Behavior, Economics, Finance, Accounting, and Marketing. In addition, the simulation will give you some additional market information as you progress.

Be sure that you draw explicitly on concepts and theories from the courses you have taken throughout the MBA program. That means you must “think like an MBA” and use the various data you are given. You will have to crunch the numbers and present your data analysis professionally by creating some simple tables, charts, and graphs.

Important information for writing discussion questions and participation

Welcome to class

Hello class and welcome to the class and I will be your instructor for this course. This is a -week course and requires alot of time commitment, organization, and a high level of dedication. Please use the class syllabus to guide you through all the assignments required for the course. I have also attached the classroom policies to this announcement to know your expectations for this course. Please review this document carefully and ask me any questions if you do. You could email me at any time or send me a message via the “message” icon in halo if you need to contact me. I check my email regularly, so you should get a response within 24 hours. If you have not heard from me within 24 hours and need to contact me urgently, please send a follow up text to

I strongly encourage that you do not wait until the very last minute to complete your assignments. Your assignments in weeks 4 and 5 require early planning as you would need to present a teaching plan and interview a community health provider. I advise you look at the requirements for these assignments at the beginning of the course and plan accordingly. I have posted the YouTube link that explains all the class assignments in detail. It is required that you watch this 32-minute video as the assignments from week 3 through 5 require that you follow the instructions to the letter to succeed. Failure to complete these assignments according to instructions might lead to a zero. After watching the video, please schedule a one-on-one with me to discuss your topic for your project by the second week of class. Use this link to schedule a 15-minute session. Please, call me at the time of your appointment on my number. Please note that I will NOT call you.

Please, be advised I do NOT accept any assignments by email. If you are having technical issues with uploading an assignment, contact the technical department and inform me of the issue. If you have any issues that would prevent you from getting your assignments to me by the deadline, please inform me to request a possible extension. Note that working fulltime or overtime is no excuse for late assignments. There is a 5%-point deduction for every day your assignment is late. This only applies to approved extensions. Late assignments will not be accepted.

If you think you would be needing accommodations due to any reasons, please contact the appropriate department to request accommodations.

Plagiarism is highly prohibited. Please ensure you are citing your sources correctly using APA 7th edition. All assignments including discussion posts should be formatted in APA with the appropriate spacing, font, margin, and indents. Any papers not well formatted would be returned back to you, hence, I advise you review APA formatting style. I have attached a sample paper in APA format and will also post sample discussion responses in subsequent announcements.

Your initial discussion post should be a minimum of 200 words and response posts should be a minimum of 150 words. Be advised that I grade based on quality and not necessarily the number of words you post. A minimum of TWO references should be used for your initial post. For your response post, you do not need references as personal experiences would count as response posts. If you however cite anything from the literature for your response post, it is required that you cite your reference. You should include a minimum of THREE references for papers in this course. Please note that references should be no more than 5 years old except recommended as a resource for the class. Furthermore, for each discussion board question, you need ONE initial substantive response and TWO substantive responses to either your classmates or your instructor for a total of THREE responses. There are TWO discussion questions each week, hence, you need a total minimum of SIX discussion posts for each week. I usually post a discussion question each week. You could also respond to these as it would count towards your required SIX discussion posts for the week.

I understand this is a lot of information to cover in 5 weeks, however, the Bible says in Philippians 4:13 that we can do all things through Christ that strengthens us. Even in times like this, we are encouraged by God’s word that we have that ability in us to succeed with His strength. I pray that each and every one of you receives strength for this course and life generally as we navigate through this pandemic that is shaking our world today. Relax and enjoy the course!

Hi Class,

Please read through the following information on writing a Discussion question response and participation posts.

Contact me if you have any questions.

Important information on Writing a Discussion Question

• Your response needs to be a minimum of 150 words (not including your list of references)
• There needs to be at least TWO references with ONE being a peer reviewed professional journal article.
• Include in-text citations in your response
• Do not include quotes—instead summarize and paraphrase the information
• Follow APA-7th edition
• Points will be deducted if the above is not followed

Participation –replies to your classmates or instructor

• A minimum of 6 responses per week, on at least 3 days of the week.
• Each response needs at least ONE reference with citations—best if it is a peer reviewed journal article
• Each response needs to be at least 75 words in length (does not include your list of references)
• Responses need to be substantive by bringing information to the discussion or further enhance the discussion. Responses of “I agree” or “great post” does not count for the word count.
• Follow APA 7th edition
• Points will be deducted if the above is not followed

• Remember to use and follow APA-7th edition for all weekly assignments, discussion questions, and participation points.
• Here are some helpful links
• The is a great resource