Business Concept
Your idea is to bake fresh cookies to order, using any combination of ingredients that the buyer wants. You will not bake any cookies before receiving the order; therefore, the buyer will be getting cookies that are literally hot out of the oven.
The Production Process
Baking cookies is simple: mix all the ingredients in a food processor; spoon out the cookie dough onto a tray; put the cookies into the oven; bake them; take the tray of cookies out of the oven; let the cookies cool; and, finally, take the cookies off the tray and carefully pack them in a box. You and your roommate already own all the necessary capital equipment: one food processor, cookie trays, and spoons. Your apartment has a small oven – because of this, you will only accept orders of exactly one dozen cookies. The variable costs are the cost of the ingredients (you estimate that this is $0.60 per dozen cookies) and the cost of the box in which the cookies are packed ($0.25 per box).
You and your roommate have timed the necessary physical operations. It takes 6 minutes to wash out the mixing bowl from the previous batch, add all of the ingredients, and mix them in your food processor. Spooning out the cookie dough onto a tray takes 2 minutes.
Putting the cookies into the oven and baking them takes 10 minutes. The activities of removing the cookies from the oven and putting them aside to cool take 5 minutes. Finally, taking the cookies off the tray and putting them into a box takes 3 minutes. The cookies are then ready for pickup.
In: Operations Management
Joe is a pastry chef and he wants to open up a bakery but does not have the funds to do it on his own. He was also denied a loan from the bank. He is not sure whether he should form a general partnership with his friend from pastry school or a limited partnership with his rich cousin who is a plastic surgeon and doesn't know anything about running a bakery.
1. How could you advise Joe?
2. What would be the practical differences between the two scenarios?
In: Operations Management
Discuss the relationship between organisational structure, control systems, incentives and culture regarding the implementation of strategy.
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In no less than 200 words, discuss:
Should corporations only get their power from solar power? Why or why not?
In: Operations Management
You should look at three or four out of the following aspects of the company Apple: the
business environment for a company, globalization, diversity, ethics and corporate social
responsibility, leadership, motivation or teamwork. Examine the company’s current situation
(advantages or problems), challenges, and give recommendations
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Does Apple's alleged conduct fit within the definition of a monopoly?
In your response, remember that this same question was asked in the text about Apple's nearly 70 percent share of the online music market.
Is it true that the fleeting nature of monopolies in the tech area takes care of the problem? Support your answer.
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Describe Xiaomi corporation's diversification strategy. What type of diversification strategy is Xiaomi Corporation pursuing? Explain.
(USE YOUR OWN WORDS: at least 400 words)
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2. Courtney Newell, manager of the Silver Park Hotel, is considering how to restructure the front desk to improve guest service during the peak check-in hours of 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. At present, the hotel has 5 clerks on duty each with a separate waiting line.
Courtney is considering two plans for reducing the guest’s waiting time. The first proposal would be to implement a single waiting line in which guests would be served by whichever of the 5 clerks becomes available first. Observations of arrivals during the peak check-in time show that a guest arrives on average every 40 seconds. It takes an average of 3 minutes for the front-desk clerk to register each guest.
The second proposal would designate one employee as a “quick-service” clerk for guests registering under corporate accounts, a market segment that comprises about 30% of Silver Park’s guests. Since these guests would be pre-registered, it would take an average of only 0.5 minutes for the front-desk clerk to register them. Under this plan, the non-corporate guests would form a single line and proceed to the first available of the 4 remaining clerks. The average time for registering a non-corporate guest is 3.4 minutes.
Which proposal should Courtney implement? Provide appropriate quantitative evidence to support your recommendation.
In: Operations Management
Case Study - XYZ Apartment Building (Part 1)
One page: double spaced typed
XYZ Apartment Building, located in Manhattan, New York, consists of 150 units. The property is 75% occupied. The monthly rental rates are as follows:
Total monthly expenses are $1,250,000. Monthly debt service is $1, 150,000.
The property has not leased according to the underwriting projections and as a result there is a significant amount of deferred maintenance. The property is 2 years old.
To add fuel to the fire, the Tenants put together a list of demands along with a timetable to cure the deferred maintenance. To this end, the tenants have scheduled a meeting with the Owner, Property Manager and Leasing Agent.
The Owners are outraged with the overall management of the property. In preparation for the meeting with the tenants, the owner has asked the Property Manager to put together a plan to cure the deferred maintenance. The owner would also like to see a marketing plan from the Leasing Agent. The goal is to have the building 100% occupied in 3 months.
Participants:
Students Determine if the property achieves breakeven
Property Manager Develop deferred maintenance plan
Leasing Agent Develop 3 month marketing plan
Tenants Put together list of demands / deferred maintenance
Lawyer Put together the agenda for the meeting
Students Present recommendations
Case Study - XYZ Apartment Building (Part 2)
One page: double spaced typed
The meeting last week with the Tenants, Owners, Property Manager and Leasing Agent was not as successful as the Owners would have liked.
From the Owners prospective, the Property Manager and the Leasing Agent did not provide enough information to make a prudent decision on the next steps. As a result, the Owners did not present a ‘united” front at the meeting which gave the Tenants the impression that nothing is going to be done to cure the deferred maintenance. To this end, the Tenants are considering seeking legal advice.
Another meeting is scheduled for next week. In preparation for the meeting, the Owners are requesting the following:
Tenants: Submit a formal detailed list of the deferred maintenance, prioritized and signed by the officers of the tenant association
Property Manager: Develop a detailed deferred maintenance plan. The plan should include the following:
Leasing Agent: Develop a 3-month marketing plan to achieve 100% occupancy. The plan should include the following:
Owners: Present a “united” front by doing the following:
Working together as a “team” to bring back harmony to the building
In: Operations Management
What is a healthcare business plan? How would you use a healthcare business plan to improve an organization? As part of your response, use at least two of the following terms: income statement, payback period, net present value, and internal rate of return.
In: Operations Management
Explain the different type of Intellectual Property. How can you protect Intellectual property? And How can monitor intellectual property infringement?
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A low-cost furniture company relies on its customers to assemble their products. Give some examples in which the company is not fulfilling the “Duty of Care” liability and Negligence. Explain the differences.
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Prepare and record a 8-10 minute Kaltura presentation with a Power Point that summarizes your reflection on the learning experience within the MBA degree program. This is not reflection of this course, but rather an reflection of the comprehensive MBA program and your assessment of your achievement.
It should reflect your candid assessment of the level of achievement of degree’s overall Learning Outcomes listed below:
In: Operations Management
Critical Thinking Assignment
Starbucks in 2009, the company launched an instant coffee brand: VIA Ready Brew.
Develop a one-page summary presentation. Include a solid introduction and conclusion to Howard Schultz, CEO.
What is the S-T-P?
What are Starbucks’ core competencies?
How would you recommend to launch the product? (Think downstream marketing)
What are the calculated risks? (Think upstream...)
Key question: why did Starbucks develop this product?
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